History of Fairfield County, Connecticut

"Whereas tho Gcnerall Court of Connecticut have formerly granted unto y* proprietors inhabitants of Korwalk, all tho*e lands iMtth uu>iidow nnd upland, ^vitllin these abutments, upon the Sea on the South, and to rutin fn.in the sea towards tlie north, full Twelve miles, and abut on the WildernoFs on the Xt)rth, nnd on Fairfield bminrls on the Eiist, and on Stamford Itounds un the West, the said land having been by purchnfie or otherwise lawfully ohtninod liy the Indian native proprietois; and where- as tho proprietors Inhabilants of Norw*alk liave niaile application to tho Governor nnd Conipnny of the Colony of Connecticut assembleil iit C«iurt Mny tho 14, 1085, that they may have a patient for confinunlion of the aforesaid binds to them so purchased and gmnted to them as aforesaid, and which they have stood Bei/cd and quietly possessed of for more than twenty years last past, without interruption; now, for n more full con- Armiition of Ihc aforesjii-l Trntts of hind, as it is butted and U>unded aforesaid, unto the present proprit'toi^ of the Township of Norwalk, — Know ye thnt the snid Governor and Company, assembled in Genendl Court, according to tho commission, nnd by viituc of the jwwer pnuited to them, by our late Sovereigne Lord King Charles tho Secmir/ of Bleasc 1 memory, in his lute patent bearing date the throo nnd twentieth day of Aprill in tho fourteenth yearof liissaid ni(0<-'!^tic*sRcigne, Have given and granted, and by these presentsi do give and grant. Ratiflo nnd Confinue, unto ^Ir. Thontas Kitch, Mr. Tlionins Ilnnford, Capt. Richard Olmsteml, Mr. Thomas IJennedick, Mr. Wnlter Ilovt, Mr. Matthew Miinen, Mr. John Kuscoe, Mr. Natlinniel Hayes, Itlr. I>aiiiel Kellog, and Sir. Thouin-i Seamore, and the rest of the present proprietors of tho Township of N'or- walk, and their heirs nnd assigns forever, and to each of theni, in such propotHou as they have already agreed upon for the division of the eanu-, nil thnt aforesaid tract and parcell of land as it is butted and bounded \ together with all tho woods, upland, nrabic lands, nu-adows, pastures, ponds, havens, purts, waters, rivers, ailjoining Islands, fishings, huntings, fuwlings, mines, minernllw, quarries, and preciouB stones, u|K>n or within the said tract of land, and nil other profits and coniniodities thereunto belonging, or in any wise nppi^rtaiiiing; and do also grant unto the afore named I^Ir. Thouuis Fitch, and Mr. Thunins lianford, . . . A'c, tliat the aforesaid tract of land shall be forever hereafter deeme<1, nnd reputeil, and b»s an entire township, of itself— To have and to hold tlio said tract of lanil, Ac, . . . acamling to the tonour of his mftjestie's nuuior of East Greenwich in the county of Kent in y' Kingdom of Knglani), in free and common socoage, and not in cnppitee nor by Knight senice; yielding and paying therefore to our Sovereigne Lonl the King, bis hiirs and auccer^ors, only the fifth paituf nil the Oar of Gold andf^ilver which from time to time, an 1 at nil times hercufter sluill bo gotten, had, ur \ otherwise obtnineil; In lion of all reuts, fcrrlccs, duties, and demands I whatsoever according to Charter. "Ix WITNESS whereof, we have caused the seal of tho Colony to 1*0 here- unto affixed, this eighthday of July, KJKC, in the second yearof the Reign of our Sovereigne Lord Jasif^s the In-cond, by the grace of Gwl, of Eug- Innd, Scotland, Frauce, aud Ireland King, Defender of the Faith, Ac. "RoBEBT Treat, " Gortrnor. " March SOtli, 1G8C, pr. ortler itf the ilMveruor nnd Company of tho Col- ouy of CoDocticut, signed " Pr. mo John Allyn, " Secretary. *'Tlio above M-ritton !•* a tnio copple of }•• original, being examined and compared therewith, July Sth, 1U8G. ** A true cople of y Record, "ElEAZAB KlMBEKLV, *' SwrWarjf. " Recorded Doc. 2l8t, 1708, "Pr. me John Copp, " lircordcr.** THE PIONEERS. Although the purcha.se of tlie Indians waa made in 1640, the permanent settlement of the town was not efleeted until 16r>l. Trumbull, in his history of Con- necticut, says, '* A few families seem to liave planted themselves in the town, about the time { 1040) of these purchases." llollister states that " the better evidence appears to be that a few bold planters had taken po8- ! session soon after these grants were made, and had ' continued to hold it until the arrival of the company." ; in 1651. n(»th of those authors have failed to cite any NORWALK. 485 authority for these statements, ami certain it is that no reference is made in tlic town records to tlio settle- ment of the town until 1(>51. The agreement of the settlers with Mr. Ludlow bears date June 19, ir).">(», but tlic iiernument settle- ment did not take place until ICiOl. As early as Feb- ruary 15th of that year the sturdy pioneers were all in their wilderness home, as appears in the deed from Eunekinheage and the other Indians. There is a tradition that a portion of the planters spent the winter of 1(350 here, which is doubtless true. The only names extant of the original settlers are those mentioned in the agreement with ]\Ir. Ludlow, as follows: "Nathaniel Eli, Rithard Olmstead, Ri- thard Webb, Nathaniel Rithards, Mathcw Marvin, Ritbard Seamer, Thoiiuis Spencer, Thomas Hales, Nathaniel Ruskoe, Isacke (Jraves, Ralph Keeler, John Ilidloway, Edward Church, John Ruskoe." This, of course, is not a complete list, as the article states that the agreement is entered into between Mr. Ludlow and those mentioned above, and "some others." The following is the most perfect list of the early settlers that is known to be in existence, Ijcing a table of " Estates of Lands and Accommodations," nuide in 1655 : George Abldtt, Robert Beacham, Stei)hen Beck- witli, John Bowton, Matthew Campficid, Nathaniel Eli, Thomas Fitch, John Griggorie, Samuel ILiles, Thomas Hales, Walter Haite, Nathaniel Haies, Rev. Thomas Hanford, Richard Homes, Ralph Keeiler, Walter Keeiler, Daniel Kellogge, Thomas Lupton, Matthew Marvin, Sr., Matthew Marvin, Jr., Isacke More, Jonathan Marsh, Widow Morgan, Richard Olmstead, Nathaniel Richards, John Ruskoe, Mat- thias Sention, Sr., Matthias Scntion, Jr., Matthew Sention, Thomas Seamer, Richard Webb. In a list of accounts in 1654 arc the following names, which do not appear in the preceding list of estates, viz. : ■ Bryant, Edward Church, Josei)h Fitch, Edward Nash, Richard Raiment, Richard Seamer, Giles Whitinge. In 1656 the following names also appear: Owen Morgan, William Reid. In the table of home-lots, the following names also appear: Thomas Benedict, Sr., Thomas Benedict, Jr., John Benedict, Thomas Betts, Richard Bushnell, Samuel Canipfield, Christopher Comstock, John Crampton, Thomas Fitch, .Ir., Joseph Fenn, John Gregory, Jr., Jakin Greggorie, Samuel Haies, Eph- raim Lockwood, Joseph Ketchum, John Keeler, James Pickett, Joseph Piatt, Mark Sention, Robert Stewart, Samuel Smith, Thomas Taylor, Thomas Ward. The fidlowing notices of the first settlers of Nor- I walk are from Hinman's "Catalogue of the Names of I the First Puritan Settlers of the Colony of Connecti- ' cut:" " .\lil.ott, Cioorgc, 1C4S.« " lii-tkwith, Stt'pluMi, IGIO. '■BL-liliiig, Juhn (sen i.f John, of Wttliersfi.-lil, wh.i .lifd IfiTT). " Hoiifilit-t, Thuiii.is, \m± '• I!i;tts, Thunias, tiiiiir.inl, lU.'.U.t " CaiiiticM (ur Ciiniplu-Kl), iMatthcw, u niaf^istiati- ami jii<I;;<-; nut only a leailnif^ man tlioii-, Imt in tln^ ri.l..ny. Ono uf tlit- si,i;ni.-is i.f the pc-ti- liuu to Kiny Chailes II. fur thcculuny ; in UK-Z uppuintutl with CiuKI and Sherinuri to hold courts at Fairliclil. " Ely, Nnthanicd, Hai tfoni, 10 ;,". ; coTistahh-, \&,t ; una of tlu- sctlh-is of Nurwalk, hilt afteiwards reiuuvrd tu Sprinyticld, ]\Ia.s8 " Kit.-li, Thoinii.«, a hrutlii-r of Uuv. Jauifs, at Sayhrouk, and of Jost-ph, of Windsor. " llri'gory, John, a di-pnty, ICUi-CS. . ' " Iluyt, Walter, Windsor, 1040. " Kfidi'r, Ualph, Ilai tford, iGM, viewer of diimneys In 1045. " .Marvin, Matthew, stirveyorof highways in 10:i'J and 1047 ; an original propiietor and settler in Hartford heforel03tl; removed to Nurwalk; deputy to tlie (ielieial Court from Norwalk in l(io4. ■■Olmsted, Kiehard, Hartford, 104(1, eoiistahle 1040, fenee-viewer 10411, deputy in 100-2-0;j; moved to Norwalk and w;is maile a military othcer. In IliOd was apjitdnteil with John Itanks and Josei)h .Indsun, whu were appointed hy the General Court to run the lines Ijetween I'aiilield ami Stlalfurd. ■■liiehards, Nathaniel, of Hal tfurd, in the colony in lo:i'.l; euiistahle in 1041 and li;4'J; oideler .it the town in 1044, deputy in li,4:;. '■Senehion, or St. John, Mattliia.s, 1040. "Seymour, Kicliaid, llartlord, lOJS), ciiimney-viewer in 1040,. " Wehh, liiehard, Haitfurd, U'liiU, on the flrst gland jury at the lleneial Court in the culuuy in 104 1. Also a juror in 104:j-44, seleelnian in 104S, surveyor of highways in 1049. He soon after removed to Stamtord ; wiui made free there in lOiiJ." The following list of first settlers is taken from the flrst book of grants and ileeds : "Kli/.aheth Wel.h, reliike of Hichal.l Wehh, in 1077, empluye.l her ' IJeUived hiolhei Juhn tiiegoiy tu make an agreement with Thomas Itutler uf Haittuid, and his wile,' they ' laying claime to the estate of my deere hnshand, Ki. hard Wehh, deeeiused.' (Fol. 51.) '■Kiehard Jionies, of Stialluril, Oct. l*.', 1057, huuglit of Alexander IJiyaii, uf Millord, the home-lot which wa.s Thomas Smith's, and Mareli, 100.1, the hinds uf Steliheli lieekwitll, planter, of Norwalk. '■filatthevv C'amidield, late uf Norwake, now resident in Newaike, in the etdony of New Jeisey, (gave a deeil) to his son .Samuel, .\pril 1, 1001). •'Samuel Hales, now of Weathel-stield, late of Norwake, sold to John riatt, .May 14, lOO'J. " Thomas ISarnani, of l-'airtiehl, had a grant hefore lOO.i. " Joseph Smith, late of Long Island, hunglit uf Samuel I 'ampfield the nurlh pall uf his hume-hit in 1075. " Samuel Smith, in 107:;, a parcel of land in Indianfleld. "Samuel liehliiig, Fell, as, 107:'., Ijuught twu parcels of lan.l in th.. Neck l.lanting-fii.hl. "James I'ickit, in 1074. "Tln.nuLS lietlB, Jr. (I'd. 55), in 1077, houglit of l!.-iijamiii F..|in, of Milh.ril, the huus.' and li..mc-l..t formerly helouging t.. hij hi.,th.l, J.jseph Fenn.