Deacon Richard Butler

Not the same as Richard Butler, of Stratford

_____________________________

Biographical Summary:

Deacon Richard Butler, Cambridge, 1632; freeman, Massachusetts, May 14, 1634; removed to Hartford, an original proprietor, in 1639-40, when 16 acres were allotted to him. His house-lot was on the corner where the road from George Steele's to the South Meadow intersected the road from the Mill to the Country. He was a juror, 1643-4-7-8; townsman, 1649, 1654, 1658; one of the committee for the mill, 1661; grand juror, 1660, 1662; deputy, 1656-1660; one of the deacons of the 1st Church; died August 6, 1684; inventory £564. 15. His 1st wife's name is unknown, but his 2d was Elizabeth. Hinman says that he married Elizabeth Bigelow before he came to Hartford; she is not proven as a Bigelow / Baguely. Mrs. Elizabeth Butler died September 11, 1691.

Children:

i. Sergeant Thomas, freeman, Fob. 26, 1650-7; chimney-viewer, 1667, 1668; townsman, 1682, 1683; married Sarah, daughter of Hov. Samuel Stone; died August 29,1688, leaving 4 sons and 8 daughters,

ii. Deacon Samuel; freeman, October 12, 1665; married Elizabeth Olmsted (1); settled in Wethersfield; died December 31, 1692.

iii. Nathaniel, born probably about 1641; freeman, May, 1668; died in Wethersfield, February 9, 1697, aged 56.

iv. Joseph, born about 1647; freeman, May, 1668; married 1667, Mary, daughter of William Goodrich, of Wethersfield; died in Wethersfield, December 10, 1732, in the 85th year of his age.

v. Sargant Daniel; received his father's home-lot in Hartford; married Mabel, daughter of Nicholas Olmsted, of Hartford; townsman, 1685; died March 28, 1692. Inventory £391. l.

vi. Mary, married September 29, 1659, Samuel Wright, of Wethersfield.

vii. Elizabeth, married Deacon Joseph Olinstod, of Hartford,

viii. Hannah, married ____Greene.

SOURCE: James Hammond Trumbull, editor, The memorial history of Hartford County, Connecticut, 1633-1884, Volume 1 (Boston, Massachusetts: Edward L. Osgood, 1886), page 233. Retrieved: 3 May 2011 from Google Books

Notes:

Birth: 1610, England
Death: Aug. 4, 1684
Hartford Hartford County Connecticut, USA

Richard Butler was born by about 1610 based on estimated date of marriage. He came to Massachusetts Bay in 1633.

He first settled in Cambridge; moved to Hartford in 1636. Died in Hartford 6 August 1684 [probate inventory]. His burial place is unknown, the pictured monument being a cenotaph.

He married:

• (1) By about 1636 _____ _____, who died about 1640.
• (2) By 1641 Elizabeth _____, who died at Hartford 11 September 1691 (inventory).

On 11 May 1648 William Butler of Hartford made his will and bequeathed to "my brother Richard Butler, dwelling in Hartford," to "my sister Weste's children, that are now living in old England," and to "my sister Winter's children, that are now living in England."

Source: Anderson's Great Migration Study Project.

There is no reliable evidence of the maiden name of either or his wives. The claim that Elizabeth was a Bigelow is erroneous.

Family links:

Spouses:

• Wife Butler (____ - 1640)
• Elizabeth Butler (____ - 1691)

Children:

 Joseph Butler (1648 - 1732)*

 Elizabeth Butler Olmsted (1651 - 1729)*

*Calculated relationship

Burial: Ancient Burying Ground Hartford Hartford County Connecticut, USA

Created by: Linda Mac Record added: Apr 17, 2009 Find A Grave Memorial# 35980617

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• Will of Deacon Richard Butler
• April 2, 1677
• Know all men whom it may concerne that I Richard Butler of Hartford upon the Connecticut river being of bodily health and of sound and perfect memory doe make and ordayne this my last will and testiment in forme and manner as followeth
• Imprimis --
• I doe give to my sonne Thomas Butler my uper lot in the longe meddow.
• I doe give to my sonne Samuel all my meadow land in Wethersfield meadow
• I doe give to Nathaniel my sonne my meddow lot neare the long meddow gate
• I doe give to Joseph Butler my sonne all my land in the south meddow.
• I doe give to my sonne Daniel Butler my now dwelling house with all apurtenances of buildings and grounds about it and also I do give to my sonne Daniel my lot commonly caled ten-acres. I do give my 3 daughters Mary Wright, Elizabeth Olmstead and Hanah Greene twentie shillings apece (to be payed out of my moveable estate by my present wife Elizabeth whom I appoint my executrix to this my last will.
• Also it is my will that none of these children aforesaid doe possess or enjoy any of these lands or aught else mentioned, but with the consent of death or change of the mother's condition. That is by marrying againe. But if my wife Elizabeth Butler should change her condition and marry agtaine then my will is that all aforesaid sonnes and daughters dp possess every one his legacy and wife only the thirds and for the rest of the chattels and hoursehold goods I give them all to my wife provided as aforesayd she continues in widowhood but if she marry againe then to take the thirds of all as of the house and lands so chattels and household stuff and the rest equally to be divided amonge my children afore mentioned and there may be divers willes extant that I have written with my own hand yet this my last and shall stand Written with my owne hand.
• Richard Butler
• April 2, 1677

  ---

  (I also appoint my two sonnes Thomas and Samual Butler to be my overseers of this my last will ---) (my will also is that my daughter Mary Wright shal have one feather bed after her mother's decease)
• Witnesses
• Samual Wright
• Samual Butler
• Sworn in Court & accepted with 5 above written interlinings.
• J. Talcott. C.C.
• Copied from Ancient Wethersfield, II 171-172 by Eva L. Butler.

  ---

http://www.ryanwadleigh.com/butler.html

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He came to Cambridge, Mass in 1633, then moved to Hartford, CT with the church of the Rev. Thomas Hooker in 1642.

---

A DIGEST OF THE EARLY CONNECTICUT PROBATE RECORDS. 1677 to 1687.

Page 184-5 Name: Deac. Richard Butler Location: Hartford

Died 6 August, 1684. Invt. œ564-15-00. Taken 2 September, 1684, by Paul Peck sen., George Grave. Will dated 2 April, 1677.

Know all men whom it may concern, that I Richard Butler, being in bodily health & of sound & perfect memory, doe make & ordain this my Last will & Testament in Form & maner as followeth: Imprim: I doe give to my son Thomas Butler my uper Lot in the Long meadow. 2nd I doe give to my son Samuell all my meadow Land in Weathersfeild meadow. 3, I doe give to Nathaniel my son my meadow Lot neer the Long meadow gate. 4, I doe give Joseph Butler My son all my Land in the South meadow. 5, I doe give to my son Daniel Butler my now dwelling house wth all appurtenances of building & ground about it, as also I doe give my son Daniel my Lot comonly called ten acres. 6, I doe give my three daughters, Mary Wright, Elizabeth Olmsted & Hanah Green, twenty shillings apeice, to be payd out of my moveable estate by my present wife Elizabeth, whom I appoynt my Executor to this my last Will. Allso it is my will that none of these children aforesayd doe possess or enjoy any of these Lands, or ought else mentioned, but with the consent, death, or change of their mother's condition, that is, by marriage againe. But if my wife Elizabeth Butler should change her conditions & marry againe, then my will is that all my aforesd. sonns & daughters doe possess every one his Legacy & my wife only the Thirds; & for the rest of Cattell & household goods I give them all to my wife, provided as afoursayd she continue in widdowhood; but if she marry again, then to take the third of all, as of the house & Land so of Cattell & household Stuffe; & the rest equally to be divided among all my Children aforementioned; & though there may be divers Wills Extant that I have written with my own hand, yet this is my Last & shall stand written wth my owne hand. I appoint my two sons Thomas & Samuel Butler to be Overseers of this my Last will. My will also is that my daughter Mary Wright shall have one feather bed after her mother's decease.

Richard Butler. Witness: Samuel Wright, Samuel Butler.

Court Record, Page 93--4 September, 1684: Will Proven. 1

Richard Butler --- Father of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks:

Records from the First Congregational Church of Woodbury, CT (Microfilm, CT State Library, Hartford, CT): This church began life as the Second Congregational Church of Stratford, CT, formed between 1666-1670 as a result of a doctrinaire dispute about "half-membership" between two groups of the parishioners of the Stratford First Congregational Church. Richard Butler was an original signer of the covenant for this church in 1670. (Ch, Rec.Vol 1, p 3). As the breach widened, some members of the Second Church picked up and moved from Stratford to Woodbury, Ct., in 1672 . Others followed later, taking their church record book with them. There is no indication that Richard Butler himself actually relocated to Woodbury and he evidently died in 1676 shortly after the baptisms mentioned below. (Orcutt, "History of Stratford & Bridgeport, CT")

It would appear that Richard Butler was in the habit of seeing that his grandchildren got baptised in his church when he got a chance to do it. There is an entry on Ch. Rec. Vol 1, p 8 which was made May 14, 1676 and reads "John + Phebe Hix son + daughter of M? + Thomas Hicks, and grandchildren of Goodma(n) Butler were baptised." There is an earlier entry for the baptism of another grandchild of Goodman Butler on Ch. Rec. Vol 1, p 6 - John Washburn, the only child of Mary's first marriage "Goodma(n) Butler, his grandchild, John Washburn was baptised May 7, 1671. It should be noted that baptism was generally granted only later after the child was of reason and proven faith and that was one of the issues in dispute between the two groups, (See Orcutt) so these baptsimal dates do not indicate anything specific about birth dates. Richard Butler's estate was probated in 1676. Estate documents suggest that Mary also had a sister Phebe, married to Benjamin Peat 2

Note Source Credit:

1 http://search.ancestry.com/cgibin/sse.dll?db=connprob1&cres=33;145 %2c34;1284%2c35;725%2c36;28%2c37;335%2c38;77%2c39;178 %2c40;15% 2c41;6 %2c42;817%2cssdi;381%2cgenepool;119%2chdssoldiers;22% 2cpallotm;26 %2ccvwrmr;52 % 2cbgmi;24 %2ctnmarr1851;1%2cirishfam;8% 2c&prox=1&ti=0&gsfn=richard&gsln=butler&submit=search&gs=butler+richard&gss=angs&GS=BUTLER+RICHARD 05-27-02

2 http://awt.ancestry.com/cgibin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=fparise&id=I13470 04-29-02

Other Good Sources:

Title: History and Genealogy of the Families of Old Fairfield, Volume: I, Author: Donald Lines Jacobus Publication: The Tuttle, Morehouse & Taylor Company, Connecticut, 1930 Page: 469

Title: Our Washburn Heritage. by Elaine Olney Page: 5

Children of RICHARD BUTLER are:

i. MARY BUTLER2 WASHBURN2, b. Abt. 1640, CT.; d. Bef. 1677, Cornberry Neck, Flushing, NY.; m. (1) JOHN WASHBURN3, June 07, 1655, Stratford, Fairfield, CT.; b. Abt. 1627, Bengeworth,England?; d. October 30, 1658, Hempstead, Long Island, New York; m. (2) THOMAS HICKS, 1659, Hempstead, NY; b. 1640, Wymouth, Mass.4; d. 1740, Flushing, Queens Co., New York4.

Notes for MARY BUTLER WASHBURN:

Known as Widow Washburn. Maiden name Butler. The first wife of Thomas Hicks was Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT and widow of John Washburn. " 1

"The first wife of Thomas Hicks was Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT and widow of John Washburn. "

John Washburn - Mary's first husband: Her first marriage is recorded on Vol 1, p 484 of the Stratford, CT Land Records - "John Washborne, the son of William Washborne, and Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler were married ye seventh day June 1655." There was one son by this marriage, John Washburn, Jr. born Nov. 26, 1657, the child whose baptism is noted above. The Washburns relocated to Long island where John Washburn, Sr died and his widow remarrried to Thomas Hicks 3

Evidently Mary inherited a considerable amount of property in Stratford, CT from her father, which passed under the control of Thomas Hicks after her death. Finally in 1712/13 Thomas released this property to Mary's children in the probate of the "Estate of Mary Hicks, Cornberry Neck, NY" as processed by the Fairfield Probate District of CT, in March 1712/13. (File # 2868 as on microfilm at the Ct State Library in Hartford - Film # 317, Fairfield 1648-1880 in the Series of Pre-1881 Probate Papers. It also bears the identification # 1018754).

This probate file, which evidently has not been previously noticed, provides original source documentation of the children of the first marriage of Thomas Hicks and suggests a probable birth order within each sex. It further clarifies just which children should be connected to which wife -- an issue which has been clouded and subject to varying listings in various well-known secondary sources. This file lists all the heirs of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks -- grandson John Washburn; sons Thomas Hicks, John Hicks, and Jacob Hicks; daughters Phebe Hicks, Mary Hicks, Sarah Hicks, and Elizabeth Hicks -- the "legatys" of Mary Hicks.

According to the cover sheet for the File # 2868, it consists three documents which were deposited in the Connecticut State Library some time after 1929:

1) A "misc" instrument executed and signed by "Tho. Hickes" on "this (fifth?) day of feb. 1712/13." It was witnessed by Bena Hicks, and John Smonds. Further, "March 2 day 1712/13 then apered Thomas Hicks before me and acknoleged the above Instrument a gift to be his voluntorn act and deed before me". Signed William Cornell. I cannot make out the text in its entirety but some significant portions are clear.

2) An inventory, dated March 7, 1712/13 of the "Estate of Mrs. Mary Hicks of Cornberry Neck on the Island of Nassau in Queens County in the province of New York ?? which lands and estate are ?? as being in the Comm(?) of Stratford in the Colinoy of Conocticott as appears of the record." Follows a listing of all the properties with their estimated value (totalling 126=00=00), and appended at the end - "ye legatys as followeth":

John washbon ] grand child to ye desesed

Thomas Hicks )

John Hicks ) sons to ye desesed the above inventory apprized by us March 7th

Jacob Hicks ) as ???

-----------------------------

Phebe Hicks ) Joseph Curtifs

Mary Hicks ) daughters to ye desesed James Judson

Sarah Hicks )

Elizabeth Hicks )

3) A distribution document-The division by the court is confirmed in Stratford Land Records, Vol 2, p 111, which relists all the same individuals, except noting that Thomas and Mary are deceased and their respective shares go to their heirs. Original Sources - (Microfilms of all originals available at the CT State Library, Hartford, CT) 2

Finding these documents was very exciting and I was a bit squelched to later find that Donald Lines Jacobus [researcher] had also located them and come to the same conclusions. However most Hicks researchers have ignored this evidence. The following is from his "Families of Old Fairfield," Vol 1, p 135 under Richard Butler: "Butler, Richard Inv. 18 May 1676. Agreement made by Thomas Hicks, Mary Hicks, Benjamin 2

Thomas married twice, first to Mary (Butler) Washburn, widow of John Washburn, and daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT. His second wife was Mary Doughty, daughter of Elias and Sarah Doughty, and a granddaughter of Francis Doughty. Different sources estimate different birth dates for the children and assign them in some cases to different mothers in different birth orders. However an original document has been located which clarifies this issue. On February 10, 1712/13 Thomas executed an instrument for the CT Probate District of Fairfield, Estate of Mary Hicks of Cornberry Neck, NY, relinquishing all claims to the Stratford, CT property which his first wife, Mary (Butler) Washburn Hicks, had inherited from her father, Richard Butler of Stratford, in favor of her children. The instrument specifically names "ye legatys as follows: John Washburn, grandchild of the deceased; Thomas Hicks, John Hicks, Jacob Hicks, sons of the deceased; and Phebe Hicks, Mary Hicks, Sarah Hicks, and Elizabeth Hicks, daughters of the deceased." (Fairfield Probate District, File #2868) The division of property among the heirs is subsequently listed and confirmed in the Land Records of Stratford, Vol 2, p 111, as per the order of the Probate Court. (Microfilms of these original documents are available at the Ct State LIbrary in Hartford, CT) That leaves Issac, Benjamin, William, Charles, Charity, Stephen, and a second Mary as children of his second wife, Mary Doughty. 6

The Richard and Mary Butler that I have record of was already dead when Richard Butler of popular research made his will in Hartford, but why isn’t Mary’s sister Phebe mentioned in the will of Richard Butler of Hartford? By all indications Phebe was still very much alive when the Richard of Hartford made out his will. Source: A Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records.1677 to 1687. Page 184-5 Location: Hartford: Will dated 2 April, 1677 Died 6 August, 1684. (Please refer to the above will.)

I have researched the Mary Butler, who I find listed in today’s popular research, on the net I find Mary listed and married to at least three husbands and in some cases even more. The most common husbands are; John Washburn, Thomas Hicks, and Samuel Wright. If you total all these children supposedly born to her, and then consider this birth information, you will soon realize it was not humanly possible for her to have given birth to all these children.

I have record of the marriages of my Mary Butler Washburn Hicks, of when and where, she married John Washburn, and Thomas Hicks, but I cannot find record of Mary’s marriage to Samuel Wright. If such a record is found her name should be listed as Mary Hicks, or widow Hicks, and the document would need to be dated after 1740. This is because Thomas Hicks lived long after his wife Mary died, and by most reports lived to be nearly a hundred years old. Also, the last child to be born to Thomas and Mary Butler Washburn Hicks was Elizabeth Hicks, who was born 1676, and is listed in her father’s will, as well as, the document written in 1712/13 by Thomas Hicks relinquishing and releasing all Mary’s lands to her children, and in the process naming all Mary Butler Washburn Hicks children.

When Thomas Hicks’ document of 1713 surfaced, it settled a long-standing confusion; it settled just who Mary Butler Washburn Hicks children were once and for all. So, if such a marriage document is found linking Mary Butler Washburn Hicks to Samuel Wright, it would have to be at least dated after 1676, and this would indicate that there was a divorce between Thomas and Mary. So far no record of a divorce decree such as this has been found, but if it were true, I think my fellow Hicks family researchers who live at Stratford would have already found it.

Mary Butler married John Washburn, June 07, 1655 at Stratford, Fairfield, CT. John Washburn died, October 30, 1658, at Hempstead, Long Island, New York, and he left a will there. Mary Butler Washburn then married Thomas Hicks, 1659 at Hempstead, Long Island, New York, and died, 1675/76, at Cornberry Neck, Flushing, NY. Thomas Hicks then married for a second time to Mary Doughty, July 06, 1677, at Flushing, Queens Co., New York. Source: New York Marriages Previous to 1784.

In deliberation of the birth date of Elizabeth and her siblings, all children of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks named in at least two documents. Then bearing in mind the birth dates of Thomas Hicks subsequent children with his second wife Mary Doughty. Along with marriage dates of both spouse’s of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks and the marriage dates of both wives of Thomas Hicks. Then reflection of the death date information of John Washburn, and Thomas Hicks, alongside all the documents they left in the wake of their deaths. Then after these considerations note that Mary’s sister Phebe Butler Peat is not mentioned in the will of Richard Butler who died at Hartford in 1684, but is mentioned in a land document listed below. After all this inspection one should be able to conclude that Mary Butler Washburn Hicks could not have been the wife of Samuel Wright, and therefore could not have been the Mary Wright mentioned in the will of Richard Butler who died at Hartford in 1684. After all this one should be equipped to conclude that Mary Washburn Hicks and her sister Phebe Butler Peat could not have been the daughters of Richard Butler of Hartford Connecticut, but were indeed the daughters of the Richard Butler of Stratford Connecticut.

Note Source Credit:

1 Broderbund WFT. 17 tree # 1918

2 http://awt.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=j-m-hicks&id=I01897 04-28-02

3 http://awt.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=fparise&id=I13470 04-29-02

4 http://awt.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=truax&id=I20862 05-28-02

5 http://awt.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:a18227&id=I927 05-27-02

6 "The Haviland Genealogy", pp 27-36

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He came to Cambridge, Mass in 1633, then moved to Hartford, CT with the church of the Rev. Thomas Hooker in 1642. -------------------- A DIGEST OF THE EARLY CONNECTICUT PROBATE RECORDS. 1677 to 1687.

Page 184-5 Name: Deac. Richard Butler Location: Hartford

Died 6 August, 1684. Invt. œ564-15-00. Taken 2 September, 1684, by Paul Peck sen., George Grave. Will dated 2 April, 1677.

Know all men whom it may concern, that I Richard Butler, being in bodily health & of sound & perfect memory, doe make & ordain this my Last will & Testament in Form & maner as followeth: Imprim: I doe give to my son Thomas Butler my uper Lot in the Long meadow. 2nd I doe give to my son Samuell all my meadow Land in Weathersfeild meadow. 3, I doe give to Nathaniel my son my meadow Lot neer the Long meadow gate. 4, I doe give Joseph Butler My son all my Land in the South meadow. 5, I doe give to my son Daniel Butler my now dwelling house wth all appurtenances of building & ground about it, as also I doe give my son Daniel my Lot comonly called ten acres. 6, I doe give my three daughters, Mary Wright, Elizabeth Olmsted & Hanah Green, twenty shillings apeice, to be payd out of my moveable estate by my present wife Elizabeth, whom I appoynt my Executor to this my last Will. Allso it is my will that none of these children aforesayd doe possess or enjoy any of these Lands, or ought else mentioned, but with the consent, death, or change of their mother's condition, that is, by marriage againe. But if my wife Elizabeth Butler should change her conditions & marry againe, then my will is that all my aforesd. sonns & daughters doe possess every one his Legacy & my wife only the Thirds; & for the rest of Cattell & household goods I give them all to my wife, provided as afoursayd she continue in widdowhood; but if she marry again, then to take the third of all, as of the house & Land so of Cattell & household Stuffe; & the rest equally to be divided among all my Children aforementioned; & though there may be divers Wills Extant that I have written with my own hand, yet this is my Last & shall stand written wth my owne hand. I appoint my two sons Thomas & Samuel Butler to be Overseers of this my Last will. My will also is that my daughter Mary Wright shall have one feather bed after her mother's decease.

Richard Butler. Witness: Samuel Wright, Samuel Butler.

Court Record, Page 93--4 September, 1684: Will Proven. 1

Richard Butler --- Father of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks:

Records from the First Congregational Church of Woodbury, CT (Microfilm, CT State Library, Hartford, CT): This church began life as the Second Congregational Church of Stratford, CT, formed between 1666-1670 as a result of a doctrinaire dispute about "half-membership" between two groups of the parishioners of the Stratford First Congregational Church. Richard Butler was an original signer of the covenant for this church in 1670. (Ch, Rec.Vol 1, p 3). As the breach widened, some members of the Second Church picked up and moved from Stratford to Woodbury, Ct., in 1672 . Others followed later, taking their church record book with them. There is no indication that Richard Butler himself actually relocated to Woodbury and he evidently died in 1676 shortly after the baptisms mentioned below. (Orcutt, "History of Stratford & Bridgeport, CT")

It would appear that Richard Butler was in the habit of seeing that his grandchildren got baptised in his church when he got a chance to do it. There is an entry on Ch. Rec. Vol 1, p 8 which was made May 14, 1676 and reads "John + Phebe Hix son + daughter of M? + Thomas Hicks, and grandchildren of Goodma(n) Butler were baptised." There is an earlier entry for the baptism of another grandchild of Goodman Butler on Ch. Rec. Vol 1, p 6 - John Washburn, the only child of Mary's first marriage "Goodma(n) Butler, his grandchild, John Washburn was baptised May 7, 1671. It should be noted that baptism was generally granted only later after the child was of reason and proven faith and that was one of the issues in dispute between the two groups, (See Orcutt) so these baptsimal dates do not indicate anything specific about birth dates. Richard Butler's estate was probated in 1676. Estate documents suggest that Mary also had a sister Phebe, married to Benjamin Peat 2

Note Source Credit:

1 http://search.ancestry.com/cgibin/sse.dll?db=connprob1&cres=33;145 %2c34;1284%2c35;725%2c36;28%2c37;335%2c38;77%2c39;178 %2c40;15% 2c41;6 %2c42;817%2cssdi;381%2cgenepool;119%2chdssoldiers;22% 2cpallotm;26 %2ccvwrmr;52 % 2cbgmi;24 %2ctnmarr1851;1%2cirishfam;8% 2c&prox=1&ti=0&gsfn=richard&gsln=butler&submit=search&gs=butler+richard&gss=angs&GS=BUTLER+RICHARD 05-27-02

2 http://awt.ancestry.com/cgibin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=fparise&id=I13470 04-29-02

Other Good Sources:

Title: History and Genealogy of the Families of Old Fairfield, Volume: I, Author: Donald Lines Jacobus Publication: The Tuttle, Morehouse & Taylor Company, Connecticut, 1930 Page: 469

Title: Our Washburn Heritage. by Elaine Olney Page: 5

Children of RICHARD BUTLER are:

i. MARY BUTLER2 WASHBURN2, b. Abt. 1640, CT.; d. Bef. 1677, Cornberry Neck, Flushing, NY.; m. (1) JOHN WASHBURN3, June 07, 1655, Stratford, Fairfield, CT.; b. Abt. 1627, Bengeworth,England?; d. October 30, 1658, Hempstead, Long Island, New York; m. (2) THOMAS HICKS, 1659, Hempstead, NY; b. 1640, Wymouth, Mass.4; d. 1740, Flushing, Queens Co., New York4.

Notes for MARY BUTLER WASHBURN:

Known as Widow Washburn. Maiden name Butler. The first wife of Thomas Hicks was Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT and widow of John Washburn. " 1

"The first wife of Thomas Hicks was Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT and widow of John Washburn. "

John Washburn - Mary's first husband: Her first marriage is recorded on Vol 1, p 484 of the Stratford, CT Land Records - "John Washborne, the son of William Washborne, and Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler were married ye seventh day June 1655." There was one son by this marriage, John Washburn, Jr. born Nov. 26, 1657, the child whose baptism is noted above. The Washburns relocated to Long island where John Washburn, Sr died and his widow remarrried to Thomas Hicks 3

Evidently Mary inherited a considerable amount of property in Stratford, CT from her father, which passed under the control of Thomas Hicks after her death. Finally in 1712/13 Thomas released this property to Mary's children in the probate of the "Estate of Mary Hicks, Cornberry Neck, NY" as processed by the Fairfield Probate District of CT, in March 1712/13. (File # 2868 as on microfilm at the Ct State Library in Hartford - Film # 317, Fairfield 1648-1880 in the Series of Pre-1881 Probate Papers. It also bears the identification # 1018754).

This probate file, which evidently has not been previously noticed, provides original source documentation of the children of the first marriage of Thomas Hicks and suggests a probable birth order within each sex. It further clarifies just which children should be connected to which wife -- an issue which has been clouded and subject to varying listings in various well-known secondary sources. This file lists all the heirs of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks -- grandson John Washburn; sons Thomas Hicks, John Hicks, and Jacob Hicks; daughters Phebe Hicks, Mary Hicks, Sarah Hicks, and Elizabeth Hicks -- the "legatys" of Mary Hicks.

According to the cover sheet for the File # 2868, it consists three documents which were deposited in the Connecticut State Library some time after 1929:

1) A "misc" instrument executed and signed by "Tho. Hickes" on "this (fifth?) day of feb. 1712/13." It was witnessed by Bena Hicks, and John Smonds. Further, "March 2 day 1712/13 then apered Thomas Hicks before me and acknoleged the above Instrument a gift to be his voluntorn act and deed before me". Signed William Cornell. I cannot make out the text in its entirety but some significant portions are clear.

2) An inventory, dated March 7, 1712/13 of the "Estate of Mrs. Mary Hicks of Cornberry Neck on the Island of Nassau in Queens County in the province of New York ?? which lands and estate are ?? as being in the Comm(?) of Stratford in the Colinoy of Conocticott as appears of the record." Follows a listing of all the properties with their estimated value (totalling 126=00=00), and appended at the end - "ye legatys as followeth":

John washbon ] grand child to ye desesed

Thomas Hicks )

John Hicks ) sons to ye desesed the above inventory apprized by us March 7th

Jacob Hicks ) as ???

-----------------------------

Phebe Hicks ) Joseph Curtifs

Mary Hicks ) daughters to ye desesed James Judson

Sarah Hicks )

Elizabeth Hicks )

3) A distribution document-The division by the court is confirmed in Stratford Land Records, Vol 2, p 111, which relists all the same individuals, except noting that Thomas and Mary are deceased and their respective shares go to their heirs. Original Sources - (Microfilms of all originals available at the CT State Library, Hartford, CT) 2

Finding these documents was very exciting and I was a bit squelched to later find that Donald Lines Jacobus [researcher] had also located them and come to the same conclusions. However most Hicks researchers have ignored this evidence. The following is from his "Families of Old Fairfield," Vol 1, p 135 under Richard Butler: "Butler, Richard Inv. 18 May 1676. Agreement made by Thomas Hicks, Mary Hicks, Benjamin 2

Thomas married twice, first to Mary (Butler) Washburn, widow of John Washburn, and daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT. His second wife was Mary Doughty, daughter of Elias and Sarah Doughty, and a granddaughter of Francis Doughty. Different sources estimate different birth dates for the children and assign them in some cases to different mothers in different birth orders. However an original document has been located which clarifies this issue. On February 10, 1712/13 Thomas executed an instrument for the CT Probate District of Fairfield, Estate of Mary Hicks of Cornberry Neck, NY, relinquishing all claims to the Stratford, CT property which his first wife, Mary (Butler) Washburn Hicks, had inherited from her father, Richard Butler of Stratford, in favor of her children. The instrument specifically names "ye legatys as follows: John Washburn, grandchild of the deceased; Thomas Hicks, John Hicks, Jacob Hicks, sons of the deceased; and Phebe Hicks, Mary Hicks, Sarah Hicks, and Elizabeth Hicks, daughters of the deceased." (Fairfield Probate District, File #2868) The division of property among the heirs is subsequently listed and confirmed in the Land Records of Stratford, Vol 2, p 111, as per the order of the Probate Court. (Microfilms of these original documents are available at the Ct State LIbrary in Hartford, CT) That leaves Issac, Benjamin, William, Charles, Charity, Stephen, and a second Mary as children of his second wife, Mary Doughty. 6

The Richard and Mary Butler that I have record of was already dead when Richard Butler of popular research made his will in Hartford, but why isn’t Mary’s sister Phebe mentioned in the will of Richard Butler of Hartford? By all indications Phebe was still very much alive when the Richard of Hartford made out his will. Source: A Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records.1677 to 1687. Page 184-5 Location: Hartford: Will dated 2 April, 1677 Died 6 August, 1684. (Please refer to the above will.)

I have researched the Mary Butler, who I find listed in today’s popular research, on the net I find Mary listed and married to at least three husbands and in some cases even more. The most common husbands are; John Washburn, Thomas Hicks, and Samuel Wright. If you total all these children supposedly born to her, and then consider this birth information, you will soon realize it was not humanly possible for her to have given birth to all these children.

I have record of the marriages of my Mary Butler Washburn Hicks, of when and where, she married John Washburn, and Thomas Hicks, but I cannot find record of Mary’s marriage to Samuel Wright. If such a record is found her name should be listed as Mary Hicks, or widow Hicks, and the document would need to be dated after 1740. This is because Thomas Hicks lived long after his wife Mary died, and by most reports lived to be nearly a hundred years old. Also, the last child to be born to Thomas and Mary Butler Washburn Hicks was Elizabeth Hicks, who was born 1676, and is listed in her father’s will, as well as, the document written in 1712/13 by Thomas Hicks relinquishing and releasing all Mary’s lands to her children, and in the process naming all Mary Butler Washburn Hicks children.

When Thomas Hicks’ document of 1713 surfaced, it settled a long-standing confusion; it settled just who Mary Butler Washburn Hicks children were once and for all. So, if such a marriage document is found linking Mary Butler Washburn Hicks to Samuel Wright, it would have to be at least dated after 1676, and this would indicate that there was a divorce between Thomas and Mary. So far no record of a divorce decree such as this has been found, but if it were true, I think my fellow Hicks family researchers who live at Stratford would have already found it.

Mary Butler married John Washburn, June 07, 1655 at Stratford, Fairfield, CT. John Washburn died, October 30, 1658, at Hempstead, Long Island, New York, and he left a will there. Mary Butler Washburn then married Thomas Hicks, 1659 at Hempstead, Long Island, New York, and died, 1675/76, at Cornberry Neck, Flushing, NY. Thomas Hicks then married for a second time to Mary Doughty, July 06, 1677, at Flushing, Queens Co., New York. Source: New York Marriages Previous to 1784.

In deliberation of the birth date of Elizabeth and her siblings, all children of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks named in at least two documents. Then bearing in mind the birth dates of Thomas Hicks subsequent children with his second wife Mary Doughty. Along with marriage dates of both spouse’s of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks and the marriage dates of both wives of Thomas Hicks. Then reflection of the death date information of John Washburn, and Thomas Hicks, alongside all the documents they left in the wake of their deaths. Then after these considerations note that Mary’s sister Phebe Butler Peat is not mentioned in the will of Richard Butler who died at Hartford in 1684, but is mentioned in a land document listed below. After all this inspection one should be able to conclude that Mary Butler Washburn Hicks could not have been the wife of Samuel Wright, and therefore could not have been the Mary Wright mentioned in the will of Richard Butler who died at Hartford in 1684. After all this one should be equipped to conclude that Mary Washburn Hicks and her sister Phebe Butler Peat could not have been the daughters of Richard Butler of Hartford Connecticut, but were indeed the daughters of the Richard Butler of Stratford Connecticut.

---

He came to Cambridge, Mass in 1633, then moved to Hartford, CT with the church of the Rev. Thomas Hooker in 1642.

A DIGEST OF THE EARLY CONNECTICUT PROBATE RECORDS. 1677 to 1687.

Page 184-5 Name: Deac. Richard Butler Location: Hartford

Died 6 August, 1684. Invt. œ564-15-00. Taken 2 September, 1684, by Paul Peck sen., George Grave. Will dated 2 April, 1677.

Know all men whom it may concern, that I Richard Butler, being in bodily health & of sound & perfect memory, doe make & ordain this my Last will & Testament in Form & maner as followeth: Imprim: I doe give to my son Thomas Butler my uper Lot in the Long meadow. 2nd I doe give to my son Samuell all my meadow Land in Weathersfeild meadow. 3, I doe give to Nathaniel my son my meadow Lot neer the Long meadow gate. 4, I doe give Joseph Butler My son all my Land in the South meadow. 5, I doe give to my son Daniel Butler my now dwelling house wth all appurtenances of building & ground about it, as also I doe give my son Daniel my Lot comonly called ten acres. 6, I doe give my three daughters, Mary Wright, Elizabeth Olmsted & Hanah Green, twenty shillings apeice, to be payd out of my moveable estate by my present wife Elizabeth, whom I appoynt my Executor to this my last Will. Allso it is my will that none of these children aforesayd doe possess or enjoy any of these Lands, or ought else mentioned, but with the consent, death, or change of their mother's condition, that is, by marriage againe. But if my wife Elizabeth Butler should change her conditions & marry againe, then my will is that all my aforesd. sonns & daughters doe possess every one his Legacy & my wife only the Thirds; & for the rest of Cattell & household goods I give them all to my wife, provided as afoursayd she continue in widdowhood; but if she marry again, then to take the third of all, as of the house & Land so of Cattell & household Stuffe; & the rest equally to be divided among all my Children aforementioned; & though there may be divers Wills Extant that I have written with my own hand, yet this is my Last & shall stand written wth my owne hand. I appoint my two sons Thomas & Samuel Butler to be Overseers of this my Last will. My will also is that my daughter Mary Wright shall have one feather bed after her mother's decease.

Richard Butler. Witness: Samuel Wright, Samuel Butler.

Court Record, Page 93--4 September, 1684: Will Proven. 1

Richard Butler --- Father of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks:

Records from the First Congregational Church of Woodbury, CT (Microfilm, CT State Library, Hartford, CT): This church began life as the Second Congregational Church of Stratford, CT, formed between 1666-1670 as a result of a doctrinaire dispute about "half-membership" between two groups of the parishioners of the Stratford First Congregational Church. Richard Butler was an original signer of the covenant for this church in 1670. (Ch, Rec.Vol 1, p 3). As the breach widened, some members of the Second Church picked up and moved from Stratford to Woodbury, Ct., in 1672 . Others followed later, taking their church record book with them. There is no indication that Richard Butler himself actually relocated to Woodbury and he evidently died in 1676 shortly after the baptisms mentioned below. (Orcutt, "History of Stratford & Bridgeport, CT")

It would appear that Richard Butler was in the habit of seeing that his grandchildren got baptised in his church when he got a chance to do it. There is an entry on Ch. Rec. Vol 1, p 8 which was made May 14, 1676 and reads "John + Phebe Hix son + daughter of M? + Thomas Hicks, and grandchildren of Goodma(n) Butler were baptised." There is an earlier entry for the baptism of another grandchild of Goodman Butler on Ch. Rec. Vol 1, p 6 - John Washburn, the only child of Mary's first marriage "Goodma(n) Butler, his grandchild, John Washburn was baptised May 7, 1671. It should be noted that baptism was generally granted only later after the child was of reason and proven faith and that was one of the issues in dispute between the two groups, (See Orcutt) so these baptsimal dates do not indicate anything specific about birth dates. Richard Butler's estate was probated in 1676. Estate documents suggest that Mary also had a sister Phebe, married to Benjamin Peat

Children of RICHARD BUTLER are:

i. MARY BUTLER2 WASHBURN2, b. Abt. 1640, CT.; d. Bef. 1677, Cornberry Neck, Flushing, NY.; m. (1) JOHN WASHBURN3, June 07, 1655, Stratford, Fairfield, CT.; b. Abt. 1627, Bengeworth,England?; d. October 30, 1658, Hempstead, Long Island, New York; m. (2) THOMAS HICKS, 1659, Hempstead, NY; b. 1640, Wymouth, Mass.4; d. 1740, Flushing, Queens Co., New York4.

Notes for MARY BUTLER WASHBURN:

Known as Widow Washburn. Maiden name Butler. The first wife of Thomas Hicks was Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT and widow of John Washburn. " 1

"The first wife of Thomas Hicks was Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT and widow of John Washburn. "

John Washburn - Mary's first husband: Her first marriage is recorded on Vol 1, p 484 of the Stratford, CT Land Records - "John Washborne, the son of William Washborne, and Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler were married ye seventh day June 1655." There was one son by this marriage, John Washburn, Jr. born Nov. 26, 1657, the child whose baptism is noted above. The Washburns relocated to Long island where John Washburn, Sr died and his widow remarrried to Thomas Hicks 3

Evidently Mary inherited a considerable amount of property in Stratford, CT from her father, which passed under the control of Thomas Hicks after her death. Finally in 1712/13 Thomas released this property to Mary's children in the probate of the "Estate of Mary Hicks, Cornberry Neck, NY" as processed by the Fairfield Probate District of CT, in March 1712/13. (File # 2868 as on microfilm at the Ct State Library in Hartford - Film # 317, Fairfield 1648-1880 in the Series of Pre-1881 Probate Papers. It also bears the identification # 1018754).

This probate file, which evidently has not been previously noticed, provides original source documentation of the children of the first marriage of Thomas Hicks and suggests a probable birth order within each sex. It further clarifies just which children should be connected to which wife -- an issue which has been clouded and subject to varying listings in various well-known secondary sources. This file lists all the heirs of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks -- grandson John Washburn; sons Thomas Hicks, John Hicks, and Jacob Hicks; daughters Phebe Hicks, Mary Hicks, Sarah Hicks, and Elizabeth Hicks -- the "legatys" of Mary Hicks.

According to the cover sheet for the File # 2868, it consists three documents which were deposited in the Connecticut State Library some time after 1929:

1) A "misc" instrument executed and signed by "Tho. Hickes" on "this (fifth?) day of feb. 1712/13." It was witnessed by Bena Hicks, and John Smonds. Further, "March 2 day 1712/13 then apered Thomas Hicks before me and acknoleged the above Instrument a gift to be his voluntorn act and deed before me". Signed William Cornell. I cannot make out the text in its entirety but some significant portions are clear.

2) An inventory, dated March 7, 1712/13 of the "Estate of Mrs. Mary Hicks of Cornberry Neck on the Island of Nassau in Queens County in the province of New York ?? which lands and estate are ?? as being in the Comm(?) of Stratford in the Colinoy of Conocticott as appears of the record." Follows a listing of all the properties with their estimated value (totalling 126=00=00), and appended at the end - "ye legatys as followeth":

John washbon ] grand child to ye desesed

Thomas Hicks )

John Hicks ) sons to ye desesed the above inventory apprized by us March 7th

Jacob Hicks ) as ???

-----------------------------

Phebe Hicks ) Joseph Curtifs

Mary Hicks ) daughters to ye desesed James Judson

Sarah Hicks )

Elizabeth Hicks )

3) A distribution document-The division by the court is confirmed in Stratford Land Records, Vol 2, p 111, which relists all the same individuals, except noting that Thomas and Mary are deceased and their respective shares go to their heirs. Original Sources - (Microfilms of all originals available at the CT State Library, Hartford, CT) 2

Finding these documents was very exciting and I was a bit squelched to later find that Donald Lines Jacobus [researcher] had also located them and come to the same conclusions. However most Hicks researchers have ignored this evidence. The following is from his "Families of Old Fairfield," Vol 1, p 135 under Richard Butler: "Butler, Richard Inv. 18 May 1676. Agreement made by Thomas Hicks, Mary Hicks, Benjamin 2

Thomas married twice, first to Mary (Butler) Washburn, widow of John Washburn, and daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT. His second wife was Mary Doughty, daughter of Elias and Sarah Doughty, and a granddaughter of Francis Doughty. Different sources estimate different birth dates for the children and assign them in some cases to different mothers in different birth orders. However an original document has been located which clarifies this issue. On February 10, 1712/13 Thomas executed an instrument for the CT Probate District of Fairfield, Estate of Mary Hicks of Cornberry Neck, NY, relinquishing all claims to the Stratford, CT property which his first wife, Mary (Butler) Washburn Hicks, had inherited from her father, Richard Butler of Stratford, in favor of her children. The instrument specifically names "ye legatys as follows: John Washburn, grandchild of the deceased; Thomas Hicks, John Hicks, Jacob Hicks, sons of the deceased; and Phebe Hicks, Mary Hicks, Sarah Hicks, and Elizabeth Hicks, daughters of the deceased." (Fairfield Probate District, File #2868) The division of property among the heirs is subsequently listed and confirmed in the Land Records of Stratford, Vol 2, p 111, as per the order of the Probate Court. (Microfilms of these original documents are available at the Ct State LIbrary in Hartford, CT) That leaves Issac, Benjamin, William, Charles, Charity, Stephen, and a second Mary as children of his second wife, Mary Doughty. 6

The Richard and Mary Butler that I have record of was already dead when Richard Butler of popular research made his will in Hartford, but why isn’t Mary’s sister Phebe mentioned in the will of Richard Butler of Hartford? By all indications Phebe was still very much alive when the Richard of Hartford made out his will. Source: A Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records.1677 to 1687. Page 184-5 Location: Hartford: Will dated 2 April, 1677 Died 6 August, 1684. (Please refer to the above will.)

I have researched the Mary Butler, who I find listed in today’s popular research, on the net I find Mary listed and married to at least three husbands and in some cases even more. The most common husbands are; John Washburn, Thomas Hicks, and Samuel Wright. If you total all these children supposedly born to her, and then consider this birth information, you will soon realize it was not humanly possible for her to have given birth to all these children.

I have record of the marriages of my Mary Butler Washburn Hicks, of when and where, she married John Washburn, and Thomas Hicks, but I cannot find record of Mary’s marriage to Samuel Wright. If such a record is found her name should be listed as Mary Hicks, or widow Hicks, and the document would need to be dated after 1740. This is because Thomas Hicks lived long after his wife Mary died, and by most reports lived to be nearly a hundred years old. Also, the last child to be born to Thomas and Mary Butler Washburn Hicks was Elizabeth Hicks, who was born 1676, and is listed in her father’s will, as well as, the document written in 1712/13 by Thomas Hicks relinquishing and releasing all Mary’s lands to her children, and in the process naming all Mary Butler Washburn Hicks children.

When Thomas Hicks’ document of 1713 surfaced, it settled a long-standing confusion; it settled just who Mary Butler Washburn Hicks children were once and for all. So, if such a marriage document is found linking Mary Butler Washburn Hicks to Samuel Wright, it would have to be at least dated after 1676, and this would indicate that there was a divorce between Thomas and Mary. So far no record of a divorce decree such as this has been found, but if it were true, I think my fellow Hicks family researchers who live at Stratford would have already found it.

Mary Butler married John Washburn, June 07, 1655 at Stratford, Fairfield, CT. John Washburn died, October 30, 1658, at Hempstead, Long Island, New York, and he left a will there. Mary Butler Washburn then married Thomas Hicks, 1659 at Hempstead, Long Island, New York, and died, 1675/76, at Cornberry Neck, Flushing, NY. Thomas Hicks then married for a second time to Mary Doughty, July 06, 1677, at Flushing, Queens Co., New York. Source: New York Marriages Previous to 1784.

In deliberation of the birth date of Elizabeth and her siblings, all children of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks named in at least two documents. Then bearing in mind the birth dates of Thomas Hicks subsequent children with his second wife Mary Doughty. Along with marriage dates of both spouse’s of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks and the marriage dates of both wives of Thomas Hicks. Then reflection of the death date information of John Washburn, and Thomas Hicks, alongside all the documents they left in the wake of their deaths. Then after these considerations note that Mary’s sister Phebe Butler Peat is not mentioned in the will of Richard Butler who died at Hartford in 1684, but is mentioned in a land document listed below. After all this inspection one should be able to conclude that Mary Butler Washburn Hicks could not have been the wife of Samuel Wright, and therefore could not have been the Mary Wright mentioned in the will of Richard Butler who died at Hartford in 1684. After all this one should be equipped to conclude that Mary Washburn Hicks and her sister Phebe Butler Peat could not have been the daughters of Richard Butler of Hartford Connecticut, but were indeed the daughters of the Richard Butler of Stratford Connecticut.

---

He came to Cambridge, Mass in 1633, then moved to Hartford, CT with the church of the Rev. Thomas Hooker in 1642. -------------------- A DIGEST OF THE EARLY CONNECTICUT PROBATE RECORDS. 1677 to 1687.

Page 184-5 Name: Deac. Richard Butler Location: Hartford

Died 6 August, 1684. Invt. œ564-15-00. Taken 2 September, 1684, by Paul Peck sen., George Grave. Will dated 2 April, 1677.

Know all men whom it may concern, that I Richard Butler, being in bodily health & of sound & perfect memory, doe make & ordain this my Last will & Testament in Form & maner as followeth: Imprim: I doe give to my son Thomas Butler my uper Lot in the Long meadow. 2nd I doe give to my son Samuell all my meadow Land in Weathersfeild meadow. 3, I doe give to Nathaniel my son my meadow Lot neer the Long meadow gate. 4, I doe give Joseph Butler My son all my Land in the South meadow. 5, I doe give to my son Daniel Butler my now dwelling house wth all appurtenances of building & ground about it, as also I doe give my son Daniel my Lot comonly called ten acres. 6, I doe give my three daughters, Mary Wright, Elizabeth Olmsted & Hanah Green, twenty shillings apeice, to be payd out of my moveable estate by my present wife Elizabeth, whom I appoynt my Executor to this my last Will. Allso it is my will that none of these children aforesayd doe possess or enjoy any of these Lands, or ought else mentioned, but with the consent, death, or change of their mother's condition, that is, by marriage againe. But if my wife Elizabeth Butler should change her conditions & marry againe, then my will is that all my aforesd. sonns & daughters doe possess every one his Legacy & my wife only the Thirds; & for the rest of Cattell & household goods I give them all to my wife, provided as afoursayd she continue in widdowhood; but if she marry again, then to take the third of all, as of the house & Land so of Cattell & household Stuffe; & the rest equally to be divided among all my Children aforementioned; & though there may be divers Wills Extant that I have written with my own hand, yet this is my Last & shall stand written wth my owne hand. I appoint my two sons Thomas & Samuel Butler to be Overseers of this my Last will. My will also is that my daughter Mary Wright shall have one feather bed after her mother's decease.

Richard Butler. Witness: Samuel Wright, Samuel Butler.

Court Record, Page 93--4 September, 1684: Will Proven. 1

Richard Butler --- Father of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks:

Records from the First Congregational Church of Woodbury, CT (Microfilm, CT State Library, Hartford, CT): This church began life as the Second Congregational Church of Stratford, CT, formed between 1666-1670 as a result of a doctrinaire dispute about "half-membership" between two groups of the parishioners of the Stratford First Congregational Church. Richard Butler was an original signer of the covenant for this church in 1670. (Ch, Rec.Vol 1, p 3). As the breach widened, some members of the Second Church picked up and moved from Stratford to Woodbury, Ct., in 1672 . Others followed later, taking their church record book with them. There is no indication that Richard Butler himself actually relocated to Woodbury and he evidently died in 1676 shortly after the baptisms mentioned below. (Orcutt, "History of Stratford & Bridgeport, CT")

It would appear that Richard Butler was in the habit of seeing that his grandchildren got baptised in his church when he got a chance to do it. There is an entry on Ch. Rec. Vol 1, p 8 which was made May 14, 1676 and reads "John + Phebe Hix son + daughter of M? + Thomas Hicks, and grandchildren of Goodma(n) Butler were baptised." There is an earlier entry for the baptism of another grandchild of Goodman Butler on Ch. Rec. Vol 1, p 6 - John Washburn, the only child of Mary's first marriage "Goodma(n) Butler, his grandchild, John Washburn was baptised May 7, 1671. It should be noted that baptism was generally granted only later after the child was of reason and proven faith and that was one of the issues in dispute between the two groups, (See Orcutt) so these baptsimal dates do not indicate anything specific about birth dates. Richard Butler's estate was probated in 1676. Estate documents suggest that Mary also had a sister Phebe, married to Benjamin Peat 2

Children of RICHARD BUTLER are:

i. MARY BUTLER2 WASHBURN2, b. Abt. 1640, CT.; d. Bef. 1677, Cornberry Neck, Flushing, NY.; m. (1) JOHN WASHBURN3, June 07, 1655, Stratford, Fairfield, CT.; b. Abt. 1627, Bengeworth,England?; d. October 30, 1658, Hempstead, Long Island, New York; m. (2) THOMAS HICKS, 1659, Hempstead, NY; b. 1640, Wymouth, Mass.4; d. 1740, Flushing, Queens Co., New York4.

Notes for MARY BUTLER WASHBURN:

Known as Widow Washburn. Maiden name Butler. The first wife of Thomas Hicks was Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT and widow of John Washburn. " 1

"The first wife of Thomas Hicks was Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT and widow of John Washburn. "

John Washburn - Mary's first husband: Her first marriage is recorded on Vol 1, p 484 of the Stratford, CT Land Records - "John Washborne, the son of William Washborne, and Mary Butler, the daughter of Richard Butler were married ye seventh day June 1655." There was one son by this marriage, John Washburn, Jr. born Nov. 26, 1657, the child whose baptism is noted above. The Washburns relocated to Long island where John Washburn, Sr died and his widow remarrried to Thomas Hicks 3

Evidently Mary inherited a considerable amount of property in Stratford, CT from her father, which passed under the control of Thomas Hicks after her death. Finally in 1712/13 Thomas released this property to Mary's children in the probate of the "Estate of Mary Hicks, Cornberry Neck, NY" as processed by the Fairfield Probate District of CT, in March 1712/13. (File # 2868 as on microfilm at the Ct State Library in Hartford - Film # 317, Fairfield 1648-1880 in the Series of Pre-1881 Probate Papers. It also bears the identification # 1018754).

This probate file, which evidently has not been previously noticed, provides original source documentation of the children of the first marriage of Thomas Hicks and suggests a probable birth order within each sex. It further clarifies just which children should be connected to which wife -- an issue which has been clouded and subject to varying listings in various well-known secondary sources. This file lists all the heirs of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks -- grandson John Washburn; sons Thomas Hicks, John Hicks, and Jacob Hicks; daughters Phebe Hicks, Mary Hicks, Sarah Hicks, and Elizabeth Hicks -- the "legatys" of Mary Hicks.

According to the cover sheet for the File # 2868, it consists three documents which were deposited in the Connecticut State Library some time after 1929:

1) A "misc" instrument executed and signed by "Tho. Hickes" on "this (fifth?) day of feb. 1712/13." It was witnessed by Bena Hicks, and John Smonds. Further, "March 2 day 1712/13 then apered Thomas Hicks before me and acknoleged the above Instrument a gift to be his voluntorn act and deed before me". Signed William Cornell. I cannot make out the text in its entirety but some significant portions are clear.

2) An inventory, dated March 7, 1712/13 of the "Estate of Mrs. Mary Hicks of Cornberry Neck on the Island of Nassau in Queens County in the province of New York ?? which lands and estate are ?? as being in the Comm(?) of Stratford in the Colinoy of Conocticott as appears of the record." Follows a listing of all the properties with their estimated value (totalling 126=00=00), and appended at the end - "ye legatys as followeth":

John washbon ] grand child to ye desesed

Thomas Hicks )

John Hicks ) sons to ye desesed the above inventory apprized by us March 7th

Jacob Hicks ) as ???

-----------------------------

Phebe Hicks ) Joseph Curtifs

Mary Hicks ) daughters to ye desesed James Judson

Sarah Hicks )

Elizabeth Hicks )

3) A distribution document-The division by the court is confirmed in Stratford Land Records, Vol 2, p 111, which relists all the same individuals, except noting that Thomas and Mary are deceased and their respective shares go to their heirs. Original Sources - (Microfilms of all originals available at the CT State Library, Hartford, CT) 2

Finding these documents was very exciting and I was a bit squelched to later find that Donald Lines Jacobus [researcher] had also located them and come to the same conclusions. However most Hicks researchers have ignored this evidence. The following is from his "Families of Old Fairfield," Vol 1, p 135 under Richard Butler: "Butler, Richard Inv. 18 May 1676. Agreement made by Thomas Hicks, Mary Hicks, Benjamin 2

Thomas married twice, first to Mary (Butler) Washburn, widow of John Washburn, and daughter of Richard Butler of Stratford, CT. His second wife was Mary Doughty, daughter of Elias and Sarah Doughty, and a granddaughter of Francis Doughty. Different sources estimate different birth dates for the children and assign them in some cases to different mothers in different birth orders. However an original document has been located which clarifies this issue. On February 10, 1712/13 Thomas executed an instrument for the CT Probate District of Fairfield, Estate of Mary Hicks of Cornberry Neck, NY, relinquishing all claims to the Stratford, CT property which his first wife, Mary (Butler) Washburn Hicks, had inherited from her father, Richard Butler of Stratford, in favor of her children. The instrument specifically names "ye legatys as follows: John Washburn, grandchild of the deceased; Thomas Hicks, John Hicks, Jacob Hicks, sons of the deceased; and Phebe Hicks, Mary Hicks, Sarah Hicks, and Elizabeth Hicks, daughters of the deceased." (Fairfield Probate District, File #2868) The division of property among the heirs is subsequently listed and confirmed in the Land Records of Stratford, Vol 2, p 111, as per the order of the Probate Court. (Microfilms of these original documents are available at the Ct State LIbrary in Hartford, CT) That leaves Issac, Benjamin, William, Charles, Charity, Stephen, and a second Mary as children of his second wife, Mary Doughty. 6

The Richard and Mary Butler that I have record of was already dead when Richard Butler of popular research made his will in Hartford, but why isn’t Mary’s sister Phebe mentioned in the will of Richard Butler of Hartford? By all indications Phebe was still very much alive when the Richard of Hartford made out his will. Source: A Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records.1677 to 1687. Page 184-5 Location: Hartford: Will dated 2 April, 1677 Died 6 August, 1684. (Please refer to the above will.)

I have researched the Mary Butler, who I find listed in today’s popular research, on the net I find Mary listed and married to at least three husbands and in some cases even more. The most common husbands are; John Washburn, Thomas Hicks, and Samuel Wright. If you total all these children supposedly born to her, and then consider this birth information, you will soon realize it was not humanly possible for her to have given birth to all these children.

I have record of the marriages of my Mary Butler Washburn Hicks, of when and where, she married John Washburn, and Thomas Hicks, but I cannot find record of Mary’s marriage to Samuel Wright. If such a record is found her name should be listed as Mary Hicks, or widow Hicks, and the document would need to be dated after 1740. This is because Thomas Hicks lived long after his wife Mary died, and by most reports lived to be nearly a hundred years old. Also, the last child to be born to Thomas and Mary Butler Washburn Hicks was Elizabeth Hicks, who was born 1676, and is listed in her father’s will, as well as, the document written in 1712/13 by Thomas Hicks relinquishing and releasing all Mary’s lands to her children, and in the process naming all Mary Butler Washburn Hicks children.

When Thomas Hicks’ document of 1713 surfaced, it settled a long-standing confusion; it settled just who Mary Butler Washburn Hicks children were once and for all. So, if such a marriage document is found linking Mary Butler Washburn Hicks to Samuel Wright, it would have to be at least dated after 1676, and this would indicate that there was a divorce between Thomas and Mary. So far no record of a divorce decree such as this has been found, but if it were true, I think my fellow Hicks family researchers who live at Stratford would have already found it.

Mary Butler married John Washburn, June 07, 1655 at Stratford, Fairfield, CT. John Washburn died, October 30, 1658, at Hempstead, Long Island, New York, and he left a will there. Mary Butler Washburn then married Thomas Hicks, 1659 at Hempstead, Long Island, New York, and died, 1675/76, at Cornberry Neck, Flushing, NY. Thomas Hicks then married for a second time to Mary Doughty, July 06, 1677, at Flushing, Queens Co., New York. Source: New York Marriages Previous to 1784.

In deliberation of the birth date of Elizabeth and her siblings, all children of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks named in at least two documents. Then bearing in mind the birth dates of Thomas Hicks subsequent children with his second wife Mary Doughty. Along with marriage dates of both spouse’s of Mary Butler Washburn Hicks and the marriage dates of both wives of Thomas Hicks. Then reflection of the death date information of John Washburn, and Thomas Hicks, alongside all the documents they left in the wake of their deaths. Then after these considerations note that Mary’s sister Phebe Butler Peat is not mentioned in the will of Richard Butler who died at Hartford in 1684, but is mentioned in a land document listed below. After all this inspection one should be able to conclude that Mary Butler Washburn Hicks could not have been the wife of Samuel Wright, and therefore could not have been the Mary Wright mentioned in the will of Richard Butler who died at Hartford in 1684. After all this one should be equipped to conclude that Mary Washburn Hicks and her sister Phebe Butler Peat could not have been the daughters of Richard Butler of Hartford Connecticut, but were indeed the daughters of the Richard Butler of Stratford Connecticut.

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Source: Orcutt, Samuel (1886) A History of Old Town of Stratford and the City of Bridgeport, Connecticut. New Haven, CT: Tuttle, Morehouse and Taylor, p. 1172.

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Richard Butler was born circa 1608 in England. He died on August 6, 1684 in Hartford, Hartford Co., Connecticut 1,2.

Possible Father: Steven Butler

   Richard apparently moved to New England with his brother William in about 1632 or 1633.

   Richard wrote his will in 1677, in which he mentions his wife Elizabeth and his children: Thomas, Samuel, Nathaniel, Joseph, Daniel, Mary, Elizabeth and Hannah. 

Richard may have been married first to a woman whose name is not known. Their marriage may have been during the late 1620's or early 1630's, most likely while they were both still living in England.

   Researchers have claimed over the years that several of Richard's children (Mary, Thomas, Hannah or even Nathaniel) were children by his first marriage. I have no reason to believe this, nor is there any proof that he was married to anyone before Elizabeth. I have placed all of Richard's children with his wife Elizabeth (see reasoning below).

Apparently the basis of this claim about his first marriage is that he "came to Hartford mourning the death of a wife and infant" 1. My interpretation of this is that if in fact he was previously married, that his wife and any child (or children) that they had together both died while living in England.
Richard was married to Elizabeth (surname probably Bigelow) in about 1635, perhaps in England or in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She was born circa 1614 in England and died on September 11, 1691 in Hartford, Hartford Co., Connecticut 2. (Many sources indicate that Elizabeth died on February 26, 1656/7 1, yet this is impossible.) Possible Father: Randall Bigelow/Baguley Possible Mother: Jane

   There is no proof of Elizabeth's parentage, but it is likely that she was a close relative of John Bigelow/Biglo of Watertown, Massachusetts. The inference that she was his sister (and thus daughter of Randall and Jane) is simply the best educated guess.

Elizabeth's estate was probated on December 3, 1691, in which she specifically named her children as Nathaniel, Joseph, Daniel, Samuel and Elizabeth. Another portion of the estate also mentions her child Abigail Butler (???). Many researchers have interpreted this record to mean that since Elizabeth only mentions that the above five children were her own, that Richard Butler's other known children (Mary, Hannah, and Thomas) must have been his children by an earlier marriage. This is ridiculous reasoning. The simple reality that was overlooked is that Mary, Hannah and Thomas all died before 1691, when Elizabeth's probate was recorded. No wonder she didn't name her children that were already dead. Additionally, Richard Butler's will of 1677 clearly specifies that his wife Elizabeth was the mother of his daughter Mary (of course, this doesn't prove she wasn't her stepmother, but it is too much to be overlooked).
They had the following children:

   1 	Mary Butler was born circa 1635. She died on September 12, 1689 in Wethersfield, Hartford Co., Connecticut.

   2	Thomas Butler was born circa 1637. He died on August 9, 1688 in West Hartford, Hartford Co., Connecticut.

He married Sarah Stone.
3 Samuel Butler was born circa 1639. He died on December 31, 1692 in Wethersfield, Hartford Co., Connecticut.
He married Elizabeth Olmstead.
4 Nathaniel Butler

   5	Elizabeth Butler was born circa 1643 in Wethersfield, Hartford Co., Connecticut. She died on April 28, 1729.

She married Joseph Olmstead.
6 Joseph Butler was born circa 1648. He died on December 10, 1732.
He married Mary Goodrich.
7 Daniel Butler was born circa 1650. He died on March 28, 1692 in Hartford, Hartford Co., Connecticut.
He married Mabel Olmstead.
8 Hannah Butler was born circa 1652. She died before 1685.
She married Samuel Green.