Captain Edward Griffin land record from Colebrook

Captain Edward Griffin set aside funds in his will for the purchase of a farm for his wife Submit. Submit choose to purchase that farm in Colebrook, Litchfield County. In the church records we find her name along with that of her youngest child Edward. The farm was to be divided between the children when they reached the age of 21. Part of the farm was to remain in Submit’s name until her death. The deed records from Colebrook show Charles N. Griffin buying each of his siblings portion when they came of age. In 1819 Submit gives her portion to her children. This deed provided the clues that allowed us to find her adult children. It’s discovery opened the door to our research on Edward Griffin’s family. The deed identifies Timothy Gaylord 2nd and his wife Polly (Griffin) of Norfolk, Lyman and Fanny Dowd of Guilford, Martin Lawrence and his wife Submit (Griffin) of Colebrook. It also names Charles and Julia Griffin of Colebrook. Conspicuous by his absence is Harry Allen. The deed reads in part “Estate that our mother Submit Griffin had her Dower upon from the estate of her husband deceased”. Submit kept a home lot of one acre. A few years before her death we find a deed record in which Submit deeds her home and property to Augustus Elmer, her daughter Julia’s husband, in exchange for his pledge to support her for her remaining days. In relative terms the current value for the property portions of Edward’s will has a value of over $800.000.00. In the ‘” Find a Grave” internet site for Colebrook you can find a picture of Submit Griffin’s headstone in the Beach Hill Cemetery.

Fanny Griffin Dowd 1786-1820

Fanny Griffin Dowd the daughter of Captain Edward Griffin and his wife Submit DeWolf was born in 1786. In the 1790 census we find the family of Edward Griffin listed in Killingworth. Family histories and deed records place Edward in South Killingworth near his grandfather Samuel’s home in what would eventually become Clinton. By the time of his death in 1802 Edward had relocated to nearby Madison, Connecticut. There is a portion of Edward’s will, which we recently published, dedicated to Fanny. She was to inherit a good portion of the household furnishing enough I am sure to give her a head start in furnishing her own home when she married. We find her listed in the deed records that marked the final disposition of her mother’s estate. Recorded on the deed record are Lyman and Fanny Dowd of Guilford. In the records of the Congregational First Society of Madison we find a marriage for Lyman Dowd and Fanny Griffing in May of 1805 (document). The marriage is also reported in the Connecticut Harold dated Thursday, May 21, 1805. We also find a record of their children in the Guilford town records (document). Each child is identified as the son or daughter of Lyman and Fanny Dowd. The Dowd/Doud much like the Griffin/Griffing spelling is used interchangeably seeming at the whim of the particular clerk recording the event. The same is somewhat true for Guilford/Madison. In it’s early days Madison was called East Guilford. That is why we find records for Fanny listed in both towns. In Alvan Talcott’s original notes (document) and in his history “Families of Early Guilford Connecticut” (document) we find a detailed history for Fanny’s family. She is identified as Fanny Griffing daughter of Edward Griffing. Her children and their spouses are listed as well as a number of significant dates. ------Lyman Dowd was the son of Joseph Dowd and his wife Mary Blatchley. They lived in East Guilford. In Talcott’s history we find Lyman’s date of birth recorded as March 6, 1784 (document). In the Congregational records in Madison we find his death noted in March of 1852 (document). The extended family is buried in a plot in the West Cemetery in Madison. There we find; Lyman Dowd, died Mar 25, 1852, age 68, Fanny Dowd, wife of Lyman, died Dec 2 1820, age 34 yrs, their son Richard W. Dowd Nov 9, 1835, age 21 yrs. their daughter Fanny, Fanny Dowd, wife of George, died Aug 16, 1865, age 57, her husband George Dowd, died March 25, 1883, age 76. There are also a number of grandchildren. ------ The family record from Guilford is very neat and concise. The oldest child was Emeline Dowd born September 23, 1806. We have published her history in another article on the Blog. She died November 8, 1868 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. ------ Fanny Dowd, named after her mother, was born February 24, 1808. She married a cousin George Dowd and they lived in Madison. Her death is noted in the “Register of Deaths” in the Congregational records Aug, 16, 1865 wife of George (document). ------ Edward L. Dowd’s birth is part of the Guilford record noted as August 15, 1809. Talcott lists a marriage to Julia Johnson. There are no other records for Edward named after his father and grandfather. ------ Susan Dowd was born, according to the Guilford record, on July 11, 1812. Talcott lists a marriage to Henry Bradley. Her family records are found in New Haven. In the New Haven town records we find a detailed accounting of her death on May 31, 1898 (2 documents). Susan D. Bradley, maiden name; Dowd, wife of Henry, parents Lyman and Susan. Death from Paralysis of the Heart. Did the clerk inadvertently write down Susan’s name as the wife of Lyman or was Fanny’s middle name also Susan? ------ Richard W. Dowd’s birth is noted on January 13, 1815. He was a teamster dying of Typhus in Northford, New Haven County. In the Northford Congregational records we find his death record, Richard Woolcott Dowd, Nov 9, 1835, age 21 (document). ------ Fanny Griffin-Griffing Dowd-Doud / Captain Edward Griffin / James Griffin / Samuel Griffin.

Emeline Doud French vs Emeline Doud Crampton

We have previously posted an article on the Blog concerning Emeline Doud whose family tree is as follows; Emeline Doud / Fanny Griffin-Lyman Doud / Edward Griffin / Samuel Griffin. There exists a good deal of confusion concerning the identity of Emeline, her parentage, and who she married. The most common thread suggests that she had married Edmund Frisbee of Montgomery, Massachusetts in 1822 and on his early death Harmon French of Montgomery in 1825. The young couple made their first home in Montgomery in western Massachusetts just north of the Connecticut border noted there in the 1830 and 1840 census records. The couple eventually ended up in Hartford, Connecticut where they are noted in the 1850 census ages 50 and 49 ( birth 1799/1800 ). Harmon died in 1865 and we find Emeline in the 1870 and 1880 census records listed with a date of birth in 1802. In the 1880 census she is listed as “mother in law” in her daughter Clarissa’s household. The French family has in its history a fairly detailed family history for Harmon and Emeline. The basic facts that they present are her marriage to Harmon in Montgomery, Massachusetts in February 1825, references to her as Emeline Doud Frisbee. It notes a date of death after 1880 in Hartford, Connecticut. It makes note of the fact that she had a twin sister Eveline who married Timothy Clark, also of Montgomery, also noting a number of interactions between the families of the two sisters. There are marriage records in Guilford for the marriage of an Emeline Doud of Guilford to Edmund Frisbee of Montgomery on September 11, 1822. There is also a marriage record for Eveline Doud of Guilford and Timothy Clark of Montgomery dated October 6, 1822. In the most widely sited genealogical material for Guilford, that of Alvan Talcott, which I assume they accessed, there is a good deal of material relating to these families, but as with most such collections it is troubled with mistakes and ambiguities. Within the collection, the original of which I reviewed for this article, is found the following material.------ Under the family of Asa Doud and his 2nd wife wife Hannah Tooley is listed twin sisters Emeline, who Talcott notes married Harmon French, and Eveline Doud who married Timothy Clark. The material suggests a date of birth for Emeline around 1800. There is no mention of a marriage to Edmund Frisbee.------ Also found in the Talcott collection is the family of Lyman Doud and his wife Fanny Griffing, noted as the daughter of Edward. There are in fact two iterations of the Talcott compilation. In Doctor Talcott’s original notes we find the family of Lyman and Fanny Doud with the date of birth for their oldest child Emeline September 23, 1806. He then notes her ( 1st) marriage to S or J Hubbard Crampton. He then adds a note for another marriage to Edmund Frisbee. Late is his life Doctor Talcott edited his collections of family notes that he had assembled over a 50-year time span into a collection titled “Families of Early Guilford”. In this new work Doctor Talcott lists Emeline’s marriage to Edmund Frisbee as her 2nd marriage the assumption being that ( this time he writes “J”) Hubbard Crampton, Emeline’s 1st husband having died Emeline took a 2nd husband. If you look closely he notes her date of death in “1868”. There is no entry in either record for a twin sister Eveline. There is no record of a marriage to Harmon French. In 1984 the Connecticut Society of Genealogists, with Jacquelyn L. Ricker serving as editor, republished Talcott’s Families of Guilford cross-referencing his work with the original Guilford records. Their conclusion was that there was a “possibility” that Emeline had also married Edmund Frisbee.------Also in the Talcott collection we find listed under the family of Jonathan Crampton and his wife Elizabeth Hubbard a son Jonathan Hubbard Crampton his wife in turn listed as Emily Doud. The church records in Madison, where all of the Crampton children are recorded, list his baptismal date in 1811.------The French family has followed the trail from Harmon’s wife Emeline back to her marriage to Edmund Frisbee in Guilford. They have then noted that Talcott indicates that the wife of Edmund Frisbee was probably the daughter of Lyman and Fanny Doud. ------I have came to the conclusion that the Emeline-Harmon French connection is incorrect. I began to doubt the Harmon French connection for the following reasons. Found in the Guilford town records is an unambiguous entry for Lyman and Fanny Doud’s family. Their oldest child Emeline was clearly born September 23, 1806. There is no Eveline in the family. There is also no listing in the Guilford records for a marriage for Lyman and Fanny’s daughter Emeline to Harmon French. There is an entry in the Guilford town records for the marriage of Edmund Frisbee to an “Emeline Doud” of Guilford. I think Talcott named the wrong Emeline as the wife of Edmund Frisbee the time line argues against it being Lyman and Fanny’s daughter. Emeline was born in 1806 a 2nd marriage to Edmund Frisbee in 1822 which would have been at the age of 15 or 16, would have been very uncommon for that day. That also means her 1st marriage to Jonathan Hubbard Crampton would have been around 1820 his age 10/11 her’s 13/14. But the key for my conclusions is that there is a very compelling documentary trail for her marriage to Jonathan Hubbard Crampton ending with her death in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in “1868”. The trail starts with the Guilford record, which notes her birth September 23, 1806 and her marriage to Hubbard Crampton. Our trail for Jonathan Hubbard starts in Madison. We find a baptismal record for Jonathan Hubbard Crampton son of J, Crampton June 1811. We find him listed with his sisters under the Crampton name in the records of the Congregational Society “Jonathan H “P” i.e. by profession of faith, joining the Congregational Congregation at the age of 17 in 1828. His record notes that he “R” removed to Fair Haven in 1837. We also find listed a few pages later in the “Registry of Members” “Emeline Crampton”. Also in the Madison Congregational records is an entry for the birth of their daughter Elizabeth Hubbard in May of 1835 which would seem to indicate a marriage much later than the 1822 date for Edmund Frisbee’s marriage. In the Fair Haven Congregational records we pick up the trail with “Emeline” Crampton and Jonathan Crampton being admitted in September of 1837. Although Talcott refers to her as Emily, as do the later census records, in the early Connecticut church records she is refered to as “Emeline”. The Fair Haven records show that they moved (dismissed) to the New Haven North Congregation on June 24, 1838. Jonathan’s record notes that he had arrived from Madison. The 1840 census for New Haven shows him with a wife and a daughter. The town history notes that he ran a store for dry goods. The next step is the 1860 Census for Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Jonathan H Crampton age 49, Emily D Crampton age 52, and Elizabeth H. Dodge 24, James H (Henry) Dodge age 28. In the history of Milwaukee is a reference to Jonathan and his partners and their dry goods store. In a passport application, which Jonathan applied for in Milwaukee, he lists his birth as 1810, born in Madison, Connecticut. In the 1870 census J. H. Crampton is part of the household of Henry Dodge and his wife Elizabeth. In the records for St. Paul’s Church in Grenville, Wisconsin we find a marriage record for Elizabeth H. (Elizabeth Hubbard in the Madison records) Crampton and James Henry Dodge on December 2, 1856. In the same church records we find the burial record for Emily D. Crampton on November 18, “1868”. In the town records is an obituary for, Emily D Crampton November 18, 1868 at the age of 62 (1806). Buried in the Forest House Cemetery. In the county records we find a detailed record for Jonathan’s 2nd marriage to Ester Euginea Barum on May 5, 1873. His parents are listed as Jonathan and Elizabeth Crampton matching the Talcott record. Jonathan died March 27, 1882. Based on this documentary trail it is my conclusion that Emeline (Emily) Doud daughter of Lyman Doud and his wife Fanny Griffin, granddaughter of Edward Griffin, married Jonathan Hubbard Crampton and is buried in Milwaukee Wisconsin. It is my conclusion that Emeline Doud French the daughter of Asa Doud born in 1800 married Edmund Frisbee of Montgomery, Massachusetts in 1822 at the age of 22 and on his death married Harmon French also of Montgomery, Massachusetts in 1825. She died sometime after the 1880 census in Hartford, Connecticut.-------We have posted the following documents; 1- The family of Lyman and Fanny Doud. -2-Asa Doud. -3-Eveline Doud. -4- Edmund Frisbee. -5-6- Talcott records for Lyman Doud. -7- Talcott’s records for Jonathan Crampton Sr. -8-9- Jonathan Crampton Jr. -10-Emeline Crampton from the Madison records. -11- daughter Elizabeth Hubbard Crampton. -12-13- Church record from Fair Haven for Emeline and Jonathan. -14- Marriage for Elizabeth Hubbard Crampton. -15- Burial record for Emily (Emeline Doud ) Crampton. -16- 2nd marriage for Jonathan.

Bringing History to Life

We have quoted from any number of great family histories and compilations in the Blog. What we have tried to accomplish by presenting the original documents from our ancestry is to bring those people to life. It is one thing to read in a history of one of our ancestors its another thing entirely to view an original document and come to the realization that the person writing that document actually knew of that ancestor. I in particular have enjoyed reading the early church records. I find it an interesting exercise to put myself in the shoes of the early Griffin’s. A prominent aspect of their lives was religion. We present here two documents from the Congregational First Society in Madison. The first is from the very beginnings of the Society. It is titled “Constitution of the Church”. We have previously published several articles on the Congregational mindset. The Constitution provides additional insights. Article 1 notes that a mere profession of religion is not sufficient. To join with the community of believers a person must pass a rigorous examination. In our day such an exercise would be considered exclusionary. The purpose in 1700’s Madison was a concern for your soul. They were convinced that it was essential that you were a true believer any thing less was a sure ticket to hellfire and damnation. As noted in Article 2 the process of transferring from one Society to another was closely monitored and duly noted. I love the sentiment noted in Article 3 “faithful in attending to the purity of the Church and in mutual watch over the daily walks of the members”. ------The second document is from the 1830s. It is taken from a regularly held meeting of the hierarchy of the Society. It clearly reflects the angst of the religious world of the day the sentiments surrounding the Second Great Awakening. It is an warning and a plea to avoid the divisiveness brought on by religious dissent.. As in all times and in all societies there is also a call for the young men to accept the mantel of responsibility within their society. Click to enlarge.

Jane Ann Griffing Bradley

A search of census, church and city records seem to indicate that Harry Allen Griffin was the father of 10 children. Harry’s primary occupation was as a sailor a heritage from his father. Local histories suggest that the ships from the coast of Connecticut mainly plied their trade in the Long Island Sound and on to the Caribbean islands. If this were true Harry could have been gone for extended periods but in all likelihood he did not take long sea voyages of months or years duration. Nevertheless I think his life as a sailor is the reason that his family is not found in the Connecticut records. There is no record of him in the 1820 or 1840 census records. His lack of permanence or church connections means there is very little documentary evidence for his children. There is a death record for a unnamed child in Guilford but the only other family connections we have comes from families who have traced their family tree backward to Harry Allen Griffin. One of these family trees traces their linage back to Harry and his wife Ursula Wright Dickinson’s daughter Jane Ann Griffing. In the archives of the New Haven Palldium there is a notice of the marriage of Jane Ann Griffing to John Curtis Bradley December 4, 1846. In the New Haven town records is the record of her death. She is identified as Bradley, Jane A. Her maiden name Griffing, wife of John Bradley, parents, Harry and Ursula. The date, December 20, 1890 at the age of 61 years, 8 months and 20 days that calculates to a date of birth on about April 1, 1829. The location of her birth is given as Madison. In the same town records is the death notice for her husband John, dated March 9, 1893, John C Bradley, birth: Cromwell (Middlesex County, Connecticut), occupation: agent, parents: John and Sarah, Ireland. John’s parents later made their home in Wallingford, New Haven County. Jane and John raised their family in Gilford. John is referred to in most records as a peddler or agent. My translation is that he made his living selling a specific line of products for a company. We find the birth records for all of their children except Angeline in the Guilford town records. Ellis, born December 7, 1849------ Ida, January 10, 1854------Etta, February 11, 1855------ John Bertrand, April 10, 1859------ The first 4 children are identified as the children of John Bradley and Jane Griffing, the remainder as the children of John. ------Susan, born December 17, 1861 the record also notes her death February 21, 1863------ George, May 30, 1866------ Jennie, November 7, 1867. We also have a death record for George from the New Haven records . George died on November 13, 1893. The record names his parents John and Jane. We also have a copy of John Bertrand’s marriage record. There is not a record for the birth of Angeline in the Guilford records. We do however have a birth record for her 1st child Benjamin. His parents are identified as Odell Stevens and Angeline A. Bradley. The transcripts from the Meeting House Hill Cemetery in North Guilford lists a family plot for part of the family. “Ellis D. Bradley, son of John & Jane A., died May 15, 1863, age 14.” Sgt. John Bradley. Co. F. 7th Regt. C.V.. died March 10, 1893, Civil War-State Stone”. “Susie I. Bradley, daughter of John & Jane A., died Feb 20, 1862. Age 2 yrs. 3 mos.” Some of the dates in the transcript differ from other records. The definitive work on this family tree was done by Ellen Wright. She lists the family as ; Angeline A. 1848-1949------Ellis Dexter 1849-1864------Ida Jane 1853-1934------Etta M. 1855------John B 1859------Susan Irene 1861-1863------George 1866-1893------Jennie Ursula 1867.------Jane Ann / Harry Allen / Edward / James / Samuel Griffin.------Here are a few documents from the life of Jane Ann Griffin; 1-2- Her death record. 3-4- John Bradley’s death record. 5-6- George’s death record. 7-13- Birth records for all of her children except Angeline. 14- Marriage record for John. 15- Birth record for Angeline’s son Benjamin. Click on images to enlarge.