Stephen HART

                   Historical information included in notes.



Stephen Hart & His Descendantshttp://www.mv.com/ipusers/harts/family/harts/book/index.htmlDEACON STEPHEN HART, son of , and his wife, born about 1605, at Braintree, in Essex County, Eng. He came from there to Massachusetts Bay about 1632, and located for a time at (Newtown,) Cambridge, Mass; married . She died, when second he married Margaret, the widow of Arthur Smith, and daughter of . She survived Deacon Hart, and was admitted to the church in Farmington, March 17th, 1690-1. She died in 1693.Deacon Hart and his first wife were constituent members of the church in Farmington, organized November, 1652, with Rev. Roger Newton pastor. Mr. Hart had been deacon of Rev. Thomas Hooker's church, at Cambridge, Mass., and at Hartford, Conn. He was one of the fifty-four settlers at Cambridge, Mass., was a proprietor at Hartford in 1639, and became one of the eighty-four proprietors of Farmington in 1672. In 1647 he was one of the "deputyes" of the General Court of Connecticut, at their May session. In 1653 he was appointed a Commissioner, by the General Court, for the town of Farmington, to aid the constable in impressing men into the army, then being raised.Stephen Hart is supposed to have come from Braintree, Essex County, England, with the company that settled Braintree, Mass., and subsequently removed to Newtown, since called Cambridge, and constituted the church of which Rev. Thomas Hooker was invited from England to become their pastor. He was in Cambridge in 1632, and admitted a freeman there, May 14th, 1634. He came to Hartford with Mr. Hooker's company in 1635, and was one of the original proprietors of that place. His house-lot was on the west side of what is now called Front Street, near where Morgan Street crosses it, and there is a tradition that the town was called from the ford he discovered and used in crossing the Connecticut River at a low stage of the water, and so from Hart's Ford it soon became Hartford, from a natural and easy transition. Tradition further says that as he and others were on a hunting excursion on Talcott Mountain, they discovered the Farmington River Valley, then inhabited by the Tunxis, a powerful tribe of Indians. The meadows were probably then cleared, and waving with grass and Indian corn. Such lands were then much needed and coveted by the settlers, who soon - probably as soon as 1640 - made a bargain with the Indians, and settled among them with their cattle. They still continued, however, connected with the settlement at Hartford, attended public worship, and prehaps wintered there. until about 1645, when the town was incorporated by the name of Farmington, from the excellent farms there.* About this time Mr. Roger Newton, a student in theology with Rev. Thomas Hooker, whose daughter he married, began to preach for them, and in 1652 was ordained their pastor. Stephen Hart was one of the seven pillars of the church, and was chosen their first deacon. The other pillars were Rev. Roger Newton, pastor, John Cole (Cowles), John Bronson, Robert Porter, Thomas Judd, and Thomas Thompson.[The following is from an email message from David E. Taylor (Nov. 21, 2003):The first English came to Connecticut in 1633 - to Windsor. The first English in Hartford came in the fall of 1635, and the remainder of Rev. Thomas Hooker's Church came to Hartford from Newtown (later renamed Cambridge), Massachusetts Bay in the spring of 1636. Stephen Hart was one of sixteen men who spent the winter of 1635-1636 at the site of current downtown Hartford.] [The following gives the modern, and better accepted story of how Hartford was named. This was sent to me by Kathleen Baker.This is from a talk by Dr. Albert E. Van Dusen given at a meeting of the Connecticut Genealogy Society, 20 Jun 1970, and printed by the Society in their Ct Nutmegger, Vol 3 pg 355-373. Rev Thomas Hooker and Thomas Stone lead a group from Massachusetts Bay Colony to Ct "with a purpose to settle upon the delightful banks of Connecticut River." They had about 100 people in the party and 160 head of cattle, plus goats and swine. "There exist sever
al theories about where they crossed the Ct River". "They called their settlement Newtown on the Connecticut River and then later changed it to Hartford. We think this was done because Thomas Stone, who was Hooker's second in command had come from Hertford, England (pronounced just the way we do Hartford)". Hartford was the last of 3 original towns settled, Windsor was first, then Wethersfield, and Hartford in 1636. Saybrook was considered a seperate Colony from the others. There were chosen 8 men to serve as officals of Hartford; Roger Ludlow, William Phelps, John Steele, William Westwood, Andrew Ward, William Pynchon, Henry Smith, and William Swain. Pynchon also established a small settlement up river at Springfield as part of the Ct settlement, but separated from the Hartford group, they didn't like the way he traded with the natives.Dr Van Dusen is author of the book entitled, "Conecticut", published in 1961, a fully illustrated history of the state from the Seventeenth Century to the present, as well as of numerous articles and book reviews.]Stephen Hart appears to have taken the lead in the settlement among the Indians in Farmington, and purchased a large tract on the boarder of the present town of Avon, and known to this day by the name of Hart's Farm.** He was one of the first representatives in 1647, and continued, with one exception, for fifteen sessions, until 1655, and once in 1660. In short, no man in the town was more active, influential, and useful. His house-lot, which was four or five times as large as any other, was on the west side of Main Street, in the village, opposite the meeting-house, and contained fifteen acres, extending from Mill Lane to the stone store south. This large house-lot was granted to Deacon Stephen Hart as an inducement to erect and continue a mill on the premises, to be perpetuated and kept in motion. The mill was erected originally by the Bronsons, to whom, as a consideration, was granted, viz: a tract of eighty acres, on the Pequabuk River, now known as the "Eighty Acre." The south part of this house-lot he gave to his son John, and the north part to his son Thomas. ...gave it to his son Josiah, and it descended to the wife of Roger Hooker, his only surviving child, and to her only son, Thomas Hart Hooker, who sold it to Samuel --------------------------------------------------------------------------------* The principal leaders in this settlement were John Steele, William Lewis, Stephen Hart, Thomas Judd, John Bronson, John Warner, Nathaniel Kellogg, Thomas Barnes, Richard Seymour, and Thomas Gridley.** Probably located at or near what is now called Cider Brook, on the east side of the river, and near the bridge, some three miles north of Farmington Village.gave it to his son Josiah, and it descended to the wife of Roger Hooker, his only surviving child, and to her only son, Thomas Hart Hooker, who sold it to Samuel Dleming. The Demings and their descendants hold it to this day-1874. These lots and lands, in some respects, are the most desirable and valuable of any in the old town of Farmington. He was a representative to the General Court of Connecticut in 1647, and most of the succeeding years to 1660, from the town of Farmington. His widow, Margaret, gave her property to her sons, John and Arthur Smith, and daughter, Elizabeth Thompson. She had grand chidren-Elizabeth, John, and Ann Thompson.Deacon Hart's Will was dated March 16th, 1682-3. He mentions the farm he formerly gave his three sons, John, Stephen, and Thomas, viz: one-half to John, one-fourth to Steven, and one-fourth to Thomas.Item.-I give my grandson, Thomas Porter, and my son-in-law, John Cole, my plow and and meadow swamp, which was some time Andrew Warner's farm, abuts on my son Steven, their agreement to my be loved wife being fulfilled.Item.-I give my sons, Steven and Thomas, and my daughters, Sarah Porter and Mary Lee, my Swamp Lot in the Great Swamp,* and all my uplands to be equally divided between them.Item.-I give my grandchild, Dorothy Porter, £10. Item.-I give my grandchild, John Lee, £3.Item.-I giv
e my grandchild, John Hart, my eldest son's son, £3.Item.-I give my beloved wife, &c.The Inventory was taken by Thomas Hart, and John Hart, Selectmen.Isaac Moore, and Benjamin Judd, Appraisers. Taken March 31st, 1682-3. Amount, £340 48. House and homestead, £70; land at Nod, east of river; £40.Deacon Hart was a farmer and large land-holder, located in the village of Farmington, and was a man of great influence, and a leading character. He died March, 1682-3, aged 77 years.HIS CHILDREN, ALL BY HIS FIRST WIFE, SECOND GENERATION.2. Sarah, born , married Nov. 20th, 1644, Thomas Porter.3. Mary, born , married John Lee; second, Jan. 5th, 1692, Jedediah Strong.4. John, born , married Sarah .5. Steven, born , wife not known.6. Mehitabel, born , married John Cole.7. Thomas, born 1648, married Ruth Hawkins. [ In the book, "The Great Migration Begins, Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633," Volume I, A-F, (by Robert Charles Anderson, Published by Great Migration Study Project, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995) reports on Dea. Stephen's possible daughters, Rachel and Mehitabel are discussed. The report in the book presents a strong argument that the information about Mehitable above is incorrect. There was no daughter named Mehitabel, but instead Stephen had a daughter named Rachel: "The son-in-law John Cole named in the will of Stephen Hart is stated in some sources to have married a daughter Mehitable Hart [Bassett Gen 391; Flagg 258]. but evidence taken largely from the Winthrop medical records shows that John Cole of Farmington instead married Rachel, daughter of Stephen Hart......------------------------John Lee of Farmington, Hartford Co, Conn and His Descendantshttp://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/_glc_/5265/5265_351.htmlGoing back to the pre-Revolutionary period, Stephen Hart, father of our maternal ancestor, took part in the Pequot war of 1637, under Captain John Mason.CHILDREN.I. SARAH, born ..... married Nov. 20, 1644, Thomas Porter.II. MARY, born ..... married John Lee 1658;--2d, Jan. 5, 1692, Jedediah Strong of Northampton. Died Oct. 10, 1710.III. JOHN, born ..... married Sarah ..... Their house in Farmington was fired by the Indians in the night in Feb., 1666, and the whole familyperished except one son John, 11 years of age, who was absent from home.IV. STEPHEN, born .... 1634. Wife not known, died at Farmington, Aug.19, 1689. His home was east of the meeting-house. His estate was inventoried at 633-14s.V. MEHITABEL, born ..... married John Cole.VI. THOMAS, born .... 1643, married Ruth Hawkins.The Harts are a numerous family and their genealogy was published in 1875.DEACON STEPHEN HART, father of our ancestral mother--Mary Hart Lee--is supposed, from good authority, to have been born at Braintree, Essex Co., Eng., in 1606. Of his English history or parentage, we have no account. It is probable that he came to this country as early as 1630-31, and located first at Braintree, Mass., and subsequently removed to Cambridge, then called Newtowne. It is also probable that one Edmund Hart, who came out at, or about the same time, was a brother of Stephen--both were "made Freemen" on the same day at Cambridge, May 14, 1634.The name of Stephen Hart is found on record in connection with Wm. Westwood and others, in regard to building a fence to enclose a commonfield at Cambridge, as early as 1632, and he is also represented as oneof the first 54 settlers of the town. His name is also found in the allotment of ground for cow yards in which Westwood is granted one acreand Hart half an acre, and others various amounts. On another occasion Westwood receives 5 acres and Hart 3. For building "Common Pales," (fence enclosing field) Westwood was to build 30 rods and Hart 8 rods, all of which indicates that Westwood had invested in the common stock, a much greater amount than Hart.The fertile lands in the Connecticut Valley had begun to attract attention, and in the summer of 1635, he went through the wilderness toHartford with the Rev. Thomas Hooker's party, including Westwood andwife, John Lee and Grace Newell, inmates of
Westwood's family.It is stated, and apparently on good authority, that he was an attendant on the ministry of Mr. Hooker of Braintree, Eng., and it is a well known fact that he was one of Mr. Hooker's deacons at Cambridge and again atHartford. The church records at Hartford previous to 1682 are missing, and consequently many interesting items of early church history are lost.At Hartford, the records show him to have been one of the original proprietors, and a home lot as assigned him on the river bank, on what is now Front street and a little north of the present foot of Morgan street, and may be easily located at the present day. Westwood's lot was about one-half larger and joined it on the south. From the fact of finding their names frequently associated, located on adjoining lots, attending the same church, about the same age, and coming from the same vicinity in England, we may infer that they were particular friends.It is stated on good authority that Hart joined the expedition against the Pequots under Capt. Mason's command in 1637, and his name may be found in a list of names in the "Memorial History of Hartford County, "vol. 1, p. 50. In 1640 he joined a party of a few others in the settlement of Farmington. Tradition informs us, that he with others were on a hunting excursion on Talcott Mountain and discovered the TunxisValley (since known as Farmington) then occupied by the powerful Tunxistribe of Indians. It was a beautiful valley, and partially cleared, and the prolific crops revealed the fertility of the soil. The country was coveted by the hunters, but there is no evidence that they resorted to any unfair means to wrest it from the Indians. As soon as arrangements could be effected, a purchase was made and the settlement commenced. Outbreaks did, however, often occur and a few years later the house of one of Deacon Hart's sons was attacked in the dead of night, and burned, and every member of the family perished, except one son, a lad of 11years, who was absent from home.Dea. Hart is said to have been the leading man of the settlement. The settlers still retained their connection with Hartford, attended church there and perhaps wintered there.About 1645 the town was incorporated by the name of Farmington. Thetownship was laid out 15 miles square, the proprietors being 84 innumber, of whom he was one. When the church was organized Oct. 13, 1652,there were appointed 7 deacons, who were designated as the "7 pillars ofthe church," of which he was named as the first, and no man was more influential or active, either in the church or settlement than Dea. Hart.He was one of the first representatives of the town in 1647, an office which he held continuously for 15 sessions (two sessions a year) with but one omission--and again in 1660. He purchased of the Indians a large tract of land three miles north of Farmington in the present town of Avonand, for 150 years, known as Hart's farm. His house lot was located on the west side of Main street opposite the meeting-house, and was four or five times as large as any other town lot, consisting of 15 acres, extending from what was known as Mill Lane on the north, to the present stone store on the south, and from Main street, west to the river. The south part of this lot he gave to his son John, and the north part to his son Thomas. A part of the lot eventually came into the possession of JohnLee and became his homestead, and may be easily located at the present time as the site of the Misses Porter's noted school for girls.In 1653 Dea. Hart was appointed by the General Court as one of a Commission to aid the constable in impressing men into the service for an expedition against the Indians. At this time John Lee was 33 years of age and it would be a subject of interest to learn if he joined the expedition, but unfortunately the names were not preserved.Dea. Hart was first married in England, and several of his children were born there. His