The Will of William Cornwall of Middletown 1678

William Cornwall was born in England. He was living in Roxbury, Mass. by 1633 with his first wife Joane. As a young man he was in the early wave of settlers in Hartford, Conn. where his children were born. By 1657 he is living in Middletown where he took as his second wife Mary. The family was part of the First Congregational Society their names appearing on page one of the Society records. William died in Middletown February 11, 1678. In a detailed will he names his wife Mary. The will also names his children, his sons John, William, Samuel, Jacob and Thomas. He names his daughter Ester, who he refers to by the last name of her first husband Willcock in one place and her second husband Stow in another. He leaves property to his two other daughters Sara Hubbard and Elizabeth Hall. His family went on to become one of the most prominent families in Middletown. The family used a number of spellings for their last name, Cornwall, Cornwell and Cornell.