The Griffin Children

On page 336, in Volume Two of the Land Deed Records, Samuel and Mary proudly recorded for posterity a record of their family. What follows is a brief introduction to their children. The oldest child, Mary, they list as being born in December of 1728. There are no other records concerning Mary. Unlike her sisters she is not listed as having received Communion, no marriage record or notice of her death. My assumption is that she did not survive to adulthood.  Born in 1731 Thankful was to assume the role of big sister for her siblings. She was granted communion in 1747, at age 16, the year her father died. She was married in 1751. There are no records of what happened to her mother or when she died.  We can only guess what happened to the family until Thankful married and assumed a leading role in family affairs.  Thankful married into the Buell family. The Buells were one of the more prominent families in Killingworth. The original land grant to the Buells was over one thousand acres. Thankful and her husband lived in the home of her father in law, Daniel, a man of means, a Deacon in the Church. Her marriage certainly provided her with the means to fill the role of big sister. There is some evidence that she took her sister Jerusha under her wing. Some early family histories mistakenly list her as having a daughter Jerusha instead of listing her as a sister. When the boys came of age, when they were required to choose a guardian, her brother Samuel chose her husband Nathan Buell. When Nathan died at a young age Samuel in turn became executor for his estate. Thankful and Samuel lived as neighbors on Roast Meat Hill. James married and had his children baptized in Killingworth but he purchased very little property there and left a very small footprint. I think he must have raised his family in one of the neighboring communities. In a family who carried on family names it’s interesting that both he and Samuel named a daughter Polly. Jerusha was born in 1736 and was granted Communion in 1755 and is recorded as being part of Thankful’s household then she disappears from Killingworth records. The men of Killingworth played a prominent role in the founding of Salisbury, Connecticut.  There in 1757 we have recorded the marriage of Jerusha Grifface/Griffan to Asa Landon. The record states that they were “both” from Salisbury.  A search of the records finds Asa as being born in Litchfield, and there is no record of Jerusha being born in Salisbury nor is there a Griffin family present in the community. The “both” must have meant that they were both listed as members in the Salisbury Congregational Congregation at the time of their marriage. The only direct connection between the two Jerushas is that they share the same date of birth and a family oral history connecting to Killingworth. The baby of the family was Jeremiah. His birth is recorded by his father but no other records exist. Did he die at childbirth or at a young age? The only hint again comes from Thankful. With the passing of her husband she first lived with her father in law until his passing then with her son Asa in the Buell house. Asa’s oldest son was named Jeremiah Griffin Buell. I would like to think that it was Thankful’s tribute to a beloved brother who died too young.