Asahel Griffin Tour of Moira

This tour of Moira was part of a family reunion celebration. The research and the resulting tour guide are the work of David Griffin who has graciously made it available to all of us who have an interest in Griffin Genealogy and in particular the ancestry of Asahel Griffin.
Asahel was born in Killingworth, New London, now Middlesex, County Connecticut on January 19, 1769 to Samuel Griffin and Mercy Nettleton (a copy of his birth record from the records of the Congregational 2nd Society is listed in the blog). Asahel and his brother Joel moved to New Haven, Addison County, Vermont about 1790 or 1791 where Asahel married and had 6 children, living there for about 20 years. The Asahel and Polly Griffin family came to Moira, Franklin County, New York in 1810 from the small town of New Haven with their 4 boys and 2 girls. The boys names were Loyal, Worden, Sylvester and Leicester (Lester) and one of the girls was Abigail and the other one is still unknown. One more son, Joseph was born here in 1811, Loyal and Sylvester moved on with the westward movement and Worden, Leicester, Abigail and Joseph remained the rest of their lives in Moira. Some of Asahel’s descendants still live here.
Griffin’s of Moira Tour
1. The first place we will visit is the Moira Methodist-Episcopal Church on the 4 corners of Moira. It was built in 1869 at a cost of $13,000 and was dedicated in 1870 by Rev W.W. Hunt, Pastor. But Methodism was first started in Moira about 1827, where pastor Luther Lee preached for two years, 1827 and 1828, and records kept back to 1831. A portion of the 1831 entry reads, “previous to the year 1831 the only class for Moira had its central point, or focus at Alburgh, in the south part of town, and Judge Hiram Pierce was the leader, but in that year the class was divided, and Peter Whitney and Hiram Pierce were made leaders of the two classes respectively. Class book, December 6, 1831, for the Moira Class (at the corners) of the Methodist-Episcopal Church, Malone Circuit, Oneida Conference, Spruce Chase, P.E. (Presiding Elder). George Woodruff, John Loveys, Circuit Preachers, for the conference year 1831. Names of the members were Hiram Pierce, leader, Sally Pierce, Carlostin Olverd, Abigail B Olverd, LOYAL GRIFFIN, MITILDA GRIFFIN (Sylvester Griffin’s wife), JOSEPH GRIFFIN, William C. Peck, Emeline Spencer, Polly Keeler, Charlotte Beals, Elvira Gasford, David T Morey, David Keeler and Sally Keeler”…
While at the Moira corners we will see the Town Clock dedicated to Wilber Austin, the husband of ABIGAIL GRIFFIN. The clock was dedicated to Wilber’s memory in 1923. I have not been able to find any more information on this. Wilber Austin came from Milton, Vermont with his family in 1805. His father Peleg and Abiah (Knapp) Austin and other Austin family members are buried in the Moira Cemetery. And I will talk about Abiah again later. I can only say that the Austin family was fairly wealthy and loved to deal in real estate.
2. Our next stop is the Moira Cemetery where there is six generations of GRIFFIN’S buried, including Asahel. Worden was probably the first Griffin to be buried here since he died in 1835. Maybe some Griffin children were buried here before that but they would all be in the old section of the cemetery and the stones, some laying on the ground , are difficult, it not impossible, to read. My direct line here includes a brother, two sisters, father and mother, grandfather and grandmother, g-grandfather and g-grandmother, g-g-grandfather and g-g-grandmother, and g-g-g-grandfather and g-g-g-grandmother. ??? Wish I could read all of the stones and I wish everyone buried there had a stone with their name and dates on them.
3. Our third stop on the tour is the land purchases by ASAHEL GRIFFIN from Luther Brandish, Peter Kean, and Robert Watts, Esquires, proprietors of the Township of Moira. It consists of 51 acres, in lot 151 of Potter Goff survey of 1817, and cost him $136.97 and is recorded in Book 5, Pgs 228 & 229. The property was sold to his youngest son, Joseph, for $1,000.00 on 29 August 1839, recorded in Book 9, Pgs 719 and 720. The census showed Asahel continued to live there in 1840 and 1850 or until he died in 1851.
4. A Starch Factory at the Lawrence Brook beside the Smiths Saw Mill on Mill Road in Moira, was one third owned by Charles W. Griffin, son of Leicester. His one third was sold to two parties in 1859. One party was Wilber Austin, his uncle, and the second party Wagner R. Smith and Amherst L. Morgan as recorded in Book 28, Pg 240.
5. The area of Moira called Wangum, District #8, has quite a tale attached to it. A quote from the Austin Family Tree, written to Edith by Mrs. Lillian Manchester, dated September 24, 1929, speaking of Abiah Austin, wife of Peleg Austin (quote) “ she had learned many words from the Indians and tradition has it she used to stand in the door of her cabin and gaze at the forest and say “Oh Wangum, Wangum” meaning “Oh Lonesome Land”. Thus Wangum received its present name from my great grandmother, its first white woman.” Seems Abiah Knapp was in love with a young Dr. Wyman but her father, Rev. Knapp, disapproved of their relationship and made it clear to Dr. Wyman. A few years later it was feared Abiah would be an “old maid” not desired in the old days. Her parents hints became too persistent and her quick temper rose and she said “All right , I will marry the first man who asks me” who happened to be Peleg Austin, a man homely enough to stop a clock, and 8 years older, uneducated and rough, but he had land, money, and was religious and upright, honest and hard working. She bore him 11 or 12 children. The hardships and terrors of life in the wilderness, wild Indians came by daily, entering the house to steal a whole baking of bread, was more than the delicate Abiah could stand, together with a broken heart for her Dr. Wyman, for she never loved Peleg, she became mentally unbalanced in a mild, harmless way. Three of the Peleg/Abiah Austin children married into the Asahel/Polly Griffin family; Leicester Griffin married Emily Austin, Sylvester Griffin married Matilda Austin and Abigail Griffin married Wilber Austin.
6. Property belonging to Stillman Griffin and then to his son William/Billy Griffin.
7. The little old District # 8, Wangum, school house was built about 1874, the land deeded to the district by William A. & wife/Hulda A. Whitney and David Foss dated July 3rd, 1874 and recorded November 1880 in Liber 64, page 325. Many Griffin children went to this school for grades one thru eight, including me and I believe all my brothers and sisters, my father and his sisters and my grandfather and many of his brothers and sisters and their children. I bought this school house in 1959 and we had many of the reunions here. I sold it in 1995 to David and Sylvia. Now some of the Gales have their reunions here. They are also in our family tree.
8. This house called the Lincoln House, was owned by a few Griffins, Howard, son of William, son of Stillman; Kenneth, son of John, son of David, and today is still in the family.
9. This is the house of Leicester and Emily (Austin) Griffin. Lester bought this parcel one forth acre, on May 14, 1849 from William Whitney & wife, Book 18, Pgs 600 & 601, so the house must have been built in the early 1850’s. When he died it was sold to his namesake son Lester by his widow, 3rd wife Philomena Millie (Clark) Griffin on March 4, 1876, Book 56, Pgs 436 & 437. Lester and his wife Charlotte (Mann) Griffin, were living in the area of Wisconsin called Mann Valley, the little town of Troy in St. Croix County, so did not need the property here in Moira so sold it to Clark J. Lawrence. It has changed hands many times since and at least once back to a Griffin by the name of Howard in 1946 when my father bought Howard’s house the, the Lincoln House.
10. This is the house of David W. and Mary Jane (Kennedy) Griffin. David purchased the property from William Whitney & wife on September 10, 1868 and built the house himself as his trade was a carpenter. David Griffin sold the property to his youngest son John, on January 19, 1905 with a lifetime right of full use, occupation and control by the longest liver of either David or Mary Jane. Many Griffins were born in this house including 3 of David and Mary Jane; Eli Walter, Florence Annette and John Hubert. Four of John and Jennie Mae (Kelly) Griffin; Kenneth Wesley, Marjory Blanche, Inez Alice and Bertha. And seven children of Kenneth Wesley and Dorothy Grace (Childs) Griffin; Marion Helen, Vera May, David Wesley, Lester James, Norman Elisha, Ester Ramona, and Pauline Janet. This property remained in the Griffin family until the early 1950’s when my grandfather , John Griffin, sold it to a family by the name of White.
11. Two houses and three structures in this area belonged to Griffin family members, long gone now, probably by fire. One of the houses belonged to Charles W. Griffin, son of Leicester and his wife Helen M. (Drew) Griffin and the other belonged to George Spencer and Clarissa (Griffin) Spencer. Daughter of Leicester and Emily (Austin) Griffin and sister to Charles W.
12. House belonging to Charles W. Griffin, son of Leicester and Emily (Austin) Griffin.
13. On June 14, 1830, Asahel Griffin purchased 50 acres of land from Joshua Knapp, Book 5, pgs 296 & 297 and kept it for only 8 months before selling it back to the previous owner, Joshua Knapp, on February 10, 1831 Book 5 pgs 480 & 481. My brother, Robert Griffin, now owns a small part of that 50 acre lot.
Many other properties were bought and sold many times over by Griffin’s of Moira, but are too numerous to mention.