ANCESTORS OF RETURN JONATHAN MEIGS

[Thus far, Vincent Meigs is the earliest known ancestor of Return Jonathan Meigs. In the following narrative, those sections in smaller type are long quotes from other works and are cited in the hyperlinks to endnotes.]

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Generation One

1. Vincent¹ Meigs; born circa 1580 Devon, ENG; married Emma Strong, daughter of William Strong and Margaret (--?--), before 1608 Devon, ENG; died 1 Dec 1658 Hammonasett Pt., New Haven, CT.

Records in Chardstock, Devon, England refer to him as Vincent Meggs alias Love, or as Vincent Love, alias Meggs which probably means that he was illegitimate. Before coming to America he was the landlord of the Angel Inn in Axminster, Devon, England. His wife Emma Strong was named in the will of her mother Margaret Strong.

Will of Margaret Stronge of Chardstock, widow, dated 4 March 1620/21, proved 7 June 1622. To her daughter Agnes wife of Thomas Dabinot a table bord and, after her death, to her daughter Jone. To her daughter Emm wife of Vincent Magges a cupboard and the frame which hee standeth uppon. To John Turner the elder son of Nicholas Turner the elder one 'broch,' one dripping pan, two silver spoons, and one bucket. To Thomas Turner, son of the said Nicholas one cauldron, one skimmer, one silting trough, one bolt and a peck. To George Demond son of William Demond one bed, one bedstead, one pair of blankets, one coverlet, one bolster, my halfsheets, one great coffer, one trendle, one frame stool, one candlestick, one purer, one gridiron and one cauldron. To Joane Johnson, daughter of Ralph Johnson one pair of sheets. To Honor Denman, wife of William Denman one coffer and 12d. To all the rest of my daughters 12d each. To my three daughters Honor, Emm and Joane all my wearing apparel to be divided among them. Appoints Joane Turner, wife of Nicholas Turner executrix. Witnesses Thomas Dabinot, John Spiller senior. Iventory, total 54s 8d, dated 25 March 1622, exhibited 17 June 1622. The Chardstock registers record the burial of Margaret Stronge, widow, on 23 March 1621/2.⁽¹⁾

William Strong, father of Emm, died in 1621 and also left a will. In it he named his wife Margaret, daughter Jone and son William. His other children were not mentioned. The Chardstock Bishop's transcripts recorded the baptism of Ema, daughter of William Strong, on 8 January 1580/1.⁽²⁾ William Strong was the son of George Strong who died in 1635 in Chardstock, Devon.

Vincent Meigs is first recorded in the country in 1641 at Weymouth, MA. From there Vincent and his sons made plans to go with Rev. Samuel Newman's company in 1643 to Rehoboth, MA. At a meeting in Weymouth of those who wished to settle there, each person was required individually to give the value of his estates, in order that the allotments of land might be made accordingly. John Meigs listed his estate at £120. It's not known if Vincent and his sons moved to Rehoboth, for at the organizational meeting, held in the latter part of 1643, certain rules were agreed to by all those present. One of which was that they must move their families to the new community and fence their land. If they failed to do so, they would forfeit to the town their allotted land. John Meigs is one of 18 names that appear on this forfeiture list. John does appear in the town records again on June 9, 1645, as having been assigned a lot "in the new meadow." But, as noted later, Vincent and the family appear to have moved in about 1644 to New Haven, CT. Vincent is recorded at New Haven on June 14, 1646, October 6, 1646 and June 1, 1647.

Vincent Meigs moved to Hammonassett with son John Meigs in 1653/4. Vincent died there in 1658, and his was the first burial recorded at the Hammonassett Cemetery on land later donated for a Cemetery by John Meigs.⁽³⁾

A writing prsented as the will & inuentory of Vincent Meggs as hauing beene prsented & witnessed (in court at Guilford, Decemb.2d, 1658,) by John Meggs as ye last will & testamt of his father Vincent Meggs vpon his death bed at his house at Hamonossocke. The court not finding other proofe, accepted wt was to be had & granted administracon of the whole estate to ye sd John Meggs, with ye will annexed, and requireing him to doe and pforme accordingly vnlesse bettwe euidence to ye contrary shall apeare. Dated Septemb: 2d, 1758, amounting to ye sume of sixty two pound, secretary fees to be deducted.⁽⁴⁾

Children of Vincent¹ Meigs and Emma Strong were as follows:

2 i. Vincent² Meigs; christened 14 Dec 1609; died 3 Nov 1700 at age 90.

3 ii. Mary Ann Meigs; christened 16 Apr 1610 Chardstock, Devon, ENG.

+ 4 iii. John Meigs, born 1612 Chardstock, Devon, ENG; married Tamazine Fry.

5 iv. Mark Meigs; christened 25 Aug 1616 Chardstock, Devon; married Avis (--?--) before 1672; died 1673.

Generation Two

4. John² Meigs (Vincent¹); born 1612 Chardstock, Devon, ENG; married Tamazine Fry 1632 Weymouth, Dorset, ENG; died 2 Jan 1671/72 Killingworth, Middlesex, CT.

At the general court in New Haven held 10 March 1646, "the names of people as they were seated in the meeting house were made in court," and John Meigs was seated in the center, in Row 8 of the men's seats [to the minister's right], and his wife in the corresponding position in the women's seats [to the left].

In December 1656, John Meigs sued William Chittenden as agent for Mr. Nathaniel Whitfield, for debt. Meigs claimed that William Stone hired for him four years earlier, a vessel to carry goods from Hartford to Saybrook and that Mr. Whitfield loaded the vessel with "Tarre to the quantity of near half the freight," for which he had never been paid. The records do not indicate the outcome of this suit.

John Meigs was a shoemaker, and during the time he was in New Haven, he became unpopular, apparently because he sold poor quality shoes.

Nov 4, 1647, [Samuel Nettleton] appeared before the Governor and upon oath testified "that he had bought a pare of shooes of Goodman Megs of New Haven, russed, clossed in the inside at the side seams for his wife. She put them on on the Lord's day, and the next third day they were ripped, the soales being good, either shranke nor hornie, that I could perceive. And he also testifyed that for and in consideration of satisfaction from Goodman Megs he expecteth a new pare."

In an apparently related case Meigs sued Henry Gregory for poor workmanship on materials delivered to him by Meigs. Meigs had delivered the leather to him already cut out and paid him one shilling per pair for making them. Customers complained that the shoes came apart. The matter was referred to a committee of shoemakers and tanners who determined that neither the leather nor the workmanship was good.

"Goodman Gregory, upon this testimony, seemed to be convinced that he had not done his part, but then laid the fault on Goodman Meigs, that he was the more slight in it through his encouragement, who said to him, 'Flap them up: they are to go far enough.' In this statement be was confirmed by two witnesses, who had heard Meigs say to him, "Flap them up together: they are to go far enough.'"

Goodman Meigs being called to propound his damage, instanced five particulars: 1st damage to his name; 2d, damage to Mr. Evance, to whom he had engaged himself to supply him with these goods for exportation to the value of thirty pounds sterling; 3d, damage in having his wares turned back upon his hands, Mr. Evance having refused to accept them; 4th, hinderance in his trade, people having on account of these shoes shunned to buy any wares of him; 5th money paid several men for satisfaction.

The plaintiff and defendant professing, upon the Court's demand, that they had no more to say, and the court considering the case as it had been presented, debated, and proved, found them both faulty. Goodman Gregory had transgressed rules of righteousness, both in reference to the country and to Goodman Meigs, though his fault to Goodman Meigs is the more excusable because of that encouragement Goodman Meigs gave him to be slight in his workmanship; though he should not have taken any encouragement to do evil, and should have complained to some magistrate, and not have wrought such leather in such a manner into shoes, by which the country, or whomsoever wears them, must be deceived. But the greater fault and guilt lies upon John Meigs for putting such untanned, horny, unserviceable leather into shoes, and for encouraging Goodman Gregory to slight workmanship upon a motive that the shoes were to go far enough, as if rules of righteousness reached not other places and countries.."⁽⁵⁾

Meigs was determined to be most at fault and was fined £10. The shoes were ordered to be burnt. Gregory was fined £5 and had to pay the charges of the court. He was also forbidden to charge Meigs for the work done.

John Meigs left New Haven and purchased a £100 allotment in Hammonassett (Guilford) CT on March 3, 1753/4. Early Court records of Guilford contain these references to John Meigs.

On December 4, 1657 John Meigs was charges with having come "with his cart from Athomonossock, late in the night on the Lord's Day, making noise, as he came with his cart, to the offence of many yt. heard it." He pleaded that he mistook the time of day and that it was later than he thought. He said he was sorry for the mistake and promised to be more careful in the future. "The court "seeing the matter seemed to be done upon a surprisall," passed it over with a reproof and commanded him to make "a publique acknowledgement of his evill on the next lecture or fast day."⁽⁶⁾

In another case that same year, John Meigs sued Chapman and Parker because their hogs broke down his fence and ate his corn, claiming that he had "fenced his land at Athamonossock, w^th such an orderly fence, as was sufficient to keep out great cattell; yet the Defendant's hoggs came into his field & destroyed his corne." The court ruled that the fence was not sufficient and recommended that Chapman and Parker make "in a neighborly way" some compensation "that amity & good agreement might be the better maintained betwixt the persons & Towns of Seabrooke and Guilford as formerly."⁽⁷⁾

In 1662 when the Colony of New Haven was incorporated into the Colony of Connecticut, John Meigs was chosen as constable over those submitting to the new Connecticut Charter. Protests to the General Court in Hartford in May 1663, resulted in the Court's reaffirming its appointment of Rob: Usher and John Meggs as Constables "ouer those that haue submitted to this government in there respectiue Plantations untill the Court see cause to alter otherwise." ⁽⁸⁾

The dissention between those who remained loyal to New Haven and those who adhered to Connecticut, led to the removal of many from Guilford to Killingworth, among them John Meigs. By 1665, he had left Guilford and was listed as a Freeman of Killingworth. He remained there until his death in 1671/2.

Children of John² Meigs and Tamazine Fry were as follows:

6 i. Mary³ Meigs; born 1633 Dorset; married William Stevens 3 Mar 1652/53 Guilford, New Haven, MA; died 30 Apr 1703 Killingworth, Middlesex, CT.

7 ii. Elizabeth Meigs; born 1635 Dorset; married Richard Hubbell 1650.

8 iii. Concurrence Meigs; married Henry Crane; died 9 Oct 1708.

+ 9 iv. John Meigs, born 29 Feb 1639/40 Weymouth, MA; married Sarah Wilcoxson; married Lydia Thompson.

10 v. Tyral Meigs; married Andrew Ward; born 1646 MA; died 1690.

Generation Three

9. John³ Meigs (John², Vincent¹); born 29 Feb 1639/40 Weymouth, MA; married Sarah Wilcoxson, daughter of William Wilcoxson and Margaret Birdsey, 1 Mar 1665/66; married Lydia Thompson after 1691; died 9 Nov 1713 at age 73.

John Meigs, Jr. was born in Weymouth, Massachusetts on February 29, 1639/40 and came to Connecticut with his father. He married Sarah Wilcoxson on May 1, 1665/6 in Killingworth, Connecticut. She was the daughter of William Wilcoxson and Margaret Birdsey.

Soon after his father's death, John Meigs, Jr., returned to Guilford and settled in the east part of the town (now Madison). His wife Sarah died in 1691 and sometime thereafter he married Lydia Thompson. In 1694, The Rev. Mr. Jared Eliot died and a committee of five, including John Meigs, was appointed "to take care, as our present case requires, for sanctifying the Sabbath & to take what advice and discretion may be given by those proper to give advice, in such a case as ours is for supply in the ministry."⁽⁹⁾

Because the Madison area of Guilford was closer to Killingworth than to Gilford, several citizens petitioned the court in October of 1695 to be allowed to pay "what rate shall be raysed upon them towards the mayntenance of the ministry to Kenilworth (Killingworth) ministry and not to Guilford because of the remotness of their dwellings from the worship of God viz. five miles farther from Guilford than to Kenilworth. . . ." Their petition was granted provided "they make up their acco^ts and pay what is due from them to Guilford ministry for the time past. . . ."⁽¹⁰⁾ He was elected a deacon of the Second Church and Society of Guilford in East Guilford (now the First Church and Society in Madison) in 1696 and served until his death in 1713.

When the town of Guilford received a new charter in 1703, John Meigs was listed as one of the proprietors of the township of Guilford. He died on November 9, 1713.

Children of John³ Meigs and Sarah Wilcoxson were as follows:

11 i. Sarah⁴ Meigs; born 14 Feb 1666/67; married Daniel Bartlett 11 Jan 1685/86; died 8 Apr 1688 at age 21.

+ 12 ii. John Meigs, born 11 Nov 1670; married Rebecca Hand.

+ 13 iii. Janna Meigs, born 27 Dec 1672; married Hannah Willard.

14 iv. Ebenezer Meigs; born 19 Sep 1675; married Mercy Weeks 7 Oct 1700; died 1711.

15 v. Hannah Meigs; married Jeremiah Foster; born 25 Feb 1677/78.

16 vi. Hester Meigs; born 10 Nov 1680.

17 vii. Mindwell Meigs; born 1682; married Samuel Crittendon 8 Oct 1702; died 31 Mar 1762.

There were no children of John³ Meigs and Lydia Thompson.

Generation Four

13. Janna⁴ Meigs (John³, John², Vincent¹); born 27 Dec 1672; married Hannah Willard, daughter of Josiah Willard and Hannah Hosmer, 18 May 1698 Guilford, New Haven, CT; died 5 Jun 1739 East Guilford, New Haven, CT, at age 66; buried circa 7 Jun 1739 Hammonasset Cemetery.

Janna Meigs was born on December 27, 1672 in Guilford where he married Hannah Willard on May 18, 1698. He was a prominent citizen of Guilford and served in many capacities. On May 11, 1710 he was chosen by the Assembly in Hartford as Ensign of the Company or trainband in the village of East Guilford. As a member of the Assembly in 1718 he was appointed by the Governour as one of those who was to receive and count the votes. In 1718 Yale College recovered a number of books from the home of Mr. Daniel Buckingham of Saybrook. The Sheriff was ordered to remove the books and convey them to the home of Janna Meigs where a representative of the college was to collect them. Janna was a part of a committee which in October 1721 was ordered to lay out the bounds of a proposed parish. In May 1722, he was appointed a Justice of the Peace for the County of New Haven, and reappointed to that post in 1723 every year until 1735. Elected Deputy to the General Court in Hartford in 1716, 1717, 1718, and 1726.

In those days, the Sabbath services customarily met all day. At noon, the parisheners sought some warm place to have their noon day meal - the meeting houses being at that time unheated. Some parishes built nooning houses, and sometimes individuals built their own "Sabbath house." Janna Meigs was one of those who built a Sabbath house for his own use. In 1737 a new meeting house was proposed for East Guilford, and the site recommended was a place on the Green, midway between the old one and "Capt. Janna Meigs' house set up for said Meiggs's convenience on sabbath days."⁽¹¹⁾ He died two years later on June 5, 1739, and his funeral sermon, which was published, was preached on June 10 by Jonathan Todd.

He was endued with that natural capacity, necessary to make a great and useful man; which was improved by a pious education under the care of his parents, and recommended by many agreeable qualifications. He was the He was endued with that natural capacity, necessary to make a great and useful man; which was improved by a pious refore taken notice of, as one capable of public service...and was therefore promoted to civil and military honors and offices among us. He hath been a father unto us, the leader of our public affairs; and rendered himself very useful unto us: The gentleman hath been conspicuous in him--his conversation was pleasant and improving. And his natural temper helped to recommend him to the love and affections of his acquaintances, which was the serious and the grave tempered with the cheerful. He was a pleasant companion to the wife, and a generous friend.

Children of Janna⁴ Meigs and Hannah Willard were as follows:

18 i. Janna⁵ Meigs; born 17 Apr 1699; married Elizabeth Dudley 13 May 1724 Guilford, New Haven, CT; died 12 Feb 1772 at age 72.

19 ii. Josiah Meigs; born 14 May 1701; married Mary Hand 14 Jun 1727 Guilford, New Haven, CT; died 26 Dec 1774 at age 73.

20 iii. Jehiel Meigs; born 11 Jun 1703; married Lucy Bartlett 27 Sep 1736 Guilford, New Haven, CT; died 23 May 1780 at age 76.

21 iv. Hannah Meigs; born 13 Aug 1705; died 20 May 1727 at age 21.

+ 22 v. Return Meigs, born 16 Mar 1707/8 Middletown, CT; married Elizabeth Hamlin; married Jane Doane.

23 vi. Hester Meigs; born 19 Dec 1709; married Stephen Bishop 28 Nov 1733 Guilford, New Haven, CT.

24 vii. Silence Meigs; born 5 Jan 1711/12; died 9 Jan 1711/12.

25 viii. Submit Meigs; born 5 Jan 1711/12; died 16 Jan 1711/12.

26 ix. Timothy Meigs; born 19 Sep 1713; married Mary French 27 Sep 1735 Guilford, New Haven, CT; died 14 Sep 1751 at age 37.

27 x. Eunice Meigs; born 19 Oct 1715.

Generation Five

22. Return⁵ Meigs (Janna⁴, John³, John², Vincent¹); born 16 Mar 1707/8 Guilford, CT; married Elizabeth Hamlin, daughter of John Hamlin and Elizabeth Partridge, 1 Feb 1732/33 Middletown, Middlesex, CT; married Jane Doane 25 Mar 1763; died 27 Jun 1782 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, at age 74; buried after 27 Jun 1782 Indian Hill Cemetery, Middletown, Middlesex, CT.

Return Meigs was born in Guilford, CT on Mar 16, 1707/8. He removed to Middletown and established himself as a hatter sometime before 1732/3 when he married there Elizabeth Hamlin. In March of that year, Giles Hamlin, brother of Elizabeth, chose Return Meigs as his guardian. He was appointed Lieutenant of the second company or trainband in the 6th Regiment of the Colony in May 1745. He was chosen the Middletown Representative to the Assembly in October 1747. Few other records relating to Return Meigs have been found other than numerous estate records in which he was named as one of the distributors. Infant mortality was high in this period and their first four children died before age 3. In all they had 13 children, and only 4, all male, reached maturity.

Elizabeth Hamlin Meigs died in September 1762, and Return then married Jane Doane. There were no children of this second marriage.

The story of the origins of his name has been handed down through the generations, and frequently has become confused. It is said that Janna Meigs had persistently asked his sweetheart, Hannah Willard, for her hand only to be repeatedly refused. He came one last time, was again refused, and turned to go saying he would not ask again. At this, the lady called to him to "Return and I will marry thee." Thus the name of one of their children.⁽¹²⁾ No one knows if the story is true or not, but it has appeared in many branches of the family, so one is inclined to believe some truth lies therein. Our own family, completely removed from contact with any other branch, evidently had the story handed down from Return Jonathan Meigs himself. I heard it from an aunt who had never in her life read any thing about the Meigs family. She got the story from her mother Eliza Vincent Callaway who heard it from her husband Alfred Marshell Callaway, the grandson of Grace Meigs Callaway.

Children of Return⁵ Meigs and Elizabeth Hamlin all born Middletown, Middlesex, CT, were as follows:

28 i. Elisha⁶ Meigs; born 15 Jan 1733/34; died 10 Oct 1736 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, at age 2.

29 ii. Janna Meigs; born 29 Sep 1735; died 4 Oct 1736 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, at age 1.

30 iii. Elizabeth Meigs; born 15 Jul 1737; died 16 Apr 1740 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, at age 2.

31 iv. Elisha Meigs; born 4 Oct 1739; died 22 Dec 1739 Middletown, Middlesex, CT.

+ 32 v. Return Jonathan Meigs, born 17 Dec 1740; married Joanna Winborn; married Grace Starr. [material about RJM will be added later]

33 vi. John Meigs; born 9 Oct 1742; died 28 Oct 1751 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, at age 9.

34 vii. Giles Meigs; born 29 Oct 1744; married Experience Allen 13 Oct 1768 Middletown, Middlesex, CT; died 7 Nov 1824 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, at age 80.

35 viii. Josiah Meigs; born 21 Nov 1746; died 29 Oct 1751 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, at age 4.

36 ix. Elizabeth Meigs; born 25 Jun 1748; died 4 Aug 1753 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, at age 5.

37 x. Timothy Meigs; born 28 Feb 1749/50; died 28 Oct 1751 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, at age 1.

38 xi. Hannah Meigs; born 21 Nov 1751; died 28 Jul 1753 Middletown, Middlesex, CT, age 1.

39 xii. John Meigs; born 21 Nov 1753; married Elizabeth Henshaw 18 Jan 1781 Middletown, Middlesex, CT; died 24 Nov 1826 at age 73.

40 xiii. Josiah Meigs, born 21 Aug 1757; married Clara Benjamin; died 4 Sep 1822 at age 65.

There were no children of Return⁵ Meigs and Jane Doane.

Footnotes

1. ____________, "Meigs, Vincent," Search for the Passengers of the Mary & John 1630, Vol 25, Part 1, p. 48. Will transcribed by Robin Bush.

2. ____________, "Strong, John," Search for the Passengers of the Mary & John 1630, Vol 17, Part 1, , p. 64.

3. The earliest stones in the cemetery are for twins Silence and Submit, daughters of Janna Meigs, who died shortly after birth in 1711.

4. New Haven Colonial Records, 1653-1665, pp. 449-50.

5. Edward E. Atwater, History of the Colony of New Haven To Its Absorption Into Connecticut,

6. Bernard Christian Steiner, A History of the Plantation of Menunkatuck and of the Original Town of Guilford Connecticut. . . (Baltimore: by the author, 1897), p. 88.

7. Steiner, p. 90.

8. J. Hammond Trumbull, ed., The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut, (Hartford: Brown & Parsons Publishers, 1850, v1, p. 405.

9. Steiner, p. 121.

10. J. Hammond Trumbull, ed., The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut (Hartford: Brown & Parsons Publishers, 1850), p. 4.

11. Trumbull, p. 246.

12. Aunt Irene Callaway thought it was Return Jonathan's father who was the suitor, and quoted it as "Return, Robert, and I will marry thee." However the father of the first Return was not named Robert.

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