William Edwards (bef. 1618 - aft. 1686)

Born before 1 Nov 1618 in St Botolph without Aldgate, City of London, England

Ancestors

Husband of Agnes (Harris) Edwards — married 11 Dec 1645 in Hartford, Connecticut

Descendants

Died after 18 Mar 1686 after age 67 in Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut Colony

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William Edwards migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm

Biography

William Edwards was a Founder of Hartford.

Baptism and Parents

"William Edwardes, sonne to Richard Edwards a Minister & Anne his wife [with six others] Christned on Sunday the first day of November Anno Dni 1816" ^[1][2][3]

Immigration

William came as a young man to Hartford, Connecticut, with his mother, Anne Cole, and step-father James Cole. The following record shows his presence in September of 1639. "Will^m Edwards bound in 5^ł to said M^r John Stone¹ of Hertford one servant within 12. moneth dat' 16.7.1639. coram Nath. Micklethwaite & Meipse. [1s.]."^[4] James Cole, his step-father, had land recorded in Hartford February 1639/40, William was probably living with them at this time. Unmarried, he didn't yet need a houselot.

Marriage

William married Agnes Spencer, widow of William Spencer, in Hartford, Connecticut.^[2] There is adequate evidence of this marriage in the probate records for William Spencer, Agnes' former husband.^[5]

Donald Lines Jacobus^[2] and subsequent biographers say they were married on 11 December 1645.^[6] However, Jacobus failed to say where that particular date came from. None of his listed sources mention the date. It is not in the Hartford Vital Records. Church records for this time do not exist and since marriage was generally a civil contract, it probably wouldn't be listed anyway. There might be a marriage contract. Other online records did not mention this date.

A record found implying this marriage is dated 3 December 1645. The town voted on 11 January 1640 to build a fence leading to the mill through Mrs. Spencer's ground and pay her for the ground.^[7][8] 3 December 1645, her second husband, William Edwards, acknowledged that he received 30s from the town for damages "done by the way to the Millne & alsoe have sould the Towne a highway to the milne through my home lott wth free Egrese : & Regrese in the most Convenent place Twoe Rodd wyde"^[9][8]

Hartford

As a resident of Hartford William registered the earmark of his animals on 8 April 1645 "a slitt vnder both eares"^[9]

His land was recorded in 1646. He owned a small parcel with his house, yard and garden, abutting the meeting house lot, the parsonage yard, Thomas Burnam's land and Richard Goodman's land, some of which he bought of John Morres and a second parcel of about four acres in the north meadow. On 22 October 1663, William gave all his property, real and personal, except his cloths, his servants cloths, and his working tools, to his wife. 31 June 1669, William Edwards & Agnis his wife, sold to Thomas Barnes all their division of upland & west land on the east side the great River, containing about 90 acres.^[10] At different times he owned other plots of land, which he also sold, as indicated in the land records for the buyers.^[11] Evidently, he had no interest in owning and farming land.

William was a cooper. He made barrels and probably other containers made out of wood. His step-father, James Cole, was a cooper and left William one half of his tools, when he died in 1652.^[12]

William was a frequent participant in the Particular Court of Connecticut. He was sued and sued others for debts and damages and defamation. He also sometimes acted as attorney for other people.^[13] A few times he was charged with misdemeanors: He and William Williams, coopers, contrary to law, sold unmarked casks, in 1654; ^[14] 5 March 1656, he was one of several constables found smoking in the street, contrary to law;^[15] and in 1661 he was fined for drunkenness at Mr. Wells' funeral.^[16]

William Edwards became a freeman in 1658,^[17] giving him the right to vote and hold office. However only twice was he called upon to serve in any public capacity. On August last 1667. "the towne did desire and impower John Cole Andrew Benton & Wm: Edwards to Correct any Disorders that they shall discovere in the time of publique worshipp."^[9] and Feb 166_ [66/7] William was chosen as a chimney viewer.^[9]

In 1663, William Edwards accused Daniel Clark, the colony secretary, "for breach of his oath, unfaithfullnesse in ye great trust committed to him by the freemen of this Corporation, to the dishonour of God, infringment of ye royall perogative of our Soveraign Lord the King, contempt of ye authority established in this Corporation, & abuse of the members of ye same, to such censure as he shall make appeare according to the lawes established in this Corporation. After consideration, the court "do find him so far falty as to put him out of the Secretary's place untill the next Election Court."^[18]

9 March 1669/70, William was enumerated in Hartford. He had 3 [bushels?] of wheat, no indian corn, and 3 persons living in his household.^[19]

6 March 1675/6 "The Councill [to direct King Philip's War] granted Mr. Tho: Terry and Mr. Wm. Edwards liberty to transport three hundred bushells of graine for the present supply of the people of Rohd Island and Plimouth, the people of Rohd Island haueing exhausted part of their provissions for the supply of of wounded men, after the first engagement, in ye Narrogancett."^[20]

In 1679, Henry Green of Farmington, a murderer, died at the jail, and William Edwards was paid two shillings for his burial.^[8]

In 1684, there was recorded land belonging to Richard Lord: "One parcel more of woodland lyeing in the midle oxpasture which formerly was W^m Spencers & sold by W^m Edwards unto sayd m^r Lord which parcell contains by estimation sixty & three acres be it more of less & abuts on the High way leading from the old oxpasture to the blue Hills on the east & on land comon on the west & on the North & on a highway by the old oxpasture on the sowth as pr his deed dated August 7 . 1684 acknowledg the same day before ~ John Tallcott Assist will apeare. recorded January 16 . 1684^[21][8]

William Edwards, witnessed a deed of Daniel Clark to Richard Edwards, 28 March 1686.^[22]

Death

Several biographers and the Founders of Hartford website claim that he died 6 March 1672/3, citing a probate record. It is probably the following record: ^[23]

"Edwards, William. Court Record, Page 77 — 7 May, 1668 : William Edwards, in behalf of his wife, Agnis, Plaintiff ; Contra Nath : Bearding, Dfnt., in an Action of the Case for Illegall possession of Land belonging to the sd. Edwards, lying on the east side of the Great River, for a Surrender of the sd. Land."

then Page 129 — 6 March, 1672-3 : Richard Edwards, as Atty. to his Mother Agnis Edwards, plft. ; contra Daniel Arnold, in an Action of Debt due upon balance of Accot, with Damage to the value of £6.

This could be interpreted to mean that William had died and his son Richard took over this suit. Agnes was clearly still alive.

Donald L. Jacobus says that William Edwards and his wife died after 1680.^[2] This probably relates to the estate of Anne Cole, William's mother, who died in Hartford 20 Feb 1679/80. It was her desire "that her son William Edwards & his wife should have the use of her House and Land during life, then to Return to her grandson Richard Edwards and to his heirs forever."^[24]

It is clear from records that William was still living 18 March 1686, when he witnessed a deed.^[22]

Chlld

Richard Edwards b. 1 May 1647;^[2] d. 20 Apr 1718. The death date is found on Richard's gravestone. He died in the 71 year of his age (ie. about 1647)^[25] Like the marriage date, no record was found for this birth date. I do not believe that Jacobus pulled these dates out of a hat. Somewhere there is a record, unfound as yet, that states these dates.

Sources

See William Edwards, Hartford Founder, Sources and Source Notes for detailed information and annotations.

1. ↑ Church of England Parish Registers, 1538-1812. London, England; London Metropolitan Archives, London, England, London Church of England Parish Registers, Reference Number: P69/Bot2/A/019/Ms09234/008, City of London, St Botolph, Aldgate, 1616-1625, p. 62 (Ancestry Share Link : accessed January 2024)
   The preceding entry reads: On Sunday the first day of this moneth, the holie Comunion was Ministred in our Church at which time there was used 3 gallons of wine which had at Mr Scotts house
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4} Donald Lines Jacobus and Edgar Francis Waterman, Hale, House and Related Families, mainly of the Connecticut River Valley, (Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1978), reprint of original published Hartford, 1952, Pages 524-535.
3. ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NYFY-6ZV : 5 February 2023), William Edwardes, christened 01 November 1618.
4. ↑ Lechford, Thomas. Note-Book Kept by Thomas Lechford, Esq., Lawyer, in Boston, Massachusetts Bay (J. Wilson and Son, University Press, Cambridge, 1885) Page 184, see also Footnote 1 : "John Stone ... William Edwards was freeman at Hartford in 1658, although he had been there since 1639."
5. ↑ Manwaring, Charles William. A Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records.Volume 1. Hartford District 1635-1700. Hartford, Conn., R.S. Peck & Co., Printers, 1904.) p. 37
6. ↑ Smith, Captain Elizur Yale. “The English Ancestry of Jonathan Smith.” NYGBR 70:104-110 (images 24- Find my past)
7. ↑ Hartford Town Votes Vol. 1 1635-1716, Series - Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society Vol. VI, (Hartford: By the Society, 1897). p. 40
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3} Love, William De Loss, The Colonial History of Hartford, (Hartford, Conn.: The author, 1914) pp. 142 footnote, 184, 248, 287.
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3} Hartford Town Votes Vol. 1 1635-1716, Series Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society Vol. VI, (Hartford: By the Society, 1897), p. 336, p. 77, 9 March 1648 The town owed William 9s.p. 88, p. 152, p. 154 chimney viewer
10. ↑ Original Distribution of the Lands in Hartford Among the Settlers 1639, series - Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society Volume XIV, (Hartford, Connecticut Historical Society, 1912), pp 353, 354, 168
11. ↑ Original Distribution of Lands in Hartford, pp. 39, 111, 144, 168,
12. ↑ Manwaring, A Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records Vol 1, p. 109
13. ↑ Records of the Particular Court of Connecticut 1639-1663, Series - Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society Vol. XXII (Hartford, By the Society, 1928), pp. 26, 29, 30, 35, 56, 59, 60, 67, 69, 70, 85, 89, 90, 91, loi, 102, 113, 115, 122, 123, 136, 160, 163, 164, 167, 170, 174, 179, 180, 184, 185, 186, 187, 192, 193, 19s, 196, 197, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203, 204, 205, 206, 207, 223, 224, 226, 228, 231, 233, 234, 236, 238, 239, 271. https://archive.org/details/collectionsofcon22conn/page/n5/mode/2up?q=Edwards
14. ↑ Records of the Particular Court p. 136
15. ↑ Records of the Particular Court p. 174
16. ↑ Records of the Particular Court 236
17. ↑ Trumbull, J. Hammond. (transcriber). The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut Prior to the Union with New Haven Colony May 1665. Volume I. 1636-1665, aka Colonial Records of Connecticut. (Hartford: Brown and Parsons, 1850.) p. 315
18. ↑ Trumbull, The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut Prior to the Union with New Haven pp. 401, 405
19. ↑ The Wyllys Papers Correspondence and Documents Chiefly of Descendants of Gov. George Wyllys of Connecticut, 1590—1796, Series Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society Vol. XXI, (Hartford: By the Society, 1924), p. 196
20. ↑ Trumbull, J. Hammond. (transcriber) The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut from 1665 to 1676; with the Journal of the Council of War 1675 to 1678...Vol II.1665-1678, (Hartford: F A Brown, 1852.) AKA Colonial Records of Connecticut. p. 414
21. ↑ "Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut, United States Records," p. 84; images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9G4-SVD : February 2, 2024), image 90 of 781; Hartford (Connecticut). Town Clerk.
22. ↑ ^{22.0 22.1} Original Distribution of the Lands in Hartford, p. 563
23. ↑ Manwaring, A Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records Vol 1 p. 194
24. ↑ Manwaring, A Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records Vol 1 p. 292
25. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/16687308/richard-edwards: accessed February 8, 2024), memorial page for Richard Edwards (–), Find a Grave Memorial ID 16687308, citing Ancient Burying Ground, Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut, USA; Maintained by Don Blauvelt (contributor 46932939).

• "Births, Marriages, and Deaths, Contained in the volume lettered "Original Distribution of the Town of Hartford (Ct.) among the Settlers, 1639," " New England Historical and Genealogical Register, (NEHGS, 1858). Volume 12, p. 331; images at Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/newenglandhisto71unkngoog/page/n344/mode/2up : accessed February 2024); Information: As the name states. No dates for this person are in the source, no marriage, no birth of children, no deaths.
• Barbour, Lucius Barnes, Families of Early Hartford, Connecticut (Baltimore, Maryland : Genealogical Publishing Co. , 1977), p. 231 ([https://archive.org/details/familiesofearlyh00barb_0/page/230/mode/2up borrow at Internet Archive; Information- William Edwards s/o Rev. Richard and Ann; d. bef 1672; m. 1645 Agnes (____) Spenser; Child Richard; came with his mother and step-father James Cole; freeman May 1658; chimney viewer 1668.
• Anderson, Robert Charles, FASG, The Great Migration Directory, Immigrants to New England 1620-1640. Published by the New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts, 2015; page 104. nothing on 104.
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 28 March 2020), memorial page for William Edwards (1 Nov 1618–unknown), Find A Grave: Memorial #46260472, citing Ancient Burying Ground, Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut, USA ; Maintained by Don Blauvelt (contributor 46932939). Note, no stone, but he probably was buried in the Ancient Burying Ground.
• Aspinwall, William, A Volume Relating to the Early History of Boston, containing the Aspinwall Notarial Records from 1644 to 1651, (Boston: Municipal Printing Office, 1903), pp. 113, 114 "11 (10[m]) 1647. Agnes the wife of Wm Edwardes of Hartford uppon Connecticot by vertue of a procuration from her said husband dated 4 (9[m]) 1647 signed Wm Edwards & sealed, witnessed John Talcott & John Steele, ordained Timothie Prout of Boston mariner her lawfull Atturney, granting him power in her & her husbands name to aske &c: all such money plate househould goods or chattells of & from the Executors of the last will of Jeelian late wife of Henry Mumter of Buttalls Algate parish in London deceased. & to acquitt, sue &c: arrest: & power to substitute one Attur. or more. Also to receive six pounds of Mr Wm Hoare due from Thomas Olcott."