Civil War Soldier’s Wife — Elizabeth C. Sutherlin

B. about 1844 in Missouri
M. (1) 24 Dec 1863 in Ray County, Missouri
Husband: Simon C. Carey
M. (2) 13 Aug 1868 in Allen County, Kansas
Husband: James Hiram Hampton
D. about 1869 in (probably) Kansas

Elizabeth Sutherlin lived only about 25 years, but in that short time, she experienced a hardscrabble existence which included war and widowhood. 

Elizabeth was born in about 1844 to Jackson Sutherlin and Mary Fleming, the second oldest of their seven children. The Sutherlins had come from Indiana to settle in Missouri. When Elizabeth was 6-years-old, they were living on a farm in Holt County. The census showed that the value of their estate was much smaller than the families around them, and they likely didn't own their land. Elizabeth’s father was deaf, and this may have affected the family’s circumstances.

Ten years later, Elizabeth was listed twice in the census, maybe an indication that the family had moved. On July 13th, they were enumerated in Anderson County, Kansas, and on July 25th, in Lafayette County, Missouri. It was also recorded that at age 16, Elizabeth had attended school that year.

The area where Elizabeth lived was under siege by pro- and anti-slavery forces. During the late 1850s, the border region between Kansas and Missouri was a tense battleground, with one side performing atrocities against the other and vice-versa. It only got worse when the Confederacy was formed in 1861, which sparked the Civil War. Officially, Missouri was in the Union, but many Confederate sympathizers lived there, and bands of young men took recourse by terrorizing those not on their side.

On December 24, 1863, Elizabeth married an Irish immigrant, Simon Carey, in Ray County, Missouri. It’s believed that neither bride nor groom were yet 20-years-old. Her choice of husband was unusual because his background was so different from hers. Simon had already done a stint in the Union army from April 1862 to May 1863 and he was settling down to become a farmer.

Elizabeth almost immediately became pregnant, but Simon didn’t remain at home. On August 15, 1864, he volunteered for service again in the Union army, likely enlisting for the $100 bounty — an enormous amount of money at that time. Although they lived in Ray County, Elizabeth gave birth on October 7th in the town of Gardner, Kansas, possibly where her parents lived. Her baby boy was named Thomas Michael.

When the Civil War ended, Simon remained in the service until being discharged in September of 1865. He may have suffered an injury while in the army, because soon after, he died of an "abscess in his side." This left Elizabeth as a widow with a small child. She moved to Kansas where she married another former Civil War soldier, James Hampton, on August 13, 1868.

Unfortunately, Elizabeth passed away just a short while later, probably in 1869. There is a family story that she died in childbirth along with a baby girl. After her death, her young son Thomas was raised by her parents; his success and offspring became Elizabeth’s only legacy. 

Children:
1. Thomas Michael Carey — B. 7 Oct 1864, Gardner, Kansas; D. 5 Feb 1937, Coffeyville, Kansas; M. Bertha Gertrude Kightlinger (1875-1946), 21 Oct 1895, Burlington, Kansas

Sources:
1850, 1860 and 1870 U.S. Federal Census
Civil War military records of Simon C. Carey
“Tom Carey is Dead After Brief Illness”, Coffeyville Daily Journal, February 6, 1937

Disappeared and Drowned — Nicolas Baillargeon

B. 12 Sep 1713 in Montmorency, New France
M. about 1737 in (probably) Montmagny, New France
Wife: Marie-Madeleine Proulx
D. 10 May 1740 in Riviére-du-Sud, New France

In the colony of New France, the rivers were vital for its people, providing irrigation for their farms and transportation between settlements. But sometimes a river could also end a life, and such was the case for Nicolas Baillargeon.

Nicolas was born on September 12, 1713 to Nicolas Baillargeon and Marguerite Leclerc in Montmorency, New France, which was near Quebec City. Not much else is known about his early life. After he came of age, he crossed the St. Lawrence River to an area that was just being settled on the southern shore. In about 1737, he married Marie-Madeleine Proulx, probably in Montmagny where she was from. They had a daughter born in August 1738, and a son born in March 1740.

By 1740, Nicolas was living in St-Pierre-de-la-Riviére-du-Sud, a community on the Riviére-du-Sud (South River) upstream from Montmagny. The Riviére-du-Sud ran parallel to the St. Lawrence, about 3 miles inland; it had many twists and turns before jutting north and emptying into the larger river. The village of St-Pierre was clustered near the river, with ribbon farms pushing to the north and south. Evidence of this can still be seen from overhead views today.

2022 satellite view of St-Pierre-de-la-Rivière-du-Sud. (Source: Google Maps)

On the night of May 10th, Nicolas tried to cross the Riviére-du-Sud, but for some reason, he didn’t make it, and he drowned. The details of what happened are sketchy, but based on the geography of the area and the time of the year, it’s possible to speculate that snow melt-off may have caused the water level to be higher than usual. Strong currents may have also been a factor when Nicolas was swept away. His body wasn’t found until 18 days later.

Nicolas was buried in the parish cemetery of Saint-Thomas in Montmagny on May 30, 1740. His wife, Marie-Madeleine, remarried in 1745, and she died about 1753.

Burial record of Nicolas Baillargeon.

Children:
1. Madeleine Baillargeon — B. 24 Aug 1738, Montmagny, New France; D. 8 Sep 1819, St-Pierre-de-la-Riviére-du-Sud, New France; M. Charles-Alexander Joncas (1730-?), 23 Feb 1756, Montmagny, New France

2. Nicolas Baillargeon — B. 24 Mar 1740, St-Pierre-de-la-Riviére-du-Sud, New France; D. 6 May 1803, Vincennes, Indiana Territory; M. Françoise Plichon (~1759-1837), 24 Jul 1778, Post Vincennes, Illinois Territory

Sources:
Généalogie du Quebec et d’Amérique française (website)
Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1979, FamilySearch.org
Roster of Soldiers and Patriots of the American Revolution Buried in Indiana, Mrs. Roscoe C. O'Byrne, 1938

The Mother of Emigrants — Marie-Charlotte Dubois

B. 29 Jun 1797 in St-Joseph-de-la-Pointe-Lévy, Quebec
M. 19 Oct 1812 in St-Joseph-de-la-Pointe-Lévy, Quebec
Husband: Joseph Mignault dit LaBrie
D. Between 1847 and 1864 in Quebec

The early 19th century was a time of transition in the Côte-du-Sud region of Quebec. Fifty years after the English takeover of Canada, many French-Canadian farmers were finding it harder and harder to scrape out a living. For Marie-Charlotte Dubois, this meant that most of her own children would leave their homeland for a better life in the United States.

Charlotte was born on June 29, 1797 to Michel Dubois and Marie-Josephe Fournier in St-Joseph-de-la-Pointe-Lévy, Quebec, the oldest of 8 children. Her father was a farmer who died when she was 12-years old. Charlotte got married just a couple of years later. Her husband, Joseph Mignault dit LaBrie, was about 14 years older than she was, and the wedding took place at St-Joseph-de-la -Pointe-de-Lévy on October 19, 1812. It was a double wedding because her widowed mother got married the same day; it’s notable that her mother’s new husband was actually younger than hers. Both mother and daughter were pregnant the following year and gave birth to sons about six weeks apart.

As was common in French-Canadian families, Charlotte had a large number of children. By the late 1830s, she and her husband had ten children, with two of them being twins. Sadly, she lost her oldest, Joseph, when he died at age 7. In October of 1838, she had her eleventh and final child, Marie-Heloise, who lived for less than a year. By then, the family had moved to St-Chrysostome; later they were in St-Sylvestre, and then St-Norbert d’Arthabaska. Census records suggest that the LaBrie farm wasn’t thriving, and the fact they relocated several times is an indicator of their financial struggle. 

After Joseph passed away on July 15, 1846, little is known about Charlotte’s life. She was living at the time of her daughter Marie-Marguerite’s wedding on January 12, 1847, but had died by her son Benjamin’s wedding on November 3, 1864. One-by-one, Charlotte’s children migrated south to the United States, starting with Genevieve and François in about 1848. Most of them settled in Minnesota and Wisconsin, but Adelaide went all the way to northern California. Youngest son Edouard moved to the U.S. for a time, but did migrate to Alberta, Canada during the 1890s. Only Henriette and Benjamin seem to have stayed in Quebec; sadly, Benjamin was in a mental institution when he died. 

Charlotte's daughter Adelaide LeMay with her children Paul and Mary in Siskiyou County, California.  

Children:
1. Joseph LaBrie – B. 19 Sep 1813, St-Joseph-de-la-Pointe-Lévy, Quebec; D. 19 Dec 1820, St-Joseph-de-la-Pointe-Lévy, Quebec

2. Genevieve LaBrie – B. about 1815, Quebec; D. 15 Mar 1881, West St. Paul, Minnesota; M. Flavien Roberge (1813-1894), 8 Nov 1834, St-Jean Chrysostome, Quebec

3. Louis LaBrie – B. Nov 1818, Quebec; D. 22 Feb 1903, Minneapolis, Minnesota; M. Julie Fortier (1821-1904), 14 Sep 1841, Sylvestre, Quebec

4. Henriette LaBrie – B. 9 Sep 1822, Arthabaska, Quebec; M. Jean-Baptiste Boucher dit Morency (1819-1873), 27 Apr 1841, Sylvestre, Quebec

5. Jean-Baptiste LaBrie – B. 9 Sep 1822, Arthabaska, Quebec; D. 13 Jun 1905, Barron County, Wisconsin; M. Perpetue Demers (1827-1899), 27 Fe 1843, Blandford, Quebec

6. Marie-Marguerite LaBrie – B. about 8 Mar 1826, St-Joseph-de-la-Pointe-Lévy, Quebec; D. about 1888; M. Olivier Demers (~1822-?), 12 Jan 1847, Arthabaska, Quebec

7. Francis A. LaBrie – B. 15 Jan 1828, St-Joseph-de-la-Pointe-Lévy, Quebec; D. 27 Dec 1909, Minneapolis, Minnesota; M. Eliza Furlong (1830-1912), 23 Jan 1854, St. Paul, Minnesota

8. Benjamin LaBrie – B. (possibly) 1831, Quebec; D. 19 Feb 1907, Arthabaska, Quebec; M. Marie Vachon (~1833-~1896), 3 Nov 1864, Tlingwick, Quebec

9. Marie-Adelaide LaBrie – B. 15 May 1832, St-Jean Chrysostome, Quebec; D. 24 Apr 1915, Yreka, California; M. François Dassisi LeMay (1820-1880), 7 Feb 1853, Ramsey County, Minnesota

10. Edouard LaBrie – B. about 18 Jul 1834, St-Jean Chrysostome, Quebec; M. (1) Catherine Couture, 24 Sep 1860, Tlingwick, Quebec; (2) Josephine

11. Marie-Heloise LaBrie – B. about 16 Oct 1838, St-Jean Chrysostome, Quebec; D. Jul 1839, Quebec

Sources:
Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1979, FamilySearch.org
U.S Federal Census records, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880 and 1900
Canada Census (Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta) 1906
Find-A-Grave

Under Contract to Marry at Age 7 — Marie Brunet

B. 23 Oct 1677, Cap-de-la-Madeleine, New France
M. 31 Aug 1693 in Montreal, New France
Husband: François Bigras dit Fauvel
D. 12 Jan 1756 in Ste-Genevieve, New France

While it was typical for a girl in New France to have her adult life determined by her parents in an arranged marriage, few had their husbands chosen when they were still young children. That’s what makes Marie Brunet’s marriage contract so unusual.

Marie was born in Cap-de-la-Madeleine, New France on October 23 1677 to Mathieu Brunet dit LeTang and Marie Blanchard, the sixth of their ten children. Cap-de-la-Madeleine was located in the vicinity of Trois-Rivières, where Marie’s father became involved with fur trading. It was sometimes a rugged lifestyle outside of society’s norms, and Mathieu Brunet spent much time away from the family on expeditions out west. In his business dealings, he formed acquaintances and friendships with other men, and one of them was a 20-year-old named François Bigras dit Fauvel.

François was originally from La Rochelle and had signed a contract to become a servant in New France at age 17 in 1682. After the man he was assigned to work for passed away, François moved to Trois-Rivières, and this is where he came into contact with the Brunet family. His labor contract would have ended in 1685, and he probably then looked to settle down in the area. We can speculate that at this time, he asked Mathieu Brunet if he could take one of his daughters as a bride. Apparently he wasn’t in a rush to start a family; the document that was written up and recorded on August 25th was a promise to marry Marie, who at the time was two months shy of her eighth birthday.

Because she was obviously too young to perform the duties of a wife, Marie continued to live in her parents’ household for 8 more years. The actual wedding happened on August 31, 1693 at the Notre-Dame Church in Montreal, and afterwards, the couple settled in Lachine, a town just west of Montreal. Marie gave birth to her first child, Marie-Louise, the following year. She had another 12 children, with the youngest born in 1719, the only child who died young. 

Marie's 1693 marriage record.

François worked as a voyageur, which meant Marie spent many months alone raising the family as he traveled to places all along the Great Lakes. Wives of fur traders often took on the running of their husbands’ business dealings, and it can be assumed this was true for Marie. Several of her sons also became voyageurs as they came of age. In about 1713, the family relocated to Pointe-Claire, a place on the western part of the island of Montreal.

On July 25, 1731, François died in Montreal. Marie eventually moved to another newly-settled community, Ste-Genevieve, located on the north side of the island. She passed away there on January 12, 1756.

Incorrect Fact About Marie
In his book Phantoms of the French Fur Trade, Timothy Kent wrote that Marie had a child born out-of-wedlock in September 1691 (she would have been 13-years-old at the time). There is a Montreal baptismal record for an infant named Jean Piron dated September 18, 1691. The father of the child was Jean Piron and the mother was “Marie de Letang.” Since Marie had a sister Marie-Ann who married in 1689 to a man named Antoine Pilon, and the record doesn’t seem to indicate illegitimacy, this child seems to be of that marriage. It seems likely that the scribe mangled the father’s first name by repeating the baby’s name. Also, there was no family in New France named Piron, only the descendants of Antoine Pilon. With all of these facts, it would seem that the claim Marie gave birth to a son in 1691 is incorrect. 

Children:
1. Marie-Louise Bigras — B. 28 Oct 1694, Lachine, New France; D. 19 Jun 1772, Pointe-Claire, Quebec; M. André Franche-Laframboise, 16 Oct 1713, Pointe-claire, New France

2. Jacques Bigras — B. 14 Sep 1696, Lachine, New France; D. 4 Feb 1751, Detroit, New France; M. Angélique Clement, 13 Apr 1722, Pointe-Claire, New France

3. Marie-Françoise Bigras — B. 4 May 1698, Lachine, New France; M. René Aubin, 15 Jun 1716, Pointe-Claire, New France

4. François Bigras — B. 19 Feb 1700, Lachine, New France; D. 16 Jun 1781, St-Martin, Quebec; M. (1) Marie-Thérese Devoyau-Laframboise, 31 Jul 1724, St-Laurent, New France; (2) Marie-Thérese Bautron-Major, 31 May 1734, St-Laurent, New France

5. Marguerite Bigras — B. 26 Nov 1701; M. René Venet, 11 Aug 1722, Pointe-Claire, New France

6. Marie-Angelique Bigras — B. 20 Aug 1703, Lachine, New France; M. François Calvé, 30 Aug 1733, Pointe-Claire, New France

7. Alexis Bigras — B. 27 Jun 1705, Lachine, New France; D. 12 Feb 1791, Pointe-Claire, Quebec; M, (1) Marie-Catherine Prézeau, 3 Feb 1728, Pointe-Claire, New France; (2) Marie-Anne Meloche, 13 Feb 1764, Ste-Genevieve, Quebec; (3) Marie Benoit, 26 Feb 1781, Ste-Genevieve, Quebec

8. Joseph Bigras — B. 27 Mar 1707, Lachine, New France; M. Marie-Charlotte Goujon, 10 Jan 1729, Montreal, New France

9. Judith Bigras — B. 11 Feb 1709, Lachine, New France; D. 15 Jul 1755, Ste-Genevieve, New France; M. (1) Michel Desmoulins dit Lagiroflée, 15 Feb 1729, Pointe-Claire, New France; (2) Jean-Baptiste Gauthier, 3 Nov 1751, Pointe-Claire, New France

10. Marie-Anne Bigras — B. 12 Jul 1711, Lachine, New France; M. (1) Nicolas Briquet-Beque, 4 Nov 1731, Pointe-Claire, New France; (2) Etienne Groulx dit St-Marcel, 1 May 1764

11. Antoine Bigras — B. about 1713; M. Jeanne Cantureau, 14 Oct 1734, Quebec City, New France

12. Genevieve Bigras — B. 29 Apr 1714, Pointe-Claire, New France; M. (1) Jean Bernet-Larose, 1 Mar 1734, Pointe-Claire, New France; (2) Jean Spaure, 7 Jan 1761, Montreal, New France

13. Marie-Madeleine Bigras — B. 1 Dec 1719, Pointe-Claire, New France; D. 26 May 1722, Pointe-Claire, New France

Sources:
Généalogie du Quebec et d’Amérique française (website)
François Bigras (Wikipedia article)

On the Remote Frontier Of Indiana — Louis Godere

B. 14 May 1739 in Fort Ouiatenon, New France
M. 8 Feb 1770 in Post Vincennes, Illinois Territory
Wife: Barbe-Elizabeth Levron
D. 14 Jun 1794 in Vincennes, Northwest Territory

During the 18th century, present-day Indiana was populated with a few scattered outposts of French families, and villages of Indigenous tribes, which made for a culture mixed with elements of each group. This is where Louis Godere spent his life.

Louis was born on May 14, 1739 to François Godere and Agnes Richard at Ouiatenon, a small garrison and village on the Wabash River. Louis was one of about ten children; his father was involved in the fur trade, and his mother was the daughter of an interpreter of Native American languages. The name Godere appeared in records spelled many different ways — Godere, Gaudere, Gauder, Codere, Coder. Most people in the region were illiterate, and Louis couldn’t sign his name on documents, suggesting he had little or no education. 

It's easy to imagine Louis as a young child playing outside his home among fur traders, frontier soldiers, and Indigenous people. Ouiatenon was a French outpost next to an existing village of the Wea people, a sub-group of the Miamis tribe (Louis’ great-grandmother was a Wea). The location was said to be favorable because it was near the head of navigable water that fed into the Mississippi River system. Inside Ouiatenon's stockade were a double row of ten houses, a chapel, and a blacksmith’s shop. There may have been as many as 90 dwellings outside the stockade walls housing a mixture of French and Wea, and during the years 1720 to 1760, the population was as much as 3,000. 

Fort Ouiatenon in 1752.

It’s not known exactly when the Godere family moved downriver to Vincennes, but it was likely sometime around 1750. Louis’ father died around then and his mother remarried in Vincennes in 1756. The outpost of Vincennes was down the Wabash River, also with a garrison surrounded by French settlers, but differed from Ouiatenon in that grants of land were awarded to them. During the late 1750s, the Goderes were among about 60 families living there. People worked on farms in long ribbon-shaped lots along the river, while living in log cabins clustered together in a village near the fort.

France controlled Vincennes until the British defeated them in the French and Indian War in 1763. This was around the time that Louis came of age. Just before the British takeover, he received a grant of farmland. But when the French authorities vacated the town, their church was left without a priest, and there was no one to perform marriages. Louis sought to make Barbe-Elizabeth Levron his wife, so the couple declared their intentions in front of witnesses, and proceeded to live as a married couple. Their first three children were born before a priest visited Vincennes and made their marriage legal on November 8, 1770. They went on to have eight more children.

The British authorities weren’t much of presence in Vincennes until they sent a military regiment to man the fort during the American Revolution. The French people carried on as best they could, but when they had their chance, they aligned with the Americans by signing an oath of allegiance on July 20, 1778, and Louis was one of the men who put his mark on the document. The following year, George Rogers Clark led a force that was a mixture of Americans and French; it’s not known if Louis played any part in the action, but his brother François served as a lieutenant. François’ wife is believed to be the woman known as Madame Godere, who was credited with making a flag for the Americans. It’s likely that Louis was one of the many Vincennes people who assisted in the fight as well. 

Louis' mark on the oath of allegiance.

After the war, with former French outposts under the control of the newly formed United States, the culture Louis had known gradually died out. Vincennes continued on with an influx of American settlers from places like Kentucky and Virginia, but Ouiatenon was wiped off the map by order of President Washington in 1791 — a military force burned the largely now Indigenous settlement to the ground. Louis continued to live and farm in Vincennes until he died on June 14, 1794. His wife lived only a few more years and died on September 11, 1798. 

Children:
1. Françoise-Agnes Godere — B. 4 Nov 1766, Fort Vincennes, New France; D. about 1835; M. Louis-Favel Ravellette (~1758-1835), 2 Aug 1784, Vincennes, Northwest Territory

2. Marie-Josephe Godere – B. 16 May 1768, Fort Vincennes, New France;  D. 12 Jul 1794, Vincennes, Northwest Territory; M. Honore Denis

3. Louis Godere — B. 8 Feb 1770, Fort Vincennes, New France; D. 11 Jan 1795, Vincennes, Northwest Territory

4. Felicité Godere — B. 20 Nov 1773, Fort Vincennes, New France; D. 25 Feb 1795, Vincennes, Northwest Territory; M. Alexander Vallé, 23 May 1793, Vincennes, Northwest Territory

5. Pierre Godere – B. 6 Nov 1775, Fort Vincennes, New France

6. Jean-Baptiste Godere — B. 1 Aug 1777, Fort Vincennes, New France

7. François Godere — B. 13 Sep 1779, Vincennes, Northwest Territory; D. 24 Feb 1837, Vincennes, Indiana; M. (1) Marie Boneau (1786-1831), 30 Jan 1804, Vincennes, Indiana; (2) Genevieve Carie (1789-1855), 27 Dec 1832, Vincennes, Indiana

8. Elizabeth Godere — B. 9 Sep 1781, Vincennes, Northwest Territory

9. Marie-Louise Godere — B. 2 Oct 1785, Vincennes, Northwest Territory, M. François Cadoret (~1780-?), 28 Jan 1802, Vincennes, Indiana

10. Joseph Godere — B. 22 May 1786; D. 1787

11. Françoise Godere — B. 31 Mar 1788, Vincennes, Northwest Territory

Sources:
History of Knox and Daviess Counties, Indiana, 1886
St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church Records: Baptisms 1749-1838, Barbara Schull Wolfe, 1999
St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church Records: Marriages and Deaths 1749-1838, Barbara Schull Wolfe, 1999
Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR Genealogical Research Databases, dar.org

He Gave A Mountain Its Name — Leonard Chester

B. 15 Jul 1610 in Blaby, England
M. about 1631 in England
Wife: Mary ______
D. 11 Dec 1648 in Wethersfield, Connecticut

As the original Puritan settlers of New England pushed inland, they often needed to carve communities out of raw wilderness. Leonard Chester was such a settler, and one trek into the woods made him a local legend. He was born in Blaby, England, a village in Leicestershire, on July 15, 1610. His parents were John Chester and Dorothy Hooker, and he was their only surviving child. Leonard’s father died in 1628.

In about 1631, Leonard married a woman named Mary. Her maiden name is uncertain; it’s given as Wade, Sharpe and Neville in different sources. Leonard and Mary sailed for America two or three years later. The next two years, they lived in Watertown, Massachusetts, where Mary gave birth to their oldest child, John. Leonard’s mother was the sister of Reverend Thomas Hooker, who in 1635 helped lead a migration of people that founded Hartford, Connecticut. Leonard wasn’t part of that group, but his mother was, and within a year, Leonard and his family moved to another new settlement nearby called Wethersfield.

One day in September 1636, Leonard was seeking a location to build a grist mill, and he followed a stream hoping to find an appropriate spot. He went too far and couldn’t find his way back before it got dark, so he was forced to spend the night alone in the woods. Instead of camping out, he continued to wander in the dark, straying completely off track. He was said to have become afraid, hearing wolves and other strange sounds that made him imagine he was in great danger. His adventure went on a second day and night, and at dawn of the third day, he found himself at the foot of a mountain. Climbing to the top, he could hear sounds that traveled several miles — the people in his town were beating kettles and shooting off muskets to get his attention. He descended again and was able to follow the sounds back to civilization. The people in town had “lamented” that he was lost, and when he returned, he told the story of the mountain that saved him, which is known to this day as Lamentation Mountain.

Lamentation Mountain is now a state park in Connecticut.

Besides the story of getting lost in the wilderness, Leonard was known as one of the early leaders of Wethersfield and a man of some wealth. He wrote his first will in 1637 while still in his 20s; this was likely because he owned property in England and he wanted to make sure his family would hold title to it in case something happened to him. Also that year, he built the grist mill that had caused him to wander into the woods. It survived for many years.

In addition to their oldest son, Leonard and his wife Mary had six more children, all born in Wethersfield. Unfortunately, Leonard didn’t live to see any of them grow to adulthood — he died on December 11, 1648. His grave is said to be the third oldest tombstone in Connecticut; it’s a large slab of red sandstone with the coat of arms of the Chester Family carved into it. His wife Mary remarried and lived until about 1689.

Leonard’s descendants include Calvin Coolidge and Bette Davis.

Children:
1. John Chester — B. 3 Aug 1635, Watertown, Massachusetts; D. 23 Feb 1698, Wethersfield, Connecticut; M. Sarah Welles, 2 Feb 1654, Wethersfield, Connecticut

2. Dorcas Chester — B. 1 Nov 1637, Wethersfield, Connecticut; D. 15 Feb 1712, Billerica, Massachusetts; M. Samuel Whiting (1633-1713), 12 Nov 1656, Wethersfield, Connecticut

3. Stephen Chester — B. 3 Mar 1640; D. 23 Apr 1705, Wethersfield, Connecticut

4. Mary Chester — B. 15 Jan 1641; D. 15 Sep 1669, Wethersfield, Connecticut

5. Prudence Chester — B. 16 Feb 1643; D. 21 Oct 1678, Charlestown, Massachusetts; M. Thomas Russell (1641-1676), 30 Dec 1669

6. Eunice Chester — B. 15 Jan 1645; D. 27 May 1676, Charlestown, Massachusetts; M. Richard Sprague, 25 Feb 1673, Charlestown, Massachusetts

7. Mercy Chester — B. 14 Feb 1647; D. 15 Dec 1669, Charlestown, Massachusetts

Sources:
Families of Ancient Wethersfield Connecticut, Henry R. Stiles, 1859
Leonard Chester’s search for a Mill Site – 1636, Wethersfield Historical Society
Transactions of the Leicestershire Architectural and Archaeological Society, Volume 6, 1888
Find a Grave

In the Footsteps of His Puritan Father — Samuel Whiting

B. 25 Mar 1633 in Skirbeck, Lincolnshire, England
M. 12 Nov 1656 in Wethersfield, Connecticut
Wife: Dorcas Chester
D. 28 Feb 1713 in Billerica, Massachusetts

In a couple of ways, Samuel Whiting was born to become a Puritan minister in a newly founded town. Firstly, he came from in East Anglia, which supplied more than half of the religious elite to the Massachusetts colony. And secondly, his father became the first minister of the town of Lynn, so Samuel followed the same path.

Samuel was born on March 25, 1633 to Samuel Whiting and Elizabeth St. John in the town of Skirbeck, Lincolnshire, England, where his father was the parish pastor. He was one of four children, and also had a half-sister from his father’s first marriage. Samuel Whiting Sr. was forced out of his church because of his “non-conformist” views, and when young Samuel was three-years-old, the family migrated to New England. They arrived in Boston on May 26, 1636. Later that year, they relocated to the town of Saugus, later renamed Lynn, and this is where Samuel grew up.

When Samuel came of age, he set his sights on becoming a minister like his father. In about 1649, he entered Harvard College, earning a degree in 1653. In the early days of Harvard, the school was primarily for training young men to enter the clergy. The handful of graduates each year supplied the surrounding towns with ministers. After graduating, Samuel continued at Harvard for another year and began his career in 1656. That same year, he got married. His wife was Dorcas Chester, a 19-year-old woman from Wethersfield, Connecticut, where the wedding took place on November 12th. Between 1660 and 1682, Samuel and Dorcas had eleven children, but the youngest four died as infants.

In about 1658, Samuel moved his family to Billerica, Massachusetts, likely because the new community had a need for a minister. The town had no meetinghouse yet, but they agreed to pay him £40 for per year for his services. The deal also came with a house on 10 acres of land “comfortably finished with the accommodations belonging to it.” If he stayed in Billerica for the rest of his life, his heirs would inherit the property. His salary increased to £50 the third year, and eventually to £70. 

Plaque at the site of Billerica's first meetinghouse.

On 11 Nov 1663, when Billerica’s church was properly established, Samuel was ordained as its first minister. He remained in that role for almost 50 years. The first meetinghouse was built in 1660, and was 30’ by 40’ with a thatched roof. A larger one was constructed in 1694. As a member of the clergy, Samuel gained respect amongst his peers in Massachusetts. Cotton Mather once said he was “a reverend, holy, and faithful minister of the gospel.”

Cotton Mather

During the late 1660s, Samuel became one of 17 ministers in New England who opposed the appointment of Reverend John Davenport to be the leader of the First Church in Boston. Davenport was an advocate of strict requirements for membership into the church. Ministers like Samuel saw the need to loosen up the rules so that congregations kept a strong influence in the colony.

Samuel served his community in other ways. During King Philip’s War, his house was used as a garrison, and was considered the most important of the 12 garrisons in Billerica. And town records show that in 1675, it was ordered that every child age 8 and older would be given religious lessons by Samuel. 

Two records give clear indication that Samuel owned a slave, a fairly common practice in parts of colonial New England. The man was called Simon Negro, and he was Simon’s “servant” from the age of 9 until he was 40. To his credit, Simon did grant him his freedom on October 30, 1693, but the former slave would not have any resources or place to go. Sixteen years later, Simon gave him 17 acres of land, but shortly thereafter, the man died, and he willed the land to the children of Simon “in consideration of the respect I have and do bear to my Master’s family.” While this does suggest Simon treated his slave decently, there is also the sad fact that being enslaved and isolated for most of his life left the man with no one else to leave his estate. 

Samuel continued in his duties into his old age, but in 1703, a young minister was appointed to help him. Another minister was formally assigned to work side-by-side with him in 1707, and presumably, Samuel cut back his work around that time. His wife Dorcas died just 13 days before he did (they had been married 57 years). Samuel was said to have died “an hour before sunset” on February 28, 1713. Samuel’s descendants include Calvin Coolidge and Bette Davis.

Samuel's death record.

Children:
1. Elizabeth Whiting — B. 6 Oct 1660, Billerica, Massachusetts; M. Thomas Clark (1652-1704), 15 Dec 1700, Lexington, Massachusetts

2. Samuel Whiting – B. 19 Jan 1662, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 8 Mar 1715, Billerica, Massachusetts; M. Elizabeth Patten

3. John Whiting – B. 1 Aug 1664, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 11 Sep 1697, Hartford, Connecticut; M. Alice Cooke (1674-1714)

4. Oliver Whiting — B. 8 Nov 1665, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 22 Dec 1736, Billerica, Massachusetts; M. Anna Danforth (1667-1737), 22 Jan 1690, Billerica, Massachusetts

5. Mary Whiting — B. 28 Apr 1667, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 13 Nov 1740, Lexington, Massachusetts; M. John Henry Burchstead (1657-1721)

6. Dorothy Whiting — B. 23 Aug 1668, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 10 Jan 1740, Billerica, Massachusetts

7. Joseph Whiting — B. 7 Feb 1670, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 6 Aug 1701, Billerica, Massachusetts

8. James Whiting — B. 1671, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 1 Sep 1671, Billerica, Massachusetts

9. Eunice Whiting — B. 6 Sep 1672, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 20 Sep 1672, Billerica, Massachusetts

10. Benjamin Whiting — B.  26 Sep 1675, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. before 5 Nov 1682, Billerica, Massachusetts

11. Benjamin Whiting — B. 5 Nov 1682, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 20 Nov 1682, Billerica, Massachusetts

Sources:
Memoir of Rev. Samuel Whiting, D.D., and of his wife Elizabeth St. John, William Whiting, 1873
Biographical Sketches of Graduates of Harvard University, Volume 1, Charles William Sever, 1873
Samuel Whiting Jr. (Wikipedia article)
Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America, David Hackett Fischer, 1989

History of Billerica, Massachusetts, Henry Allen Hazen, 1883
“The Lost History of Slaves and Slave Owners in Billerica,” Christopher M. Spraker, Historical Journal of Massachusetts Volume 42, No. 1, 2014

Find A Grave

Member of First Cavalry in Connecticut — Thomas Strong

B. about 1636 in (probably) Hingham, Massachusetts¹
M. (1) 5 Dec 1660, Windsor, Connecticut²
Wife: Mary Hewett
M. (2) 16 Oct 1671 in Northampton, Massachusetts³
Wife: Rachel Holton
D. 3 Oct 1689 in Northampton, Massachusetts⁴

In 17th-century New England, military attacks took place on foot or on water, but rarely on horseback. Thomas Strong was a member of the first ever cavalry in Connecticut, and his service may have brought him to the battlefield during King Philip’s War.

Thomas was born in about 1636 to John Strong and Abigail Ford,¹ the oldest of their 16 children. He spent his first couple of years in Hingham before the family relocated to Taunton, Massachusetts.¹ When he was about 10-years-old, they then moved to Windsor, Connecticut.¹

During the years when Thomas came of age, Connecticut was a remote place, and the Puritan settlers had an uneasy relationship with the Indians who lived around them. Also a threat were the Dutch who controlled what is now New York, and who laid claim to parts of Connecticut. The Puritan leaders thought it would be wise to raise a military force trained to defend their towns on horseback, and in 1658, the Connecticut Cavalry was formed. Thomas was enlisted as a private;⁵ the entire force consisted of 37 men, 17 of whom were from Windsor.⁵

Thomas married his first wife Mary Hewitt on December 5, 1660.² The year before that, Thomas’ parents and some of his siblings had gone upriver to Northampton, Massachusetts, and Thomas would settle there as well, but it isn’t clear what year he moved. His name first appeared in Northampton records as one of several men assigned to build a mill in 1666.⁶ Thomas had five children with Mary, but she died on February 20, 1671,⁷ and he married Rachel Holton on October 16th of that year.³ They had 11 children, with the youngest being born several months after his death.⁸

Thomas was a farmer, but he seems to have continued his participation in the military all the way into King Philip’s War in 1676.⁵ Even though he was living in Northampton by that time, he was listed on a list of Windsor cavalry troops. His unit may have participated in the Second Battle of Nipsachuck, one of the last fights in the war in the southern New England area. It's believed that the battle included a cavalry charge, which was an unusual military tactic for that time and place.

Site of the Second Battle of Nipsachuck (Source: Swampyank, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons)

Thomas died in Northampton on October 3, 1689.⁴ His estate was valued at over £379, and in his will, he ordered that his oldest son by his first wife provide for his second wife.⁹ Most of his children were still under age at the time of his death. Rachel remarried in 1698,¹⁰ and she passed away in 1714.¹¹

Descendants of Thomas include Princess Diana, Prince William, Nathan Hale, Glenn Close and Brooke Shields.¹²

Children by Mary Hewett:
1. Thomas Strong — B. 6 Nov 1661; D. 1708, Northampton, Massachusetts;¹³ D. 30 Nov 1736, Durham, Massachusetts;¹⁴ M. Mary Stebbins (1666-1705), 17 Nov 1683, Northampton, Massachusetts¹⁵

2. Mariah Strong — B. 31 Aug 1663, Northampton, Massachusetts;¹⁶ D. 18 May 1751, Northampton, Massachusetts;⁹ M. Samuel Judd (~1652-1721)⁹

3. John Strong — B. 9 Mar 1665, Northampton, Massachusetts;¹⁷ D. 21 May 1699, near Deerfield, Massachusetts^9,18

4. Hewet Strong — B. 2 Dec 1666, Northampton, Massachusetts;¹⁹ D. 29 Sep 1689, Northampton, Massachusetts²⁰

5. Asahel Strong — B. 14 Nov 1668, Northampton, Massachusetts;²¹ D. 8 Oct 1739, Farmington, Connecticut;²² M. Margaret Hart (?-1735), 11 Jun 1689⁹

Children by Rachel Holton:
1. Joseph Strong — B. 2 Dec 1672, Northampton, Massachusetts;²³ D. 23 Dec 1763, Coventry, Connecticut;²⁴ M. Sarah Allen (1672-1724), 1694, Northampton, Massachusetts²⁵

2. Benjamin Strong — B. about 1674, Northampton, Massachusetts;⁹ D. 27 Aug 1755, (probably) East Guilford, Connecticut⁹

3. Adino Strong — B. 25 Jan 1676, Northampton, Massachusetts;²⁶ D. 31 Dec 1749, Woodbury, Connecticut;²⁷ M. Eunice Johnson (1678-1763), about 1702²⁷

4. Waitstill Strong — B. 1677, Northampton, Massachusetts;²⁸ D. 13 Nov 1762, Northampton, Massachusetts;²⁸ M. (1) Sarah Janes (1689-~1707), 19 Dec 1701, Northampton, Massachusetts;²⁹ (2) Mindwell Bartlett (1682-1741), 7 Mar 1708, Northampton, Massachusetts³⁰

5. Rachel Strong — B. 15 Jul 1680, Northampton, Massachusetts;³¹ D. 4 Jan 1769, Guilford, Connecticut;³² M. Miles Dudley (1676-1753), 23 Jan 1706, Northampton, Massachusetts⁹

6. Selah Strong — B. 22 Dec 1680, Northampton, Massachusetts;³³ D. 8 Apr 1732, Southold, New York;³⁴ M. Abigail Terry (1680-1761), 23 Jun 1702⁹

7. Benaiah Strong — B. 24 Sep 1682, Northampton, Massachusetts;³⁵ D. 1714⁹

8. Ephraim Strong — B. 1 Jan 1685, Northampton, Massachusetts;³⁶ D. Milford, Connecticut;⁹ M. Mary Briscoe (1675-1719), 10 May 1712, Milford, Connecticut³⁷

9. Elnathan Strong — B. 20 Aug 1686, Northampton, Massachusetts;³⁸ D. 22 May 1727, Woodbury, Connecticut;⁹ M. Patience Jenner (1692-1773), 17 Apr 1712, Woodbury, Connecticut⁹

10. Ruth Strong — B. about 4 Feb 1687, Northampton, Massachusetts;³⁹ D. 18 Sep 1743, Guilford, Connecticut;⁴⁰ M. William Dudley (1684-1761), 10 Oct 1712⁹

11. Submit Strong — B. 23 Feb 1690, Northampton, Massachusetts⁴¹

Sources:
1    The Great Migration: Immigrants to New England, Vol. II, 1634-1635, Robert Charles Anderson, 2001, p.584
2    Marriage record of Thomas Strong and Mary Hewitt, Connecticut, Vital Records, Prior to 1850, FamilySearch.org
3    Marriage record of Thomas Strong and Rachel Holton, Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001, FamilySearch.org
4    Death record of Thomas Strong, Massachusetts, Deaths and Burials, 1795-1910, FamilySearch.org
5    The History of Ancient Windsor, Connecticut, Henry Reed Stiles, 1859
6    History of Northampton, Massachusetts, From Its Settlement in 1654, Vol. 1, James Russell Trumbull, Seth Pomeroy, 1898
7    Death record of Mary Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
8    Birth of record Submit Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
9    The history of the descendants of Elder John Strong, Vol. 1, Benjamin W. Dwight
10  Marriage record of Nathan Bradley and Rachel Strong, Massachusetts, State Vital Records, 1638-1927, FamilySearch.org
11  Find-a-Grave listing of Rachel (Holton) Bradley
12  FamousKin.com listing of Thomas Strong
13  Birth record of Thomas Strong (younger), Massachusetts, Births and Christenings, 1639-1915, FamilySearch.org
14  Find-a-Grave listing of Thomas Strong Jr.
15  Marriage record of Thomas Strong and Mary Stebbins, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
16  Birth record of Mariah Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
17  Birth record of John Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
18  Death record of John Strong, M., D. & B.
19  Birth record of Hewet Strong, M., B. & C.
20  Death record of Hewet Strong, M., D. & B.
21  Birth record of Asahel Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
22  Death record of Asahel Strong, Connecticut, Deaths and Burials, 1772-1934, FamilySearch.org
23  Birth record of Joseph Strong, M., B. & C.
24  Death record of Joseph Strong, Connecticut, Deaths and Burials, 1772-1934, FamilySearch.org
25  Marriage record of Joseph Strong and Sarah Allen, U.S., New England Marriages Prior to 1700, Ancestry.com
26  Birth record of Adino Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
27  Find-a-Grave listing of Adino Strong
28  Find-a-Grave listing of Waitstill Strong
29  Marriage record of Waitstill Strong and Sarah Janes, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
30  Marriage record of Waitstill Strong and Mindwell Bartlett, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
31  Birth record of Rachel Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
32  Find-a-Grave listing of Rachel (Strong) Dudley
33  Birth record of Selah Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
34  Find-a-Grave listing of Selah Strong
35  Birth record of Benaiah Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
36  Birth record of Ephraim Strong, M., B. & C.
37  Marriage record of Ephraim Strong and Mary Buckingham, C., V. R., P. to 1850
38  Birth record of Elnathan Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
39  Birth record of Ruth Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
40  Find-a-Grave listing of Ruth (Strong) Dudley
41  Birth record of Submit Strong, M., T. C., V. & T. R.

First European Farmer in Canada — Louis Hébert

B. about 1575 in Paris, France¹
M. 19 Feb 1601 in Paris, France¹
Wife: Marie Rollet
D. 25 Jan 1627 in New France¹

One of the most unlikely figures in colonial American history was Louis Hébert, a Paris druggist who ended up being the first white man to cultivate land in what is now Canada. He was breaking new ground in more ways than one, and because he had no peers during his years as a farmer, it might also be said that he was way ahead of his time.

Louis was born in Paris to Nicolas Hébert and Jacqueline Pajot sometime between 1572 and 1575.¹ He had an older sister and brother, and a younger sister, but his mother died when he was young.² The family home on Rue Saint-Honore still exists, a townhouse in the heart of Paris.² His father Nicolas was apothecary to former queen of France, Catherine de ‘Medici,² and so as a boy, Louis must have been exposed to many of the noteworthy people in France.

As Louis came of age, he decided to follow his father into the same profession. By 1600, he established himself in Paris, selling medicine and spices in a shop.³ Because his work involved cultivating plants, Louis took a great interest in gardening throughout his life; it was said he had a passion for growing herbs. On February 19, 1601, Louis married Marie Rollet at the Church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris.¹ The couple was only known to have had three children, who were born between about 1602 and about 1614.

Louis Hébert at work as an apothecary.

In 1606, Louis’ life took a dramatic turn through his association with some men interested in colonizing North America. The man in charge of the effort was Jean de Biencourt de Poutrincourt, who was married to Louis’ wife’s niece.⁴ Because of this connection, and a need for someone with knowledge of medicine in the settlement, Louis was recruited.⁵ The group of about 50 men were joining the colony of Port-Royal, Acadia, which had been started in 1604 by Samuel de Champlain. Louis didn’t bring his wife and children as there were no women in the new settlement.

Louis seemed to thrive in Port-Royal. He was part of an expedition to explore other possible sites for settlements, and in 1606, Poutincourt led a group down the coast all the way to Cape Cod.⁶ The mission was to make contact with any Indians in the area to see if the French could co-exist with them. Unfortunately, one tribe turned hostile and got into a skirmish, killing several French men. For that reason, Poutincourt and Champlain abandoned the idea of colonizing near Cape Cod, which the English successfully did about 14 years later.

The following year, Louis returned to France along with most of the company when they lost their backing from the king.⁷ The outpost started up again in 1610, and Louis moved back.⁸ His time in Acadia ended in 1613 when the English attacked and destroyed the settlement, forcing everyone to return to France.⁹

Port Royal in about 1612.

 

Champlain had gotten to know Louis in Acadia, and in 1617, he sought him out to join in a new colony he was starting on the St. Lawrence River, which would become Quebec. Champlain made an offer to Louis to bring his family and stay there for at least 3 years; in return, Louis would get land and an annual salary of 600 livres (which was later reduced to 300 livres).³ So he, his wife and children settled in Quebec, making them the first European family to permanently live in Canada.

The 10 acres Louis was given in Quebec was the first ever land grant by the French government in New France.³ The present-day site is in the heart of Quebec City where the Basilica of Notre Dame stands. Louis planted crops, thereby becoming Quebec’s first farmer. The land was outside the small compound that served as the outpost. Since fur trading was the primary objective of the French settlers, Louis was the only one besides Champlain who was interested in growing crops. He was said to have “gardens in which flourished a variety of vegetables,” along with “cultivated land filled with fine grain.”¹⁰ The farm eventually had a pasture for cattle and an apple orchard. The cultivation was accomplished by using hand tools only, because Louis didn’t have a plow.

When Champlain left Quebec to return to France in 1620, Louis was assigned the position of “king’s attorney,” giving him some authority over administration of the colony.³ Some of the fur traders were at odds with Louis because clearing forests was bad for their business, but he was said to have great relations with the Indians, and he sometimes treated them with his medicines.¹¹ Champlain’s settlement was slow in taking hold, and during the first few years, only a handful of people signed on. While the 100 or so people relied mainly on food from supply ships, the Hébert farm offered a back-up in case the ships were delayed in France, so Louis really played an important role in the beginnings of Canada.

Unfortunately, Louis didn’t live to see the success of the colony. In late 1626, he slipped and fell on some ice, and on January 25, 1627, he died from the injuries he suffered.¹² His wife Marie remarried after his death, and she gained her own reputation by caring for Native American children.¹³ She passed away in 1649.¹⁴

Louis and Marie left a profound legacy in Canada. They have their own monument in a park in Quebec City featuring a statue of Louis, and a statue of Marie with their three children. Of the New France couples who left the most descendants, Louis and Marie rank as number 10. And their descendants include Hillary Clinton, Celine Dion, Jane Krakowski, Jack Kerouac, Jim Carrey, Alex Trebek, Ricky Gervais, Chloë Sevigny, and Bridget Fonda.¹⁵

Louis' monument in Quebec City. (Source: Jeangagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons)

Children:
1. Anne Hébert – B. about 1602, Paris, France;¹⁶ D. about 1619, (probably) Quebec City, New France;¹⁶ M. Etenne Jonquest (~1590-~1620), 1618, New France¹⁶

2. Marie-Guillemette Hébert – B. about 1604, Paris, France;¹⁷ D. 20 Oct 1684, Quebec City, New France;¹⁷ M. Guillaume Couillard (1588-1663), 26 Aug 1621, Quebec City, New France¹⁸

3. Guillaume Hébert – B. about 1614, Paris, France;¹⁹ D. 23 Sep 1639, Quebec City, New France;¹⁹ M. Hélène Desportes (1620-1675), 1 Oct 1634, Quebec City, New France²⁰

Sources:
1    Généalogie du Quebec et d’Amérique française listing of Louis Hebert
2    “New Findings on Louis Hébert and His Family Before His Departure for New France,” Madame M. Jurgens, French Canadian and Acadian Genealogical Review, Vol. V, Nos. 1-2, 1975
3    Louis Hébert (Wikipedia article)
4    Hélène’s World: Hélène Desportes of Seventeenth Century Quebec, Susan McNelley, 2014, p.8
5    A Great and Noble Scheme, John Mack Faragher, 2005 p. 3
6    Champlain’s Dream, David Hackett Fischer, 2008, p.197
7    A.G. & N.S., p. 18
8    A.G. & N.S., p. 20
9    A.G. & N.S., p. 33
10  Joseph Lionel Blanchette: Information about Louis Hebert, Genealogy.com
11  Louis Hébert, Dictionary of Canadian Biography
12  C.D., p. 351
13  Marie Rolet (Rollet), Dictionary of Canadian Biography
14  Burial record of Marie Rollet, Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1979, FamilySearch.org
15  FamousKin.com listing of Louis Hebert
16  Généalogie du Quebec et d’Amérique française listing of Anne Hebert
17  Burial record of Marie-Guillemette Hebert, Q., C.P.R.
18  Marriage record of Guillaume Couillard and Marie-Guillemette Hebert, Q., C.P.R.
19  Généalogie du Quebec et d’Amérique française listing of Guillaume Hebert
20  Marriage record of Guillaume Hebert and Hélène Desportes, Q., C.P.R.

Early Boston Jail Keeper — Richard Brackett

B. before 16 Sep 1610 in Sudbury, England¹
M. 6 Jan 1634 in London, England²
Wife: Alice Blower
D. 3 Mar 1690 in Braintree, Massachusetts³

Some men who joined the Great Migration to New England in the 1630s seemed destined to take on special roles in their communities, perhaps even doing jobs that no one else wanted. Richard Brackett seems to fit this description.

Richard was born in Sudbury, England to Peter Brackett and Rachel (possibly) Wheatley, one of four children, and baptized on September 16, 1610.¹ Richard’s father died when he was 6-years-old;⁴ his mother then married a man named Martin Saunders and had four more children with him.⁵

The town of Sudbury, located in Suffolk, was a “hotbed of Puritan sentiment” at the time Richard lived there, and this likely had an influence on him. At the age of 19, Richard sailed to New England with the Winthrop Fleet; his name is on the covenant to establish the first church in Boston dated August 27, 1630.⁵ After a couple of years in the colony, it seems that Richard returned to England for a short time. On January 6, 1634, he married Alice Blower in London,² then he brought her back to Massachusetts. Their first child, Hannah, was born within a year.⁶ They went on to have seven more children, with the youngest born in about 1655.⁷

Boston's meetinghouse in 1630s.

At first, Richard and his family made their home in Boston near what is the present-day corner of Court and Washington Streets on property he acquired in 1636.⁵ The following year, he was appointed to be “keeper of the prison” with a salary of £13 6s 8d;⁵ on June 6, 1639, his salary was raised to £20.⁵ For a time, he moved into the house at the jail. In colonial New England, a prison wasn’t a place for long-term confinement; it was used to keep those who had been accused of a crime until they were tried in a court. The usual sentence handed to the guilty involved immediate punishments, such as public whippings, and afterwards the person was released, but it isn’t known what specific cases Richard played a role in.

Another community task that Richard took on was indicated in a curious note from a town meeting in February 1639. In that month, authorities granted him permission to “mow” the marsh at the new settlement of Braintree in time for that summer. The record implied that he had routinely done this each year.⁵ In the years that followed, Richard seems to have aspired to be a farmer, and it motivated him to leave Boston in 1642 for Braintree.⁵ Richard’s mother and step-father, who had migrated to New England in 1635, also moved to Braintree.⁵ From then on, this would be his family’s home.

On July 21, 1642, Richard was appointed first deacon of the church at Braintree.⁵ It’s thought that Boston's church had some authority over the new church in Braintree, and that they hand-picked Richard to be Braintree’s deacon. During his time as deacon, there was a major disagreement between Braintree and Boston over 600 acres of land. It’s noteworthy that even though Richard lived in Braintree, he favored Boston’s position regarding the disputed land.⁵

Richard was captain of Braintree's militia by 1655, and he served in that rank during King Philip’s War.⁵ One story about his service involved an Indian who surrendered to the colonists, and was about to be treated with some leniency. But Richard stepped in, seeing that the man was taken to Boston and kept in their jail, later to be sold into slavery.⁵

During the years 1655-1665, 1667, 1671, 1672, 1674 and 1680, Richard was Braintree's deputy to the Massachusetts General Court.¹ The gap of service between 1675 and 1679 is thought to be associated with King Philip’s War and the lingering trouble with natives afterwards; perhaps Richard needed to devote attention to his role in the military during that time. Besides all of his other roles in life, Richard also served as Braintree’s town clerk,¹ and for a time, he may have been a teacher.⁵ In his later years, he was authorized to perform marriages and swear oaths.⁵

On March 3, 1690, Richard died in Braintree.³ His wife Alice survived him by about nine months, passing away on November 30th.⁸ One object that belonged to Richard and Alice survives today: a silver wine cup with their initials on it, made by silversmiths John Hull and Robert Sanderson. The cup was donated to the church in Braintree about nine years after they died and it was used as a communion cup. The church kept it for many years and it’s now part of the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.⁹

Silver cup which belonged to Richard.

Richard’s descendants include Henry Fonda, George H.W. Bush, and all of their famous offspring.¹⁰

Children:
1. Hannah Brackett — B. before 4 Jan 1634, Boston Massachusetts;⁶ D. 3 Jul 1706, Dunstable, Massachusetts;¹¹ M. (1) Samuel Kingsley (?-1662);⁵ (2) John Blanchard (?-1691)⁵

2. Peter Brackett — B. before 7 May 1637, Boston, Massachusetts;¹² M. (1) Elizabeth Bosworth (?-1686), 7 Mar 1661, Braintree, Massachusetts;¹³ (2) Sarah Parker (?-1718), 30 Mar 1687, Billerica, Massachusetts¹⁴

3. John Brackett — B. before 7 May 1637, Boston, Massachusetts;⁵ D. 18 Mar 1687, Billerica, Massachusetts;⁵ M. (1) Hannah French (1644-1674), 6 Sep 1661, Braintree, Massachusetts;¹⁵ (2) Ruth Ellice, 31 May 1675, Billerica, Massachusetts¹⁶

4. Rachel Brackett — B. about Nov 1639, Boston, Massachusetts;¹⁷ M. Simon Crosby (1637-1725), 15 Jul 1659, Braintree, Massachusetts⁵

5. Mary Brackett — B. 1 Feb 1641, Braintree, Massachusetts;¹⁸ D. 23 Mar 1678, Billerica, Massachusetts;¹⁸ M. Joseph Tompson (1639-1732), 1 Feb 1662, Billerica, Massachusetts¹⁹

6. James Brackett — B. 8 Jul 1645, Braintree, Massachusetts;²⁰ D. 8 Apr 1718, Braintree, Massachusetts;²⁰ M. Sarah Marsh (1649-1727), 1674²⁰

7. Josiah Brackett — B. 8 Mar 1652, Braintree, Massachusetts;²¹ D. about 1681;⁵ M. Elizabeth Waldo (1648-1743), 4 Feb 1673, Billerica, Massachusetts²²

8. Sarah Brackett — B. about 1655, Braintree, Massachusetts;⁷ D. 1690;⁷ M. Joseph Crosby (1639-1695), 1 Apr 1675, Braintree, Massachusetts²³

Sources:
1    Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633, Vols. I-III, Robert Charles Anderson
2    Marriage record of Richard Brackett and Alice Blower, England Marriages, 1538-1973, FamilySearch.org
3    Find-a-Grave listing of Capt. Richard Brackett
4    “Parish Records from Sudbury, Suffolk, England,” The American Genealogist, Vol. 52, No. 2, pp.66-67
5    50 Great Migration Colonists, J. B. Threlfall, 1990, pp. 65-75
6    Christening record of Hannah Brackett, Massachusetts, Births and Christenings, 1639-1915, FamilySearch.org
7    Find-a-Grave listing of Sarah (Brackett) Crosby
8    Find-a-Grave listing of Alice (Blower) Brackett
9    Early American Silver in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Beth Carver Wees and Medill Higgins Harvey, 2013
10  FamousKin.com listing of Richard Brackett
11  History of the Old Township of Dunstable, Charles J. Fox, 1846, p. 83
12  Christening record of Peter Brackett, M., B. & C.
13  Marriage record of Peter Brackett and Elizabeth Bosworth, Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Town and Vital Records, 1626-2001, FamilySearch.org
14  Marriage record of Peter Brackett and Sarah Parker, M., T. C., T. & V. R.
15  Marriage record of John Brackett and Hannah French, M., T. C., T. & V. R.
16  Marriage record of John Brackett and Ruth Ellice, M., T. C., T. & V. R.
17  Christening record of Rachel Brackett, M., B. & C.
18  Find-a-Grave listing of Mary (Brackett) Thompson
19  Marriage record of Joseph Thompson and Mary Brackett, M., T. C., T. & V. R.
20  Find-a-Grave listing of James Brackett
21  Birth record of Josiah Brackett, Massachusetts, U.S., Town and Vital Records, Ancestry.com
22  Marriage record of Josiah Brackett and Elizabeth Waldo, M., T. C., T. & V. R.
23  Marriage record of Joseph Crosby and Sarah Brackett, M., T. C., T. & V. R.