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Joseph Edgerton, son of Joseph and Lucy (Lyon) Edgerton.

Candace Rice, daughter of Moses and Ruth (Pierce) Rice.

Children:

1. Oliver, b. July 25, 1795; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
2. Erastus, b. November 6, 1796; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
3. Joseph, b. September 15, 1798; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
4. Candace, b. December 22, 1799; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
5. Elias R., b. 1802; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
6. Wells, b. March 8, 1805; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
7. Sophronia, b. September 17, 1806; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
8. Dexter, b. October 19, 1809; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
9. Orric, b. April 25, 1810; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
10. Austin, b. April 25, 1810; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.
11. Ruth, b. June 5, 1812; Charlemont, Franklin Co., MA.

Joseph Edgerton III was born at Norwich, Connecticut on October 29, 1770, the third son and fourth child of Joseph and Lucy (Lyon) Edgerton.  He was baptized at the Bozrah Congregational Church on November 18, 1770.  During his childhood, Joseph’s parents removed from Connecticut and settled in the town of Hawley, in Franklin County (then Hampshire County), Massachusetts.

Joseph Edgerton was married on January 9, 1795 at Charlemont, Massachusetts to Candace Rice, daughter of Moses and Ruth (Pierce) Rice, of Charlemont.  Candace was born in Charlemont on April 21, 1770.  Joseph and Candace settled in her hometown, where they raised a large family of eleven children.  The family was fully recorded in the Vital Records of Charlemont, Massachusetts, excepting only the birth of one son, Elias.  Two of the children – daughter Sophronia and son Dexter – died in infancy.

The household of Joseph “Adjatent” was recorded in the 1800 Federal Census of Charlemont, Franklin County (then Hampshire County), Massachusetts, with the following enumeration:

1 male “of 16 and under 26”  (Joseph – actually aged 29);

3 males “under 10 years of age”  (sons Oliver, Erastus and Joseph);

1 female “of 16 and under 26”  (wife Candace – actually aged 30); and,

1 female “under 10 years of age”  (daughter Candace).

 “Adjatent” was a common misspelling of the surname Edgerton.  It occurs quite often in early census records (also “Adjudant”, “Adjadent”, etc) and was no doubt a phonetic rendering of the name.  Joseph’s elder brother, Darius, was listed in the 1800 Hampshire County Census as, “Darious Adjatent”.

The household of “J. Edgerton” was recorded in the 1810 Federal Census of Charlemont, Franklin County (then Hampshire County), Massachusetts (pg. 724), with the following enumeration:

1 male “of 26 and under 45”  (Joseph);

3 males “of 10 and under 16”  (sons Oliver, Erastus and Joseph);

4 males “under 10 years of age”  (sons Elias, Wells, Orric and Austin);

1 female “of 26 and under 45”  (wife Candace); and,

1 female “under 10 years of age”  (daughter Candace).

Circa 1815, Joseph Edgerton removed with his family to the town Brecksville, in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, just south of the present city of Cleveland.  He resided there for the remainder of his life. 

The household of Joseph Edgerton was recorded in the 1820 Federal Census of Brecksville, Cuyahoga County, Ohio (pg. 52), with the following enumeration:

1 male “of 45 years and upwards”  (Joseph);

4 males “of 16 and under 26”  (sons Oliver, Erastus, Joseph and Elias);

1 male “between 16 and 18”  (son Elias);

3 males “of 10 and under 16”  (sons Wells, Orric and Austin);

1 female “of 45 years and upwards”  (wife Candace); and,

1 female “under 10 years of age”  (daughter Ruth).

The household of Joseph Edgerton was recorded in the 1830 Federal Census of Brecksville, Cuyahoga County, Ohio (pg. 134), with the following enumeration:

1 male “of 50 and under 60”  (Joseph);

3 males “of 30 and under 40”  (sons Oliver, Erastus and Joseph);

1 male “of 20 and under 30”  (son Elias or Wells);

1 female “of 60 and under 70”  (wife Candace); and,

1 female “of 15 and under 20”  (daughter Ruth).

The household of Joseph Edgerton was recorded in the the 1840 Federal Census of Brecksville, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, with the following enumeration:

1 male “60 and under 70”  (Joseph);

1 male “40 and under 50”  (?);

3 males “30 and under 40”  (sons Elias, Austin and Orric); and,

1 female “70 and under 80”  (wife Candace).

Joseph Edgerton died at Brecksville, Ohio on September 16, 1849, aged seventy-eight years.  He was buried at the Rice Cemetery (aka “Barr Cemetery”) in Brecksville, where many of his children and descendants were later interred. 

Joseph Edgerton, “of Brecksville, Ohio”, left a Last Will and Testament, dated September 11, 1849 and proved on October 5, 1849 (see Cuyahoga County Probate, Common Pleas Probate, Docket A, Case 1279).  The will mentioned his wife (though not by name) and son Austin Edgerton.  Austin Edgerton was executor of the will, which was witnessed by S. W. Oakes and Wm. Richardson.

Mrs. Candace (Rice) Edgerton survived her husband four years.  She died at Brecksville, Ohio on May 12, 1853, aged eighty-three years, and was buried at Rice Cemetery.

Original Source Documents:

1800 Federal Census – household of Joseph Edgerton; Charlemont, Franklin (then Hampshire) Co., MA.

1810 Federal Census – household of Joseph Edgerton; Charlemont, Franklin (then Hampshire) Co., MA.

1820 Federal Census – household of Joseph Edgerton; Brecksville, Cuyahoga Co., OH.

1830 Federal Census – household of Joseph Edgerton; Brecksville, Cuyahoga Co., OH.

1840 Federal Census – household of Joseph Edgerton; Brecksville, Cuyahoga Co., OH.

For the ancestry of Candace (Rice) Edgerton, consult:

• A Genealogical History of the Rice Family; Boston, Massachusetts, 1858.