Genealogy Story – James Pierpont Descendants

I’ve previously written about my great*7 grandfather, James Pierpont, and his family (see http://ramblinrussells.blogspot.com/2017/02/genealogy-story-james-pierpont.html). But there I only recounted his influence through his marriage and children. I’d like to extend that here by showing how his influence extended for several more generations and how it impacted the United States of America in the early days of the republic.

In particular, I’d like to look at just one of his children, Sarah, who married Rev. Jonathan Edwards. I won’t repeat his story here, you can read more here if you are interested (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Edwards_(theologian)). As I noted here (http://ramblinrussells.blogspot.com/2017/03/genealogy-story-harvard-and-yale.html), there were a number of connections between the early clergy in the colonies that helped set and solidify their influence. But as these were the early days leading up to and through the founding of the United States, there were other ways that this influence was felt. Here are just a few of the names in the larger Pierpont genealogy that you might recognize.

Aaron Burr

Sarah and Jonathan’s third child, Esther Edwards (1732-1758) married the Rev. Aaron Burr. He was the pastor of the church in Newark NJ, and at the time of their marriage was serving as the 2^nd president of Princeton College (it was then called the College of New Jersey and was located in Newark, but it later moved to Princeton and was subsequently renamed). While Esther died at the age of only 26, she and her husband had two children. One of them was also named Aaron Burr after his father. Aaron (1756-1836) was educated at Princeton, but rather than the ministry went into politics. He served in the NY legislature, then was attorney general of NY, a US senator from NY, and finally as the Vice-president of the US under Thomas Jefferson. It was while serving as VP that he was involved in the infamous duel with Alexander Hamilton whom he killed. While Burr was never convicted of any crime for this, it effectively ended his political career. For more details, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Burr.

Tapping Reeve

While Aaron Burr was the more famous of the two children of Sarah and Aaron, his older sister, Sarah Burr (1754-?) should not be left out. She married a man by the name of Tapping Reeve (1744-1823). He had been hired to privately tutor the orphaned children of Esther and Aaron Burr, Sr. before he moved to Hartford, CT, where he studied law. After developing a relationship with Sarah, he married her and they moved to Litchfield, CT where he established a legal practice. He built a home across the street from Oliver Wolcott, the governor of CT (see http://ramblinrussells.blogspot.com/2016/10/genealogy-story-oliver-wolcott.html for my connection to him). His brother-in-law, Aaron Burr, also moved to Litchfield to study law under him. As the number of men apprenticing under him increased, Tapping developed a formal school called the Litchfield Law School, the first such institution in America. He later was elected as a judge, first in Connecticut’s superior court, then on the state supreme court, and finally as chief justice of that body. For more details, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapping_Reeve.

The Litchfield Law School had considerable influence on American politics. Although it only operated for sixty years, its graduates included two vice-presidents, three US Supreme Court justices, six US cabinet members, 97 members of the US House of Representatives, and 28 members of the US Senate. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Litchfield_Law_School for details.

Pierpont Edwards

The youngest son of Sarah and Jonathan was named Pierpont Edwards (1750-1826). He graduated from Princeton in 1768 and entered the legal field. He served as a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives, then as a delegate to the Continental Congress, then later as a US federal judge. It was said that his personal morality resembled that of his nephew, Aaron Burr. He was the founder of the Toleration party in Connecticut. He was also a freemason, and was the first grand master of the Grand Lodge of Connecticut which was founded in 1789. One of the most prestigious awards of that organization is the Pierpont Edwards Medal. Also of interest is that he was a 1/20^th owner of the Western Reserve of Connecticut (the part of Connecticut that extended through the northern tier of Ohio and which was claimed by Connecticut). This comes into our story again below. For more details, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierpont_Edwards.

Henry Waggaman Edwards

Henry (1779-1847) was one of Pierpont Edwards’ children. He graduated from Princeton and was educated at the Litchfield Law School. He served as a US Representative, a US Senator, in the Connecticut Senate, the Connecticut House of Representatives, then two terms as Governor of Connecticut. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_W._Edwards for details.

John Stark Edwards

John (1777-1813) was another of Pierpont Edwards’ children. Like his brother Henry, John graduated from Princeton and attended the Litchfield Law School. He left Connecticut to take charge as the sales agent of his father’s lands in the Western Reserve, becoming one of the first lawyers in that part of the country. He married the granddaughter of Timothy Dwight, who was himself a grandson of Jonathan Edwards. In 1812 he was elected to the US Congress as a representative of Ohio, and as the first man in that body from the former Western Reserve. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Stark_Edwards for details.

Eli Whitney

One of the other children of Pierpont Edwards was Henrietta Edwards (1786-1870). She married Eli Whitney (1765-1825), the inventor of the cotton gin. This had significant influence on the economy of the US. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eli_Whitney for details.

Conclusion

There are other lawyers, judges, and congressmen among the descendants of Jonathan Edwards, but I think this gives some idea of the extent to which the greater Pierpont family had on the early days of the United States.