New England families, genealogical and memorial: a record of the ..., Volume 1 p 72 edited by William Richard Cutter

• Reference: Archive
• Reference: Archive

Daniel Brainerd father of Elijah Brainerd, and the immigrant ancestor, was born probably at Braintree, county Essex, England, about 1641, and was brought to this country when about eight years old and lived with the Wadsworth family in Hartford, Connecticut. He remained there until 1662, when with others he took up land and made Haddam his permanent home, although at that time it was an unbroken wilderness. His children were baptized in the Middletown church, eight miles from home.

He married

• (first) Hannah Spencer, born about 1641, at Lynn, Massachusetts, daughter of Gerrard and Hannah Spencer, of Cambridge and Lynn, Massachusetts, and Haddam, Connecticut. She died about 1691.
• (second) March 30, 1693, Elizabeth (Wakeman) Arnold, daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth Wakeman, both natives of England. Samuel Wakeman died at the Bahama Islands in 1641.
• (third) November 29, 1698, Hannah (Spencer) Sexton, born April 25, 1653, daughter of Thomas and Sarah Bearding, and widow of George Sexton.

Deacon Daniel Brainerd died April i, 1715, and is buried in the old burial ground at Haddam. His home was on Lot No. 554 and was bounded west by the main street, north by land of John Bailey, east by the river and south by Joseph Stannard's place. Deacon Brainerd was • constable, surveyor, fence viewer, assessor, justice of the peace and on town committees to lay out land, etc.. deputy to the general assembly in Hartford and he was elected by that body in 1669 a commissioner. He was deacon of the old church at Haddam.

Children by first wife:

1. Daniel, born March 2. 1665-66;
2. Hannah, November 20, 1667;
3. James. June 2, 1669:
4. Joshua, July 20, 1671-72;
5. William, March 30, 167374;
6. Caleb, November 20, 1675-76;
7. Elijah, about 1677-78;
8. Hezekiah, May 24, 1680-81.

Sources: "The genealogy of the Brainerd-Brainard family in America, 1649-1908" by Brainard, Lucy Abigail, b. 1832. Vol l, page 26-27

Progenitor of nearly all who bear the name of Brainerd. He was brought to New England when about 8 years old and lived with with Wadsworth family in Hartford, remaining there until 1662 when, with others, he took up land and made Haddam, Connecticut his permanent home, where was then the stillness of the unbroken wilderness. He and the others had to fell trees for their houses.

His eight children were born in Middletown, about 8 miles away, before permission was granted to the citizens of Haddam by the General Court of Connecticut to build a church. Deacon Daniel Brainerd died in 1715; he is buried in the ancient burying ground in Haddam, a few rods east of the Courthouse. His home is town plot No. 5 1/2 and bounded on the west by Main Street, north by John Bailie, east by the river and south by Joseph Stannard. Home lot was 4 acres. He held many public offices of the day.

A Brief History of Haddam

Early Settlement Map1845 MapClick on map for larger image

(91k)Click on map for larger image

(194k)The Town of Haddam is located in Middlesex County, in the south-central part of Connecticut in the lower Connecticut River Valley. Middletown and East Hampton border the town to the north, East Haddam to the east, Chester and Killingworth to the south, and Killingworth and Durham to the west. With approximately 7,200 residents (2000 census) the town covers 46.7 square miles. Haddam has the distinction of being the only town in the state of Connecticut that is bisected by the Connecticut River, with residents on both sides; Haddam and Higganum are on the west side and Haddam Neck is on the east side.

Plantation at Thirty Mile Island

In 1660 the Connecticut Colonial Legislature sent Matthew Allyn and Samuel Willys down the Connecticut River from Hartford to purchase land from the Wangunk Indian Tribe at the place the English called 'Land of Thirty Mile Island'. The island, now known as Haddam Island was thought to be thirty miles from the mouth of the "Grate River" at Long Island Sound (it is only 17 miles from the mouth of river). In May 1662 the Englishmen finally purchased land comprising approximately 104 square miles and extending in six miles on each side of the river from the straits at "Pattyquonck" (now Chester) to the Mattabeseck-Mill River (now Middletown) across to the line of Chatham (now East Hampton). The English paid 30 coats (worth approximately $100) for the land from four Native American chiefs, two queens and others. The Native Americans did set aside some property for their own use including 40 acres at Cove Meadow (Chester) and Haddam Island as well reserving the right to hunt and fish where they pleased.

The first settlers were twenty-eight men and their families from Hartford, Wethersfield and Windsor:

Nicholas & Mariam (Moore) AckleyJohn & Martha (Steele) HannisonJoseph & Elizabeth (Wakeman) ArnoldRichard & Elizabeth (Carpenter) JonesJames & Hannah (Withington) BatesStephen Luxford (No Wife Listed)John & Lydia (Backus) BaileyJohn Parents (No Wife Listed)Daniel & Hannah (Spencer) BrainerdThomas & Alice (Spencer) ShaylerThomas & Alice (Spencer) BrooksSimon & Elizabeth (Wells) SmithSamuel & Elizabeth (Olmsted) ButlerThomas Smith (No Wife Listed)William & Katherine (Bunce) ClarkGerrard & Hannah (Hills) SpencerDaniel & Rebecca (Spencer) ConeJohn & Rebecca (Howard) SpencerWilliam Corby (No Wife Listed)Joseph & Elizabeth (Spencer) StannardAbraham & Lydia (Tefft) DibbleWilliam & Elizabeth (No Maiden Name Listed) VentresSamuel & Anna (Burnham) GainesJohn & Hannah (No Maiden Name Listed) WebbGeorge & Sarah (Olmstead GatesJames & Elizabeth (Clark) WellsJohn & Mary (Bronson) Wyatt

Originally there were two small settlements on the west bank of the river, the Town Plot was laid out along the southern end of what is presently Walkley Hill Road and extended to the old burying ground (Burial Yard at Thirty Mile Island Plantation) and the Lower Plantation was settled south of the Mill Creek in the area now known as Shailerville. Each proprietor was given a home lot and land for farming. There was also land set aside for a meetinghouse and ministers lot. In October 1668 town was incorporated and given the name Haddam after Much Hadham in England. Haddam had very little tillable agricultural land and the best farming land was located along the river. Early residents utilized all of the natural resources available to them including water, fish, timber and granite in order to survive. The Connecticut River was a major source of income and transportation for the first 200 years of the town existence. Shipyards were built along the river, while many other small tributaries provided waterpower for mills and eventually factories.

In 1685 a group of residents moved across the river to settle East Haddam including the Gates, Ackley and Bates families. In 1700 East Haddam formed their own ecclesiastical society and became a separate town in 1734. Haddam Neck, which is also located on the east side of the river, was settled around 1712 but remained a part of Haddam and continues so today.

By 1720 the population of Haddam had grown to 500 and continued to grow steadily, forcing new settlers and younger generations to expand inland to the less fertile areas. Families that came to Haddam in the late 17th century included Walkley, Scovil, Dickinson, Hubbard, Hazelton, Higgins, Knowles, Lewis, Ray, Thomas, Tyler, Burr and Smith, some of which settled in the interior portions of town including Ponsett, Candlewood Hill, Little City, Burr and Turkey Hill.

During the Revolutionary War Haddam men served in the local militia and many citizens participated in privateering, the state sanctioned practice of capturing enemy ships. Privateering gave United State ships permission to capture British ships to cut off their supply lines and furnish our Navy with needed vessels and supplies. Once a ship was captured, it was brought to the nearest friendly port where the ship owner, captain and crew all benefited financially from the seized cargo. It is recorded that in 1779 two British ships, the York and Tryon were captured on the Connecticut River by Haddam made ships captained by Simon Tyler and Samuel Shaylor. Haddam, like many other Connecticut towns, served as a provisionary town during the war supplying troops with food including fish, beef and pork. During the winter of 1778 the horses of Washington's dragoons (cavalry) were housed in Haddam and Durham, which seriously depleted the residents' stock of hay and feed. The following year residents protested and the dragoons were moved to Colchester.

After the Revolution many of the town's local farmers were left with farms that were so small in acreage that they were no longer profitable. Because it was common practice for the family farm to be split off to form homesteads for sons, there was a marked decrease in the size of farms in town. As a result of this land shortage, many of the descendants of local farming families emigrated west to places such as New York and Ohio. Despite the land shortage, there was a brief building boom in Haddam after the Revolution. Trade and industry grew and those families involved in local industry built large and ornate homes. Middlesex Turnpike opened in 1802 and as the main road from Saybrook to Hartford it ran directly through the center of Haddam Village. This allowed for easier communication and commercial growth for the town.

Churches: For the first hundred years the Congregational Church was the only organized church in town and the first meetinghouse was erected in 1673-74. Haddam Neck residents joined with Middle Haddam residents to form their own ecclesiastical society in 1740 and the Higganum Congregational Church was formed in 1844. In 1791 the Methodists began to meet in the western part of town and a Methodist Church stood in the Burr District for a number of years. In 1792 a Baptist Congregation was formed and it erected a church in the Shailerville section of town. The Rev. William C. Knowles started the Episcopal Church in the Ponsett section of town in 1861 and the present St. James's Episcopal Church was erected in 1871-73. In 1756 a small group of Catholics settled here but unable to find a priest they returned to Nova Scotia. In 1876 the first mass of local Catholics was held in a private home and a year later Mission Church of St. Peter was erected in Higganum.

Higganum Union SchoolSchools: The first record of schools was in 1750 when Nathaniel Spencer, John Ventres and Thomas Brooks were tapped to sit on the school board. Residents paid the schoolmaster for teaching all the male children between 5 and 12 and females between 5 and 7 whether they attended school or not. Early lessons were held in private homes and by 1728 a school was erected near the old burying ground. In 1732 the town voted that lessons would be taught at the schoolhouse for 3 to 5 months of the year and for the remaining part of the year the teacher would travel to outlying districts. Men taught classes in the winter and women taught in the summer months. By 1814 thirteen school districts had been established in town. Each district erected a small (many one-room) schoolhouse to serve area students. District schoolhouses remained in use until the early 20th century. In the mid-19th century Higganum village's population warranted that a new larger schoolhouse be built. This two-story schoolhouse, which still stands on the south side of Candlewood Hill Road, was known as the "Green School". This building once stood on the Higganum Green and was replaced in 1894 by the Higganum Union School, which was used until 1948. In 1948 Haddam Elementary was erected on the east side of Saybrook Road and currently houses grades 1 through 6. The Haddam Junior High School (now HK Middle School) was completed in 1960 and in 1970 the town erected a second elementary school off Killingworth Road in the Burr District. Haddam and Killingworth became Regional School District #17 in 1970s and the High School was built on the same campus as the Junior High and completed by 1978.

Civil War: During the Civil War Haddam sent 90 men of service age to join Connecticut Regiments and 23 perished. Most local men served with Company D of the 20th Connecticut Volunteer Infantry and Company A of the 24th Connecticut Volunteer Infantry. General Alexander Shailer, a Union general who lead his regiment in all the battles of the Army of the Potomac was a native of Haddam.

Haddam Center. In 1785 Middlesex County was created from towns from Hartford and New London counties and Haddam and Middletown were selected to share the county seat, an arrangement that lasted over 100 years. As a half-shire town Haddam Village grew as the commercial and institutional center of town. Haddam became a regional center with a county courthouse located in the heart of town and a jailhouse not too far away. The granite jailhouse is one of the town's most impressive structures and continued to be used as a jail until the mid 20th century. Court trials during this era were a form of public entertainment and the presence of a courthouse and jail brought judges, lawyers and visitors to Haddam's center, a great boost for the economy. Roger Sherman and John Trumbull were among the notable lawyers who worked at the Haddam Court. During much of the 19th century Haddam village was a bustling community and institutional center of town. Shipbuilding was done on a small scale and the granite quarries became a prominent business in the 1800's supplying curb and building stone to New Orleans, New York, and Philadelphia. The county court left Haddam in the 1880's and the industrialization of Higganum to the north drew much of the commercial business from the village. Steamboat traffic replaced carriages as the primary means of traveling north and south and the Middlesex Turnpike declined as a major thoroughfare. Following the steamboat was the Connecticut Valley Railroad in 1871, which provided an easy and quick route from Old Saybrook to Hartford that bypassed local businesses.

With the invention of the automobile, the old Middlesex Turnpike saw an increase in traffic again and small roadside eateries and shops opened to cater to travelers. The village of Haddam remained the institutional center of town with the town hall, library, county orphanage and jail onto the 20th century.

Sources for Haddam History:

BRAINARD-BRAINERD-BRAYNARD FAMILY

This website is dedicated to preserving the genealogical history of all Brainard-Brainerd-Braynard family members world-wide. The family has only one immigrant ancestor--Daniel Braynerd/Braynard/Brainerd--who came from England to Connecticut in 1649 as a lad of eight or nine years of age.The name, in its variant spellings, does not exist in England, and may have been spelled very differently. We must remember most people could not read, write or spell, and local dialects sounded quite different to outsiders.

Daniel grew up in Hartford, most likely in the home of William Wadsworth, as an indentured servant, or apprentice. At age twenty-one, he relocated to Haddam, CT, prospered, and married Hannah Spencer. They had eight children--Daniel, Hannah, James, Joshua, William, Caleb, Elijah and Hezekiah.

In addition to all who have received the family name by birthright, many have received the name through adoption, marriage, or other reason. Some were bestowed the name at the time of their immigration into the United States, as a stage name, as the mother's birth name, or by missionaries in their country of origin.

The Brainard-Brainerd-Braynard family genealogy has been recorded in numerous publications since the late 1700's. It was first compiled in writing by a Rev. Elijah Brainerd. This so-called "Brainerd Manuscript" is kept in the archives of the New England Historical & Genealogical Society in Boston, MA. It is written very simply on 6-inch by 3-inch sheets of paper, and contains a listing of Daniel and his children. The cover is titled "A Genealogical Synopsis of the Brainerds." It is dated 20 January 1786.

In the "Brainerd Family Genealogy" loose files in the library of the Connecticut Historical Society in Hartford, CT, is a four-page letter from an Elijah Brainerd to Rev. David Dudley Field, dated 6 Dec. 1813, which lists an additional two generations of some family members. A somewhat complete family genealogy was compiled by Rev. David Dudley Field, titled The Genealogy of the BRAINERD FAMILY in the United States, and was published in New York by John F. Trow, Printer, in 1857. However, many families were left out, as they were not members of the church, did not contribute (financially or otherwise) to the effort, or had moved beyond contact into the wilderness.

A very comprehensive family genealogy was researched and compiled between 1880 and 1907 by Lucy Abigail Brainard (53iii. Daniel[2] line). It is The Genealogy of the BRAINERD-BRAINARD Family in America, 1649-1908 , in three volumes, published by the Hartford Press of the Case, Lockwood & Brainard Company, Hartford, CT, in 1908. It was later printed in seven separate volumes--one for each son.

A Supplement to the Genealogy of the BRAINERD-BRAINARD Family in America was compiled from 1985 to 1990, and privately published by Richard David Brainard, Portland, OR, in 1990. This was followed by a two volume 1990 Update to The Genealogy of the BRAINERD-BRAINARD Family in America, 1649-1908, also privately published by Richard David Brainard, Portland, OR, in 1990.

A Brainard-Brainerd-Braynard Family Newsletter has been published quarterly since 1991 by Richard David Brainard. It includes current and historical information, as well as current births, marriages, and obituaries, as provided to the editor by family members. A subscription is $15 per calendar year, from Richard Brainard, 813 SW Alder St. #700, Portland, OR 97205.

Mr. Brainard acts as the family genealogical historian, keeping lineages up to date as information is received from family members. In addition to the mailing address above, he can be reached at 503-243-2652, or by email at dickbrainard@qwest.net.

• Reference: Palhbooks

Additional information about this story

Description Information on the history of Brainerd family - complete with website. Incuded are pictures of gravestone and letters written to England to try to ascertain lineage of Deacon Daniel Brainerd

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Location

Family Origins.com

Daniel BRAINARD was born in 1641 in Braintree, Essex, England. (1072)(1073) He Stolen as a child about 1649 in Braintree, Essex, England. (1074) When Daniel was 8 years old, he was stolen and brought to America where he was sold as an indentured servant to a farmer Wadsworth in Hartford "to be learned to read and write and at the time of his freedom when twenty-one years old to be given two suits of clothes." Daniel served 13 years for Wadsworth until he was freed in 1662 at age 21 whereupon he moved to Haddam. He moved in 1662 to Haddam, Hartford, CT.(1075) He died on 1 Apr 1715 in Haddam, Middlesex, CT. (1076) He left, according to his inventory, £834 on 19 Apr 1715 in Haddam, Middlesex, CT.(1077) He was a merchant.(1078)

• Reference: /FAMO5-0001/d8.htm#P2889 Family Origin

Personal note from family research: Daniel Brainard was one of the first people in the Haddam, Connecticut. He was a surveyor there who helped establish the township and became a well- respected town leader.

Brainerd Biography

According to Lucy Abigail Brainard, Daniel Brainerd arrived in Hartford, Connecticut in or about the year 1649 at or around the age of eight. Unfortunately, there is no documentation to support this or the widely accepted belief that Daniel was from Braintree, England. There are a few family stories concerning Daniel's arrival at such a young age. One, that he was kidnapped from England and sold for his passage to the Wadsworth family of Hartford. Daniel was to live with and work for the Wadsworths until he reached the age of 21. Another version has it that Daniel's parents sent him to America due to unrest in England. We may never know the true story of his early years, but at the age of twenty one, Daniel would begin to forge a history that would still be known 10 generations later.

In 1662, Daniel, along with 27 other men settled in an area now known as Haddam, Connecticut. Daniel's first home was reported to have been a cave. Soon, however Daniel became the largest land owner and one of the most influential men in Haddam, serving as constable, deacon, town assessor, justice of the peace, surveyer, plotter of land and roads, along with other offices. Daniel was also appointed Commisioner to the General Assembly in Hartford.

Visiting the Haddam area today, one could view the Brainerd Family burial plot where Daniel is buried, the Brainerd Memorial Library, Brainerd Hall and the plaque honoring the Original Proprietors of Haddam, to name a few of the Brainerd family historical sites.

In 1663-4 Daniel married Hannah Spencer, of Lynn, MA. From that marriage eight children were born and the Brainerd family roots began to take hold in America.

Additional information about this story

Description: From the Brainard-Brainard Website. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~brainerd/

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Daniel Brainerd and wives

Daniel Brainerd was probably born in Braintree, Essex Co., England about 1641. He was brought to the American colonies about 1649, when he was eight years old, and sold into indenture to pay for his passage to America. He lived with the Wadsworth family in Hartford, Connecticut, until about 1662 when he moved to Haddam, Connecticut, where he remained the rest of his life. Daniel Brainerd died 1 April 1715 at 74 years of age. He is buried at the old cemetery at Haddam, near the court house.

He served as ".... constable, surveyor, fence viewer, town assessor, collector, and justice of the peace, and with others was one appointed to stake out land and to lay out highways. He was elected Commissioner by the General Court in Hartford, Conn., in 1669. .... He was one of a committee to secure a minister, 1 January 1682, and was elected deacon of the Congregational Church in that place, serving in that capacity through life.

Daniel Brainerd owned a four acre lot in the town of Haddam. This lot (No. 5 1/2) was east of main street, south of John Bailie's lot, west of the Connecticut River and north of Joseph Stannard's lot.

An inventory of the estate of Daniel Brainerd was made on 18-19 April 1715. Included in the inventory was a great deal of land, livestock, furniture, tools, horns, needles, flints, lead, powder, nails, buttons, pad locks with keys, candlesticks, posts, seed, books, barrels, feather beds, curtains, towels, table cloths, blankets and a variety of other items.

In 1663 or 1664 Daniel Brainerd married Hannah Spencer. She was born in about 1641 in Lynn, Massachusetts and died some time around 1691 in Haddam, Connecticut. . The eight children of Hannah Spencer and Daniel Brainerd were all baptized in Middletown, Connecticut, since there was no church in Haddam at that time.

On 30 March 1693, Daniel Brainerd married Elizabeth (Wakeman) Arnold. Her parents were Samuel (who died in the Bahamas, West Indies, in 1641) and Elizabeth Wakeman of England. She was the widow of Joseph Arnold.

On 29 November 1698, Daniel Brainerd married Hannah (Spencer) Sexton. She was born 25 April 1653. Her parents were Thomas Spencer and Sarah Bearding. She was the widow of George Sexton.

Additional information about this story

Description

Date

Location

First Settlers of Haddam

1st Settlers of Haddam Conn.

Added by DeniseKlein700 on 20 Jan 2008

A Brief History of Haddam

Early Settlement Map1845 MapClick on map for larger image

(91k)Click on map for larger image

(194k)The Town of Haddam is located in Middlesex County, in the south-central part of Connecticut in the lower Connecticut River Valley. Middletown and East Hampton border the town to the north, East Haddam to the east, Chester and Killingworth to the south, and Killingworth and Durham to the west. With approximately 7,200 residents (2000 census) the town covers 46.7 square miles. Haddam has the distinction of being the only town in the state of Connecticut that is bisected by the Connecticut River, with residents on both sides; Haddam and Higganum are on the west side and Haddam Neck is on the east side.

Plantation at Thirty Mile Island

In 1660 the Connecticut Colonial Legislature sent Matthew Allyn and Samuel Willys down the Connecticut River from Hartford to purchase land from the Wangunk Indian Tribe at the place the English called 'Land of Thirty Mile Island'. The island, now known as Haddam Island was thought to be thirty miles from the mouth of the "Grate River" at Long Island Sound (it is only 17 miles from the mouth of river). In May 1662 the Englishmen finally purchased land comprising approximately 104 square miles and extending in six miles on each side of the river from the straits at "Pattyquonck" (now Chester) to the Mattabeseck-Mill River (now Middletown) across to the line of Chatham (now East Hampton). The English paid 30 coats (worth approximately $100) for the land from four Native American chiefs, two queens and others. The Native Americans did set aside some property for their own use including 40 acres at Cove Meadow (Chester) and Haddam Island as well reserving the right to hunt and fish where they pleased.

The first settlers were twenty-eight men and their families from Hartford, Wethersfield and Windsor:

Nicholas & Mariam (Moore) AckleyJohn & Martha (Steele) HannisonJoseph & Elizabeth (Wakeman) ArnoldRichard & Elizabeth (Carpenter) JonesJames & Hannah (Withington) BatesStephen Luxford (No Wife Listed)John & Lydia (Backus) BaileyJohn Parents (No Wife Listed)Daniel & Hannah (Spencer) BrainerdThomas & Alice (Spencer) ShaylerThomas & Alice (Spencer) BrooksSimon & Elizabeth (Wells) SmithSamuel & Elizabeth (Olmsted) ButlerThomas Smith (No Wife Listed)William & Katherine (Bunce) ClarkGerrard & Hannah (Hills) SpencerDaniel & Rebecca (Spencer) ConeJohn & Rebecca (Howard) SpencerWilliam Corby (No Wife Listed)Joseph & Elizabeth (Spencer) StannardAbraham & Lydia (Tefft) DibbleWilliam & Elizabeth (No Maiden Name Listed) VentresSamuel & Anna (Burnham) GainesJohn & Hannah (No Maiden Name Listed) WebbGeorge & Sarah (Olmstead GatesJames & Elizabeth (Clark) WellsJohn & Mary (Bronson) Wyatt

Originally there were two small settlements on the west bank of the river, the Town Plot was laid out along the southern end of what is presently Walkley Hill Road and extended to the old burying ground (Burial Yard at Thirty Mile Island Plantation) and the Lower Plantation was settled south of the Mill Creek in the area now known as Shailerville. Each proprietor was given a home lot and land for farming. There was also land set aside for a meetinghouse and ministers lot. In October 1668 town was incorporated and given the name Haddam after Much Hadham in England. Haddam had very little tillable agricultural land and the best farming land was located along the river. Early residents utilized all of the natural resources available to them including water, fish, timber and granite in order to survive. The Connecticut River was a major source of income and transportation for the first 200 years of the town existence. Shipyards were built along the river, while many other small tributaries provided waterpower for mills and eventually factories.

In 1685 a group of residents moved across the river to settle East Haddam including the Gates, Ackley and Bates families. In 1700 East Haddam formed their own ecclesiastical society and became a separate town in 1734. Haddam Neck, which is also located on the east side of the river, was settled around 1712 but remained a part of Haddam and continues so today.

By 1720 the population of Haddam had grown to 500 and continued to grow steadily, forcing new settlers and younger generations to expand inland to the less fertile areas. Families that came to Haddam in the late 17th century included Walkley, Scovil, Dickinson, Hubbard, Hazelton, Higgins, Knowles, Lewis, Ray, Thomas, Tyler, Burr and Smith, some of which settled in the interior portions of town including Ponsett, Candlewood Hill, Little City, Burr and Turkey Hill.

During the Revolutionary War Haddam men served in the local militia and many citizens participated in privateering, the state sanctioned practice of capturing enemy ships. Privateering gave United State ships permission to capture British ships to cut off their supply lines and furnish our Navy with needed vessels and supplies. Once a ship was captured, it was brought to the nearest friendly port where the ship owner, captain and crew all benefited financially from the seized cargo. It is recorded that in 1779 two British ships, the York and Tryon were captured on the Connecticut River by Haddam made ships captained by Simon Tyler and Samuel Shaylor. Haddam, like many other Connecticut towns, served as a provisionary town during the war supplying troops with food including fish, beef and pork. During the winter of 1778 the horses of Washington's dragoons (cavalry) were housed in Haddam and Durham, which seriously depleted the residents' stock of hay and feed. The following year residents protested and the dragoons were moved to Colchester.

After the Revolution many of the town's local farmers were left with farms that were so small in acreage that they were no longer profitable. Because it was common practice for the family farm to be split off to form homesteads for sons, there was a marked decrease in the size of farms in town. As a result of this land shortage, many of the descendants of local farming families emigrated west to places such as New York and Ohio. Despite the land shortage, there was a brief building boom in Haddam after the Revolution. Trade and industry grew and those families involved in local industry built large and ornate homes. Middlesex Turnpike opened in 1802 and as the main road from Saybrook to Hartford it ran directly through the center of Haddam Village. This allowed for easier communication and commercial growth for the town.

Churches: For the first hundred years the Congregational Church was the only organized church in town and the first meetinghouse was erected in 1673-74. Haddam Neck residents joined with Middle Haddam residents to form their own ecclesiastical society in 1740 and the Higganum Congregational Church was formed in 1844. In 1791 the Methodists began to meet in the western part of town and a Methodist Church stood in the Burr District for a number of years. In 1792 a Baptist Congregation was formed and it erected a church in the Shailerville section of town. The Rev. William C. Knowles started the Episcopal Church in the Ponsett section of town in 1861 and the present St. James's Episcopal Church was erected in 1871-73. In 1756 a small group of Catholics settled here but unable to find a priest they returned to Nova Scotia. In 1876 the first mass of local Catholics was held in a private home and a year later Mission Church of St. Peter was erected in Higganum.

Higganum Union SchoolSchools: The first record of schools was in 1750 when Nathaniel Spencer, John Ventres and Thomas Brooks were tapped to sit on the school board. Residents paid the schoolmaster for teaching all the male children between 5 and 12 and females between 5 and 7 whether they attended school or not. Early lessons were held in private homes and by 1728 a school was erected near the old burying ground. In 1732 the town voted that lessons would be taught at the schoolhouse for 3 to 5 months of the year and for the remaining part of the year the teacher would travel to outlying districts. Men taught classes in the winter and women taught in the summer months. By 1814 thirteen school districts had been established in town. Each district erected a small (many one-room) schoolhouse to serve area students. District schoolhouses remained in use until the early 20th century. In the mid-19th century Higganum village's population warranted that a new larger schoolhouse be built. This two-story schoolhouse, which still stands on the south side of Candlewood Hill Road, was known as the "Green School". This building once stood on the Higganum Green and was replaced in 1894 by the Higganum Union School, which was used until 1948. In 1948 Haddam Elementary was erected on the east side of Saybrook Road and currently houses grades 1 through 6. The Haddam Junior High School (now HK Middle School) was completed in 1960 and in 1970 the town erected a second elementary school off Killingworth Road in the Burr District. Haddam and Killingworth became Regional School District #17 in 1970s and the High School was built on the same campus as the Junior High and completed by 1978.

Civil War: During the Civil War Haddam sent 90 men of service age to join Connecticut Regiments and 23 perished. Most local men served with Company D of the 20th Connecticut Volunteer Infantry and Company A of the 24th Connecticut Volunteer Infantry. General Alexander Shailer, a Union general who lead his regiment in all the battles of the Army of the Potomac was a native of Haddam.

Haddam Center. In 1785 Middlesex County was created from towns from Hartford and New London counties and Haddam and Middletown were selected to share the county seat, an arrangement that lasted over 100 years. As a half-shire town Haddam Village grew as the commercial and institutional center of town. Haddam became a regional center with a county courthouse located in the heart of town and a jailhouse not too far away. The granite jailhouse is one of the town's most impressive structures and continued to be used as a jail until the mid 20th century. Court trials during this era were a form of public entertainment and the presence of a courthouse and jail brought judges, lawyers and visitors to Haddam's center, a great boost for the economy. Roger Sherman and John Trumbull were among the notable lawyers who worked at the Haddam Court. During much of the 19th century Haddam village was a bustling community and institutional center of town. Shipbuilding was done on a small scale and the granite quarries became a prominent business in the 1800's supplying curb and building stone to New Orleans, New York, and Philadelphia. The county court left Haddam in the 1880's and the industrialization of Higganum to the north drew much of the commercial business from the village. Steamboat traffic replaced carriages as the primary means of traveling north and south and the Middlesex Turnpike declined as a major thoroughfare. Following the steamboat was the Connecticut Valley Railroad in 1871, which provided an easy and quick route from Old Saybrook to Hartford that bypassed local businesses.

With the invention of the automobile, the old Middlesex Turnpike saw an increase in traffic again and small roadside eateries and shops opened to cater to travelers. The village of Haddam remained the institutional center of town with the town hall, library, county orphanage and jail onto the 20th century.

Sources for Haddam History:

Additional information about this storyDescriptionWEBSITE: http://www.haddamhistory.org/history_haddam.htm

Additional information about this story

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Orphaned in England, he came to America to live with the Wadsworth Family from the time he was eight years until adulthood. From the "Dictionary of the Heads of New England Families" Brainerd or Brainard: Place name, originally spelled Brandewood or Brandewode. Tradition says, the family came from Braine in France; the family founded in England 1350. Daniel b. Braintree, England, 1641, lived as early as 1649 with Wadworth Family at Hartford, CT; removed to Haddam, CT, prior to 1665. ***From the application of Katharine Arnold Nettleton to the Sons and Daughters of the Pilgrims: Services: Constable, Surveyor, Town Assessor, Justice of the Peace, 1669; Commissoner to General Court; Deputy to General Court and Deacon. Source: NEHGR Oct 1941, #95, p: 352 Daniel Brainerd, a native of England, who as a lad of eight years, was brought to Haddam, CT, in 1649, was a proprietor of Haddam, CT, where he settled about 1662, served as justice of the peace, deacon, town assessor, constable, surveyor, collector, and a deputy in the General Court, married first Hannah Spencer, daughter of Gerard Spencer. Daniels' 3rd wife, Hannah was the daughter of Sgt Thomas Spencer, 1607-1687. Daniel Brainerd was the co-admin. of Gerard's estate along with Willima Spencer

• Reference: Commemorative biographical record of Hartford County, Connecticut : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families (1901) Vol. Part 1
• Reference: Archive
• Reference: Archive
• Reference: [Daniel Brainerd, who about 1648, at the age of eight years, was brought by the Wyllys family from England to Hartford, Conn., and was there reared to manhood. He spent most of his life in Haddam, Conn., where he settled about 1552. He married Hannah Spencer, daughter of Gerrard Spencer of Lynn, Massachusetts.
• Reference:Commemorative biographical record of Hartford County, Connecticut : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families (1901) Volume Part 2
• Reference: Archive
• Reference: Archive
• Reference: Pg. 1050
• Reference: HENRY STANNARD BRAINARD, ....
• .Reference: Daniel Brainard ....
• Reference: [http://archive.org/stream/commemorativebio12jhbe#page/1051/mode/1up
• Pg. 1051
• ' Reference: m1. Hannah Spencer, dau. of Gerrard Spencer of Lynn, Mass., m2. Mrs Hannah Sexton a widow
• Our New England ancestors and their descendants, 1620-1900: historical ... By Henry Whittemore
• http://archive.org/details/ournewenglandanc00whit
  • Spencer and Allied Families
• Pg. 49-84
• http://archive.org/stream/ournewenglandanc00whit#page/112/mode/1up
• Pg. 57
• GERRARD or JERRARD SPENCER, the founder of the Haddam and Saybrook, Connecticut, families of this name, born in Stotfold, England, bap. April 28, 1634, was the son of Gerrard Spencer and nephew of Sir Richard. He came to New England in 1632, and was admitted March 9, 1637, a freeman of the Massachusetts Bay Colony March 9, 1637. . . . .
• . . . . He died in 1685, his will bearing date two years earlier.
• The will of Gerrard Spencer, dated Sept. 17, 1683, was admitted to probate in 1685, and is as follows: . . . .
• The children of Gerrard Spencer and Hannah, his wife, were
  • I. John, born at Lynn, Mass., 1638; died Aug. 3, 1682.
  • II. Hannah, born 1640; married Daniel Brainerd.
  • III. Alice, born 1641; married, 1st Thomas Brooks, 2nd Thomas Shailer.
  • IV. Mehitable, born 1642; married Daniel Cone.
  • V. Thomas, married Elizabeth Bates; removed to Westbrook before 1679.
  • VI. Samuel.
  • VII. William.
  • VIII. Nathaniel.
  • IX. Rebecca, married 1st John Kennard, of Haddom, about 1692; he died Feb. 1689; she married 2nd John Tanner, of Lyme, Conn.
  • X. Ruth, married Joseph Clark.
  • XI. Timothy.
• BRAINARD, Daniel
• d. 1 APR 1715 Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
• Family:
• Spouse: SPENCER, Hannah
• b. 1640 Lynn, Essex, Mass.
• Parents:
• Father: SPENCER, Jared
• Mother: HILLS, Hannah
• Children:
  • BRAINARD, Daniel
  • BRAINARD, Hannah
  • BRAINARD, James
  • BRAINARD, Joshua
  • BRAINARD, William
  • BRAINARD, Chileab
  • BRAINARD, Caleb
  • BRAINARD, Elijah
  • BRAINARD, Hezekiah
• From: http://www.genealogyofnewengland.com/f_232.htm#24 _________________
• Deacon Daniel Brainerd
• Birth: 1641 Essex, England
• Death: Apr. 1, 1715 Haddam, Middlesex County, Connecticut, USA
• Daniel Brainerd was brought to America when he was eight yrs. old and lived with the Wadsworth family in Hartford, Connecticut in or about the year 1641 He remained with the family until 1662 when he took up residence in Haddam CT. Unfortunately, there is no documentation to support this or the widely accepted belief that Daniel was from Braintree, England. There are a few family stories concerning Daniel's arrival at such a young age. One, that he was kidnapped from England and sold for his passage to the Wadsworth family of Hartford. Daniel was to live with and work for the Wadsworths until he reached the age of 21. Another version has it that Daniel's parents sent him to America due to unrest in England. Daniel Brainerd is the ancestor of all the Brainerds/Brainards to live in the United States.
• In 1662, Daniel, along with 27 other men settled in an area now known as Haddam, Connecticut. Daniel's first home was reported to have been a cave. Soon, however Daniel became the largest land owner and one of the most influential men in Haddam, serving as constable. He was the first Deacon and the first Justice of the peace in Haddam. He was also a surveyer,town assessor, plotter of land and roads, along with other offices. Daniel was also appointed Commisioner to the General Assembly in Hartford.
• Visiting the Haddam area today, one could view the Brainerd Family burial plot where Daniel is buried, the Brainerd Memorial Library, Brainerd Hall and the plaque honoring the Original Proprietors of Haddam, to name a few of the Brainerd family historical site.
• Daniel Brainerd was born abt,1641 in Braintree, ESS, ENG d: 01 Apr 1715 Haddam, Middlesex, CT. He was a Col. and a Deacon.
• About 1663, Daniel married Hannah Spencer, of Lynn, MA, dau. of Ensign Gerard Spencer and Hannah Joannis Hills.
• From that marriage eight children were born and the Brainerd family roots began to take hold in America.
• Children-
  • 1. Daniel, BRAINERD, Jr. was a Haddam farmer b: 02 Mar 1665/66 Haddam, Middlesex, CT d: 28 Jan 1742/43 buried Cove Cemetery, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT
  • 2. Hannah Brainerd Gates (83) (1667 - Sept. 7, 1750)m. Thomas Gates b. Cove Cemetery, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT
  • 3. James Brainerd(6/2/1669-2/10/1742)Haddam,Middlesex, CT
  • 4. Joshua Brainerd 7/20/1671- 5/13/1755 East Haddam, Middlesex, CT. Mary (wife) died Dec. 25, 1705 East Haddam m. Mehittabell Dudley, Jul 12, 1710
  • 5. William Brainerd Mar. 30 1673.
  • 6. Caleb Brainerd( Nov. 20, 1676 - Jul 11, 1742 Haddam, CT
  • 7. Elijah Brainerd May 26, 1678 - Ap. 20, 1740 m. Mary Bushnel b. 1675 (My ancestor)
  • 8 Hezekiah b. May 24, 1680 Haddam CT. D. May 24 1727 Hartford CT. father of famous missionary to the Cherokee Indians (David Brainard b. Apr. 20, 1718 d. Oct. 9, 1747)
• Probate; 2 May 1715; Haddam, Middlesex Co., CT 8. Invt. and Agreement in Vol. IX, Page 37 Name: Daniel Brainard Location: Haddam
• Invt. œ834-10-03. Taken 19 April, 1715, by Nathaniel Spencer, Gerrard Spencer and Joseph Arnold.
• An agreement, dated the 2nd of May, 1715: A distribution of the estate by an agreement among the children, Daniel, James, Joshua, William, Caleb, Elijah and Hezekiah (sons), Thomas Gates and Hannah his wife (only daughter): Our father's will not being so full and clear as we could wish, we have thought best to agree upon a distribution of the estate of our hond. father. And having first come to a loving agreement with our hond. mother-in-law, Hannah Brainard, we have proceeded to make the following distribution: I, Thomas Gates, acting in behalf of my wife Hannah, and we, Daniel, James, Joshua, William, Caleb, Elijah and Hezekiah, have fully and freely made up our hond. father's Daniel Brainard his estate, and do hereby promise and engage, for ourselves and heirs, each to take up satisfied of lands heretofore set down to us and to make no more challenges or demands of any more lands or rights, neither by virtue or under color of any deed of gift received from our father in his life-time or upon any other color or pretense whatsoever, and that we do receive sd. lands and every parcel of them as our sd. father held them the day of his death, each running the risk of the title our father had to them, and being obliged to defend the same for his own part if there (was) occasion. Moreover we the sd. Daniel, James, Joshua, William, Caleb, and Elijah, do hereby (declare) that we have received œ8-01-00 apiece out of the personal estate. I, Thomas Gates, do acknowledge that I have received œ33-01-00, and I, Hezekiah Brainard, have received œ32-12-00. Moreover we do all and each of us for ourselves and heirs hereby covenant and promise that we shall make no more demands of estate, real or personal, that was our father's, and that we will in no wise disturb or annoy each other, but each of the eight aforementioned and their heirs may quietly enjoy his part aforementioned. Under the full ratification of all which premises we have all and each of us hereunto set our hand and affixed seal this 2nd May, 1715.
• Daniel Braynard, ls. James Braynard, ls. Joshua Braynard, ls. William Braynard, ls. Caleb Braynard, ls. Elijah Braynard, ls. Hezekiah Braynard, ls.
• To Thomas Gates, acting in behalf of his wife Hannah (only daughter to our hond. father) 50 acres of land bought of Mr. Blackleach, on the north side of Haddam bounds in Colchester bounds more, in personal or moveable estate. Total, œ45-10-00.
• Court Record, Page 253--14 April, 1715: Adms. granted to Daniel and Hezekiah Brainard jointly. They exhibited an invt. of sd. estate and also an agreement for a division of the estate, which was accepted by the Court.
• Source: The Genealogy of the Brainerd-Brainard Family in America, 1649-1908,
• Family links:
• Spouses:
• Hannah Spencer Brainerd (1641 - 1691)*
• Elizabeth Wakeman Arnold (1630 - 1698)*
• Hannah Spencer Sexton (1653 - 1715)*
• Children:
  • Daniel Brainerd (1665 - 1743)*
  • Hannah Brainerd Gates (1667 - 1750)*
  • James Brainerd (1669 - 1742)*
  • Joshua Brainerd (1672 - 1755)*
  • William Brainerd (1673 - 1747)*
  • Caleb Brainerd (1676 - 1742)*
  • Elijah Brainerd (1677 - 1740)*
  • Hezekiah Brainerd (1681 - 1727)*
• Burial: Thirty Mile Island Plantation Burial Yard, Haddam, Middlesex County, Connecticut, USA
• Find A Grave Memorial# 47491853
• From: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=47491853
• Judge Daniel Brainerd
• Birth: Mar., 1641 Essex, England
• Death: Apr. 1, 1715 East Haddam, Middlesex County, Connecticut, USA
• Burial: Thirty Mile Island Plantation Burial Yard, Haddam, Middlesex County, Connecticut, USA
• Find A Grave Memorial# 72463158
• From: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=brainerd&GSfn...

The date of the early settlement of Haddam Neck is involved in obscurity, but it is supposed to be about 1710 or '12, by the following persons, some of them settling later than others: William BRAINERD, his wife Sarah BIDWELL, and their children; James BRAINERD jr., his wife Anne; Thomas SELDEN, his wife Sarah, and their children; Sylvester DUDLEY; Gideon GOFF jr., and perhaps his father; Jabez BROOKS Esq., and perhaps Thomas BROOKS; Dr. Joshua and Deacon Gideon ARNOLD, their sisters, and possibly their father, John; ____ CONE; Robert CHAPMAN; Benajah CLARK, and perhaps Deacon Ebenezer SMITH and William MARKHAM; _____ STOCKING. Of these, William BRAINERD, the fifth child of Daniel and Hannah (SPENCER) BRAINERD, one of the original proprietors of Haddam, married Sarah BIDWELL, December 13th 1698, and built his house between the foot of Quarry Hill and the house of the late Cyprian S. BRAINERD. Their children were:

1. Sarah, married Deacon Gideon ARNOLD, one of the settlers. 2. Sergt. William J. married Esther _____. 3. Hannah, married William SMITH. 4. Samuel, married Esther BRAINERD, daughter of Jabez and Hannah (CLARK) BRAINERD, and settled in BRAINERD District in Haddam. 5. (Rev.) Chiliab, graduated at Yale, minister in Eastbury, town of Glastonbury. 6. Lieut. Josiah sen., twice married. He built his house on Quarry Hill in 1737. The house was torn down in 1883. He served in two expeditions to Canada; was with Gen. Wolfe, at the capture of Quebec; and also served in the Revolutionary war. 7. Nathan, twice married. He built his house where the house of Oliver B. ARNOLD now stands.

1. Reference: Dunham-Wilcox
2. Reference: JemGen
3. Reference: Google

GEDCOM Source

U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Find A Grave 1,60525::0 1,60525::27961758

GEDCOM Source

U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Find A Grave 1,60525::0 1,60525::27961758

GEDCOM Source

U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Find A Grave 1,60525::0 1,60525::27961758

GEDCOM Note

Daniel Brainerd was brought to America in 1641 when he was eight yrs. old to live with the Wadsworth family in Hartford, Connecticut. He remained with the family until 1662 when he took up residence in Haddam CT. There is a widely accepted belief that Daniel was from Braintree, England, but there are competing stories concerning the circumstances surrounding his arrival in America at such a young age: 1) that he was kidnapped from England and sold into indenture to the Wadsworth family where he was to live and work until he was 21, 2) that Daniel's parents knowingly arranged for this due to unrest in England, or 3) that he was orphaned. We do know that Wadsworth paid for the boys passage in exchange for thirteen years of service and also "[t]o be learned to read and write and at the time of his freedom when twenty-one years old to be given two suits of clothes".
In 1662, Daniel, along with 27 other men, settled in an area now known as Haddam, Connecticut. His first home was reported to have been a cave. Soon, however Daniel became the largest land owner and one of the most influential men in town. He served as constable, first Deacon, and first Justice of the peace in Haddam. He was also a surveyer, town assessor, plotter of land and roads, along with other offices including Commissioner to the General Assembly in Hartford. Daniel married 1st Hannah Spencer (daughter of Gerrard (Ensign) Spencer and Hannah Hills) in 1663, 2nd Elizabeth Arnold Wakeman on March 30, 1693, and 3rd Hannah Spencer (daughter of Thomas (Sargent) Spencer and Sarah Bearding) on November 3, 1698. His home in Haddam was on town plot No.5 1/2 bounded on the west by Main St., north by John Bailey, east by the river, and south by Joseph Stannard. He died April 1, 1715 at age 74. He is buried in the ancient burying ground in Haddam, a few rods east of the Courthouse. Daniel Brainerd was the progenitor of nearly all who bear the name Brainerd/Brainard.