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Roswell Edgerton, son of Sims and Lucretia (Horsford) Edgerton.

 

born:

March 14, 1767; Norwich, New London Co., CT.  (VRp I:415)

bapt:

March 22, 1767; First Cong. Church; Norwich, New London Co., CT.  (ChR 2:157)

died:

May 12, 1837; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.  (GI)

buried:

Wright Settlement Cemetery; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.  (GI)

 

married:

March 29, 1790; Stamford, Bennington Co., VT.  (FG3)

 

Sarah Selden, daughter of Thomas and Jane (Ferrand) Selden.

 

born:

June 12, 1770; Amherst, Hampshire Co., MA.  (FG3)

died:

December 7, 1846; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.  (GI)

buried:

Wright Settlement Cemetery; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.   (GI)

 

Children:

  1. Emily Theresa, b. December 24, 1790; Bennington, Bennington Co., VT.
  2. Sims, b. April 26, 1792; Stamford, Bennington Co., VT.
  3. Thomas Selden, b. November 5, 1793; Stamford, Bennington Co., VT.
  4. Amorilla, b. July 1, 1796; Burlington, Chittenden Co., VT.
  5. Lorenzo, b. May 14, 1799; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.
  6. Orrin, b. May 4, 1801; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.
  7. Hiram, b. September 30, 1802; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.
  8. Gideon Eleazer, b. June 16, 1806; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.
  9. Ebenezer William, b. April 20, 1809; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.

 


Roswell Edgerton was born at Norwich, Connecticut on March 14, 1767, the second-eldest son of Sims and Lucretia (Horsford) Edgerton.  He was baptized at the First Congregational Church of Norwich the following week – on March 22nd. 

 

Roswell was raised in Norwich.  His father, Sims, died when Roswell was fifteen years old, and upon his maturity, Roswell removed from Norwich to Bennington County, Vermont, where two of his uncles – Eleazer and Uriah – had previously settled.  He was married at Stamford on March 29, 1790 to Sarah Selden, daughter of Thomas and Jane (Ferrand) Selden, formerly of Amherst, Massachusetts.  Sarah was born at Amherst on June 12, 1770.

 

Roswell and Sarah resided initially in Bennington and Stamford, where their three eldest children were born.

 

The household of “Roswell Edgeton” was recorded in the 1790 Federal Census of Stamford, Bennington County, Vermont (pg. 23) as follows:

 

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

2 females  (wife Sarah, and daughter Emily).

 

Roswell’s fourth child, daughter Amorilla, is said to have been born at Burlington, Vermont (FG3), which is located much farther north in the state, but this may be an error.  There does not appear to be any record of Roswell Edgerton in Burlington or its vicinity at this time.  At any rate, by 1799 the family had permanently settled in Rome, Oneida County, New York, where the youngest five children – all sons – were born.

 

The household of “Rozel Edgerton” was recorded in the 1800 Federal Census of Rome, Oneida County, New York (pg. 205), as follows:

 

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

3 males “under 10 years of age”  (sons Sims, Thomas and Lorenzo);

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

2 females “under 10 years of age”  (daughters Emily and Amorilla).

 

The household of “R. Edgerton” was recorded in the 1810 Federal Census of Rome, Oneida County, New York (pg. 463), as follows:

 

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

1 male “of 16 and under 26”  (son Sims);

2 males “of 10 and under 16”  (sons Thomas and Lorenzo);           

4 males “under 10 years of age”  (sons Orrin, Hiram, Gideon and Ebenezer);

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

2 females “of 16 and under 26”  (?); and

1 female “of 10 and under 16”  (daughter Amorilla).

 

The household of Roswell Edgerton was recorded again in the 1820 Federal Census of Rome, Oneida County, New York (pg. 118).  At that time, the enumeration of the family was as follows:

 

2 males “of 45 years and upwards”  (Roswell and ?);

2 males “of 26 and under 45”  (sons Sims and Thomas);

3 males “of 18 and under 26”  (sons Lorenzo and Orrin, and  ?);

1 males “of 16 and under 18”  (son Hiram);

2 males “of 10 and under 16”  (sons Gideon and Ebenezer);

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

1 female “of 10 and under 16”  (?).

 

The household of Roswell Edgerton was recorded in the 1830 Federal Census of Rome, Oneida County, New York (pg. 403), with the following enumeration:

 

1 male “of 60 and under 70”  (Roswell);

2 males “of 20 and under 30”  (sons Gideon and Ebenezer);

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

1 female “of 15 and under 20”  (?).

 

Roswell’s five elder sons were out on their own by this time.  Hiram was residing adjacent to his father (probably on the same farm); his household was enumerated directly after Roswell’s on the census roll.  The households of Thomas and Lorenzo were recorded elsewhere in Rome; and Orrin was listed as a head of household in Utica (also in Oneida County).  The only son not accounted for in the 1830 Census was the eldest son, Sims, then a widower.

 

Roswell Edgerton died at Rome, New York on May 12, 1837; and his wife, Sarah, died at Rome on December 7, 1846.  They were both buried at the Wright Settlement Cemetery in Rome.  Most of Roswell and Sarah’s children resided in Rome for a number of years and raised their families there.  A number of the sons later moved west – Sims, Thomas and Hiram to Wisconsin, Lorenzo to Minnesota, and Gideon to Michigan.

 

The Portrait and Biographical Album of Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin (Chicago, Illinois: Acme Publishing Co.; 1889; pp. 253) provides the following biographical excerpt regarding Roswell Edgerton:

 

“In early life Roswell Edgerton removed to Bennington, Vt., and although but sixteen years of age at the commencement of the Revolutionary War he enlisted, and participated in the battle of Bennington, under Gen. Stark.  By occupation he was a carpenter and joiner, which business he followed throughout the greater part of his life.  He was a man of high moral character, with many friends, and but few enemies.  He died in the faith of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he was for many years a member, in April, 1837, and was buried in the Wright settlement, in New York.  His wife survived him some years, dying in December, 1846, and was laid to rest by the side of her husband.  Nine children were born to that worthy couple – Theresa, Sims, Thomas S., Lorenzo, Orrin, Hiram, Gideon E., William and Marilla.  Of that once numerous family only two are yet living:  Gideon E., who resides in Macomb County, Mich.; and Hiram.”

 

For most of the vital statistics listed here regarding the family of Roswell and Sarah (Selden) Edgerton, we are indebted to Mrs. Harriet Polly (Stewart) Caulkins, a granddaughter of Roswell and Sarah, who gave a detailed affidavit in December 1916, relating to her family history.  A copy of this affidavit was later reprinted in Ina C. Dunwiddie’s Edgerton Family History (Beaver Dam, Wisconsin; 1952), from which the following transcript is derived:

 

“I, Harriet Polly Caulkins, residing at Rome, Ny. as the widow of Rev. Cyrus H. Caulkins to whom I was married on September 3, 1808.  My father was Jonathan Steward who was born in Vermont, November 3, 1785.  The said Jonathan Steward was married at Rome, Ny. in September of 1809, whose maiden name was Emily Theressa Edgerton.  The said Emily Theressa was born in Bennington, Vermont, December 24, 1790 and she was the daughter of Roswell Edgerton who was born in Norwich, Conn. March 14, 1767 and his wife, whose maiden name was Sarah Selden, to whom he was married at Stamford, Vermont, on March 29, 1790.  The said Sarah Selden was the daughter of Thomas Selden and his wife Jane Ferrand Selden.  My Grandfather and Grandmother, the said Roswell Edgerton and Sarah Selden were the parents of nine children whose names follow –

 

Emily Theressa – born 12-24-1790 Bennington, Vt.

Sims – born 4-26-1792 Stamford, Vt.

Thomas Selden – born 11-5-1793 Stamford, Vt.

Amorilla – born 7-1-1796 Burlington, Vt.

Lorenzo – born 5-14-1799 Rome, Ny.

Orin – born 5-4-1801 Rome, Ny.

Hiram – born 9-30-1802 Rome, Ny.

Gideon Eleazer – born 6-16-1806 Rome, Ny.

Ebenezer William – born 4-20-1809 Rome, Ny.

 

On May 11, 1878, I visited at the home of my uncle, Gideon Eleazer Edgerton, in Fraser, Macomb County, Mich. and I copied the foregoing names and dates from the old family Bible, which was formerly owned by grandfather Roswell Edgerton, and which at that time was in the possession of his son, Gideon Eleazer Edgerton.  I also, at the same time and from the same Bible, copied the following –

 

Roswell Edgerton and Sarah Selden married March 29, 1790 at Stamford, Vt.

Roswell, born March 14, 1767, at Norwich, Conn.

Sarah Selden, born June 12, 1770, at Amherst, Mass.

 

All the entries were in the handwriting of my grandfather Roswell Edgerton.  I remember both grandfather and grandmother, the said Roswell Edgerton and Sarah Selden, and had personal acquaintance with all of their children except Amorilla Edgerton, who died before I was born.  My grandfather Roswell died May 12, 1837, and my grandmother Sarah Selden died Dec. 7, 1746.  They were buried side by side in the Wright Settlement Cemeter in the Town of Rome, Ny.

 

Harriet Polly Caulkins  (signature)

 

Subscribed and Sworn to before me on this 14th day of December, 1916.

V.W. Lafountain, Notary Public, Oneida Co., NY”

 

The various descendant lines of Roswell and Sarah (Selden) Edgerton have been extensively researched and documented, first by Ina C. (Edgerton) Dunwiddie, a great-granddaughter of their second son Thomas Selden Edgerton, and later by various other descendants of this extended branch of the family (eg. Foster Dunwiddie, Sally J. Edgerton Adam, etc.).  The research of Mrs. Dunwiddie, culled mainly from family bible records, DAR applications, cemetery records and “the people themselves” was outlined in her Edgerton Family History, issued in 1952.

 


 

Original Source Documents:

 

1790 Federal Census – household of Roswell Edgerton; Stamford, Bennington Co., VT.

1800 Federal Census – household of Roswell Edgerton; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.

1810 Federal Census – household of Roswell Edgerton; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.

1820 Federal Census – household of Roswell Edgerton; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.

1830 Federal Census – household of Roswell Edgerton; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.

Gravestone photo – Roswell Edgerton; Wright Settlement Cemetery; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.

Gravestone photo – Mrs. Sarah (Selden) Edgerton; Wright Settlement Cemetery; Rome, Oneida Co., NY.