Robert Stuart of Norwalk, Connecticut

A6

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STUARTS OF NORWALK, CONN., From Savage’s Genealogical Dictionary

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ROBERT1 STEWART bought property in Norwalk, Conn. In 1660, moving in from Milford, where he had not been long. He married on June 12, 1661, Bethia Rumball, daughter of Thomas Rumball of Stratford. He was living in 1687. Recorded births of children of Robert and Bethia: (Church Records)

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1. James, Mar. 19, 1663. In Norwalk in 1687; ensign in 1713

2. Abigail, Aug. 1666

3. John, Mar 18, 1668. In Norwalk in 1708

4. Deborah, May 1669

5. Elizabeth, Sep. 1671

6. Phebe, Feb 1673-4

 

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A14

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STUARTS OF NORWALK, CONN.

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ROBERT1 STUART (sometimes Stewart) of Norwalk left no will. His widow Bethia and Eldest son James were appointed administrators Dec. 5, 1688 [Fairfield County Wills III, 260]. James Beebe sold their land [IV, 4b, 4c]. Children:

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1. James, aged 26 [in 1689. He was born Mar. 19, 1663.]

2. Abigail Cosier, aged 23

3. John, aged 21. [The town of Norwalk, on Mar. 4, 1708-9 “makes choyse of John Steward to claim and sell all stray jades for the town,” etc.]

4. Deborah, aged 19

5. Elizabeth, aged 17

6. Phebe, aged 15

7. Sarah, aged 13

8. Samuel, aged 11 ye next May ensuing

9. Rachel, aged 3

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Ensign JAMES2 STUART (Robert1) of Norwalk left a will, Jan 19, 1750-1 [X, 218a]. Wife Experience. Executors: son Robert and son-in-law John Taylor. Witnesses: Elnathan Hanford, James Taylor, Hannah Hanford (Hannah Hanford now wife of David Lockwood, June 12, 1751; X, 219). [James Stuart was appointed May 11, 1710, ensign of the north company in the town of Norwalk by the general assembly of Connecticut.] Children named in will:

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1. James

2. Robert

3. Hannah, wife of James Taylor

4. Deborah, wife of James Pickett [They were married Apr. 14, 1726]

5. Mary, wife of John Morehouse

6. Eunice, deceased, wife of John Parret

 

SAMUEL2 STUART, Sr., (Robert1) of Norwalk, will Sep. 6, 1748 [XI]. Wife Hannah. Executor: oldest son Samuel. Witnesses: William Taylor, John Stuart 3rd and Isaac Chase. Inventory taken by Nathaniel Darrow and John Stuart Jr. Children named in will:

1. Samuel, eldest son (also referred to as 3rd Samuel). [Ensign 1748]

2. John, second son

3. Nathan, youngest son

4. [Daughter], deceased: children – Joseph, Elizabeth, and Mary Araton

5. [Daughter], deceased: children – Samuel, Dorothy, and Sarah Saint John

 

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A17

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EARLY NEW ENGLAND STEWARTS

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JAMES STEWARD, who came in the ship Fortune, which arrived Nov. 11, 1621, at New Plymouth, was the first of the family to set foot on the shores of the New World. It was the second ship to arrive in Massachusetts Bay, the famous Mayflower having been the first. In the division of lands in 1624 James received a single share, indicating that he had neither wife nor child. His name does not appear in the division of cattle June 1, 1627, and as the total population is supposed to have been represented, it has been assumed that he died or removed before that date. There is a possibility that he was the father of Daniel Steward of Barnstable (page 10) and Hugh of Chatham (page 18), and perhaps others.

 

JAMES STEWART was in New Haven, Conn., on Dec. 4, 1639, on which day a court of New Haven Colony enjoined him and another man to make double restitution to John Cokerill for 5 pounds and 17 shillings which they stole out of his chest on the Lord’s day in the meeting time. Feb 18, 1643, he and about a dozen others were “fined each man six shillings for late coming to the meeting with their arms.” May 7, 1643, he was fined one shilling for “late coming to trayne.” In 1646 he was “complained of for several disorderly expressions and contempt of the magistracye in this place.” He might have been the adventurer of the Fortune.

 

JAMES STEWARD, perhaps the same man as above, was in Stamford, Conn., defendant in a civil action in 1649, and was a landowner there in 1650. Huntington, in his history of Stamford, says he was “probably a son of Alexander of Watertown,” whoever that person may have been. This James was possibly the father of Robert1 of Norwalk (pages 6 and 14).

An odd bit of information gleaned from the History of Northern Wisconsin (1881) is this: “His (Alexander’s4) great-grandfather, Robert1 Stewart, came over on the Mayflower when an infant and settled in Roxbury (Litchfield county), Conn.”

 

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A24

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Queries and Stray Notes (Footnote)

WILLIAM of Lynn and ROBERT of Norwalk, pages 6 and 14, were prisoners from the Battle of Worcester and were brought over on the John and Sarah.

 

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A221

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Robert Stewart of Norwalk, Conn.
From many sources

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Robert1 Stewart of Milford, Conn., bought on Mar. 8, 1659-60, the home lot of Samuel Hale, in Norwalk. No earlier record of him has been found. He married in Norwalk June 12, 1661, Bethia Rumble, daughter of Thomas and Rose (Sherwood) Rumball of Stratford, Conn. He bought land May 30, 1663, of Thomas Adgate, and bought other property Jan. 22, 1674, for £200, which had been granted to Richard Bushnell. He sold land Mar. 11, 1663-4, to John Raymond. He was a man of high standing in Norwalk, and was the founder of an influential family. He possessed land on Ely Neck, Stewart’s Meadow and Stewart’s Landing. The valuation of his estate was placed at £225 on Jan. 3, 1687. He made his will on Mar. 12, 1678-9, but no record of his death can be found. The inventory was filed Dec. 5, 1688, by Mark St. John, Thomas Seymore and James Olmstead, and administration on the estate was granted to the widow Bethia and eldest son James. On Mar. 13, 1693-4, Samuel Hayes, with the two sons James and John, was appointed to distribute the estate [Fairfield county probate, iii:260]. The date of Bethia’s death is unknown. Children:

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1. James, Mar 19, 1662-3; m. Experience _______

2. Abigail, Aug 15, 1664; m. (before 1688) Richard Cozier; five children

3. John, Mar 18, 1666-7; m. Abiah _______

4. Deborah, May, 1669; [living in 1688, aged 19]

5. Elizabeth, Sep. 30, 1671; [living in 1688, aged 17]

6. Phebe, Feb. 14, 1672-3; [living in 1688, aged 15]

7. Sarah, 1675; [living in 1688, aged 13]

8. Samuel, May, 1677; m. Hannah Bennett; d. June 5, 1753, in Wilton

9. Rachel, 1685; m. Daniel Raymond; three children

 

Ensign James2 Stewart (Robert1), born Mar 19, 1662-3, in Norwalk, Conn., married about 1694 Experience _______. At a town meeting Feb. 18, 1678, “Robert Stewart ingages yt his son James shall beat ye drum on the Sabbath and on other ocations: is to have it for that service.” He bought land of John Beebe in 1685, and his estate was assessed at £50 on Jan. 3, 1687. His name is in a list Dec. 4, 1694, of those who were members of the town meetings. He took an active part in the affairs of Norwalk for many years, possessing considerable property. He was appointed ensign of the north company of militia in Norwalk by the General Assembly on May 11, 1710. The last will of Ens. James Stewart of Norwalk was dated Jan. 19, 1749-50. It was probated June 12, 1751, with the witnesses, Elnathan Hanford, James Taylor and Hannah Hanford, “now wife of David Lockwood,” the executors being his son Robert and son-in-law John Taylor [x:218a]. On Apr. 6, 1753, the widow Experience quit-claimed “lands that my husband James Stuart left me in his will” to her son John Stuart (the name of a son John is on the authority of Mrs. Merwin Raymond’s version of the deed records); son Robert Stuart; John Taylor and wife Hannah; daughter Deborah Pickett; John Morehouse and wife Mary; Elizabeth, Hannah, John, and Sarah Parrett. On the same day James Stuart of Kent, Litchfield county, Conn., John Taylor and wife Hannah, Robert Stuart, Deborah Pickett, Elizabeth Parret, Hannah Parret and Sarah Parret, all of Norwalk, John Morehouse and wife Mary and John Perret, both of Fairfield, deeded to John Taylor 3rd, aforesaid, land on the east side of Norwalk Harbor at a place called Peaceful Spring, for £3-2-3 [Deeds, xi:23]. James and Experience had seven children:

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1. James; m. Eleanor _______; in Kent before 1743

2. John, 1697; living in 1753

3. Hannah, 1699; m. Jan. 19, 1726-7, Capt. John Taylor, as 2nd w.; d. May 12, 1774

4. Eunice; m. Mar. 4, 1723-4, John Parret of Fairfield; d. Mar. 30, 1735

5. Deborah; m. Apr. 14, 1726, James Pickett; six children

6. Robert; m.; resided in Wilton in 1771

7. Mary; m. John Morehouse of Fairfield

 

John2 Stewart (Robert1), born Mar 18, 1666-7, in Norwalk, Conn., received a deed from his father in 1687 [i:255]. He acquired land at Drum Hill, Chestnut Hill, Skunk’s Hole and other localities, and was a selectman in 1711. He married Abaih _______. He lived in the parish of Wilton, and his name is seventh on the list of 31 men who signed a petition on Dec. 7, 1725, to have a separate parish made of Kent, Belden’s Hill and Chestnut Hill. He had a pew in the Congregational Church in Wilton Jan. 27, 1727. Abiah died July 30, 1748, aged about 60, and John died June 17, 1749, aged 83, in Wilton [town 1802]. The births of his children were recorded in the Congregational Church of Wilton and their names are found in a list Feb. 14, 1732, of the children of settlers of Wilton:

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1. Abigail, Feb. 14, 1709-10

2. John 2nd, Oct. 10, 1711

3. Jemima, June 9, 1714

4. Silas, Mar. 6, 1716; d. May 14, 1735

5. Reuben, Feb. 13, 1718-9

6. Benjamin, May 5, 1722; m. Feb. 7, 1749-50, Eleanor Sherwood of Fairfield; d. Feb. 22, 1805

7. Sarah, Oct. 21, 1724

8. Abigail; m. Jan. 20, 1746-7, Samuel Fountain (b. Mar. 7, 1725-6)

9. Ezra, Feb 25, 1728-9; m. Nov, 1756, Sarah Brownson, New Milford; d. Aug 17, 1773

 

Samuel2 Stewart (Robert1), born May, 1677, in Norwalk, Conn., married Hannah Bennett, as was learned in a belated settlement of the estate of her father, Thomas Bennett of Fairfield on July 18, 1769 [Probate, xvii:129]. A parcel of land near Five Mile river was laid out to Samuel Stewart on Jan. 23, 1706; he deeded to Benjamin Hickox in 1720, and on Feb. 10, 1747-8, he deeded land on Chestnut Hill, Norwalk, “to Samuel Stewart, jr., my son.” His will was made Sep. 6, 1748, and was witnessed by William Taylor, John Stuart 3rd and Isaac Chase; in it he refers to his wife Hannah and to his son Samuel 3rd. The inventory was taken by Nathaniel Darrow and John Stuart, jr. [xi:117]. He died June 5, 1753, aged 76, in Wilton. Hannah died before July 18, 1769. They were members of the Congregational Church in Wilton and held a seat in 1729. Children, named in his will:

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1. Samuel; m. Elizabeth Smith

2. Ruth; m. Jonathan Atherton, 3 children; d. before 1748

3. John; m.

4. Simeon, 1718; m. Nov. 15, 1739, Abigail Smith, (2) Mary (Gregory) Whelpley

5. Nathan; m. Thankful _______; to Lanesborough, Mass.

6. Dorothy; m. Aug. 18, 1742, Daniel Burchard of Courtland Manor, N.Y.

7. daughter; m. St. John, 3 children; d. before 1748

 

 

B201

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DAVID STEWART OF ANN ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD. [B:175]

The records of the descendants of David Stewart of Ann Arundel county, Maryland, will prove very valuable, as this man was In America as early as 1661 and was contemporary with Duncan Stewart of Newbury, Mass. [A:69], Hugh Stuart of Yarmouth [A:18], John Stewart of Springfield [A:17], Daniel of Barnstable [A:10], Alexander of Charlestown [A:13], James of Weymouth [A:6] and Robert of Norwalk [B:221], some of whom, at least, were Scottish soldiers of King Charles I (Stuart) taken prisoners at the battles of Dunbar and Worcester and deported to America. Doubtless there are numerous descendants of David Stewart, and this early account may serve as a constructive basis for research.

 

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B243

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DESCENDANTS OF ROBERT STEWART OF NORWALK, CONN

From records gathered by miss Bertha Stuart, 152 Twelfth st., Portland, Oregon

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Robert1 Stewart of Norwalk, Connecticut, had three sons – James, John and Samuel. Samuel2 lived in Wilton and had four sons – Samuel, John, Simeon, and Nathan. John3 was known as John “the 3rd,” to distinguish him from his cousin, John Stewart the 2nd, son of John2. He married May 21, 1739, Sarah Hendricks and had two sons – Silas and Stephen. Silas4 Stewart, born July 1, 1739, in Wilton, enlisted July 6, 1775, as a fifer in the 9th company, under Capt. Peter Perritt, in Col. Charles Webb’s 7th Regiment of the Connecticut troops in the Revolutionary war, and was discharged Dec. 10, 1775. He removed to Kent, where he died Mar. 19, 1812, in his 73rd year. His will mentioned six children – Matthew; John, executor; Margery, wife of David Preston; Sally, wife of John Lain; Rhoda, wife of Noble S. Johnson; and Anna, wife of Robert Ogden. Matthew was baptized in Wilton Apr. 21, 1765, and Margery was baptized there Oct. 5, 1766, but the baptismal dates of the other children were not recorded. The family was living in Milford in 1775. The History of Kent says that Silas Stuart was a soldier of Capt. Abraham Fuller’s company in 1776.

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Matthew5 Stuart (Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1) was born Nov. 19, 1764, in Wilton, Conn. He enlisted May 18, 1782, while a resident of New Milford, to serve three years in the army, going to New London to join the troops. He was in Captain Robertson’s company, 2nd Connecticut regiment, according to a size roll dated Feb. 1, 1783, and as the war ended that year he may have been discharged before serving three years. He married, probably in 1785, Sarah Bryant, who was born June 26, 1766. He perhaps lived in New Milford until about 1800, as about that time he removed “across the state line” to Stephentown, Rensselaer county, New York. He is said to have been living in Stephentown in 1802, when his daughter Sally was born. Mar. 4, 1804, Abijah Bush and Matthew Stewart signed a document in Stephentown certifying that John W. Schermerhorn, Ebenezer Smith, and Winthrop Root were elected trustees of the meetinghouse in the southwest part of Stephentown. There was another Matthew Stewart in Rensselaer county at this period – Matthew from Bechet, Mass. [A:181]. He was killed in 1804 on his farm near Troy when a barn door he was trying to close in a storm blew violently against him. About 1806, Matthew Stuart, who is said to have been a lawyer, removed to Fabius, Onondaga county. Feb. 14, 1809, he was sued at Fabius by Jonathan Stanley, jr. He is believed to have lived for a while at Painted Post, Steuben county. Tradition indicates that he was a soldier in the war of 1812, although he was 50 years old, and that his death was consumption caused by exposure. He died Dec. 16, 1814, at Fabius. His widow soon after went to Gowanda, Cattaraugus county, to live with her son Hosea, and she died there in 1848. Children:

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1. Silas, Mar 31, 1786; m. Esther Underwood: d. 1836, Gowanda, N.Y.

2. Lydia, Apr. 15, 1789; m. _____ Bailey: 8 children

3. John, Oct. 21, 1790; m. Amah Underwood: d. Sep. 3, 1850, Plainwich, Mich.

4. Eliza, Jan. 1, 1793; m. Isaac Aldrich: died before 1847.

5. Hosea, Mar. 3, 1795; m. Phebe Aldrich, (2) Harriet Hurd: d. June 25, 1873

6. Susan, Apr 11, 1797; d. unmarried about 1844

7. William, Dec. 5, 1799; m. Emmaline Sweet of Freedonia, N.Y.

8. Sally Dunning, May 1, 1802; m. Aug 8, 1822, Daniel Wheeler: res. Wayne Sta., Ill.

9. David Preston, Jun 27, 1804; m. Nov 24, 1828 Eliz. P. Wright: d. Schoolcraft, Mich

10. Lewis Matthew, Mar. 30, 1807; m. Cynthia Beal: d. 1891, Iowa Falls, Iowa

11. Anson, June 12, 1809; m. Mrs. Eliza Miner; d. ~1865 at Gowanda

 

Silas6 Stuart (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1) was born Mar. 31, 1786, perhaps in New Milford, Conn., and went with his parents to Stephentown, N.Y., and later to Fabius. He married Esther Underwood, daughter of Lemuel Underwood [born Feb. 24, 1761, in Woodstock, Conn.]. He removed to Rowanda, Cattaraugus county, N.Y., and died there in 1836. Children:

1. Laura                      m. M. Walden, res. Gowanda

2. Lydia                       m. _______ Deland: daughter Mary

3. Susan                      m. A. Brown

4. Emmaline               m. I Clifford

5. Samuel                   m. Emma Bolton; res. Gowanda

6. Lemuel                   m. Irene McCullough; daughter Merta, Gowanda

7. John                        m. Adeline Barnes

8. Elisha, Jan 18, 1826             m. Eliza Hawley Spencer, at East Randolph, N.Y.

 

Lydia6 Stuart (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1) born Apr 15, 1789, married ______ Bailey. Eight children: Ursula (m. Nathaniel Ballard, Elgin, Ill); Samuel, Collins Station, Erie county, N.Y.; Lydia (m. W. Hitchcock, Collins Station); Anson; Stephen (m. Cynthia Taft); Timothy; Sally (m. _______ Starr); and Elinor.

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John6 Stuart  (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1) born Oct. 21, 1790, perhaps in New Milford, Conn., married Amah Underwood, daughter of Lemuel Underwood [see Silas]. He lived in Fabius and Gowanda, N.Y., removing to Allegan county, Michigan, in 1836. He died Sep. 3, 1850, near Plainwell, Mich., and Amah died there Sep. 6, 1882. Children:

1. Esther                     m. Thomas Stancliff: d. Nov. 27, 1858

2. Admiral  d. 1893

3. Sarah B., May 21, 1824       m. Daniel Davis, Allegan, Mich.

4. Anna

5. Addison d. July 18, 1888

6. Thomas  d. July 6, 1852

7. Anson

 

Eliza6 Stuart  (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1), born Jan 1, 1793, married Isaac Aldrich. She died early and her three children – Susan, Pamela, and Eliza Ann – were all dead by 1896.

Hosea6 Stuart  (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1), born Mar. 3, 1795, perhaps in New Milford, Conn., married (1) Phebe Aldrich of Gowanda, N.Y. He went from Fabius to Gowanda about 1814, the year his father died, and his mother made her home with him. His wife died in 1838, and in 1840 he married (2) Harriet Hurd of Perrysburg. He died June 25, 1873, at Gowanda. His son Truman “rebuilt the old homestead of Hosea and lived there with his two sisters, Ellen and Margery.” Children, born in Gowanda:

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1. Delilah, Oct 19, 1817; d. Sep. 13, 1823

2. Matthew, Nov 7, 1819; m. ______; farmer, Janesville, Iowa

3. Alvira, Feb 17, 1822; m. _______ Moss, Belvidere, Ill.

4. Charles H., Feb. 29, 1829; m. Feb 11, 1850, Mary J. Wilber; d. 1893, Collins Center, N.Y.

5. Turner

6. Adeline, m. _______ Chamberlain, Gowanda

7. Diana, m. _______ Connell

8. Merrill

9. Ellen, resides Gowanda

10. Phebe + Mary + Margery + Truman + Della

 

William6 Stuart (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1), born Dec 5, 1799, perhaps in Connecticut or Massachusetts, married Emmaline Sweet of Fredonia, N.Y. He was a farmer, living at Janesville, Iowa. Children:

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1. Brigham

2. Harriet, m. _______ Coddington; resided Whitehall, Mich.

 

Sally Dunning6 Stuart (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1), born May 1, 1802, in Stephentown, N.Y., married Aug 8, 1822, Daniel Wheeler, born in 1797. They lived at Wayne Station, Illinois. He died in 1877. She died at Wheeler, Ill. Children:

1. Lewis, d. Mar 28, 1890, at Elgin, Ill.

2. Nora, married _______ Smith

3. Pamela E. [who furnished Miss Stuart a copy of the record of Births from Matthew Stuart’s Bible]

4. Frank

 

David Preston6 Stuart (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1), born June 27, 1804, in Stephentown, N.Y., married in Buffalo Nov. 24, 1828, Elizabeth Potter Wright, born Aug. 16, 1809, in Hamburg, Erie county, daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Potter) Wright. He was a cabinet maker, and about 1836 he moved to Michigan. While his brothers went back to the spelling Stewart he retained the form Stuart. He died Mar. 25, 1851, at Schoolcraft, Mich., and his widow died Dec. 25, 1884, in Chicago, Ill., at the home of her son Edwin Chatfield. Children:

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1. Sarah Elizabeth, Mar 15, 1830, Hamburg; m. Jun 8, 1851, Addison Lyon; d. Apr 28, 1861

2. Diana Emmaline, Mar 1, 1832; d. Apr 1, 1833

3. Harriet Malitta, Jan 5, 1836; d. Apr 18, 1840

4. Maria Saluta, Feb 2, 1838; m. Sep 22, 1870. Rev. Robert Leslie; d. 1901, Grant’s Pass, Ore.

5. William Anson, Sep 14, 1840; m. _______; d. Dec. 20, 1901, Pittsburg, Kan.

6. Edwin Chatfield, Feb 21, 1843; m. Apr 29, 1867, Laura Hayden, Kankakee, Ill., res. Portland, Ore.

7. Allan Wright, Sep. 7, 1845; m. Aug 11, Annie Little, San Francisco; d. Dec 4, 1928, Chicago

 

Lewis Matthew6 Stuart (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1), born May 30, 1807, in Fabius, N.Y., married in 1830 Cynthia Beal. “He grew up in the vicinity of Syracuse.” He was a dairyman in Gowanda, having 50 cows. He died in 1891 at Iowa Falls, Iowa. Children:

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1. David Preston, 1830; d. 1854

2. Hannah, 1830; m. _______ Terwilliger; d. 1913, Tilden, Nebraska

3. Emmaline, 1835; m. _______ Burke; d. Neligh, Neb.

4. Ira B., 1837; d. 1909

5. Martha J., 1839; unmarried, Los Angeles

6. Anson M., 1841; d. 1901

7. Sarah, 1843; m. _______ Carpenter; d. 1902

8. Matthew Lewis, 1845; d. 1909

9. Deborah, 1848; d. 1850

10. Alice, 1852; m. _______ Collins; res. Los Angeles

 

Anson6 Stuart (Matthew5, Silas4, John3, Samuel2, Robert1), born June 12, 1809, in Fabius, N.Y., married Mrs. Eliza Miner. He was a cabinet-maker in Gowanda, and died about 1863. He had one child:

1. Ella; m. Herbert Rich; res. Cattaraugus, N.Y.

 

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C136

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Capt. Merlyn G. Cook, U.S. Navy (retired), of Washington, D.C., sent the renewal to the Stewart Clan Magazine for Mrs. Cook, who was in the hospital recovering from an operation. She is a descendant of Matthew5 Stuart, [B:242], revolutionary soldier in Connecticut and great-great-grandson of Robert1 Stewart of Norwalk, 1660.

 

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C160

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Professor Reginald Ray Stuart, publisher of the quarterly Clan Stuart Dial at San Leandro, Calif., announced in the October number that hereafter the Dial will be issued annually, the first such issue to be toward the end of 1936. Prof. Stuart has started a good work, and will now attempt to embrace in his publication all the descendants of Robert1 Stuart of Norwalk, Conn. He graciously give the Stewart Clan Magazine credit for revealing Robert1 as the immigrant ancestor of Matthew5 of Wilton, Conn. [A;234, B243], the dialist’s ancestor.

Note: The Reginald Ray Stuart collection, including the Stuart Clan Dial, is now part of the Holt-Atherton Special Collections at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California.

 

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C168

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Mrs. Merlyn G. Cook of Washington, D.C., whose illness was mentioned in the magazine for July, is slowly improving. Her Stewart ancestor is Robert1 of Norwalk, Conn., [A:221], thought to have been a soldier in the army of King Charles II. She has written up volumes of matter concerning her Stewart, Rumball, Sherwood, Seabrook, Bennet, and other lines. She is a D.A.R. with five bars, two of them representing Silas and Matthew Stuart.

 

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F192

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Mrs. Merlyn G. Cook, a genealogist in the library of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Washington, D.C., has supplied the Stewart Clan Magazine with a great many Stewart-Stuart records from New York State, obtained mostly from cemeteries, church registers, and printed sources. Mrs. Cook refused compensation for this work, saying that it was for the good of the many who will benefit from this aggregation of data. She herself is a Stuart, tracing back through Nellie T. [B:261], Elisha7, Silas6, Matthew5, Silas4, John3 and Samuel2 to Robert1 Stuart of Norwalk, Connecticut.

 

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H299

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Raymond J. Levett, 1915 Jefferson avenue S.E., Grand Rapids 7, Michigan, is a grandson of Emma Jane Stewart, born May 4, 1852, in Otsego township, Allegan county, Michigan, daughter of Admiral7 and Permelia (Aldrich) Stewart, =B244. Admiral7 Stewart, born Oct. 18, 1817, probably in Erie county, New York, was a son of John6 and Anna [or amah] (Underwood) Stewart. Anna Underwood was born Aug. 12, 1794, in Woodstock, Conn., daughter of Lemuel Underwood, and moved with her parents to New Woodstock, N.Y., in 1800. John6 Stewart was born Oct. 21, 1790, probably in New Milford, Conn., son of Matthew5 and Sarah (Bryant) Stewart and a lineal descendant, through Silas4, John3 and Samuel2, of Robert1 Stewart of Norwalk, Conn., =A:221.

 

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I106

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Speaking of Robert Stewart, in the quest to see if James Steward, who came to Plymouth, Massachusetts, in the ship Fortune in 1621, were a son of Robert Steward who married Rose (Trippe) Hammond in England in 1590, we find a curious bit of news from the HISTORY OF NORTHERN WISCONSIN, 1881, page 357, in the biography of Latham Avery5 Stewart, who was born Aug. 12, 1824, in Griswold, Conn [A:162]. He was a great-great-grandson of Alexander1 Stewart of East Haddam, Conn. [A:21].  He was a son of Alexander1 Stewart, “whose great-grandfather, Robert Stewart, came over in the Mayflower when an infant and settled at Roxbury, Connecticut.” Roxbury would be in Litchfield county, on the Housatonic river, a rather wild region in those early times. Robert1 Stewart of Milford, New Haven county, appeared out of the dusk on Mar. 8, 1659-60, when he bought a home-lot in Norwalk township, Fairfield county, near Long Island Sound, of Samuel Hale [A:221]. He may have been the infant of 1620 – his eldest child, James, was born Mar 19, 1662-3 – but if he was, his father was not along. The ship Mayflower, having been well advertised in American literature, could easily been mistaken for the ship Fortune, which came a year later bearing James Steward, in the reminiscence of a Wisconsin citizen in 1881. If the said Robert came to this country as an infant in either 1620 or 1621 he must have come in the arms of his mother (or foster-mother), for there was no Mistress Stewart, or Steward, among the passengers.

 

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I167

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The Scotch referred to as having been “brought over in 1652” were captives taken by Oliver Cromwell from the army of King Charles II at the battle of Worcester in 1651 and sold into servitude at Boston to men who would pay their ‘fine’. Among the Scottish soldiers so impounded and bound to serve without pay for a specified number of years, George Sawin Stewart postulated these Stewarts: John, at Lynn and Springfield; Alexander, at Charlestown; James, at Weymouth; Duncan, at Ipswich, Newbury, and Rowley; Daniel, in Barnstable; Hugh, in Reading, Yarmouth, and Chatham; William, in Lynn; Robert, in Norwalk, Connecticut; and in addition, but probably of a second generation, William in Chatham, 1698,? And Robert in Wells, Main, in 1681.?

 

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J31

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Reginald Ray Stuart, of Lynnewood, post office box 336, Pleasanton, Calif., 94566, is a direct descendant of Robert1 Stuart [or Stewart] of Norwalk, Conn. [B:243], through Samuel2, John3, Silas4, Matthew5, Lewis Matthew6 and Matthew Lewis7 Stuart, his father, born in 1845 in Gowanda, Cattaraugus county, N.Y., if we are not mistaken. Mr. Stuart was born in 1882. His ancestor Robert in Connecticut, 1660 [A:221] did not belong to the Steward family who came in with the Regicides detailed in the preceding account, but rather adversely. Mr. Stuart’s wife, Mrs. Winifred Handley Stuart, says “Prof. Stuart is truly Scotch. He has told me that Robert was ‘deported’ to America by Cromwell presumable because he was too prominent for Cromwell to execute.” Robert Stuart was among the Scotch “prisoners of war from the sad field of Worcester, Sep. 3, 1651, Cromwell’s crowning mercy, sent to Boston, where they arrived May 13, 1652, to be sold, but not to perpetual servitude [A:6].

 

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J66

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“I was advised to write to you, sir, by my grandfather’s first cousin, Mr. Reginald Ray Stuart, of Pleasanton, California. Cousin Reginald Ray thought that you, having done so much genealogical research on the Stewart-Stuart families, might be able to help me. I sincerely hope so.” With this approach William L. Porter, 2316 North Sheridan Road, Peoria, Illinois, in a letter Sep. 19, 1969, told of his efforts to get the low-down on families evolving from Robert Stewart of Norwalk, Conn [B:243].