Ministry in the Second Society

In the article on Abraham Pierson’s notebook we discussed the ministers who had served in Killingworth during his tenure. We present here a few documents that relate to the Rev. Henry Ely and the Rev. Josiah B. Andrews. The first document concerns the Rev. Ely. The record notes the agreement to set his salary at 90 pounds. Raising funds to provide keep for a minister was one of the primary tasks in any Society. It seemed unimaginable to not have a minister. In town minutes you also see references to assignments and projects to build or maintain housing. Another of the needs commonly discussed was efforts to provide the minister with an adequate supply to fire wood. As we discussed earlier conflicts arose between the Rev. Ely and the Society over the amount of financial and other support he was to receive. The conflict grew to a point that they agreed to part ways. The document reads in part “The Rev. Henry Ely, by mutual agreement, between him and the people was regularly dismissed from the pastoral care of the Church of Christ in this place”. The interesting term and concept here is the idea of being “dismissed”. It is a term used with the church membership as a whole. The term was used as an acknowledgement that the parishioner was being released from his covenants with the Society in order to move to a new Society. Entry into the new Society was noted using the term “received by letter”. This process was in essence a transfer of the blessings of being in Full Communion. It seems that the idea of being unaffiliated or outside of the “watch and care” of a Society was almost unthinkable.------The third document records the ordination of the Rev. Andrews to the role of Minister. “The Reverend Josiah B. Andrews was ordained to the work of the gospel ministry and received the pastoral charge of the 2nd Church of Christ in Killingworth”. Also listed is the quorum of Ministers and Deacons who presided over the ordination. The imagery in this document highlights a religious conundrum that persists to this day. The Congregational movement was one iteration of the broader Protestant movement that had as a core belief the rejection of the Catholics Church’s concept of the need for a priestly class to intercede on our behalf with Heaven. For Congregationalists the role of intersession was filled by the congregation. Yet in their desire to be true to the scriptures and finding themselves still somewhat trapped by their Catholic past they maintained the concept of ordination, which is itself, an argument for Apostolic Succession. To reconcile the conundrum they argued that ordination was only necessary for the sake of authorization and church order. This angst over such doctrinal confusion only increased with time. One of the responses was to try to reform Congregationalism just as it had tried to reform the Anglican Church and Catholicism. Thus we see the rise of the Baptist and Methodists movements. The debates divided movements and even single Societies. It is ironic that the Killingworth Second Society today is without a minister, the result of doctrinal disagreements. These debates touched the average churchgoer and even involved the theological elites on both sides of the Atlantic. A famous example involves John Wesley. After he ordained Thomas Coke a superintendent to administer sacraments to the Methodists, his brother Charles wrote:” So easy are Bishops made, By Man’s or woman’s whim? Wesley, his hands on Coke hath laid, But who laid hands on Him?”. Click on documents to enlarge.

Azuba Griffin and Henry Davis

Leonard/Azuba/ Samuel/ Samuel Griffin of Killingworth------We have been unable to find a probate record for Henry Davis the husband of Azuba Griffin. However their son Leonard left a detailed probate record. Leonard was the only son of Henry and Azuba. Being the only son tradition suggests that he probably ended up with most of his fathers property either by purchase or inheritance or as an inheritance from his mother. Historically the girls received their inheritance in the form of cash or household goods with the property to remain in the family. Based on this premise we can use Leonard’s probate to approximate his fathers and thus gain a sense of what life may have been like for Henry Davis and Azuba Griffin. In one section of the probate is a list of the properties involved. They include the stone house lot with 12 ½ acres, old chimney place lot of 2 ½ acres, 14 acres of salt marsh in Madison, dwelling house, wood house, best barn, and cow house on the east side of the yard all on 52 acres. Also listed were the cow house on the west side of the yard, old barn, old cow house and the cider mill house on 212 acres. It lists two additional lots containing 42 and 49 acres respectively. What conclusions might we draw from this list? 370 acres in 1841 was a large farm. With three separate “cow houses” mentioned it is my assumption that this was primarily a dairy operation, dairy being a major industry in Killingworth. Did the 2 ½ acres at the old chimney lot represent the original home lot of Henry and Azuba ? Was the stone house lot their second home? Did the 212 acres associated with the old barn represent Henry’s farm? Leonard left a bequest to five people in his will. To each of them he granted access to the “cider mill house”. To have a dedicated structure to house a cider mill would seem to indicate that the mill had a fairly large capacity and that it represented a valued resource. A cider mill also would seem to imply apple orchards. Having reviewed a fair number of probate records there are little hints in Leonard’s probate that that would seem to suggest a little affluence. He had enough resources to build a building dedicated to wood storage. This was not only for firewood but probably also finished lumber, which was a commodity, named in many wills including Leonard’s. To each of the people mentioned in his will he left a silk handkerchief. To his son Joel he left a razor and lather box. The household goods, that make up a large part of every probate, were numerous and decidedly upscale. One of the marks of affluence in that age was the possession of books. Leonard’s probate lists the following volumes, Large Bible, Beauties of the Bible, Exposition of the New Testament, Companion to the Alter, Berna Family Worship, History of England, Biographical Dictionary, Webster Dictionary, Morse Geography, Hukeweldins Narrative, Modern Geography, Civil Officer, and Gazetteers. The book list would seem to indicate people studying the issue of religion at home and people with a worldview. It’s an interesting exercise to imagine what the nature of the household that Leonard grew up in was like. To imagine how much of what he became came from his Griffin heritage.

Death of Marah Griffin August 13, 1765

Marah and Samuel Griffin’s marriage lasted a short six years. Yet despite this brief time together they enjoy the legacy of a large and successful posterity. Their posterity is traced mainly through the family names of Kelsey, Doud and Davis. Through our research we have come to know more of their posterity than they, in particular, Marah. We would like to address that topic as best as we can. The date and location for the birth of Marah “Griffin” Griffin remains an open question. The Barbour Collection would seem to suggest that at the time of her marriage she was living in Killingworth with several of her siblings. However there is no record of her parents or a recorded birth date in the existing Killingworth records. Discovering even her last name posed a challenge. In the town records there are several lists of marriages, each covering a few selected years. In these records we see listed husbands and wives with each new bride being listed by her first, and most importantly, last name. On one such list she is identified as Marah “Griffin”. We also see in the records three people who historical context would suggest could very well be her siblings. Ame Griffin who married Elihu Wellman, April 17, 1744, Elizabeth Griffin who married Benjamin Turner, November 15, 1753, Samuel and Marah bought their home lot from Benjamin Turner. The last possible sibling was William Griffin who married Eunice Crane, May 13, 1769. These three additional marriages help establish the presence of a second Griffin family in the Second Society. The First Society had within its boundaries a third identifiable Griffin clan. The existence and identity of that clan was discussed in our article on the family of James N Griffin. Marah’s documentary history in Killingworth starts with her marriage to Samuel Griffin on May 17, 1759 (document). Key for our discussion here is the fact that there remains some confusion concerning the spelling of her first name and the date of her death. In the blog we have made note of the three spellings used in the various records, Marah, Mariah, and Mary. In the documentary history there are only two different spellings. In her marriage record and death records, both found in Volume Two of the Town Records, her name is written as “Marah.” The Barbour Collection is taken from these town records. For her marriage record Barbour used the correct spelling Marah. For her death record there is a transcription error changing the name to Mariah. This entry in the Barbour Collection is the only source for the “Mariah” spelling. In the church records we see listed people who on a yearly basis were admitted to Full Communion. We see Samuel Griffin and Mary the wife of Samuel Griffin listed on July 19, 1761 (document). This record is the source for the name Mary that I have always assumed was a version of Marah. The commonly used date for Marah’s death is the Barbour date of August 13, 1763, which is taken from the town record. (document). As part of the documentation that we are presenting is a notation that is written in Volume Two concerning the section of documents in which this date for Marah’s death is found. It states that these records are themselves a certified copy of other original records (document). As with all transcriptions they presented an opportunity for transcription errors. The three most common numerical errors are between the numbers 1 and 7, 7 and 9, and 3 and 5. In this case I argue that a 5 became a 3 and the Barbour Collection simply passed along the error. The primary argument for a date of 1765 is the birth dates of her children. Together Samuel and Marah had three girls (document). The oldest is Lois (Kelsey) her date of birth, as noted in the concise little family record that was unfortunately smudged, is recorded as November 21, 1760. The church records list Lois as being baptized, along with two other children, January 19th, 1761. The Barbour Collection dates for the three girls are obviously taken from the family record discussed above. For Polly (Doud) the records note that she was born August 13, 1762, and baptized August 15, 1762. They show Azuba (Davis) being born April 9, 1765 and her baptismal date noted in the church records on April 14, 1765. The key dates are for Azuba who was born and baptized in April of 1765 (document). Marah married in 1759, her children were born in 1760, 1762, and 1765. These dates follow a pattern that is very common for the era and can be used as a secondary form of historical verification for family groupings. I propose that Marah died August 13, 1765 leaving Samuel with three young daughters one only months old. Again following a commonly seen historical pattern the records show Samuel remarrying fairly quickly on May 15, 1766 taking Mercy Nettleton as his second wife (document).

Samuel Nettleton's Earmark

One of the features of the New England landscape is the town common. The town common was used in the earliest days as a common pasture where livestock could be grazed. As towns grew larger they developed other parcels of common ground. This property was marginal for the purpose of agriculture but had a value as grazing land. What you see in the deed and probate records is the right to access these common grounds being passed from one farmer to another and from father to son. In Killingworth such land was referred to as the salt marshes. The existence of common land gave rise to the need to be able to easily identify your own cattle and sheep that were mixed in with those of your neighbors. Thus we see as a prominent feature in all town records the registration of earmarks. Here we have the earmark registry for Samuel Nettleton father of Mercy Nettleton Griffin.

Birth of the Killingworth Second Society

We have discussed on several occasions the circumstances that gave rise to the Killingworth “Second” Society. We have managed to put together several documents taken from town records that tell the story of the birth of the new Society. The first document is dated December the 12th 1728. The dialog concerning the wants of the people living in what is described, as our northern neighbors the farmers, had gained enough momentum that the town council, made up mainly of men from southern Killingworth, acknowledged that the issue had reached a point where decisions would have to be considered. The second document dated September 18, 1730 states the case for the northerners. Faith is essential to justification. Faith comes by hearing the word Preached. Implied was the fact that it was difficult to make the trip to church in southern Killingworth to hear the word. Then the claiming of the moral high ground, “We hope no good man will deny our Prayer”. The prayer was for the opportunity to hear the word in their own meetinghouse. The discussion was framed by two opposing points of view, stay together and with our pooled tithing money we can build a magnificent new meetinghouse vs. its too hard for us to make the trip south each week. Our needs are for a meetinghouse closer to our homes. But at issue was also the fact that these two groups had become two separate societies with two different sets of priories, one town folk, and the other farmers. On December 24, 1730 the issue came up for a vote. The description in the minutes is that “The meeting was prolonged by a vote in the evening”. Seeming after a prolonged discussion the two groups arrived at a resolution. Identify a line of division and agree to the formation of a new northern Society. The fourth document is the agreed on terms for the division of land and tithing money. The north agreed to help build the new meetinghouse to commence immediately. The south agreed to help the north build a building when the new Society was eventually formed. The last document is the act of authorization passed by the Colonial Assembly. Note it is dated May 12, 1737 some nine years after the first town meeting, seven years after the agreement. The new Killingworth Second Society became the home to the Griffin, Nettleton, Buell, Kelsey, Pelton and Davis families. The Griffin boys met and married the Hull girls in the Second Society, The Doud boys came calling probably at church socials. James Griffin’s sons and grandsons found wives in the second society. And we found our history there.

Congregational Drummers

Ingrained in Americana is the image of the church steeple with its bell. We have a rich cultural tradition of the church bell tolling the hour, peeling out news both good and bad and calling the faithful to Sunday Services. But in the earliest days of America it was the drum that served this function. The town crier announced his presence with the beat of a drum, the militia was directed in many of its functions by drumbeat, and in the Congregational Societies the call to worship was the beating drum. In places where most of the populous lived and worked in town the call to worship was the roll of the drum from the meetinghouse roof. In a farming community like Killingworth it is my guess that the drummer served his function by making a quick ride up and down the two streets that connected the scattered farms. Found in the town records for Killingworth are a number of small documents that note the hiring of a drummer. The fact that this was a matter of town business underlines its importance. Making it to church on time was important. In the earliest days it was mandatory. In our era what we would term as “an announcement” was recorded in early church records as a “warning”. It was not an “announcement” that we are having an event come if you can, instead, it was a “warning” we are having an event, you had bettered come. In the minutes of the Society future plans and events were noted and the line was always added, “and the members were warned”. Church attendance was important, gaining ones salvation was critical, and the drummers sounded the call.

Truman Doud 1784-1828

Truman/Reuben Polly Griffin/Abraham/Abraham/Thomas/Henry Doude------A hearing was held in the Cortland Surrogate Court on October 28, 1834 to establish a final resolution for the estate of Truman Doud. My interpretation of this court proceeding is that it reflects the fact that Truman did not leave a will. Truman died in 1828 at a relatively young age death may have came as a surprise. The transcript for the proceeding is very brief. His wife Rhoda and son in law Jabez Collins served as Administrators. Truman’s children are named in the transcript. Almira/Edwin Cook, Lavinia/Henry Townly, Truman Doud, Enoch H. Doud, Bela P. Doud, Josephine E. Doud.

Adaline Doud Collins 1811-1881

Adaline/Truman/Reuben Polly Griffin/Abraham/Abraham/Thomas/Henry Doude-------The Probate File for Adaline Doud Collins in found on page 547 of Book N of the Cortland Probate District. Her Will that is part of the file is dated October 8, 1876. She does not have a large estate to dispose of so the document is quite straightforward. Her will does favor her two living daughters. In the documents she names her husband “I give and bequeath unto my beloved husband Jabez Collins”. She identified her deceased daughter Angeline Augustine Collins and her children Maria Theresa Bishop, Ann Laveane Dickinson, Joseph Van Halen Collins and Truman D Collins.

Evidence for the family of Reuben Doud and Polly Griffin Doud of Madison, Connecticut and Cortland, New York

The Rev W.W. Doud published his work on the Doud family in 1885. His book has become the primary source for Doud research. But sadly for us, and by his own admission, it is very short on material for the family of Reuben and Polly. It is a thumbnail sketch at best, approximate dates, few locations, no source referencing. It is left up to us this generation of researchers to add more definition to the Family Tree of Reuben and Polly Griffin Doud. The recent recovery of the Will of their son Henry Doud has provided a gold mine of information. Henry Doud, although a widower, had no children. Henry was a successful farmer and rancher. At the end of his days with no children of his own he wrote a will that left his estate to the children of his sibling. According to court records “objections were filed to the Probate”. As a result of this action a hearing was held over a two-day span in March of 1870. As a result of this legal action Henry’s siblings were identified and or represented at the hearing. The essence of the testimony was that each witness testified concerning his connection to Henry Doud in other words they each gave a review of their genealogy. The witness list also included Henry’s only living sibling Reuben G. Doud who identified all of the members of Reuben and Polly’s family. This event provides a lot of information that we can use to fill in the gaps in the history written by the Rev. W.W. Doud. The information contained in the testimony has proven to be very helpful in establishing firm dates and locations for the Doud children. Following up on these leads we have been able to find death records and in some instances birth dates for Reuben’s children. The following is a synopsis of the sworn testimony. ------ The court clerk noted that Henry died October 8, 1869, he then entered the following list of people named in the Will. For clarification we added the names that are in parentheses. “The will written October 23, 1869 Henry Doud late of Cortlandville; Reuben G. Doud, ( brother) Adeline Collins, Lavinia Townly, (Truman) Stephen Hitchcock, Gideon Hitchcock, Vesta Hitchcock, (Vesta) Griffin D Walton, (Polly) Reuben Harrington, Nathaniel Harrington, Fanny Dexter, Philena Vaughn, (Lois) Joshua Walton, Truman D. Walton, Harriet Parson, Caroline Ames, A.G. Fuller, (Polly) Ephriam Eldridge, (Azubah) Vesta Doud, (?) Enoch Doud, (Truman) Prosper Hitchcock, (Vesta). ----- Notes: A.G. Fuller was the husband of Polly’s daughter Susan. Their was no one representing Gaylord’s family but Eben’s son Lofonso provided testimony. ------The proceedings started with testimony from a number of witnesses who testified to the validity of the Will and Henry’s signature. This testimony came from members of the community who had known Henry for a long time. Almost all of the relationships had a connection to the cattle business. In reading the testimony I think most of us would come to the conclusion that the Doud brothers were involved in the cattle business on a fairly large scale. Every homestead had a few cows. The Doud brothers had herds of cattle. For those of you who grew up in ranching country you will clearly understand the distinction.------ Henry’s brother Reuben G. Doud added his testimony. “ I am a brother of Henry Doud deceased the following are brothers and sisters of deceased. Lois Harrington, Eber, Gaylord, Vesta Hitchcock, Polly Walton, Truman, Azubah Cetchum, and Reuben G. Doud. Henry is next older than myself. All of the brothers and sisters are dead except myself. Henry’s age at the time of his death was 72. My age is 70 next September”. ------Jabez Collins, husband of Truman’s daughter Adaline, served as an administrator for Henry’s affairs. From his testimony it appears that he and his wife were the primary care givers for Henry’s later years. Henry’s obituary states that he actually died at the home of Reuben’s son Samuel. From Jabez’s testimony it is my assumption that Henry suffered from a little dementia in his last years. Jabez testified that Henry was always worried about the now non-existent cattle. “I reside in this town and have since 1818. My wife is a niece of Henry Doud”.------Nathaniel Harrington “My mother was Lois Doud she was Henry’s sister. She resides in Stockbridge, New York’.------ Note: this is the first historical hint we have ever found concerning the city where Lois Doud Harrington raised her family.------Lofonso Doud, “Eber Doud was my father he is a brother of Henry Doud. Father died in the fall of 1853 at the age of 65 or 66 in Michigan. He lived in Michigan for 16 years previous to his death”.------“Lovinia Townley sworn says My father was Truman Doud he was a brother of Henry Doud’ My father died 42 years ago his children were, Almire Doud she married and is dead she married Edwin Cook and left 5 children, the next was Adaline she married Jabez Collins is alive, the next is myself, the next is Truman Doud who died without heirs, the next is Enoch H. Doud living, next is Bela P. Doud living, the next is Josephine wife of John L. Hommendien living she is 42 years old living west”.------Prosper Hitchcock, “My mother was Vesta Hitchcock a sister of Henry Doud”.------Each recorded segment of testimony was followed by the person’s signature. In most court documents the clerk merely writes in the names of the person involved who may or may not then add their personal seal. In this case we have the actual signatures from our family history. We have included signatures for Reuben G. Doud, Prosper Hitchcock and Jabez Collins.

Abraham Doud's Will 1718 to 1801

Reuben/ABRAHAM/ Abraham/Thomas/Henry Doude------- Abraham Doud was born April 25, 1718 and died October 28, 1801. He married Mary (Mercy) Bishop. The birth records for his children that we posted on the blog uses the name Mary. They raised their family in East Guilford, now Madison, Connecticut. Abraham and Mary had seven children together. Their oldest child was Reuben Doud; born in 1748 Reuben married Polly Griffin. Abraham’s children were Reuben, Anna, Ruth, Eber, Olive, Henry and Lemuel. Eber and Lemuel gave their lives in the Revolutionary War both dying in 1776. Abraham names his living children in his Will, Reuben and Henry and his married daughters Anna Bartlett, Ruth Dudley and Olive Wilcox. We have included his Will, which begins “In the Name and Fear of God Amen”. In the Will he writes a short passage concerning each of his children. The passages are introduced by the lines “And as such Temporal Estate as God hath been pleased to bless me with in this Life, I give Devise and Dispose as follows”. At the end of the second page you can see his signature. In the Will he writes “ I give and bequeath unto my Eldest son Reuben Doud his Heirs and assign forever all of the remainder of my land laying on the west side of the highway opposite my dwelling house which I have not heretofore given him by deed toward his portion”. Apparently Abraham had already deeded Reuben some of his property. To Henry he wills ”all my homestead land and buildings”. Henry lived out his days on the homestead which originally belonged to his grandfather also named Abraham. Reuben disposed of his holdings in Madison and moved his family to Cortland, New York around 1795. The probate package also includes a detailed page for each of Abraham’s children. We have included three pages, one each, for Reuben, Henry, and Anna.

Congregational Articles of Faith

If you have the opportunity to view a volume of original records from one the Congregational Societies what you will find in the opening pages are a number of documents that record the oaths and covenants that each member pledges to accept. One of those documents is their Articles of Faith. The Articles of Faith represent the tenants of Congregational belief reduced to their simplest form. This copy is from Madison, Connecticut. The heading reads, "These Persons all publicly assent to the following Articles of Faith and Covenant".

Where were Reuben and Polly Doud's children born?

Establishing a birth date and a birthplace for the children of Reuben Doud and Polly Griffin has proven to be a daunting task. It has been so for most of the researchers who have taken up the challenge. The Rev. W. W. Doud published the most widely quoted Doud History in 1885. You can access a copy on the Internet. It is titled “The Descendants of Henry Doude, who came from England in 1639”. In the forward the Rev. Doud acknowledges that most of the information for the first three generation that he uses was gathered from the collections of Alvan Talcott a source we have referenced many times on this Blog. Alvan Talcott’s work has been organized into a two-volume collection titled “Families of Early Guilford Connecticut”. Talcott’s work however contains no information on Reuben and Polly. Starting where Talcott left off the Rev. Doud amassed a wonderful collection covering a number of succeeding generations. Concerning Reuben and Polly’s family he writes, “The descendants of Reuben were widely scattered, and it has been with much difficulty that the line has been followed at all, to say nothing of the imperfect condition in which it still remains. His children were” he then lists Eber, Gaylord, Lois, Truman, Azubah, Polly, Vesta, Henry and Reuben G. He also includes their spouses. For dates he has years only with no locations. From a review of subsequent material it would seem that most individual family histories written subsequent to his history have relied heavily on his material in particular the dates. Recent research efforts have provided a specific date for the death of almost all of his children and in a few instances we have also discovered a date of birth. But what we have not been able to find up until now is a definitive connection to a place of birth. Henry Doude was a founding father for the town of Guilford. His generations are connected to that place. As the original Guilford grew it was subdivided. The primary motivation was the establishment of new Congregational Societies. North Guilford became Bristol and East Guilford became Madison. In a recent detailed review of the early church records for Madison we found a baptismal record for two of Reuben and Polly’s children. On May 29, 1796 Vesta and Zuba, children of Reuben Doud, were baptized. Reuben purchased his first piece of property in Cortland, New York in late 1795. It is my assumption that he moved to Cortland at about that time and began to organize a farm and homestead so that he could bring his family to New York at a later date. This pattern of colonization that was very common. In the meantime Polly had the two youngest girls baptized. I remain puzzled as to why there is no records for the other children in Madison.

Abraham Doud's Will 1691 to 1768

Reuben/Abraham/ABRAHAM/Thomas/Henry Doude------ Abraham Doud was born August 22, 1691 in Guilford, Connecticut. He married his cousin Sarah Doud and their marriage is posted on the Blog. On her death he then married Phebe Kelsey. His death is listed as March 12, 1768. Abraham and Sarah had four children Thomas, Abraham and two sons named Samuel the second Samuel named after a older brother who died in his first year of life. Abraham’s will is posted in 1768. In it he lists his wife Phebe and his two sons Thomas and Abraham and his grandson Samuel son of his son Samuel who had died in 1760. In the Will he leaves one–half of his real estate to Phebe with the caveat “as long as she remains my widow”. As was the legal custom of the time Phebe’s property would revert to Abraham’s sons on her death. To his “loving son” Thomas he leaves his land on Summer Hill except for 34 acres which he leaves to his grandson Samuel. To his loving son Abraham he leaves his “homestead where I now dwell”. His signature is affixed at the bottom of the second page. The Third page he have included lists his sons Abraham and Thomas at the bottom as the executors of his Will. The last page is part of the inventory of his estate.

Abraham Pierson's Notebook

Abraham Pierson served as a Deacon in the Killingworth Second Society from 1794 to 1823. The Deacons served as “chairman of the board” for the Society. The Congregational Societies, and thus the Deacons, set the tone for much of what went on in their communities. The Society was responsible for raising the necessary funds to meet the needs of the congregation. A salary and housing for the minister, funds to build and maintain chapels, schools, cemeteries and any number of other enterprises all needed funding. Consequently the Society was involved in the collection of tithing money among other revenue sources. In essence they were concerned with all matters pertaining to the maintenance of the religious life of the community. In all of this they were subject to some scrutiny by the state religious boards whose approval was required to establish a new Society. These boards were also responsible for the formal aspects of establishing a new Society, providing a stamp of authority, presiding over the inauguration of the new congregation and providing a quorum of ministers to ordain the new minister. But by in large, once established, individual Societies exercised a great deal of autonomy. With the Deacons acting as chairman key decisions were put to a vote by the membership who owned the covenant. A key aspect of their duties was the selection of a minister to meet the ecclesiastical needs of the members. The Ministers were all trained in the theological seminaries that were a major part of the leading universities. Choosing the right man was very important. But even though it may strike us as odd Societies had the power and were not hesitant to dismiss their Ministers if they found them wanting. During his tenure Killingworth had three Pastors. The first was the Reverend Henry Ely who served from 1782 to 1801 when he was forced to resign after a period of unrest that started with his request for additional living funds. He was replaced by the Reverend Josiah B. Andrews. The Rev. Andrews himself was eventually dismissed by the Society. The members took offence at his emphasis on their sinful nature. He was very much a minister in the vein of the “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” school of thought. He was followed by the Reverend Asa King in 1811. Reverend King became one of the most successful of all of the Pastors who served in Killingworth. While the Pastors, by the nature of their position as holders of God’s authority, were the dominant voice in the Society the Deacons enjoyed a great deal of influence and respect. In Abraham Pierson we have one of the most dynamic Deacons who served in any of the Societies I have studied. Abraham came from one of the most prominent families in Connecticut. His namesake had served as the Minister in the early days of Killingworth and went on to become the first President of Yale. Abraham, unlike many in his family, did not become a minister finding his own success in other avenues. He served as Justice of the Peace in Killingworth for thirty-two years. For a good portion of that time he also represented Killingworth in the Connecticut General Assembly. As a reflection of his own worldview he took offence at being referred to as Judge or Assemblyman instead he preferred the title of the “good Deacon Abraham” a circumstance that provides us with an insight into the importance of religion in Killingworth. He is buried in the Union Cemetery next to the Griffin Home Lot. In his role as Deacon he kept his own set of records in his personal notebook. The volume we have covers the years from 1794 to 1802 and contains 95 pages. It’s my guess that there was a second volume that covered the years up to 1823. What he chose to record also provides a commentary on the religious mindset of the people who lived in Killingworth. Since the notebook was his property on his death it remained in his family rather than becoming a formal part of the church records. It left his family’s hands finally to reappear a few years ago. The new buyer, recognizing its significance, donated it to the state library thus giving us access. Abraham’s notebook mirrored much of what was kept in official church records. This is important for us since some of the church records for that time period have been lost. He recorded births, marriages and deaths for which he added the note “In North Killingworth”. One of the baptisms is for Jeremiah Griffin Buell named by his grandmother, Thankfull Griffin Buell, in honor of her brother who died young. In his notebook he records of the death of his father Dodo. While most of the notations are cryptic the notation for his father contains quite a bit of detail including the time of day. In a death record for a child he added the note “never baptized” which to him was significant. He also kept an ecclesiastical record. He noted who was accepted into the all-important Full Communion and he had a section he labeled “Covenanters” although I am unsure about his distinction between the two. He also had a section that he labeled as “Acknowledgements” which were in essence public admissions of sin as an act of repentance. The most common acknowledgement was for the sin of fornication by a married couple. This was not about “adultery”. The issue was a desire to avoid being numbered among the sinners in God’s eyes. Fornication occurred when a couple found themselves deriving too much of the pleasures of the flesh in their intimate life together. Among the acknowledgements we also find drunkenness, quarreling, and breach of the peace. Abraham even kept a week-by-week record of the scriptural texts chosen by the Pastor as the subject for the week’s sermon. On January 3, 1802 the text came from Ecclesiastes 5:1 “Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil”. Can you picture the good Deacon nodding his head in approval? During his time as a Deacon the Griffin family was represented in the Second Society by the families of Worden and Azuba Griffin, the wife of Henry Davis, and for a short time Charlotte Griffin and her husband Ancel Jones. His notebook also records the marriage of Mercy Griffin to Itamar Pelton. It is Abraham Pierson’s gift to us that we find a record of their families in his notebook. His notebook also gives us a wonderful view of the life of our Congregational ancestors.