of EARLY NEW ENGLAND by RENO WARBURTON BACKUS 1906 Dedicated To Mother alld Dad, To my loyal lii'e partner, alld the fascinating characters resulting ••• THE BACKUS FAMILIES of EARLY 1"EW ENGLAND PREFACE "This is the book of the generations •••• There were giants in the earth in those days ••• and the daughters of men bore children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown." - Genesis, ch. 5, o. Curiosity about and study o:f one 1 s ancestors is, with some people, a matter of absorbing interest. Others regard it with amused tolerance, aDd still others with pity. To one who diS1"8gards his neighbor's opinion and gets caught up in this odd business, it is a kind of harmless, personalized history, vhicb enables one to see more clearly bis own nature, - bis strengths, weaknesses, and foibles. It stirs admiration :for aDd emulation of those forebears found worthy of such distinction, along with understanding and sympathy for those who sometimes failed to make the grade. In a nutshell, it allows one a little greater accep­ tance for his parents, himself, and his children, commodities which maey of us appear sadly to lack in these l9o0's. For proper genealogical study, as for other research, one needs certain basic ingredients: a special interest, some traim.Dg in research technic, and a stubbOrn determination, plus such advantages as unlimited time, a .rat purse, and freedom to roar.. about and to put a shovel into any soil that looks genealog­ ically promising. Old cemetery records, gravestone inscriptions, wills, probate records, o.fficial birth, marriage, and death records are valuable fields for the orthodox family sleuth. But necessity has limited their use in this instance, for some of the items., - technical training, time, fat purse, and freedom, - are matters of luxury to this particular 'Jl'iter. CoDSequently the present work leans very heavily on, first, old colonial and historical records, particularly those of Coililecticut and Massachusetts, as found in historical and genealogical library collections in this country; second, personal correspondence with, and family data of, a considerable number o:f Backus descendants now living in the United States a:nd Canada. Because many of the sources of information are personal correspondents wbo can provide only such data as are obtaiDed fro~ ordinary .family records and tradition, the writer bas of necessity accepted material which obviously cannot be rated final and absolute in the sense that court records, cemetery inscrip­ tions, birth and death certificates can be so considered. Nevertheless all uterial has been weighed carefully, cross-checked wherever possible, and finally presented as seems most consistent with fact. Where unproved assumptions are drawn, they are clearly identified as such., leaving the reader the privilege of finding a better answer ii' he can. A number of family branches are here included which have not previously appeared in print, and which in fact have in some cases never before been clearly traced in relation to the family as a whole. If" the volume is unduly long, it is because o.r the desire to provide a more complete listing oi family members than bas heretofore been attempted • .Blank spots in the family tree are admittedly large and numerous, especially in later generations. Some of the blame for tbis must fall on the writer; but some must devolve on the many kinfolk wbo failed to respond to his request for information. i A study or available telephone and city directories showed Backuses to be scattered widely over North America. They appear as residents in at least 45 of the 50 states, even though rural and small to\ln areas were largely unrepre­ sented, and though the survey ws restricted essentially to those using the traditional spelling or the name (omitting Baccus, Bacchus, Bachus, Backes, Backous, etc.). It sbould be noted at once, however, that having the name Backus does not necessarily mean kinship with the Backus families of early New England. Backus family lines now present in North America are surprisiilgly numerous, alld i.Ilclude many outside the William and Francis Backus lines. The survey by this 'Writer, begun late in 19ol, uncovered a dozen or more family groups of English descent, apparently unrelated to us; also one each o! ~elsh, Scottish, Irish, Danish, Ukrainian, Hungarian, Lithuanian, Turkish, and Syrian origin, also some forty German or Dutch, and a number whose source was unknown. No doubt some of these might be found mutually related if all facts were known. Unfortunately the family historian finds many persons (about 78% in this study) who do not respond to a request £or information. And of those who do respond, some have insui'ficient data to prove or disprove connection with the Backuses of early New England. For example, a large group centering in West Virginia is descended from a Joseph Backus who "came from Pennsylvania in 1800 and located on Hutcb.inson•s Creek ••••• then moved to Twenty-Mile. 11 The antecedents of this Joseph Backus are not known, and since his life record does not correspond with that o:f any other known Joseph in tbe New England families, he aDd his descen­ dants camiot properly be included in the present vork. Similarly, :for lack of evidence, we are unable to claim Jim and Heney- Backus of Hollywood as members 01" our clan at this time, yet keep hoping that a link may be found. The writer owes a debt o:r gratitude to many persons, past and present, whose basic records of family history have been consulted, abstracted, and frequently quoted in the present volume. Thanks go, first of all, to those depositories of :information, our libraries, - the Connecticut State Library, the New York Public Library, the Newberry Library 0£ Chicago, the Duluth Public Library, a:ccl others, but especially the Minnesota Historical Society, where generous and patient help bas been provided on many 'WearyiDg days. Particular thanks must go to individual historians, living alld dead: to Mary E. Perkins, Frances M. C#luJkins, F. W. Chapman, William Weaver, William W. Backus, and others; Mary E. N. Backus deserves special mention for the persoDal detail and character she has brought to so many of those mentioned in her 'Work. Gratitude also to those professio.DSl genealogists, - Donald Lines Jacobus or New Haven, Col. LeBaron c. Colt or Boston, and R. J. D'Arcy Hart of London, who contributed valued information and technical guidance. Again, thanks to living m.embers of the old, historic family of Backb.ouse in England, who have been more than generous 'in providing family data, but with whom I have failed in my attempt to establish any family connection. Of these, Mr. J.C. Backbouse or Hilderstone, near Carnf'orth, Lancashire, England, Mrs. John C. Backus of Port Rowan, Ontario, and Mrs. W.. W. Barrovs or E. Braintree, Massachusetts, must be mentioned. Finally, sincere thanks to all 1:those who sbared old and precious private records, otherwise unobtainable .. They are too numerous to be given here, but nearly all will be :found in the list of references on page 195. For their loyal and ge?lerous contributions to the work of an unknown cousin, I am most grateful. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS European Origins p. 1 History or William Backus of Saybrook and. or His Descendants 4 Second eeneration • • • • . • 9 Third n . • 13 Fourth II . • • • 19 Fifth tt . '2:1 Sixth " . 40 Seventh " . • 55 Eighth II • • . 69 Ninth '1 . • . • 85 Tenth II • 100 Eleventh II . ll3 History of Francis Backus and of His Descendants ll6 Seconc: generation . • 116 Third II • ll7 F'ourth " • • 118 Fifth 11 . llB Sixth II . l2l Seventh II . 125 Eighth n . 128 Addenda (data received late) 132 Appendix A: Saybrook, Connecticut 139 B: Norw-ich, Connecticut 140 C: Windham, Connecticut l42 D: Allied Families - 143 The John Charles Family The William Pratt Family The John Clark Family The Gerard Spencer Family The Jona than Royce Family The Edvard Benton Family The Robert Fuller Family The John Perry Family The Robert Moulton Family The John Warburton Family The Henrich Radabaugh Family Index of Persons 147 Index or References 195 iii KEY TO ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS b. - born bap. - baptized bur. - buried ca. - circa, meaning approximately, in time d. - died dau. - daughter int. - intention of marriage announced m. - mar-ied r. - resided or resides s. - son unm. - unms?-.ried + {before a name) - see further data on this person where listed under next generation. number (over a name, as Jomi3) - i.odicates number of that person's generation, coW1tine from the family founder. number (in parentheses) - indicates reference to be found in List of References, page J.95. Volume and page of' reference may be given also1 ror example for Sarah3 on page 12, (149, 87:269; 153, 1:51; 74), indicates reference 149, vol. 87, p. 269, also reference 153, vol. 1, p. 51, also p. 74. iv DR .•Jmrxsox BRIGH.Ul, Des ::\loine;;, Ia. (Si1:2) State LilJrarian of fowa For tl1e past twrnty·t'igl1t ye,ns Pn'si,1eut of The Brigham Family As~1wiatin11 THE HISTORY OF THE BRIGHAM FA1\1ILY SECOND VOLUME By EMMA ELISABETH BRIGHAMt,' With Foreword by WILLIAM E. BRIGHAM of the Editorial Staff of the Boston Evening Transcript and THE ENGLISH ORIGIN OF THOMAS BRIGHAM THE EMIGRANT, 1608-1685 Discovered by J. Gardner Bartlett, Member of the New England Historic Genealogical Society WITH AN INTROD"GCTIOX BY HERBERT 0. BRIGHAM State Librarian of Rhode Island THE TUTTLE COMPANY Publishers of Genealogies RUTLAND, VERMONT 19!l7 Copyright., 19S7 by THE TUTI'LE COMPANY PRINTED IN U. 8.