Genealogy Story – More Wolcott Connections

I had detailed in an earlier post how I have Wolcott ancestors with the last names of Alcott, Beecher, Frisbie, Hotchkiss, Nichols, Rogers, Upson, and Wakelee. Also, as noted in my post about the Josiah Atkins house, I am related to the Atkins and Gillet families. As I continue my genealogy research I continue to find other families to whom I am related. Here are some of them.

Andrews – the first in this family to come to the Waterbury area was Abraham Andrus/Andrews (1652-1729). He is the great*2 grandfather of Luther Andrews (1775-1852), the first Andrews in Farmingbury. Abraham is also my great*8 grandfather, making Luther my 3^rd cousin, 6 times removed and all the other Andrews cousins as well.

Atwood – as I noted in my post on Pillwillop Farm, Clarence Atwood’s grandmother was Martha [Upson] Cole. So Clarence is my 6^th cousin, twice removed.

Kenea – as I noted in my post on Memorial Day, I have recently discovered that Leverett Kenea, the man who donated the statue in the center of town, is my 3^rd cousin (4 times removed), because his grandmother was Obedience Alcox and his great*2 grandfather was John Alcox who is also one of my ancestors.

Moulthorp – the progenitor of this family who moved to Farmingbury was Elihu Moulthorp (1779-1853). His mother was Mary Hotchkiss and his great*3 grandfather was Samuel Hotchkiss (1623-1663). Samuel is also my great*8 grandfather, so Elihu is my 3^rd cousin, 5 times removed.

Norton – one of the prominent families in the north end of Wolcott when I was growing up was the Norton family. They lived at the intersection of Beecher Road and Long Swamp Road. Mr. Norton had been killed by a bull a couple of decades before, but his wife and family still lived there. Rufus Norton’s grandmother was Ellen [Beecher] Norton, so it make sense that the family lived on Beecher Road. But her grandmother was Susan [Alcott] Beecher, and Susan’s grandfather was John Alcox, one of the earliest settlers in Farmingbury. That means that Rufus Norton is my 5^th cousin, three times removed.

Peterson – the Peterson family who owned the dairy in town are distantly connected. Carl Peterson’s sister, Lillian [Peterson] Kraft, is the mother-in-law of Marion [Northrup] Kraft who is my 2^nd cousin, once removed.

Pritchard – the first Pritchard to move from Waterbury (near Sharon Rd.) to Wolcott was Dennis Pritchard (1806-1887). Dennis’ mother was Chloe Nichols, his grandmother was Martha Hotchkiss, and his great*3 grandfather was John Hotchkiss (1643-1689). John is also my great*8 grandfather, making Dennis my 4^th cousin, 5 times removed.

Seery – in building Rufus Norton’s family tree, I noticed that his wife’s maiden name was Seery. Further investigation revealed that Tom Seery was her brother. Tom lived just a few houses away from us when I was growing up and he was another large landowner in the area. The road we lived on was called Seery Road as it was built to give access to his property holdings. That does not make Tom a direct relative, but he was a brother-in-law to my cousin Rufus Norton.