Jonathan Butler, son of Samuel and Mary (Olmstead) Butler, was born about 1678 at Wethersfield, Connecticut. His father wrote a will and died 30 December 1892. In his will, Samuel mentioned his surviving children: Samuel, James, George, Jonathan, and daughters Dorothy, Sarah Butler, Elizabeth Emmons, and Mary Hopkins. He bequeathed to Jonathan " .. my 50-acre Lott in ye Woods, and all my Interest in the Purchased Land in Hartford on the East side of the river.. "
Jonathan married Mary Easton 18 September 1707. According to Ward, Mary died in 1763. But Jonathan apparently was married a second time, in 1728, to the 'widow Easton,' whose husband Jonathan Easton, died 17 December 1727, and whose maiden name was Cadwell. Possibly the varying reports are for the same woman, but that does not explain the second date. Again, we find a record that the last two children belonged to the second wife. This problem requires further study.
Jonathan lived on the upper part of Front St. He died Jan. 15, 1755, age 77.
When his mother died in 1681, he was adopted by his aunt Rebecca Olmstead and her husband John Biglow. The uncle's will giving Jonathan some property was contested in court by John's nephew Joseph Biglow (son of Jonathan Biglow). After an expensive and vexatious lawsuit, the case was decided in favor of Butler. According to the Biglow Genealogy: "John Biglow, the eldest son of John and Mary Biglow, was born in 1643. He early migrated to Hartford, where he purchased land as recorded May 3, 1669, on which his house was situated, described as follows: 'Was lot of Ann Wesby and bounded west on the highway; east and partly south on Benjamin Huber and Peck; on the north by Thomas Watt's land. (This land was situated near the present grounds of Trinity College in Cooper Lane--lot No. 52.) In 1707 John Biglow deeded a portion of his property to Jonathan Butler, a nephew of his wife. John is supposed to have died about 1721, as letters of administration were granted to Rebecca, his wife, on Dec. 5, 1721. An inventory taken Dec. 27 of that year showed the estate amounted to [54-07-01. On May 1, 1722, Joseph Biglow appeared before the court to remonstrate against allowing Jonathan Butler to hold the property deeded to him by his uncle. Joseph's case was overruled on appeal, and the Butlers held the property down to a very recent date."
In Oct. 1726, it is reported that "upon the petition of Nathaniel Goodwin, Jonathan Butler and Sarah Easton, all of Hartford, in the Colony of Connecticut, as they are administrators of the estate of John Easton, late of Hartford, deceased -- they were empowered by the court to deed certain lands to one Richard Burnham in consideration for other lands and money." From this it might seem that Sarah was the "widow Easton" whom Jonathan married as second wife. In May 1728, these three administrators were authorized to sell so much of John Easton's lands as to satisfy the debts of his estate. In the same record we find in Oct. 1729, "Jonathan Butler and Elizabeth (Cadwell Easton) Butler, his wife in administration of the estate of Jonathan Easton." Here two names differ from those in the other record. This may have been due to carelessness of the recording clerk, or it may be an entirely new case.
The beginning of John Biglow's will shows in what esteem he held his adopted son:
The will is given in full in the Ward Family Register. Jonathan3 Butler had nine children, at least seven of whom were by the first wife, Mary Easton. The children were:
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