Seth Lyon (1769 - 1844)

Born 1 Jul 1769 in Pomfret, Connecticut

Ancestors

Husband of Sophia (Standley) Lyon — married 4 Oct 1789 in Princeton, Massachusetts

Descendants

Died 21 Mar 1844 at age 74 in Peru, Vermont

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Biography

Seth Lyon of Princeton, Massachusetts, and Peru, Vermont, was born to Simeon Lyon and Martha Bronson Lyon in Pomfret, Connecticut, on July 1, 1769,^[1] and baptized in the Abingdon Congregational Church in Pomfret on October 8, 1769.^[2] He had an older brother Alanson, born in 1767. ^[2]

The 1769 birth date is consistent with the age at death (in 1844) AE. 75 (in his 75th year) that is recorded on his gravestone and in a death record from Peru, Vermont.^[3][4][5]

Also, several records identify Seth Lyon as having a brother Lanson (sometimes spelled Lawson) or show Seth Lyon living close to Lawson or Alanson Lyon. Seth and Lanson Lyon married sisters in Princeton, Massachusetts, in 1789,^[6] and Seth and Alanson Lyon had adjacent residences in Princeton as of the 1790 United States census.

Batchelder's 19th-century history of Peru, Vermont, contradicts the 1769 birthdate. Batchelder states that Seth Lyon was 82 years old at the time of his death in 1844,^[7] but other sources do not support this.

Seth Lyon went to Princeton, Massachusetts, from Sterling, Massachusetts, in 1789 and married Sophia Stan(d)ley later that year in Princeton (their intentions to marry were recorded October 4, 1789).^[8] His brother Alanson married Sophia's sister Lucretia and Sophia Stan(d)ley.^[9] Alanson and Seth Lyon had adjacent residences in Princeton as of the 1790 United States census.

At least seven children were born to the marriage of Seth and Sophia (Standley) Lyon, of whom five or six probably were born in Princeton.^[10]

In about 1803 the Lyon family moved to Peru, Vermont.^[11] On the 1803 grand list for the town Seth Lyon was recorded with $65.^[12] On 5 March 1804, Seth Lyon was recorded as the father of four of the 56 scholars enrolled in the district school at Peru.^[13]

As of 1805, there were about 20 families living in the town of Peru.^[14] In 1807 Seth and Sophia Lyon were one of the four married couples who were the first members of the newly organized Congregational church in Peru. Sophia's sister Sally Wyman and her husband Thomas were also among the organizers of the church.^[15][14]In 1808 Seth Lyon and Thomas Wyman were elected the first deacons of the church.^[15]

Children of Seth and Sophia Lyon included:^[16][17]

1. Freeman, born in Princeton, Massachusetts, in 1790; married (1) Louisa Pease of Weston, Vermont, and (2) Susan Towns of Andover, Vermont. Lived in Peru and Landgrove, Vermont.
2. Sophia, born in Princeton in 1792. Married Asa Simonds, lived in Peru.
3. Seth, born in Princeton in 1794. Married Hepsibath Jones of Derry, Vermont; they had four children. She died and he married Samantha Ballard and had three more children. He moved to Jamaica, Vermont, in about 1836 and lived there the rest of his life.
4. Dorcas, born in Princeton in 1797. Married William Green, lived in Peru at first and later moved to Ohio, where she died.
5. Joel, born in Princeton in 1800. Married Jane Batchelder, lived in Peru.
6. Lydia, married Goodell Walker, lived in Peru, died in 1884.
7. Patty, married D. Temple of Stratton, Vermont; died in Stratton.

Similar Names

Although the names may seem unusual today, census records for the first several decennial United States Censuses show several men named Seth Lyon and Alanson Lyon living in the northeastern United States, so mistaken identities are possible. Census records show a Seth Lyon living in Lima, Ontario County, New York in 1810 and 1820; he was reported to be 26-45 in 1810 and over 45 in 1820, indicating a birthdate between 1764 and 1775, which makes him close in age to this Seth Lyon.

Sources

1. ↑ Barbour Collection of Connecticut Vital Records, Pomfret, page 129
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Lyon Memorial, p. 83
3. ↑ Old Yard Cemetery Records, Peru, Vermont, New Horizons Genealogical Services
4. ↑ Gravestone photograph by Ellen Smith, 14 July 2016.
5. ↑ “Vital Records Recorded in the Peru, Vt. Town Records.” page 69: Dea. Seth Lyon, March 23rd 1844 in the 75 year of his age.
6. ↑ Massachusetts Vital Records: Princeton, 1676-1900, page image, accessed on Ancestry.com, February 28, 2015
7. ↑ Batchelder, pp. 123-124, 144
8. ↑ Blake, pp. 182-183
9. ↑ Massachusetts Vital Records: Princeton, 1676-1900, page image, accessed on Ancestry.com, February 28, 2015
10. ↑ Rice (p. 44) and Blake (pp. 182-3) name five children. Batchelder states (pp. 123-4) that Seth and Sophia Lyon moved to Vermont with their six children.
11. ↑ Batchelder, pp. 123-4
12. ↑ “Vital Records Recorded in the Peru, Vt. Town Records.”page 15.
13. ↑ “Vital Records Recorded in the Peru, Vt. Town Records.”page 17.
14. ↑ ^{14.0 14.1} Whitney, pp. 6 and 10
15. ↑ ^{15.0 15.1} Batchelder, page 99
16. ↑ Batchelder, page 31
17. ↑ Vital Records of Princeton, Massachusetts, Births, page 44

• • Batchelder, Ira K. Reunion Celebration, Together with an Historical Sketch of Peru, Bennington County, Vermont, Brattleboro, Vermont: E. L. Hildreth & Co., 1891.
• Blake, Francis Edward. History of the town of Princeton, in the county of Worcester and commonwealth of Massachusetts, 1759-1915 (Volume 2). Town of Princeton, Massachusetts, 1915.
• Lyons, Albert Brown. Lyon Memorial: Massachusetts Families, Including Descendants of the the Immigrants William Lyon, of Roxbury, Peter Lyon, of Dorchester, George Lyon, of Dorchester. W. Graham Printing Company. 1905.
• “Vital Records Recorded in the Peru, Vt. Town Records,” compiled by Jonathan W. Stephens. Special Issue of Vermont Genealogy, Vol. 20, Spring 2015). Braintree, VT: Genealogical Society of Vermont, 1996–. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2020.
• Whitney, Mabel E. History of the Congregational Church of Peru, Vermont. Manchester, Vt.: Journal Press, 1932. 14 pgs.