The Edgerton Database |
Joshua Edgerton, son of Samuel and Alice (Ripley) Edgerton.
Ruth Kingsbury, daughter of Joseph and Ruth (Denison) Kingsbury.
Children:
Joshua Edgerton, third son of Samuel and Alice (Ripley) Edgerton, was born at Norwich, Connecticut on February 26, 1707/8. He was a farmer and planter and resided in Norwich throughout his life, in the “West Farms” district which was later to become the township of Franklin. Joshua was married to Ruth Kingsbury on January 28, 1734/5 at the Franklin Congregational Church in Norwich. Ruth was the daughter of Joseph and Ruth (Denison) Kingsbury, who had come to Norwich from Haverhill, Massachusetts circa 1710. Ruth was born in Norwich on February 24, 1712/3. Joshua and Ruth had twelve children – eight sons and four daughters. The family was fully recorded in the Vital Records of Norwich (VRp I:161 and I:397).They were members of the Franklin Congregational Church, of which Joshua’s father, Samuel, had been one of the original petitioners in 1716. Ruth Edgerton was admitted to the Church on April 11, 1736, “on profession” (ChR 1:28); Joshua was admitted on September 6, 1741, also “on profession” (ChR 1:29). Only the first five children are recorded among the baptisms at the Franklin Church; so it is possible that the family changed affiliation sometime after 1744. Ruth (Kingsbury) Edgerton died at Norwich (Franklin), Connecticut on November 13, 1769. By this time four of her children had predeceased her (Margaret, Deliverance, Andrew and Ruth). She was buried at the Old Franklin Plains Cemetery in the plot where her children had been interred. The inscription on her headstone reads: “Ruth, wife of Joshua Edgerton, died Nov. 13, 1769, aged 56 years”. On June 25, 1776, Joshua Edgerton wrote his Last Will and Testament, in which he mentions his six surviving children – “ownly daughter” Anne, and five sons, Sims, Samuel, Eleazer, Uriah, and Joseph Kingsbury – as well as the four children of his deceased eldest son, Joshua. The will was proved on March 17, 1779, before Ebenezer Hartshorn, Justice of the Peace. Joshua Edgerton died at Norwich (Franklin), Connecticut on March 6, 1779, and was buried in the Old Franklin Plains Cemetery beside his wife, Ruth. The inscription on his headstone records hims as “Joshua Edgerton, died Mar. 6, 1779, aged 70 years”. Original Source Documents: Gravestone photo – Mrs. Ruth (Kingsbury) Edgerton; Old Franklin Plains Cemetery; Franklin, New London Co., CT. |