Genealogy Report - Frances Louise Hagen
224. SGT. GEORGE8 DARROW; b. circa 1652 in Scotland.
The following paragraphs were found in research and seem appropriate to place them here before there is a discussion of Sgt George Darrow because I believe him to be the first Darrow of direct relationship that I can confirm.
There is a portion of the obituary of Henry A. Darrow that was published in the Reedsburg Free Press, Reedsburg, Sauk, Wisconsin that states:
"The name Darrow is not of recent origin. It is traceable to the North of Scotland, thence to England, thence to America. The ancestors were large, strong and healthy -- quite noted for their size. Several of the men were said to have been about seven feet high and to have weighed nearly three hundred pounds."
H. Andrew Brown in his Darrow Database makes the comment: " 'Darrow' is a corruption of the Scottish 'Darragh' and was often spelled 'Darro', 'Darrah', etc. Mary Smith (this is one of Brown's sources) also felt that George Darrow Sr. was born in Tyledesley parish of Leith, Lancanshire or Lancaster, England. She also said that 'Darrow' came from the Irish 'Dar' for tree and 'Ragh-rah-row-sough-rell' for Oak and thus 'oaktree'. The Irish derivatives also are used by some to indicate that there was a Persian influence on the Irish because 'Dar' is also a Persian word for 'tree.'
There is much mystery surrounding Sgt. George Darrow. Where and when was he born? The date 1652 and the place Scotland are pure speculation. What did the title "Sgt." mean and where was it obtained? When and how did Sgt. George arrive in New London, Connecticut? Researchers differ as to the answers and one of the problems is that those same researchers often do not have any confirmation of their data.
Throughout the various histories, George Darrow, was listed as Sergeant George Darrow. I have never found out how this title was obtained. One researcher, Janis Miller, states that George Darrow was a Sgt. in the English Army prior to coming to America. In one item of data that I obtained of hers through the LDS Family Historical Library state: "Sgt. Darrow (George), a soldier of the British army, is believed to have left London on a British Man of War bound for Cuba, and from Cuba made his way to New London." However, she gives no source for her statement.
Merton Krug with his "History of Reedsburg", information which he apparently received from the family of Henry Ammiras Darrow wrote: "The immigrant ancestor, George Darrow, a native of Scotland, whence he moved with his people to Lancashire, England, was pressed on board a British man-o-war, which, on its way to New England, sailed by way of Cuba. In Cuba, George Darrow, then a young man, escaped and got aboard an American vessel, where he sequestered himself for three days. When the Americans discovered him, they allowed him to work his way to the mainland. He landed in New London, Conn., 1675,...."
Henry A. Baker writes in his "History of Montville, Connecticut": "Sergeant George Darrow, as he is styled, makes his first appearance in New London between the years 1675 and 1680, .......
"The History of New London" by Frances Caulkins, under a heading on page 264 that states: "New inhabitants that appear between 1670 and 1700", includes many names of which one is: "George Darrow; between 1675 and 1680."
H. Andrew Brown, the Darrow researcher in California shows in his database: "Sgt. George Darrow, ca 1664, arrived in Connecticut aboard a British Man of War from Cuba."
It appears that no one really knows about Sgt. George other than he probably came from Lancashire, England and that he turned up in New London, Connecticut sometime around 1675. He probably got there by ship, either on a British man of war or by an American vessel. There is no indication as to what occupation he applied himself to after his arrival or where he lived. We do know that he was there prior to 1678.
225. MARY8 CHARLETT (Nicholas, #450);
Mary was probably born about 1650 the daughter of Nicholas Charlett and Catherine/Katherine (--?--). She arrived in New London with her mother and her mother's second husband, Richard Haughton. Sometime between the period of arriving in New London and 1671 she married George Sharswood. Mary and George had 4 children between 1667 and 1674. Their names were George and William, both presented for baptism April 2, 1671; Mary born in 1672 and Katherine born in 1674. George Sharswood died May 1, 1674 when all of his children were very young. (All of the above information is paraphrased from "History of New London" by Frances Caulkins and is contained on pages 299; 347-348. It would be interesting to hear the story on how Mary Charlett Sharswood lived from 1674 to 1678 and raised four small children in the community of New London, CT.
Frances Caulkins writes in her "History of New London" on page 347: "From inferential testimony it is ascertained that George Darrow married Mary, relict of George Sharswood."
The "History of Reedsburg" on page 478 states: "Sgt. George married Mary Sharswood, a young widow, in 1676."
Henry A. Baker reinforces this marriage by writing: "Sergeant George Darrow, as he is styled, makes his first appearance in New London between the years 1675 and 1680, and marries Mary, relict of George Sharswood, ......."
Linda Reuter is a complete Darrow researcher. She has been researching the Darrow Family for years, and this includes all of the Darrows in the United States. Linda is very particular about her sources and wants hard copies of all information that she uses. I have faith in her data. She has compiled records for two editions of "The Darrow Family in the United States". Sgt. George Darrow and his family appears on page 1 of the second edition. That page gives information that has already been discussed above and reinforces the following: "George's wife, Mary (Sharswood), was the daughter of Nicholas and Catherine Charlett, and the widow of George Sharswood......"
It is supposed that Sgt. George not only took a wife but also her four children. Frances Caulkins writes that: "The children being young, the estate (of their father, George Sharswood), was left unsettled and in a few years, only William and Mary were living. June 24th, 1700, William sharswood 'sometime of Cape May and now of New London,' has the house and land of his father made over to him by a quitclaim deed from Sergt. George Darrow."
During the marriage of Sgt. George and Mary they had five children. In the "History of Montville, CT", Henry A. Baker writes: "Many of the descendants of the first George Darrow (He is speaking of Sgt. George.) have been noted ministers of the gospel in the Baptist denomination. Nearly every generation has furnished one or more of the name who have adorned the profession." None of these ministers have been found to be in the direct ancestral line. Christopher Darrow, son of Sgt. George and Mary, (see below), is one of the direct ancestors but it was his son Ebenezer that produced most of the Baptist ministers down through the line of descendancy.
George Darrow's birth date is unknown but according to both Frances Caulkins and Henry Baker he was baptized 17 Oct 1680. He married a Mary (surname unknown) and died in 1704.
Some sources state that this George Darrow married Elizabeth Marshall in 1702. Using my sources I do not believe that to be true. Both Frances Caulkins and Henry Baker in their histories of New London and Montville make it clear that this George did not marry Elizabeth Marshall.
There are several different opinions from various sources as to who Richard Darrow is and where he belongs in the history. One source states he was born 3 May 1682 in New London, New London, CT, or, New Haven, CT, or, England. Another source states that he was christened 6 August 1704 in the First Church, Congregational.
Linda Reuter writes in her compilation of Darrow Family records: "The Darrow Family in the US": "Conflicting sources state that Richard was the son and also the nephew of Sgt. George Darrow. Several sources claims he is the fifth child of Sgt. George. Other sources claim he came from Wales and England. The majority indicate he is Sgt. George's nephew, and thus from England, so for the purposes of this history, he shall be considered as such. One factor leading to this decision stemmed from the fact that none of Richard's sons, nor his son's sons, carried on the name of George, as was the custom in those times."
H. Andrew Brown who has contributed a tremendous amount of information to this work, however, indicates the following: "I still see Richard Darrow (1682-1775) as the son of George and Mary Darrow, with them naming him after Mary Charlett's step-father: Richard Haughton as she named one son, Nicholas, after her birthfather: Nicholas Charlett. l probed the 'three Welsh brothers' theory and found it wanting for evidence other than a vague family tradition. There was no evidence of three brothers named Richard, George, & Christopher Darrow living in Connecticut in the 1600's. Deeds, church, militia, & census records only mention George Darrow. It is most likely that Sgt, George Darrow was the original Darrow who came to Connecticut to assume his father 's land grant and that he named a son, Christopher, after his English/Scottish father. The names of Richard, Christopher, and George JR appear in the 1700's as sons of Sgt. George.
I concur with the statement made by H. Andrew Brown with the following exceptions -- I can no official evidence that Sgt. George had a father named Christopher or that he assumed his father's land grant in Connecticut. In the History of Montville, Henry Baker also lists Richard as a son of Sgt. George and Mary Charlett. Until I have received evidence that disproves H. Andrew Brown's declaration I will accept Richard Darrow as being the son of Sgt. George Darrow and Mary Charlett Sharswood. That he was born in 1682 and was christened 6 August 1704 in the First Church, Congregational, New London, Connecticut.
Richard Darrow married Sarah Shepard, 7 August, 1710, at East Haven, New Haven, New Haven, CT. Richard and Sarah were married by Abraham Braly, J.P. Sarah was the daughter of Thomas Shepard and Hannah Blanchard. She was born 16 May 1685 in Charlestown, MA. They first resided in New London but in 1717, he and his family moved to an island in the river separating East Haven and Branford. Later they moved into the city of East Haven, however, as of 1844 this island was still known as Darrow's Island and the cellar and wall of their home were still visible.
Richard and Sarah had six children, 4 sons and 2 daughters. The following has been written about their daughter, Sarah: "It is said that Sarah had an illegitimate child, born in 1733. In April, 1733, Sarah appeared before the New Haven Court on a charge of 'fornication'." The preceding was found in Linda Reuter's compilation of Darrow family records on page 3 of "The Darrow Family in the US".
Sarah Shepard Darrow died 12 March 1774 and Richard Darrow died in 1775. She was 84 years of age and he was 93. Both died in New Haven, Connecticut.
Nicholas was born in about 1683 because he was presented for baptism 20 May 1683 at First Church, Congregational, New London, CT;
About 1700 he married an Millicent Beebe. Millicent was the daughter of Thomas Beebe and Millicent Addis. Millicent's father, Thomas was one of the committee set up for defense of the town against the Indians. He was involved in King Philips War in 1675 and 1676. Philip was a Pequot Indian, the son of Massasoit, a leader of that tribe.
It is believed that Nicholas settled at Waterford, and later moved to new London. After their marriage, Millicent and Nicholas had six children, probably all born in New London, CT.
Nicholas Darrow died 5 May 1725 in New London, New London, CT. He died intestate and Millicent was appointed administratrix, 13 Jul 1725. Millicent's date of death is still unknown but she was christened in 7 Jun 1741 at the same time as her daughter, Mary.
Jane was born probably in1692. She was baptized 17 Apr 1692. No further information has been located on her life.
Frances Caulkins on page 347 of her "History of New London" writes: "Mary, wife of George Darrow, died in 1698." Henry A. Baker in his "History of Montville, Connecticut" on page 102 where he is writing about Sgt. George Darrow states: "Mary, the wife, died in 1698."
There is some controversy about the second marriage of Sgt. George. Some researchers have claimed that Sgt. George married Elizabeth Marshall, 10 August, 1702 in New London. Other researchers state that the George who married Elizabeth was the son of Sgt. George and Mary.
Again relying on the two historians, Frances Caulkins and Henry A. Baker who state: Caulkins on page 347, "George Darrow and Elizabeth Marshall of Hartford were married Auyg. 10th, 1702". Baker on page 102 is more specific and I quote the paragraph he wrote: "The baptism, but not the birth of the children of Sergeant George and Mary (Sharswood) Darrow are recorded. Mary, the wife, died in 1698. he then married, 10 Aug., 1702, Elizabeth Marshall of Hartford."
I agree with Baker and Caulkins and believe that it was Sgt. George that married Elizabeth Marshall.
It is stated very simply in the History of New London and the History of Montville. Sgt. George Darrow died 1704 in New London, New London, CT.
There are few official records that describe Sgt. George Darrow's life and ancestry. Many researchers want to give him parents, brothers, nephews, etc. but they lack the source to prove their statements.
Mrs. Janis M. Miller compiled a portion of a family history which was located in the Family History Library of the LDS Church. The part dealing with Sgt. George and I paraphrase says, "that the earliest record of Darrow in New London is in 1663 when a Christopher Darrow is found on a list of those granted land in New London by King Charles II." (I do not believe that Mrs. Miller is correct because of reasons given above under Christopher Darrow, son of George and Mary.)
In another compilation of Darrow family records Mrs. Miller speaks of parish records found in Leigh, Lancashire, England that shows the parents of George as Henry Darrow born about 1595 and Anne Parte born Feb. 4, 1620. Anne was from Hale near Leigh. They had 6 children, named: Thomas, Christopher, William, Alice, Ellen, and George born July 18, 1639. This sounds impressive and I would like to see the hard copy.
Mark Wooton, a Darrow relation, was living in England in 1997 and we did some research together. Mark researched Sgt. George in Leigh, Lancashire, England but could find no information on any Darrow's. He claimed that Sgt. George's father's name was Christopher but I think he got that from H. Andrew Brown, the California Darrow genealogist. Brown wrote: "In 1663, a Christopher Darrow (a father or brother) had been granted land by King George II in Connecticut. George Darrow may have claimed this land as an inheritance." I have not found any confirmation on this information.
I belong to a Genealogical Search organization called GenServ. Terrence Day is also a member of that service and through research I found that his data had the following: "Sgt. George Darrow's father was named George Darrow and his mother was Unkown Mather." When I questioned Terrence about what was his source for this; he stated: "that research on the Darrow family was done by his deceased grandmother and that much of the source material had been lost."
I am sure that Sgt. George Darrow had a set of parents and that somewhere and sometime he was born. I do not believe we have found that information as of yet.
John Packer the 2nd was born Feb 1655/56 at New London, New London, CT, the son of John Packer and Elizabeth Friend. There is only a slight acquaintance with John the 2nd. His father, as we will see, in the next generation was the more prominent in Connecticut history and in the ancestry. John Packer 2nd died 1701 at Groton, New London, CT.
227. LYDIA8 LATHAM (Cary, #454);
Lydia was born 1654 in New London, New London, CT, the daughter of Cary Latham and Elizabeth Masters.
John Packer 2nd married Lydia Latham, about 1678, although some researchers give the date of marriage as 1685, 10 March 1684, and 20 March 1686. Lydia Latham died 1686 at New London, New London, CT. John Packer 2nd died 1701 at Groton, New London, CT.
Both of the children were born in New London, New London, CT.
Frances Caulkins in the History of New London states on page 327 where she is writing about the death of George Miller, it states: "He left four daughters....... Sarah, second wife of the second John Packer." I have found no other information about this second marriage.
228. JOHN8 BAILEY SR. (Thomas, #456);
229. ELIZABETH8 SMITH (Edward, #458);
History of New London shows that John was the son of Thomas Bailey. Caulkins uses the name Thomas Bayley but in footnotes she states that (his descendants uniformly write the name as Bailey). The Bailey Webpage (see below) gives the information that Thomas married Lydia Redfield. John Bailey Sr. was born in April of 1661 and married Elizabeth Smith, daughter of Edward Smith and Elizabeth Bliss. Elizabeth was born 6 Apr 1661 in New London, New London, CT. Most of the information on John and Elizabeth's family was found on the Bailey Webpage that is controlled by Donna Beers. The webpage used was http://www.angelfire.com/mo/BaileyInfo/chart22.html
Children of John8 Bailey Sr. and Elizabeth Smith (see #229) all b. at Groton, New London, CT, were as follows:
Dorothy Bailey was born in Groton, New London, CT and married Joseph Ayer.
Deborah Bailey was born in Groton, New London, CT and married Ephrain Terry.
James Bailey was born in Groton, New London, CT. He married Bridget Stanton and they had 5 children, 2 daughters and 3 sons. The daughters were Bridget, born 19 August, 1735 and Amy/Amie born 26 June 1738. The sons were Elijah, James and Joshua, dates of birth are unknown.
Elizabeth Bailey was born 26 June 1692 and married John Fox. John was born in 1685. They had 4 daughters and five sons. The dates and places of birth are unknown. The daughters were named Elizabeth, Lydia, Experience and Abigail. The sons were John, James, William, Joseph and Zerviale.
Joseph Bailey was born 26 June, 1692 and married Mary Chapman, who was born in 1695. Joseph and Mary had 8 sons and 2 daughters. All of the children were born in Groton. Benjamin and Preserved were twins, b. 25 October 1721; Daniel and David were twins, b. 7 March 1726/27. Joseph b. 19 November 1723; Abel b. 2 July 1736, Mary b. 20 March 1737/38. Ezekiel and Noah were the other sons but no date of birth is shown.
Obadiah Bailey was born 26 March, 1693, Groton, New London, CT and married Elizabeth Williams. Elizabeth was born in 1700. Obadiah and Elizabeth's family consisted of 5 daughters and 3 sons. All of the children were born in Groton. The last two children, Michael/Micah and Rhoda were twins born 23 August 1739. The others were named, Temperance, b. 20 July 1719; Elizabeth, b. 27 September 1722; Deborah, b. 24 September 1724; Obadiah Jr. b. 2 December 1728; Experience, b. 23 May 1734 and Jesse, b 23 Jan 1736/37.
Lydia was born in Groton, New London, CT on 28 July 1695. She may have died in infancy because there is no further information about her.
Experience Bailey was born 5 October 1698 in Groton, New London, CT and married David Williams. They had 6 children, 3 daughters and 3 sons. No dates of birth were available for the children. Their names were, Lucretia, David, Richard, David, Elizabeth, and Mary. The reason for two David's in the family normally meant that the first David died before the second David was born. This was common in families of this period, especially when the given name was to carry on the father or mother's given name.
Hannah Bailey was born 14 Feb 1702/3 and married first Sampson Haughton and then as Widow Haughton married Jonathan Chapman. Hannah and Jonathan had 3 daughters and 1 son. No dates or places of birth are given. Their names were Hannah, Jonathan, Grace and Mary.
This Bailey family really did their part in populating the Connecticut countryside. It would be interesting to research all of these families to attempt to find where and how they spent their lives through the last 300 years.
History of New London source notes: "When this person made his first appearance in the plantation, Mr Bruen, the clerk, recorded his name Stanley. it was soon altered to Stallion, or Stallon. In later times it has been identified with Sterling, which may have been the true name. Edward Stallion was at first a coasting trader, but later in life became a resident farmer in North Groton, (now Ledyard.) before 1703 at the Pequoit Plantation or New London."
No official date or place of birth could be located for Edward.
History of New London indicates as Frances Caulkins writes it, "a town record book dated July 1651 affords a full list of actual inhabitants at that time." There is a list of 44 names. Stallon is one of those names. Also in the Court Records of New London for 1673 it shows that he was charged and fined for the following offense: "Edward Stallion for sailing his vessel from New London to Norwich on the Sabbath, 40s."
Sometime before 1680 Edward married a Margaret (surname unknown). She died about 1680. They had three daughters: Deborah married James Avery Jr.; Sarah married John Edgecombe and Margaret, who married Pasco Foote.
In 1685 Edward Stallion marriedElizabeth Miller (see #231), daughter of George Miller. From History of New London in speaking of George Miller and his death in 1690: "this person had been a resident, east of the river, (in Groton,) from the year 1679, and perhaps longer. He left four daughters, Mary, wife of Stephen Loomer; Elizabeth, second wife of Edward Stallion; Sarah, second wife of the second John Packer, and priscilla, then unmarried.
I could find no recorded history as to the life or death of Elizabeth Miller. This is not surprising since during that period females and especially wives were not given that much importance except as homemakers and the bearer of the children.
Edward Stallion and Elizabeth Miller had two children:
Apparently Elizabeth Miller died because in 1693 Edward Stallion married an Christian Chapell. Christian was the relict of William Chapell; Edward and Christian had no known children.
Edward Stallion died 14 May 1703 at New London, New London, CT; Death was a result of an accident. The following appeared in the History of New London. See below:
"Wee the Subscribers being impaneld and sworne on a jury of inquest to
view the body of Edward Stallion -- have accordingly viewed the corpse and
according to the best of our judgments and by what information wee have had doe
judge that he was drowned by falling out of his Canno the 14th day of this
instant and that hee had noe harm from any person by force or violence. New
London May ye 31, 1703." (signed or marks made by):
Joseph Latham, Wm. Thorne (his mark, T.), Andrew Lester, Phillip Bill, Wm.
Potts, John Bayley, Joshua Bill, Jonathan Lester, James Morgan, Wm Swadie, John
Williams."
Frances Caulkins further writes: "Though dated a New London, this jury was impanneled in that part of the township which is now Ledyard, and the names belong to that place and Groton. The town had not then been divided."