James Finch (1753 - 1833)

Born 9 Feb 1753 in Stamford, Fairfield, Connecticut

Ancestors

Descendants

Died Sep 1833 at age 80 in Colchester, Delaware, New York, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Carl Christensen [send private message]

Biography

Biography prepared by DM Finch.

James Finch was born in Stamford, Fairfield, Connecticut in 1753, a son of James Finch (1725 – 1790+) and Abigail Seely (1730 – after 1761). Thummel (1965, Descendants of John Finch of Connecticut, self-published) reported that members of this Finch family descended from the immigrant John Finch (probably born about 1595) who arrived in Salem, Massachusetts, on one of the Winthrop Fleet ships in 1630 (or so it is strongly suggested), and after a brief period in Watertown, MA, married Martha Brett (maiden name disputed) and settled in Stamford, CT to raise their children.

After three more generations headed by Finch ancestors all named John, Patriot James’ father James and mother Abigail were born in Stamford, CT. The father James and possibly his wife Abigail moved five Finch children, Millicent, James, John, Susanna, and Sarah, to Crump Pond, Westchester, New York in 1763 (source: Thummel 1965).

A Revolutionary War patriot (DAR Ancestor A040341), son James served in the military in Cortland Manor, Westchester, NY for varying months from 1775 to 1777 (source: 1832 Revolutionary War pension application). His brother John was also a Revolutionary War veteran serving in Duchess County, NY. James and his brother John and possibly his widower father James and his wife or an adult daughter (youngest was Abigail) were living in North Salem, Westchester County, NY in 1790 (source: 1790 North Salem census). James’ siblings (except Sarah who may have returned to Stamford, CT) remained in NY where they married and raised children.

Patriot James Finch married Mary Finney (1756-1805) before, during or shortly after his service, and they had at least nine children split between North Salem, Westchester and Colchester, Delaware Counties, NY. Their children’s names were Sarah, James Ward, John, Abigail, David, Phoebe, Jesse, Solomon Finney, and Isaac Seeley. A newspaper article about James' son Solomon Finney Finch quoted Solomon as saying he was the 12th of 13 children, which suggests that his parents James and Mary had more children than are known (source: "Auld Lang Sine" Historians of Pioneer Life in Ohio). James' wife Mary (Finney) Finch died about 1805 in Colchester while some children were still in the home, and widower James raised the youngest children to adulthood. All nine children married and had children, some staying in NY and others moving on to Virginia, Michigan, and Ohio.

In censuses, James and his sons are listed as farmers. In a biographical sketch about his grandson Edmund Trowbridge Finch (Jesse’s son), James was additionally identified by Edmund as a lumberman who cleared leased land on the Hardenburgh Patent and rafted the logs to Philadelphia (p. 714 in Biographical Review - 1895 The Leading Citizens of Delaware County, NY Biographical Review Publishing Company). The biography states that James’ son Jesse worked with his father in lumbering, and this occupation was continued by Jesse and his son Edmund. Two other grandchildren of James, Edward (John's son) and Jackson (Sarah's son) were also identified in an 1860 Fallsburgh, Sullivan, NY census as lumbermen.

Four of James' children, David, James Ward, John and Phoebe, migrated to Virginia in the early 1820s. David and James W. appeared in the 1820 census for Frederick County, Virginia living only two households apart and near several Catlett families. Based on household data in the 1820 census, both were already married. David married Mary A. Catlett and they had 2-4 children in Virginia, then they left for Michigan. James W. bought land in Virginia and then sold it to his brother John and settled in Manhattan, New York. John came to VA with his 1st wife Catherine Ryder who died by 1835, and John then married Hannah Nesmith. Phoebe married John Catlett of Frederick, VA in 1824. Both John and Phoebe remained in Frederick, Virginia and raised their children.

James Sr.'s daughters Sarah and Abigail and son Jesse married and stayed close to home near their father in the Colchester-Hamden-Franklin area of Delaware County, NY. Isaac Seeley settled in Michigan, initially near his brother David in Alaiedon, Ingham, MI where he farmed and preached the Methodist Episcopal religion by foot to frontier communities, and Solomon Finney, Methodist minister, moved to Ohio where he also farmed and preached.

James Sr. hand-wrote a Revolutionary War pension application, and this and his signature are wonderful for descendants to read. His sister Abigail (Finch) Hitt and Abigail's son Isaac Hitt submitted supporting testimony for James' application. James' son-in-law Elijah Grant, husband of James' daughter Sarah Finch, was named in James' application as someone "who knew him well". The application noted that James was an invalid at the time he requested the pension. According to the source "New York Pensioners, 1835", James was placed on the pension roll in 12 Aug 1833 but his pension commenced on 4 Mar 1831 for his service in the New York Militia in Delaware County.

James died not long after receiving his pension. SAR records report his death date as 1835 in Hamden. He was in close proximity to his married children Sarah, Abigail and Jesse. A burial site for James has not been found.

Sources

SOURCE - Claude B. Thummel, "Descendants of John Finch of Connecticut"

self published 1965. Thummel reference via Henry numbers = 311-132.

Thummel's notes

- Baptized April 21, 1753 at Christ Church, New Caanan, Connecticut.

- Removed to "Crump Pond, Westchester Co", with his parents (NOTE, Thummel probably means Crompond, Westchester NY near Cortlandt Manor and Yorktown).

- An early occupant of Hardenburgh Patent.

- May 3, 1833, age 78 applied for pension, resident of Hamden, Delaware Co, NY. Resided N. Salem at Enlistment, born 1755, Stamford, Fairfield Co. Served in Capt. Drake's Co, Westchester Militia.

- 1790 Census Salem, Westchester Co, NY

- 1800 to 1830 Census at Colchester, Delaware Co, NY

- Served in Rev. War.

- Of wife Mary Finney: Apparently grew up in 'central part of New York' and Legend that her mother was killed, tomahawked, by the Indians during the French and Indian War and that she escaped by hiding under the bed.

- Thummel lists nine children: James W; Sarah; John: David; Abigail; Jesse; Solomon Finney; Isaac Seeley; Phebe.

This data source above left by Carl Christensen on 6/14/2019.

Sources Entered by DM Finch.

• Thummel, Claude B. 1965. The Descendants of John Finch of Connecticut. Self-published. Available at FamilySearch.org. https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/141845?availability=Family%20History%20Library

• Year: 1790; Census Place: Salem, Westchester, New York; Series: M637; Roll: 6; Page: 194; Image: 615; Family History Library Film: 0568146. Ancestry.com. 1790 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Original data: First Census of the United States, 1790 (NARA microfilm publication M637, 12 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/282981:5058?ssrc=pt&tid=153916580&pid=182054961980

• Year: 1800; Census Place: Colchester, Delaware, New York; Series: M32; Roll: 22; Page: 1294; Image: 369; Family History Library Film: 193710. Ancestry.com. 1800 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Original data: Second Census of the United States, 1800. NARA microfilm publication M32 (52 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/237442:7590

• Year: 1810; Census Place: Colchester, Delaware, New York; Roll: 26; Page: 403; Image: 00216; Family History Library Film: 0181380. Ancestry.com. 1810 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Original data: Third Census of the United States, 1810. (NARA microfilm publication M252, 71 rolls). Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/197491:7613

• 1820 U S Census; Census Place: Colchester, Delaware, New York; Page: 50; NARA Roll: M33_65; Image: 61. Ancestry.com. 1820 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Original data: Fourth Census of the United States, 1820. (NARA microfilm publication M33, 142 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/546831:7734

• Year: 1830; Census Place: Colchester, Delaware, New York; Series: M19; Roll: 89; Page: 25; Family History Library Film: 0017149. Ancestry.com. 1830 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Original data: Fifth Census of the United States, 1830. (NARA microfilm publication M19, 201 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/1508710:8058

• James Finch taxed for assessment place Colchester, Delaware, NY in 1799. Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., Tax Assessment Rolls of Real and Personal Estates, 1799-1804 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Original data: New York (State), Comptroller's Office. Tax Assessment Rolls of Real and Personal Estates, 1799–1804. Series B0950 (26 reels). Microfilm. New York State Archives, Albany, New York. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=6771&h=60369&ssrc=pt&tid=153916580&pid=182054961980&usePUB=true

• James Finch taxed for assessment place Colchester, Delaware, NY in 1800. Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., Tax Assessment Rolls of Real and Personal Estates, 1799-1804 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Original data: New York (State), Comptroller's Office. Tax Assessment Rolls of Real and Personal Estates, 1799–1804. Series B0950 (26 reels). Microfilm. New York State Archives, Albany, New York. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=6771&h=62190&ssrc=pt&tid=153916580&pid=182054961980&usePUB=true

• James Finch in Westchester County Militia -- Third Regiment. New York Military in the Revolution [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2000. Original data: Electronic reproduction of New York in the Revolution as Colony and State, Vol. II, originally published in 1897. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?dbid=4674&h=41465&indiv=try&o_vc=Record:OtherRecord&rhSource=2204

• James Finch's Pension Application in Ancestry.com. U.S., Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, 1800-1900 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Original data: Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files (NARA microfilm publication M804, 2,670 rolls). Records of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Record Group 15. National Archives, Washington, D.C. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/20727:1995

• James Finch's pension roll and commencement dates, in Ancestry.com. New York Pensioners, 1835 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1998. Original data: United States Senate. Report from the Secretary of War, in Obedience to Resolutions of the Senate of the 5th and 30th of June, 1834, and the 3d of March, 1835, In Relation to the Pension Establishment of the United States. [New York Section]. Washington, D.C.: Duff Green, 1835. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=3247&h=7453&ssrc=pt&tid=153916580&pid=182054961980&usePUB=true

• James Finch in Ancestry.com. U.S., The Pension Roll of 1835 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Original data: United States Senate. The Pension Roll of 1835.4 vols. 1968 Reprint, with index. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1992. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/37833:60514

• James Finch in Stamford's Solders, Genealogical Biographies of Revolutionary War Patriots from Stamford, Connecticut. Compiled by Edith M. Wicks and Virginia H. Olson. Edited by Paul W. Prindle, F.A.S.G. Published by The Stamford Genealogical Society and the Ferguson Library of Stamford, Connecticut, as a Cooperative Venture to Mark the Bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence, 1976. Copyright by the Stamford Genealogical Society. All Rights Reserved.

• Ancestry.com. U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970. Louisville, Kentucky: National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. Microfilm, 508 rolls. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/602096:2204?ssrc=pt&tid=153916580&pid=182054961980

• James Finch named in Petition with many others for a grant, by right of occupancy, of a tract of about 7,000 acres of land in the town of Mamakating, in the county of Ulster. Land Records Vol. XLIX. FamilySearch.org.

• James Finch named in Petition, NYS Archives 1790, NYS Land petition grant request of James Finch and others ALL of Mamakating Westchester Co NY _A0272_v49_93. FamilySearch.org.

• "Auld Lang Sine", Historians of Pioneer Life in Ohio. Men and Women Who Have Passed the Eightieth Milestone. Interesting Sketches of Their Experiences in the "Early Days", When Indians Were as Plentiful as Blackberries. Lebanon, Ohio, January 31. https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/153916580/person/182052157548/media/a968abd9-c63b-4b19-8e6e-aff1a0e8a284?_phsrc=UQd18595&usePUBJs=true

• James Finch, p. 714 in BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW - 1895 for Edmund T. Finch, The Leading Citizens of Delaware County, NY. This volume contains Biographical Sketches of The Leading Citizens of Delaware County New York Biography is the home aspect of history Boston Biographical Review Publishing Company 1895.

• Alda "Jackie" Conner. 1 January 1999. Introduction to the Finch Family. A Review of Ancestors of William Byron Finch. Garborville, California, USA. 16 pp. https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/collection/1030/tree/153916580/person/182054961980/media/c1c713c4-2ac0-4bb9-b7ff-cfeec16a2abd?_phsrc=UQd17051&usePUBJs=true

Additional sources

• Son Isaac's Find A Grave, database and images (accessed 11 May 2019), memorial page for Rev Isaac Seeley Finch (5 Jul 1804–12 Sep 1890), Find A Grave: Memorial #115144372, citing Oak Grove Cemetery, Hillsdale, Hillsdale County, Michigan, USA ; Maintained by JOT (contributor 47925696) Gravestone picture

• Source: S864 Abbreviation: REGISTRATION OF BIRTHS, MARRIAGES AND DEATHS OF STAMFORD FAMILIES Title: REGISTRATION OF BIRTHS, MARRIAGES AND DEATHS OF STAMFORD FAMILIES Note: Compiled by Reverend Elijah B. Huntington CONT Stamford, April 6, 1797 CONT added 2005 Repository: #R187 Paranthetical: Y

• Repository: R187 Name: Not Given Address: Not Given Name: Not Given

• Source: S879 Abbreviation: RootsWeb: World Connect - Stamford, CT Familes (1641-1935) by Barbara Kaye Title: RootsWeb: World Connect - Stamford, CT Familes (1641-1935) by Barbara Kaye Paranthetical: Y

• Source: S880 Abbreviation: The Barbour Collection of Connecticut Town Vital Records: Stamford Title: The Barbour Collection of Connecticut Town Vital Records: Stamford Paranthetical: Y

Acknowledgements

• WikiTree profile Finch-688 created through the import of block12132012.ged on Jan 17, 2013 by Rupert Young.