The

Edgerton

Database

Index

Sources

William Henry Edgerton, son of William and Sarah (Morgan) Edgerton.

born:	1824; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (GI)
died:	March 21, 1897; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (VR 18:81)
buried:	Yantic Cemetery; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (GI)

married:

November 23, 1859; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (VR 9:209)

Mary Jane Mott, daughter of Samuel Rockwell and Melinda Lucretia (Gavit) Mott.

born:	1829; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (GI)
died:	November 14, 1892; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (VR 16:398)
buried:	Yantic Cemetery; Norwich, New London Co., CT. (GI)

William Henry Edgerton was born at Norwich, Connecticut in the year 1824, the son of William and Sarah (Morgan) Edgerton. Currently, there is no known record of his precise date of birth. The year listed here is provided by the inscription on his gravestone at Yantic Cemetery. William Henry Edgerton appears to have gone principally by his middle name. The vast majority of records refer to him merely as “Henry Edgerton”. The only known reference to his given name is from his death record (Norwich VR 18:81), which lists him as “William H. Edgerton”.

William Henry Edgerton was a painter by trade and resided in Norwich for the entirety of his life. He was married at Norwich on November 23, 1859 to Mrs. Mary Jane (Mott) Palmer, daughter of Samuel Rockwell and Melinda Lucretia (Gavit) Mott of Norwich. Mary had been previously married to Cyrus Denison Palmer, with whom she had one child: a daughter, Mary Alphera, born at Norwich circa 1847. Mary was granted a divorce from Cyrus on December 3, 1853. The divorce application cited grounds as “desertion” and reported that Cyrus was “now of New York City”.

The household of “Henry Edgerton” was recorded in the 1860 Federal Census of Norwich, New London County, Connecticut (pg. 835; dwelling #366; family #431; enum. June 26, 1860), as follows:

Henry Edgerton	35	b. CT	painter
Mary J.	38	b. CT	housekeeper
Alphera	12	b. CT	attended school
Malinda Mott	60	b. CT

This census record states that Henry and Mary were married within the year; therefore, the daughter, “Alphera Edgerton”, listed here was probably either an adopted daughter or a stepdaughter (ie. daughter of his wife, Mary).

The household of “Henry Edgerton” was recorded in the 1870 Federal Census of Norwich (Ward 4), New London County, Connecticut (pg. 625; dwelling #152; family #182-183; enum. July 13, 1870), as follows:

Henry Edgerton	43	b. CT	works at house painting $700 real estate / $100 personal estate
Mary	40	b. CT	keeping house
Lucretia Mott	70	b. CT	keeping house

The household of “Henry Edglo” was recorded in the 1880 Federal Census of Norwich, New London County, Connecticut (pg. 286; dwelling #191; family #239; enum. June 7, 1880), as follows:

Name	Rel.	Age	Bp	F Bp	M Bp	Occ
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Henry Edglo		50	CT	CT	CT	Painter
Mary J.	wife	??	CT	RI	CT	Keeping house
Melinda Mott	m-i-l	89	CT	CT	CT	Nurse

Mrs. Mary Jane (Mott) Edgerton died at Norwich, Connecticut on November 14, 1892. The record of her death at Norwich (VR 16:398) provides the following particulars:

Name:	Mary J. Edgerton, nee Mott
Date of death:	November 14, 1892
Place of death:	Norwich Town
Marital Status:	Married, wife of Henry Edgerton
Age:	63 years
Birthplace:	Norwich
Father:	Samuel Mott (b. Norwich)
Mother:	Melinda (b. Westerly, R.I.)
Cause of death:	Heart Disease

William Henry Edgerton survived his wife four and a half years. He died at Norwich, Connecticut on March 21, 1897. The record of his death at Norwich (VR 18:81) provides the following particulars:

Name:	William H. Edgerton
Date of death:	March 21, 1897
Place of death:	West Town Street
Marital Status:	widower
Age:	70 years
Occupation:	Painter
Father:	William (b. Norwich, Ct.)
Mother:	Sarah (b. Norwich, Ct.)
Cause of death:	chronic heart disease – pneumonia

William Henry Edgerton and his wife were buried adjacent to each other at Yantic Cemetery in Norwich, Connecticut. The gravestone inscriptions there record the respective years of their births and deaths.

Original Source Documents:

1860 Federal Census – household of William Henry Edgerton; Norwich, New London Co., CT.

1870 Federal Census – household of William Henry Edgerton; Norwich (Ward 4), New London Co., CT.

1880 Federal Census – household of William Henry Edgerton; Norwich, New London Co., CT.