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A Brief Bio of Peter Tusco, a “Spanish Indian” of Southington

A Brief Bio of Peter Tusco, a “Spanish Indian” of Southington

AUTHOR: Katherine Hermes Peter Tusco died in Southington, Connecticut in 1767 and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery. His origins are not known, but in the probate records, he is identified as a Spanish Indian. He was probably an indigenous person from someplace in the Spanish territories, such as Florida. New England colonists considered Spanish Indians lawful captives under the presumption that they had been enslaved under the laws of New Spain. The desire for captive labor motivated colonial wars…

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An Influential Citizen and The Avon Congregational Church

An Influential Citizen and The Avon Congregational Church

Author: Janet M. Conner, Researcher, Avon Historical Society Early Northington resident Joel Wheeler was a civic-minded individual.  Joel was born about 1754 to William and Abigail Fost Wheeler.  He moved to town in the late 1700s and began buying property in the town center known as East Avon. Land ownership correlated to status, wealth, and standing within the community, as well as within the Church.   In 1795, he had acquired about 100 acres of land and a house at 26 Main Street,…

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The Will of Timothy Indian, A Christian Man of Farmington

The Will of Timothy Indian, A Christian Man of Farmington

Author: Katherine A. Hermes, (with Sarajane Cedrone, who helped transcribe the will and inventory). In the mid-to-late eighteenth century, Farmington was home to a group of Christian Native people who lived in an indigenous community, but who often emulated the colonists both in religion and law. This new Christian community drew Native people from the Mohegan (New London County), Wangunk (Middlesex County), and Quinnipiac (New Haven County) tribes, in addition to the local Tunxis tribe that had long inhabited Farmington….

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Daggett’s Charge: The Revolution in New Haven

Daggett’s Charge: The Revolution in New Haven

Author: Ian Long On the morning of July 5th British ships with troops under the command of Major General William Tryon sailed into New Haven’s harbor, bringing the Revolutionary War to the Connecticut college town. A great deal of local legend has grown up around the events of that unusually hot summer day and no small figure in these stories is that of Dr. Naphtali Daggett. This Yale College professor, like a number of New Haven residents, took up arms…

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A Glimpse into Farmington’s Past: The Charlotte Cowles Letters

A Glimpse into Farmington’s Past: The Charlotte Cowles Letters

Author: Garrett Coady Farmington, Connecticut had been a New England hub for evangelical abolition during the decade of 1835 and 1845. Farmington had established an anti-slavery society in 1836 that was initiated around abolitionist reform and evangelical revival. One of the Farmington Anti-Slavery Society’s founding members had been Horace Cowles. Horace and his wife, Mary Anne Steele Smith Cowles had a large family. Among their ten children was their daughter Charlotte Cowles. During the heart of the Farmington abolitionist movement,…

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Elijah Wampey: Christian Education in Farmington, Oneida, and West Stockbridge

Elijah Wampey: Christian Education in Farmington, Oneida, and West Stockbridge

Author: Anthony Vinci In Farmington, Connecticut, the Wampey family was considered one of the most prominent families. Elijah Wampey, the father of eight children, played a crucial role in advancing Christianity beyond Connecticut and to both New York and Massachusetts. He became interested in advancing Native Americans’ knowledge of English law and individual land ownership, a common characteristic among Puritans. This increased confidence among the local Indians helped them to send letters to the Connecticut General Assembly, which assisted in…

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