Frances Bronson

Evidence needed to support as daughter of Anthony Hills and Sybil Hills

Frances Hills

• Birth: Circa 1602 - Halstead, Essex, England
• Death: after 1680 - Farmington, Hartford, CT
• Parents: unknown
• Husband: John Bronson

"Francis Hills immigrated on 8 Oct 1635 to Boston, Suffolk Co., MA. She arrived on the ship Defence."

Biography

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Hills-30#_note-NEHGR28

John Browneson and Frances Hills, both single, were married 19 Nov 1626 at St. Andrew's Church, Halstead, co. Essex, England.[1]

The family left England; went to New England about 1635; spent a brief time in Massachusetts; moved onto Hartford, and finally Wethersfield in 1641. It is not positive that Frances was the same wife who was still living when John's estate was settled, because her name is never mentioned, but there is no reason to believe that she wasn't the same person.[1]

John died intestate. His Inventory was taken on 28 Nov 1680. His property was divided among his surviving children, Jacob Brunson; Isaac Brunson; Mary Ellis; John Brunson; Abraham Brunson; Dorcas Hopkins; and Sarah Kilbourn. The court ordered that payments be made to the surviving widow for her upkeep.[2]

Children:[1]

1. Mary Brownson, daughter of John Brownson Junr & Francis his wife, was baptized 12 Dec 1627 Earls Colne, Essex, England, parish of St. Andrew.
2. John Brownson, son of John Brownson Junr & Francis his wife, was baptized 17 Feb. 1628/9 Earls Colne, Essex, England, parish of St. Andrew. Died before birth of 2nd John
3. John Brownson, son of John Brownson Junr & Francis his wife, was baptized 28 Dec 1631 Earls Colne, Essex, England, parish of St. Andrew. He was buried 23 March 1631/2
4. Dorcas Brownson, daughter of John Brownson Junr & Francis his wife, was baptized 19 Dec 1633 Earls Colne, Essex, England, parish of St. Andrew. Died 10 MAY 1697 Hartford, Hartford Co., Connecticut, USA.
5. Sarah, b. ca. 1639 at Hartford; d. 4 Dec 1711 at Wethersfield, Connecticut; m. John Kilbourn;
6. Jacob, b. Hartford ca. 1641; d. 1708
7. John, b. Hartford or Farmington ca. 1643; d. South Carolina 1712
8. Isaac, b. Hartford or Farmington ca. 1645; d. before 29 Feb 1719/20 at Waterbury, Connecticut
9. Abraham, b. Hartford or Farmington 1647; d. 1719 at Lyme, Connecticut

   ---

Disputed Origins

Various documents show Francis father to be "Anthony or William" Hills born 1580 Halstead, Essex, England. The below URL is an example

http://www.xmission.com/~wake/genealogy/getperson.php?personID=I778...

She died after 1680 in CT.

In this baptismal record for daughter Mary, she is called "Iris Francis". Obviously, Francis is a masculine spelling and should be Frances. — @Ancestry.com: Essex, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812.
IF her last name was Hills, there's only one digitized church record that might be her christening record:
Name: Frances Hills
Event Type: Christening
Event Date: 10 Jun 1608
Event Place: Essex, England
Sex: Female
Father's Name: Robt Hills
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QLGB-D5QW

---

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Hills-30

Although Frances Hills was married at Halstead, Essex, England, her baptism was not noted in the parish registers. There were baptisms of other "Hills" children during the correct timeframe, children of Anthony and William. Neither of these men has been proved to be her father and perhaps neither of them is.[1]

Although Frances Hills was married at Halstead, Essex, England, her baptism was not noted in the parish registers. There were baptisms of other "Hills" children during the correct timeframe, children of Anthony and William. Neither of these men has been proved to be her father and perhaps neither of them is.[1]

Born: Of Halstead, Essex, England Death: Of Farmington, Hartford CT

Frances Hills was not baptized July 23, 1605 at Halstead, Essex, England. Twin sons of Anthony were baptized that day, and William son of William was baptized 30 June 1605.

Dtr of William according to Connecticut Nutmeggar 35:33 (2002). Author states "The lineages delineated here are not meant as gospel ..." the source used is a now dead link to what was obviously a personal family tree.[3]

Unproven as the daughter of Anthony also.

From https://josfamilyhistory.com/htm/hopkins/bronson/bronson1-4a.htm#john3

Lovely Farmington has retained much of the flavor of the English village that the Puritans built in the Connecticut wilderness, and it is possible to reconstruct their lifestyle there. The first houses had thatched roofs and contained only one room. By adding on, in time the house had up to four rooms. Each room, including the one in which food was cooked and eaten, contained at least one bed. Separate rooms for eating, sleeping, etc., were unheard of in Old and New England. Furniture was sparse. There was a long eating table, called the board, with benches on each side, and generally one chair at the end for the head of the household. (Hence the expression “chairman of the board”). The fireplace in the main room, called the hall, was the heart of the house, and provided the only heat as well as being used for cooking. New England winters are no joke, and it took much wood to keep the fire going 24 hours a day. There was always danger of fire, as it was not until the end of the 17th century that wooden chimneys and thatched roofs were outlawed.

Frances Brownson learned to feed her family as the Indian women fed theirs, whatever was available. Their diet consisted of boiled meat or fish, cornmeal, available roots or vegetables, baked or stewed beans, eggs and cheese. Milk and beer were the beverages. The heavy kettles and pots (often weighing 40 lbs.) that she lifted each day were expensive and lasted for several generations, as can be seen by colonial inventories. Two Brownsons ate from each wooden trencher, and all shared the same tankard for drinking. Later, pewter replaced the wooden trencher, but seldom did anyone have a plate to himself. Mainly, they ate with their fingers. Early spoons were carved from wood; later spoons were of pewter or tin. They used any knife that was available. At most, they ate two meals a day. If the Brownsons had a change of clothes, they were the exception and like everyone else, they seldom bathed.

Most of their day of rest was spent at church. Although Puritans professed themselves as Christians, the emphasis was more on the Old than the New Testament. This was true to such a degree that in time some of the Congregational Churches became Unitarian.) As in a synagogue, the women sat on one side of the church and the men on the other. Although filled with “fire and brimstone”, the sermons, which lasted for hours, fed their faith and gave them the strength for their days. They practiced infant Baptism, but marriage was considered a civil affair, not a rite of the church. “Joining the church” was no simple matter. It was sometimes years before a candidate was accepted for membership.

From existing records, it appears that the Farmington people had no established church for quite a few years after the settling of the town. At the founding of First Church of Farmington and in the Congregationalist (Puritan) way, seven males were chosen by the town as the Seven Pillars of the Church. The choice was made on the basis of wisdom, humility and an honorable life. These seven men made the Covenant together, and were the nucleus from which the new church expanded. John Brownson was chosen as one of the Seven Pillars, an honor which would not have been bestowed unless he more than deserved it, and one for which his descendants should be proud.

John Bronson (Brownson) settled on his land in Farmington in 1644. He was given the land by his father, Roger. In 1670, John Brownson built his house on the south side of the Ould Mill road near the present junction where Hatter's Lane becomes Diamond Glen Road and meets Colton.

References

• https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Hills-30
• Updated from FamilySearch Family Tree by SmartCopy: Sep 14 2015, 22:54:47 UTC
• https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Hills-30
• 1. Coddington, John Insley. "The Brownson, Bronson, or Brunson Family of Earl's Colne, Essex, England, - Connecticut, and South Carolina." Cites the parish registers of St. Andrew's Halstead and St. Andrew's Earls Colne. The American Genealogist 28:193. (1962) < AmericanAncestors >