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- [S520] Booth, Walter Sherman, Genealogy of the Booth family in England and the United States, 17-18.
Jonathan Booth (John, Richard) was born at Stratford the winter of 1681-2, and married Hester, daughter of Samuel Galpin, 1703, and after the birth of his two oldest sons, he, with his cousin Ebeuezer, journeyed to Newtown in 1707-8, following up the Housatonic River to where the tribe of Pohtatuck Indians lived, and purchased of them an extensive tract, about two miles west of the river, on part of which the village of Newtown was afterwards laid out and built. They immediately commenced to clear the forests of the land for cultivation, returning next year to prepare dwellings before they moved their families.
From Jonathan and his cousin, Ebenezer Booth, all the Booths of Newtown have descended, and there is scarcely an old family name in the limits of the town but what can (by intermarriage) trace their lineage back to them, as, for instance, the Beers, Nichols, Hawleys, Glovers, and many others. His youngest son, Jonathan, built a house on the old homestead, nearly in front of his father's, in 1740. This dwelling was covered with cypress shingles ; those on the roof lasted 80 years before renewal, and the bricks used in the construction of the chimney were brought from Holland. The plastering was done by an Indian and the ring composed of mortar in the ceiling of the parlor was considered a great piece of art in those days. This house remained until a few years ago ; it was removed to the opposite side of the street, to give place to the more modern structure, now on its site. These early settlers, brave in enduring hardships, with persevering industry and contented dispositions, laid the foundation of prosperity, which later generations of Newtown are now enjoying.
Jonathan Booth was buried near the center of Newtown Burying Ground, and his moss-covered, reddish gravestone reads as follows: " In memory of Mr. Jonathan Booth. He died February 8, A. D. 1755, aged 73 years." The grave of Hester, his wife, lies by his side, but the inscription on her gravestone is only partially legible. Jonathan Booth's children were:
i. Daniel,4 born Jan. 12, 1704, (see his history hereafter),
ii. Abel, born July 15, 1707; married and had nine children, viz: Ann,
who married a Dibble, of Danbury, Hezekiah, Damans, who married
Jared Baldwin, Abel, Abiel, Rebecca, who married a Toucey,
and Esther, who married Ebenezer Smith, of Brookfield.
iii. Ann, born April 15, 1710; married Nathaniel Nichols December,
1732-3; had four sons, Richard, Peter, Theophilus and Elijah.
Richard had Austin and Daniel. Peter had Lemuel, Nathaniel, Sarah,
Polly, Rebecca and two more daughters ; Sarah married Hull Booth:
Polly married Lamson Birch; Rebecca married Simeon Beers. Theophilus
had Abel, James, Sarah Ann and Booth. Elijah had David,
Joseph and Charles.
iv. Jonathan, born June 10, 1715; married, and had five sons, viz:
Reuben, Joseph, David, Zalmon and Jonathan. Reuben had Smith
and Hull; Hull had Reuben and David. Jonathan had Zalmon.
v. Mabel, born Dec. 13, 1722; married Daniel Beers, and had Jerusha,
Cyrus, David, Daniel, Austin, Esther and Mabel. Jerusha married
Webb Tomlinson, and had Sally, Eli, Beers, Abel, Mabel, Polly,
Joseph, Sophia and Abigail. David had Ammon, Samuel, Booth,
Amos, Cyrus, Luther, Sally, Betsey, Charles; Betsey married Cabel
Baldwin. Esther married Caleb Bennett, and had Abel, James and
Sarah Ann. Mabel married John Beach, and had Luc3', Anna,
Mathew, Boyle, John and Phoebe; Lucy married James Nichols;
Anna married a Sheldon.
- [S337] Connecticut Town Birth Records, pre-1870 (Barbour Collection), Ancestry.com, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations Inc; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2006;), Database online. Record for Abel Booth, 15 Jul 1707.
Name: Abel Booth
Gender: Male
Birth Date: 15 Jul 1707
Birth Location: New Milford
Parent Name: Jonathan
Parent Name: Hester
- [S408] Connecticut, Deaths and Burials Index, 1650-1934, Ancestry.com, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2011;), Database online. Record for Abel Booth, 10 Apr 1774.
Name: Abel Booth
Birth Date: abt 1707
Age at Death: 67
Death Date: 10 Apr 1774
Death Place: Connecticut
Gender: Male
FHL Film Number: 3354
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