Lovinah (Swan) Hunt (1749 - 1834)

Born 1749 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay

Ancestors

Wife of Jonathan Hunt — married 14 Jul 1779 in Hindsdale, Windham, Vermont

Descendants

Died 29 Jun 1834 at about age 85 in North Vernon, Windham, Vermont, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: George Hunt [send private message]

Biography

Her great-great grandfather Thomas was the first of the Swan family to arrive in this country, about 1648. He was a doctor, born in Scotland, and educated in England. Settling in Roxbury, a section of Boston, he soon met and married Mary Lamb. On July 11, 1681, his house was “set on fire” by Maria, a black servant, and “burned with some in it.” For this crime, Maria was sentenced to be burned at the stake. The barbaric punishment was carried out on Boston Common, September 22, 1681. Dr. Swan himself died in 1688, about 40 years old, after siring eleven children, six of whom, including a set of boy and girl twins, died young (not in the fire). Two sons, Ebenezer and William, survived to manhood, each graduating from Harvard. The former became a surgeon, but later chose the life of master of a merchant vessel and died at sea. He had fathered four sons, one of whom became master of a ship in the West Indies trade and was lost at sea as well. The others wisely remained on land, with William becoming a successful goldsmith at Worcester. Among his thirteen children was bride-to-be Levinah.

She was as a pupil of John Adams and this was most unusual for its time. Possibly, it shows the influence of Adams’ wife, Abigail, who was an early feminist.

When Levinah's husband, Jonathan Hunt was representative to the Vermont General Assembly in 1802, some voters recommended the town name of Hinsdale be changed to Huntstown. He demurred, and Levinah suggested Vernon instead, making it the only town in Vermont to be named by a woman.

Notes

• Find A Grave: Memorial #12625369
• "Genealogy of the name and family of Hunt, etc" authorized by W.L.G. Hunt, compiled by T.B. Wyman, jr., printed by John Wilson and Son, Boston, 1863 pages 181 - 183^[1]
• Hunt Family Papers, 1758-1908 MSA 682-686, MSB 91, MS Size B. The Hunt Family papers contain the papers of U.S. Congressman Jonathan Hunt (1787-1832) of Brattleboro, Vermont, his widow, Jane Marie Leavitt Hunt (1801-1877), and some of their children, especially the European diaries of their daughter Jane Hunt (1822-1907). The collection spans the period 1758 to 1908 and is housed in four archival flip to boxes, one flat, clamshell box, and one oversize folder. It consumes three feet of shelf space. The collection was purchased by the Vermont Historical Society from Michael Paxton, a great-great-great grandson of Jonathan Hunt, in May 2013.^[2]

• "Hunt family collection demonstrates how art tells the story" History Connections, Vermont Historical Society, Fall 2013 / Volume #8 / Number 1, page 1^[3]
• "‘Hunt’ing down history: his series chronicles the generations of Vernon’s Hunt family, all related to Jonathan Hunt of “Governor Hunt Road” fame." Parts 1 - 18, By Barbara Emery Moseley, published on 3 Sept 2015 - 5 March 2017. ^[4]

Sources

1. ↑ [1]
2. ↑ [2]
3. ↑ [3]
4. ↑ [4] [5]