Edward Elmer, Hartford Founder

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Compiled by Timothy Lester Jacobs, SDFH Genealogist

EDWARD1 ELMER, HARTFORD FOUNDER (SAMUELA ELMORE) was born bet. 1608 - 1613 in England, and died bef. 07 Jun 1676 of Windsor, CT in King Philip’s War (inventory). He married (1) ELIZABETH _______ bef. 1632 in England. She was born in England, and died bef. 1644 in Hartford, CT. He married (2) MARY ______ bef. 1644 in Hartford, CT.

Edward Elmer (Elmore) emigrated to the Massachusetts Bay colony in 1632 aboard the ship “Lyon”, with his wife Elizabeth and sons Richard and Edward. His first residence was in Cambridge where he held three parcels of land. He was among the so-called “Adventurers Party” of twenty-five men who set out to explore the area that would become Hartford, led by John Steele in October 1635, prior to the departure from Cambridge of the Rev. Hooker’s party in May 1636, and was one of sixteen founders living in Hartford in 1635 prior to the arrival of Hooker’s party.

In the Hartford land inventory of February 1639/40, he owned seven parcels of land: two acres with a dwelling house and other buildings located on the east side of the road from the Palisade to Centinel Hill; one rood and three perches in the Little Meadow; one acre and three roods of meadow and swamp in the North Meadow; six acres and three roods also in the North Meadow; one acre and eight perches on the east side of the Great River; four acres, one rood in the Little Oxpasture; and five acres, two roods and twenty-two perches in the Neck of Land.

He was chosen chimney viewer in Hartford in 1651, and removed to Northampton about 1655, where he was Commissioner to end small causes in that same year. He removed to Podunk (later Windsor, Connecticut) in 1660. He was freed from watching, warding and training by Hartford on 5 March 1667/8.

He was killed during King Philip’s War in 1676, and two inventories were taken of his property: one on 06 June 1676 for his estate at Podunk, the second on 07 June 1676 for his property at Hartford. The latter inventory was exhibited at court 06 and 07 September 1676 and administration was granted to the widow and her three sons.

Genealogy: “Elmer – Elmore Genealogy: Records of the Descendants of Edward Elmer of Braintree, England, and Hartford, Conn., through his son Edward”, William W. Johnson, North Greenfield, WI, 1899 (This is a genealogy lacking in citation, and limited in scope, concentrating as the title indicates on the descendancy of only one of the sons of Edward Elmer.)

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