Lydia Huntington

Thomas married Elizabeth Backus on 10 Feb 1686 in Norwich, New London, Connecticut. Elizabeth (daughter of William Backus, Jr. and Elizabeth Pratt) was born about 1670 in Norwich, New London, Connecticut; died on 29 Dec 1729 in Windham, Windham, Connecticut; was buried on 31 Dec 1729 in Windham Center Cemetery, Windham, Windham, Connecticut. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Christopher + Ruth Rockwell. Ruth was born on 16 Aug 1633 in Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut; died on 14 Feb 1683 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Son of William Backus, Sr. and his first wife, whose identity is unknown. Although possible that he was buried in this place, no official record of his burial place has been found, therefore, this memorial is to be considered a cenotaph.

The following is quoted from THE BACKUS FAMILIES OF EARLY NEW ENGLAND, by Reno Warburton Backus:

"Willam Backus, Jr.2, son of William, Sr., by his first wife, was named as one of the original band of Saybrook men who purchased the townsite of Mohegan (later Norwich) from Chief Uncas in 1659, and is so recorded on the Founders? Monument. He is therefore accepted as having reached his majority by that year, perhaps before. Jacobus estimates he was born about 1635. If that is correct, he presumably was born in England, for there is no evidence that his father reached the colonies that early. He is often shown as Sergeant, Ensign, or Lieutenant William, on the basis of the positions he held in the Norwich "train band?, or local militia; perhaps this was also to distinguish him from the elder William. The Colonial Records of Connecticut show him confirmed as Ensign in May, 1680, and as Lieutenant in May, 1693. Frances Caulkins notes however that though military titles were highly respected and generally coveted among the colonists, he "styles himself in deeds simply yeoman?.

Apparently by 1659 he had taken as his first wife Sarah Charles, born October, 1637, in New Haven, and baptized there in October, 1640. She was daughter of John Charles, a resident of New Haven and later Branford. ... Their first child, William was born May11, 1660, probably in Saybrook, the parents awaiting the birth before moving to the new settlement at Mohegan. Two other children, John and Sarah, were born to the couple later, apparently followed soon by the death of Sarah (Charles) Backus, whether from childbirth or other cause is not known. By 1664, William had taken as his second wife Elizabeth Pratt, daughter of Lt. William and Elizabeth (Clark) Pratt. Her father was an original proprietor of Hartford, a man of considerable standing, and for years a Deputy to the General Court, - the central governing body - of the colony. Elizabeth bore her husband six children; her union with William must have been a propitious one, for their descendants have included many distinguished individuals. Though commonly shown as surviving until 1730, it is more likely that she died in 1703 or thereabouts; this is deduced by Mary E. N. Backus from details in an acknowledgement by Joseph Backus in 1704/5 of property deeded him by his father, William, Jr.

The specific occupation of William Backus, Jr., is nowhere mentioned, but that he was well respected is amply clear. At a session of the General Assembly at Hartford, October, 1663, he was ??accepted to be made free??, that is, granted full political privileges, and was listed as one of but 25 such persons in Norwich in 1669. He is shown to have filled various official and community posts, - as Marshal of a Norwich Court of Commission; as Townsman (Selectman) during several periods from 1679 to 1686; as member of church committees, on church construction, selection of a pastor, plan for seating of the congregation; as member of a committee to negotiate a dispute with Uncas, the Mohegan Chief, in 1683; and as Deputy for Norwich to the General Court at Hartford in May and October, 1680, October and November, 1683, October, 1684, and October, 1689. The patent of the Town of Norwich, dated 1685, shows Ensign William Backus as one of twelve patentees of the town.

He accumulated a sizable amount of property before he died. What he may have possessed as a young man in Saybrook is not known. His original allotment of land in the new settlement of Norwich is given as six acres. On August 31, 1682, Chief Uncas and his son Owaneco deeded a further 150 acres of land to him, possibly ??in connection with the settlement of the estate of Lt. William Pratt??, his father-in-law. William was also a member of the group of thirteen men to whom, in February, 1675/6, Attawanhood, also known as Joseph Uncas, another son of the old chief, made over a large tract of land situated northwest of Norwich. This transaction was further confirmed by a will of Joshua Uncas, dated April 29, 1684, by which William is said to have received three shares of 1000 acres each. This jointly held tract eventually became the site of Windham. William continued to live in Norwich, but later deeded part or all of this land to his two elder sons, William and John, apparently receiving in return their property in Norwich, in March, 1691/2.

William obviously believed in preparedness. His will dated February 8, 1693, long antedated his death, but was never changed. He must have been a sturdy man, for his length of life became noteworthy. In 1702 he was mentioned as one of the few surviving founders of Norwich; he died early in 1721, having outlived all the rest.

His will, on file among the Norwich probate records in the Connecticut State Library, is of interest, giving, as Jacobus has noted, the proof that Sarah Charles was his first wife, and not the wife of his father.?

Reference:

Backus, Reno Warburton. The Backus Families of Early New England, 1966, p.9 & 10.

William married Elizabeth Pratt about 1664 in Connecticut. Elizabeth was born on 1 Feb 1641 in Old Saybrook, Middlesex, Connecticut; died on 26 Feb 1725 in Norwich, New London, Connecticut. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

William Backus, Sr. came from England and settled in Old Saybrook, Middlesex, Connecticut, by 1637. He died in 1661 in Norwich, New London, Connecticut, soon after relocating there. No record of his burial place has been found. Although it is accurate to consider him one of the founders of Norwich, he died soon after moving there, leaving his property to his son, Stephen. For this reason, his name does not appear on the records of the thirty-some original proprietors of Norwich, or on the Mason, or "Founders" Monument. The monument, located in the variously named: Mason Cemetery, Post Gager Burial Ground/Post and Gager Cemetery, Ancient Norwich Burying Ground, Norwich Founders('s) Cemetery, Founders Cemetery, etc., names only Ensign William Backus Jr and Stephen Backus, his sons. Although their names are included on the Mason, or Founders, Monument, no record of the burial place of either son has been found, so the Mason/Founders Monument must be considered a cenotaph for both Ensign William Backus, Jr and Stephen Backus, but not for William Backus, Sr., whose name is not included.

All of the known children of William Backus, Sr. were born to his first wife, whose name, place and dates of birth and death, are unknown.

The following is quoted from THE BACKUS FAMILIES OF EARLY NEW ENGLAND, by Reno Warburton Backus:


HISTORY OF WILLIAM BACKUS OF SAYBROOK, AND OF HIS DESCENDANTS

Factual details on the life of William Backus are few. He is usually said to have been born in Norwich, England, but clear proof of this is lacking. He was established in Saybrook, Connecticut, by 1637, shortly after the founding of that settlement in 1635, probably having entered America through a Massachusetts port. Whether a wife and family accompanied him, or whether he married after his arrival, is not known.

Several authors state that he came to this country on the sailing ship Rainbow, 250 tons burden, of which Captain Haskins was Master. Col. Banks, in his Topographical Dictionary gives a list of emigrants from various cities and villages in the several counties of England in that period; among those coming from the county of York appear the names of Francis and William Backus, but without place of origin or any other data. It is assumed that this William is the one who settled at Saybrook. But what relationship did Francis bear to William, - father, brother, cousin? We do not know.

In a memoir of LeRoy Manson Backus, Sr., of Seattle, in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, July, 1949, (the material having been submitted by Mr. Backus himself), an interesting reference to William Backus appears, his year of birth being given as 1589/90.* The present writer has been unable to find any confirmation of that date elsewhere in spite of repeated search. So, for solid ground, we again must return to Saybrook and 1637.

The story of Saybrook is that of a seacoast village, now old, still small, on the Connecticut shore of Long Island Sound, at the mouth of the Connecticut River. Barber gives a fine, succinct account of the settlement and its early history. The actual site of the settlement was a broad peninsula or lip on the west bank of the river, measuring about a mile in length, connecting with the mainland by a narrow neck. Convenient for defense against marauding Indians, it did not lend itself to large development.

Records of the early personal happenings at Saybrook are sparse indeed. There are accounts of John Winthrop, The Younger, first ?governor? of the settlement, and references to Lion Gardiner, the engineer engaged by Winthrop to construct fortifications. There are references also to the three chief patentees of the land grant, Lord Say and Seal, Lord Brook, whose names are commemorated by the town, and Colonel George Fenwick, who visited the settlement in 1636 and 1639 and remained several years on the latter occasion. Beyond these items, little remains of the early local history. In a town meeting of January, 1648, however, an account is given of plans for development of outlying lands around the original settlement. In this, William Backus is found among twelve men assigned land across on the east side of the Connecticut River, in that area which later became known as Lyme. Whether this was William?s homestead, or was in addition to a home in the town, is not indicated. There is no reference in the town records to his work, activities, station in life, or when or whom he first married, the dates or order of birth of his children, or when their mother died. Older accounts incorrectly show his first wife to have been Sarah Charles; but Jacobus has demonstrated clearly that Sarah Charles was the first wife of his son William, Jr., not of the senior William. By 1659 William, Sr., had taken as his second wife a widow, Mrs. Anne Bingham, variously recorded by earlier writers as Anne (Stenton) Bingham , or as Anne (Stetson) Bingham. She was the widow of Thomas Bingham, they having been married July 6, 1631, in Sheffield, England. ... Thomas and Anne (Fenton) Bingham had a son Thomas, recorded in Saybrook, Connecticut, also Norwich, and later Windham, where he was known as Thomas, Sr.. Curiously and confusingly, two children of this stepson of William Backus, Sr., later married grandchildren of William.

The records of Saybrook indicate that the shore-line soil was thin and unproductive. In time, some of the Saybrook settlers became desirous of moving to better ground. An opportunity to improve their lot came in the form of warfare between two of their neighboring Indian tribes. Mohegans under a sachem, Chief Uncas, occupied the valley of the Connecticut. To the east lived the Narragansetts, a related tribe, but one with whom they were frequently on bad terms. During this new conflict, the home stockade of the Mohegan was surrounded and placed under siege for some days. A plea to the English colonists from Chief Uncas for help against the Narragansetts caused a relief party to set out from Saybrook under Lieut. Leffingwell, breaking the siege and turning the tide of battle. For this act, the Mohegans later granted to the English a generous tract of land '''nine miles square''' around the head of the Thames River. A settlement, first occupied in the fall of 1659, was more firmly settled in the spring of 1660, and became the town of Norwich. Thirty-five families (or thirty-eight according to other authority) moved to the new location as original settlers.

William Backus, Sr., did not long survive the transfer, his share of the new land descending to his younger son, Stephen, presumably just coming of age, while his elder son, William, Jr., had a share in his own right. In this manner the two sons appear on the records among the thirty-some original proprietors of Norwich, but William, Sr., does not. Older accounts show him dying in 1664. Mary E. N. Backus in her excellent history of the family gives good reason for believing he died between June 12, 1661, the date of his will, and August 28 of that same year, since an official record of property transfer indicates that Stephen had already succeeded to his father's estate by the latter date. With the colony still in the early stages of governmental organization, legal matters sometimes suffered delay. It was June 2l, 1665, before the will of William, Sr., was allowed in the New London Court. A copy of the will is filed in the records of New London Town, Book 1646-66, pp. 143-4,...

The Norwich Vital Records (153, v.1, p. 8) list William's wife Anne, "Mother of Thomas Bingham, Sr." as dying in May, 1670.

Reference:

Backus, Reno Warburton. The Backus Families of Early New England, 1966, p. 4-9.

William + Elizabeth. Elizabeth was born on Yes, date unknown in England; died on 9 Feb 1643 in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]