M. before 1694 in (probably) Connecticut2
Wife: Martha Smith
D. after May 1713 in (probably) Connecticut3
Having parents getting divorced doesn't seem to fit our idea of colonial New England, but such was the case for Joseph Long. He was born in Hartford, Connecticut on January 22, 1668 to Thomas Long and Sarah Wilcox, their firstborn child.1 At the time, Joseph’s paternal grandmother and his maternal grandfather were married to each other, which made for a somewhat tangled family tree.
Joseph was about 11-years-old when the trouble began between his parents. After giving birth to five more siblings, his mother took up a romantic interest with another man. This must have been truly scandalous in 1680 Connecticut, and to make matters worse, Joseph’s mother was arrested and spent two weeks in jail because of her “crime.”4 His father took her back for a time, but when the affair continued, he sued for divorce. Joseph was 13-years-old when the marriage ended, and it made him the rare child of a broken home in colonial New England.4
It isn’t known which parent Joseph and his siblings lived with after the divorce. His mother remarried to her lover and produced another child.5 His father also married again, and had a child, who was born in 1696.6 By that time Joseph had found a wife of his own. Her name was Martha, the daughter of Jonathan Smith, but no record of the marriage seems to exist. Their first child was born in about 1694,2 and they had at least four more by 1707. During this time, Joseph and his family lived in Middletown, a thriving community on the Connecticut River.
1698 baptism of Joseph's daughter in Middletown shows he was still a member of Hartford's church.
In around 1709, Joseph and his family moved to the new town of Coventry, located inland to the east of the river. His name hardly appeared in Coventry’s records, though. The last mention of him was in a land sale in May 1713,3 and it seems that his heirs may have finalized it. When and where Joseph died is unknown.
Children:
1. Joseph Long — B. about 1694, Connecticut;2 M. Sarah Evarts (1689-?), 17 May 1716, Coventry, Connecticut7
2. Deborah Long — B. before 24 Apr 1698, Middletown, Connecticut;8 M. Amos Carpenter (1693-1793), 23 Oct 1718, Coventry, Connecticut9
3. Martha Long — B. before 21 Jul 1700, Middletown, Connecticut2
4. Silas Long — B. before 11 Oct 1702, Middletown, Connecticut;10 D. 11 Feb 1782, Woodstock, Connecticut;11 M. (1) Lydia Evarts (1699-1757), 28 Sep 1726, Coventry, Connecticut;8 (2) Mehitable Holbrook (1701-1774), 12 Oct 1758, Coventry, Connecticut8
5. Azubah Long — B. before 31 Aug 1707, Middletown, Connecticut;12 D. 15 Sep 1743, Middletown, Connecticut;12 M. Daniel Stow (1701-1744), 3 Mar 1725, Middletown, Connecticut13
Sources:
1 Birth record of Joseph Long, Connecticut Births and Christenings, 1649-1667, FamilySearch.com
2 Long Family Genealogy (website)
3 The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut (1636-1776), p. 372, 1870
4 Women Before the Bar; Gender, Law and Society in Connecticut, 1639-1789, Cornelia Hughes Dayton, 2012
5 Find-A-Grave listing of David Ensign
6 Genealogy of the Elmer and More Families, L.Q.C. Elmer, 1930
7 Marriage record of Joseph Long (Jr.) and Sarah Evarts, Connecticut Vital Records Prior to 1850, FamilySearch.org
8 Births, marriages, baptisms, and deaths: from the records of the town and churches in Coventry, Connecticut, 1711-1844, Susan W. Dimock, 1897
9 Marriage record of Amos Carpenter and Deborah Long, Connecticut Marriages, 1630-1997, FamilySearch.org
10 Find-A-Grave listing of Silas Long
11 Death record of Silas Long, Connecticut Deaths and Burials, 1772-1934, FamilySearch.org
12 Find-A-Grave listing of Azubah (Long) Stow
13 Marriage record of Daniel Stow and Azubah Long, Connecticut Marriages, 1640-1939, FamilySearch.org
