The

Edgerton

Database

Index

Sources

Capt. Jabez Edgerton, son of Joseph and Experience (Pratt) Edgerton.

born:	July 2, 1722; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (VRp I:73)
died:	February 8, 1806; Tolland, Tolland Co., CT. (GI)
buried:	South Yard Cemetery; Tolland, Tolland Co., CT. (GI)

married:

October 19, 1752; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (Bozrah Cong. ChR 3:31)

Martha Willis, daughter of Henry and Martha (Kirtland) Willis.

born:	April 20, 1721; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (VRp I:92)
died:	September 9, 1800; Tolland, Tolland Co., CT. (GI)
buried:	South Yard Cemetery; Tolland, Tolland Co., CT. (GI)

Children:

Martha, b. January 8, 1755; Coventry; Tolland Co., CT.
infant son, b. ~1763, Tolland, Tolland Co., CT.

Jabez Edgerton was born in Norwich, Connecticut on July 2, 1722, the eighth child and youngest son of Joseph and Experience (Pratt) Edgerton. He grew up in the district of Norwich known as West Farms (now Franklin).

Jabez was married on October 19, 1752 at the Bozrah Congregational Church to Martha Willis, daughter of the Rev. Henry and Martha (Kirtland) Willis, also of Norwich. Martha was born in Norwich on April 20, 1721. Shortly after their marriage, Jabez and Martha removed north to Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut. A daughter, Martha, was recorded there on January 8, 1755.

The family did not reside very long in Coventry. By 1757, Jabez had settled with his family in Tolland, Connecticut where he remained for the rest of his life. Daughter Martha died in Tolland on November 19, 1757, aged 2 years, and was buried at the South Yard Cemetery there. Her gravestone was inscribed: “Here lieth the Body of Martha Daughter to Mr. Jabes & Martha Edgerton who died Novembr ye 19th 1757 in the 2d year of her Age”. A second stone in the same plot bears the following inscription: “Here lies an Infant son to Jabes & Martha Edgerton who Died February ye 2d 1764.” These are the only children known for Jabez and Martha Edgerton.

Jabez Edgerton was listed as a head of household in the 1790 Federal Census of Tolland County, Connecticut. His household consisted of:

1 male “of 16 years and upward” (Jabez);

1 male “under 16 years of age” (?); and,

2 females (wife Martha and ?).

The household of Jabez Edgerton was recorded in the 1800 Federal Census of Tolland, Tolland County, Connecticut (pg. 621), with the following enumeration:

1 male “over 45 years of age” (Jabez);

1 female “over 45 years of age” (wife Martha); and,

1 female “of 26 and under 45” (?).

Jabez was referred to in several deeds and on his gravestone as a Captain, but the details of his military career are not known. He may have been active during the French and Indian Wars, when he would have been in his mid-to-late thirties. He was in his late fifties during the Revolution.

Mrs. Martha (Willis) Edgerton died in Tolland, Connecticut on September 9, 1800. She was buried beside her two children at South Yard Cemetery in Tolland, where her gravestone was inscribed: “Mrs. Martha, consort of Capt. Jabez Edgerton died Sept. 9th, 1800, in the 80th Year of her age”.

Jabez Edgerton survived his wife only five and a half years. He died at Tolland, Connecticut on February 8, 1806. His gravestone at South Yard Cemetery bears the inscription: “Capt. Jabez Edgerton died Feb. 8th, 1806 in the 84th Year of his age”.

Upon his death, Jabez Edgerton left no children. A distribution of his estate was made on November 13, 1806, dividing his lands and property among his surviving nieces and nephews, that is, “Hezekiah Edgerton, Anna Avery, Sarah Buel and Daniel Edgerton” (children of his brother Hezekiah), “Zerviah Abell, Elisha Edgerton and Abel Edgerton” (children of his brother Elisha), “Hezekiah, Elisha and Jedediah Lane” (children of his sister Experience), and “Hannah Stark” (daughter of his brother Joseph). The distribution included various lands in Tolland, as well as property in Coventry, Connecticut, Tyringham, Massachusetts (Berkshire Co.), Pittsford, Vermont (Rutland Co.), and Philadelphia, Vermont.