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Cornell University Library 1993.XV.
MEMOIR
OF
THEOPillLUS EATON)
THE FIRST GOVERNOR
OF THE
COLONY OF NEW HAVEN.
BY JACOB BAILEY MOORE.
i
SECOND SERIES, VOL. II.	45MEMOIR
OP
THEOPHILUS EATON.
“ No character in the annals of New England, (says Sav-
age,) is of purer fame than that of Theophilus Eaton, gov-
ernor of the colony of New Haven, from its settlement to
his death, by twenty annual elections ; the only instance of
such an honor ever conferred. That his talents were ade-
quate to the station, might be confidently concluded, from
the fact of his prior service, several years, as representative
of Charles I., to the court of Denmark; and the long admin-
istration of an infant state without a rival, is irrefragable
proof of his prudence and virtue. All the original writers
of our history are abundant in his praise, and the later and
more judicious inquirers are satisfied with their evidence.”*
Of the family of Governor Eaton, the accounts which have
been transmitted to us are meagre. His father was the
Rev. Richard Eaton, who was born in 1563, received his
education at Lincoln college, and became vicar of the par-
ish of Great Bud worth, in Cheshire. He afterwards re-
moved to Stony Stratford, where he was for some time
pastor of a church, and from thence he removed to Coventry,
where he died in the pastoral office, in 1617, at the age of
54. Mather characterises him as “ a faithful and famous
minister.”
Theophilus Eaton was born in the year 1590, at Stony
Stratford.f He was placed in school at Coventry, to which
town his father had removed, and there the young pupil be-
camh noted for proficiency in his studies. It is said of him,
* Savage’s Winthrop, i. 228.
+ Stony Stratford is a market town on the river Ouse, in the hundred and
deanery of Newport, county of Buckingham, some 52 miles distant from London,
on the old Roman road, called Watling street. Lyson’s Britannia.470
MEMOIR OF
also, that he possessed a memory so tenacious, that he could
repeat whole sermons which he had heard at church.* The
father of Mr. Eaton observing his capacity, desired that he
should make preparation to enter upon the work of the
ministry, his own cherished calling; but the son had adopted
other views, and ultimately decided to qualify himself for
commercial pursuits. He was accordingly apprenticed to
the business of a merchant. After the accustomed service,
he became a freeman of the city of London, and engaged
successfully in “the east-country trade,” that is. the trade
with countries on the shores of the Baltic.*(* Thus brief are
the accounts which have come down to us, of the early life
of this remarkable man ; but they are sufficient to convey a
strong impression of his character.
It was not long before the abilities of Mr. Eaton, which
had been rendered conspicuous by his successful enter-
prises, attracted the attention of the East Land Company,J
and he was chosen deputy-governor of that corporation. In
carrying out their plans, he visited the northern countries
of Europe. He succeeded in making arrangements mate-
rially to increase the traffic of the company with the ports
on the Baltic ; and became so well known for his energy
and success, that he was shortly afterwards appointed the
agent of Charles I., at the court of Denmark; In the fashion
of the times, and under the reign of a Stuart, there was
nothing incompatible in this double employment; and. it is
known that he conducted the affairs of his two-fold agency
in such a manner as to win the confidence of the king, and
the respect of the sovereign tq whose court he had been ac-
credited. He was equally successful in promoting the in-
terests of the great commercial company of which he was
the representative. Resuming business in London, after
his return from Copenhagen, as might naturally be inferred,
under the most favorable circumstances, Mr. Eaton was
eminently successful, and Mather says of him, that he
“ spent many years, a merchant of great credit and fashion
in the city of London.”
* Mather’s Magn. b. ii. 26.
1? Kingsley’s Hist. Disc. 11.
t A commercial company in London, established in 1579, under the title of
the ■“ Company of Merchants of the East,” similar to the great Hamburgh Com-
pany, incorporated by Edward L, in 1296, and the oldest trading establishment
in the kingdom. The Eastland Company consisted alone of merchants who had
trafficked through the Sound before; 1568, into Denmark, Norway, Sweden, &c.
It was complained of as a monopoly, and its privileges were curtailed in 1672 ;
and since the revolution of 1688, it has existed only in name.THEOPHILUS EATON.
471
Mr. Eaton was a puritan in faith, and took a deep in-
terest in the emigrations to America, which marked the
beginning of the seventeenth century. He was one of the
patentees of Massachusetts, and one of the magistrates or
assistants, chosen in 1629. He took an active part in the
proceedings of the company, before its transfer to New
England, and contributed liberally towards providing the
means for the settlement of the colony. It has been sup-
posed that Mr. Eaton had no original purpose of going to
New England ; but that when proceedings under the act of
uniformity became so oppressive as to induce his beloved
pastor and particular friend, Mr. Davenport,* to retire into
Holland, and afterwards prepare for emigration to America,
he determined to throw up his pursuits and prospects in
England, and accompany his friend to the shores of the new
world. Of their preliminary arrangements, unfortunately,
no account has been preserved, such as marks the progress,
step by step, of the pioneers of New Plymouth and Massa-
* Rev. John Davenport was born in Coventry, in 1597. At the age of four-
teen he entered Merton College, then in Magdalen Hall, Oxford, and before he
was twenty, entered upon the duties of a preacher, first as domestic chaplain at
Hilton Castle, near Durham, and afterwards as vicar of St. Stephens, in Cole-
man street, London. In 1625 he received his degree as bachelor of divinity.
By great application to study he had become distinguished as a scholar, and as a
preacher, he held the first rank. Becoming a conscientious non-conformist, he
was obliged to retire into Holland in 1633, to escape the persecution of Arch-
bishop Laud. At Amsterdam he became colleague pastor of the English Church
in that city, but resisting the promiscuous baptism of children, then practised in
Holland, he was compelled to withdraw from the church, and in 1636.he returned
to London.' Here, joining the company of his friend? Theophilus Eaton, he
prepared for emigration to America. He became the minister and spiritual
guide of ;the people of New Haven, on the establishment of the colony, and re-
mained with them until after his cherished colony had been merged in that of
Connecticut. In April, 1668, just thirty years after the commencement of his
ministry at New Haven, he accepted the invitation of the first church in Boston,
to succeed the Rev. Mr. Wilson, who had deceased. But his labors there were
of short duration. He died suddenly, of apoplexy, 15th March, 1670, at the age
of 72, and was buried in the tomb of his friend Cotton. Ample accounts of this
excellent divine are contained in Professor Kingsley’s and Dr. Bacon’s Historical
Discourses.
Several of the descendants of Mr. Davenport became distinguished as clergy-
men in Connecticut and New York. Hon. Abraham Davenport, of Stamford,
was distinguished for his vigorous understanding, integrity, and firmness.. Dr.
Dwight relates the following anecdote : “ On the 19th May, 1780, (the memo-
rable dark day>) the legislature was in session at Hartford. A very general
opinion prevailed, that the day of judgment was at hand. The house of Repre-
sentatives being unable to transact business, adjourned. A proposal to adjourn
the council was under consideration ; when the opinion of Col. Davenport was
asked, he answered, “I am against an adjournment. The day of judgment is
either approaching, or it is not. If it is not, there is no cause of adjournment;
if it is, I choose to be found doing my duty. I wish, therefore, that candles may
foe brought.”472
MEMOIR OF
chusetts Bay. We know, however, that the new adven-
turers were chiefly Londoners, men who had for the most
part been engaged in commerce. We may suppose that
the flattering accounts sent home by the earlier colonists had
also excited in the minds of these adventurers the hopes of
establishing themselves successfully in the pursuits of com-
merce in the new world. The company embarked in two
ships, taking with them a number of servants, and a large
amount of property. They arrived at Boston, 26 June,
1637,* where they met a most hearty welcome from their
brethren who had gone before them.
Mr. Eaton, and those who came with him, were men of
consideration, of high endowments, moral and intellectual;
and they were, moreover, the most opulent company which
had come into New England. Hubbard speaks of them as
“men of great estates, notably well versed in trading and
merchandising.” Under these circumstances, the people of
the plantations already established were naturally desirous
to offer such terms as should be acceptable to the new emi-
grants. They were offered lands at New Plymouth. In
Massachusetts, great pains were taken by individuals, by
towns, and even by the general court, to induce them to re-
main in that colony. Winthrop says, that “ all possible
means had been used to accommodate them ; Charlestown
offered them largely; Newbury their whole town, and the
court any place which was free.” But they had other pur-
poses, and were reserved for another destiny. They had
already written to their friends at Hartford to purchase for
their use ample territory from the natives, further south,
tovvards the Hudson. The military expedition against the
Pequots in 1636, had opened to the notice of the colonists
the fine tracts along the shore, from Saybrook to Fairfield,
apparently fruitful, and happily situated for navigation and
commerce. Stoughton and Underhill, returning from the
conquest, both bore testimony to the beauty of the country,
and urged their friends to take possession of it. “ The
Dutch will seize it,” says Stoughton, “ if the English do not;
and it is too good for any but friends.”f Underhill spoke in
praise of “ the famous place called Queenapiok,” as having
“a fair river, fit for harboring of ships,” and bordered by
“ rich and goodly meadows.” The accuracy of the infor-
mation thus obtained, Mr. Eaton determined to test by per-'
* Kingsley says June 3d.
t Hutchinson’s Coll. 62.THEOPHILUS EATON.
473
sonal observation, and in the fall of 1637, in company with
a few friends, he made a journey of exploration to the lands
and harbors on the sound. The fine bay of Quinnipiack
attracted their attention, and they decided to fix upon it, as
the place of their settlement, 44 being much taken with the
fruitfulness of that place, and more safety, as they con-
ceived, from the danger of a general governor.”*' They
erected a poor hut upon the future site of New Haven, and
here a few men subsisted through the winter, f
The new emigrants, although they had decided to decline
the offers of Massachusetts, were not insensible to the lib-
eral intention of the people of that colony; and in a letter
giving their reasons for preferring to be the founders of a
new plantation, they pledged to them their future friend-
ship, and their resolution 44 to be any way instrumental and
serviceable for the common good of these plantations as
well as of those, which the Divine Providence hath com-
bined together in as strong a bond of brotherly affection, by
the sameness of their condition, as Joab and Abishai were,
whose several armies did mutually strengthen them both
against several enemies, II Sam. x. 9, 10, 11, or rather they
are joined together, as Hippocrates his twins, to stand and
fall, to grow and decay, to flourish and wither, to live and
die together.”J
Mr. Eaton arrived in New England at a fortunate period.
The last victory over a warlike tribe of Indians, who had
threatened the destruction of the settlements on the Con-
necticut, had been won, and the Pequot nation had ceased to
exist. § The design of planting a ne w colony south of that of
Connecticut, therefore, seemed to open under favorable cir-
cumstances. It was fortunate, also, for the elder bolony on
~	:	' j
* Sav. Winthrop, i. 259.
t This hut stood upon what is now the corner of Church and Meadow streets,
in New Haven. Seven men were left by Mr. Eaton; one of whom died during
the winter. Joshua Atwater, a gentleman of distinction and opulence, was one of
the seven. The names of four others were Francis Brown, John Beacher, Rob-
ert Pigg,.and Thomas Hogg. In 1750, while digging the cellar for a house on
the corner of Meadow and George streets, remains, supposed to be those of the
Englishman who died, as above mentioned, in 1637, were discovered. Lambert’s
New Haven, 42. Dana’s Cent. Sermon, 45.
t Sav. Winthrop, i. 405. The letter is dated 12 March, 1639, and signed by
Eaton and Davenporte.
§ It has, in no very kind spirit, perhaps, been said of the colonists, in reference
to this event, that the example of the Jews, dispossessing and slaying the Canaan-
ites, may have settled all doubts respecting their right to destroy the Indians, or
sell them into slavery, on the ground that “ the earth is the Lord’s,” and the
promise, that “ thesaints shall inherit the earth.”—-Lambert, 20..474
MEMOIR OF
the river, that the new emigrants had arrived, for they were
generally men of substance, of a liberal and Christian spirit.
They were ready to aid the planters of Windsor, Hartford
and Weathersfield,^who had been greatly impoverished by
the war, and who during the winter of uncommon severity
which followed, were actually menaced with starvation.* * * §
A successful negotiation with the Indians of Pocomtock,
[Deerfield,] which secured a supply of corn—averted the
danger, f
It will be perceived* that one of the principal reasons as-
signed by the colonists, for a removal to Connecticut, was
the idea that they would be more out of the way arid ex-
empt from the interference of a governor general, who
wras at this time expected, and was an object of general
apprehension, in all the New England plantations. What
foundation there wras for the hope, by such removal, of
securing exemption from the control of a governor general,
had one been sent, does not appear. The spirit of persecu-
tion which could follow them across the ocean, might cer-
tainly reach them in a wilderness even more remote than
Quinnipiack.J It is not impossible, that among the motives
wThich influenced the principal men, a spark of ambition;
may have been concealed, animating their high resolves to
become the founders of a state, and to control its govern-
ment, after shaping it to a model agreeable to their own
ideas of a perfect commonwealth. They would very na-
turally, also, seek to avoid any difficulty growing out of the
bitter antinomian controversy, which then raged in Massa-
chusetts, and which Mr. Davenport, on his arrival, had
earnestly, but ineffectually, exerted himself to reconcile.
Failiiig to find a remedy for “ the spiritual disease,” which had
broken out in Massachusetts* they may have sought greater
safety in being as far removed as possible from its influence.
Dr. Bacon has suggested another high purpose as possi-
bly influencing the course of Mr. Eaton and his associates
at this period—the bold thought of asserting, if it should be
necessary, an absolute independence of the English crown!
He who reads their records, will find nothing to contradict
such an hypothesis.§
* Winthrop notices the uncommon severity of the winter of 1637, and says the'
Snow laid deep from 4th of Nov. to 23d of March.
t Mason says, fifty canoes laden with corn were received at one time.
t“ My arm shall reach him even there”—was the threat of Archbishop Laud
Vhen he heard of Davenport’s retreat to America.
§ Bacon’s Hist. Disc. 86.THEOPHILUS EATON.
475
Mr. Eaton and his companions sailed from Boston on the
30th of March, 1638 ; and their two or three little vessels,
freighted with an entire colony, were brought safely to their
moorings in the bay of Quinnipiack, on the 14th of April ;
their passage having been thus protracted through their in-
dispensable caution in sailing along the coast. , The day
following, being* the first Sabbath after their arrival, they
devoted to worship. From their vessels and their tents*
they gathered themselves together under the spreading
branches of a large oak,# reverently listening to the exhor-
tations, and joining in the prayers of their beloved pastor,
Mr. Davenport. He preached on this occasion from Mat-
thew iii. 1,—“In those days came John the Baptist, preach-
ing in the wilderness of Judea.”f On that day, for the first
time, the wild woods of Quinnipiack rang with, the notes of
Christian hymns and exhortations, where for ages had echoed
only the war-songs of the savage. The foundations of thfe
colony were laid in peace, and the blessings of Heaven
were invoked upon their undertaking.
Looking forward to the establishment of a great and
prosperous community, the colonists immediately sat about
making the purchases, and entering into the treaties, neces-
sary to give it'stability. They recognized the Indian title
to the soil, and the necessity and justice of acquiring it by
fair and open purchase of its original possessors. In No-
vember, they entered into an agreement with the chief of
the native tribe dwelling at Quinnipiack for the plain west
of the river.j In December, they made another purchase
bf a large tract, lying principally north of the other, extend-
ing eight miles east of the river Quinnipiack, and five miles
west of it towards the Hudson ; and it has been asserted
that all the lands of New Haven colony were obtained by
equitable purchase, of the natives. § Adopting the policy of
* This tree stood near the present corner of George and College.streets, New
haven, and is said to haVe been standing as late as i776.
t The historians disagree as to the text used on this occasion ; but the family
records expressly say that the selected text of this puritan divine was Matt. iii.
1.”—MS. Letter Rev. Isaac Jones, Litchfield, Conn.
t A small tribe of Ihdians, called Quinnipiacks, at this time resided here; they
had a fort at a place since known as Indian, or Beacon Hill, in East Haven, and
a burial place near. After the coming of the; whites, their numbers rapidly
diminished, and the tribe has long since been extinct. The tradition is, that
Charles, the last chief of the Quinnipiacks, was frozen to death near the ruins of
his wigwam.
These purchases comprehended all the lands within the ancient limits of
New Haven, Branford, and Wallingford, and now form the whole or principal
SECOND SERIES, VOL. IL	46476
MEMOIR OF
William Penn, these colonists permitted no lands to be
purchased of the Indians, except on account of the govern-
ment, or by permission of the magistrates, and all convey-
ances were recorded, and open to public inspection.*
Near the bay of Quihnipiack, the settlers laid out their
town in squares, on the plan of a spacious city, and in
1640, gave to it the name of New Haven. 0 For more than
a year after commencing their settlement, they continued
without any other constitution than their Plantation Cove-
nant. In this simple instrument, less formal even than the
celebrated compact of the Plymouth pilgrims, they had so-
lemn engaged, that, in their civil as well as in their reli-
gious concerns, “ they would all of them be ordered by the
rules which the Scriptures do hold forth.” Some of the first
settlers of New Haven were Millenarians, or believers that
the second coming of Christ will precede the millenium,
and that there will be a literal resurrection of the saints,
who will reign with Christ on earth a thousand years. This
was a prevalent belief for a long time afterwards in New
England. It has been said that some of the more enthu-
siastic indulged the fond illusion that they were the precur-
sors of Christ’s millenial kingdom, which was to extend
from sea to sea, and that the city, whose fouiidations they
had laid, would become the seat of empire !
The time had now arrived when it was necessary to pro-
ceed to the establishment of a form of government for the
new colony. Accordingly all the free planters of Quinni-
piack assembled in convention for that purpose on the 4th
of June, 1639. The place of their meeting was a large
barn, which had been erected by Mr. Robert Newman, j*
He acted as scribe on the occasion. The ceremonies were
imposing. The Rev. Mr. Davenport addressed the people
from the words of the royal preacher, “ Wisdom hath budd-
ed her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars.” His
design was to show,J that the church, the house of God,
should be formed of seven pillars, or principal brethren, to
whom all the other members of the church should be ga-
thered. After a solemn invocation of the Divine Majesty,
parts of the towns of East Haven, North Haven, Hamden, Cheshire, Meriden,
North Branford, Bethany, Woodbridge and Orange. Lambert, 46.
• Kingsley, 22, 82.
t Bacon (Hist. Disc., 21,) says, Mr. Newman’s barn was somewhere on the
ground now occupied by the dwelling of Prof. Kingsley and [the late] Dr.
Webster.
t We follow the account given by Trumbull.THEOPHILUS EATON".
477
he proceeded to represent to the planters, that they were
met to consult respecting the settlement of the civil govern-
ment according to the will of God, and for the nomination
of persons, who, by universal consent, were* in all'respects*
best qualified for the foundation work of a church. He en-
larged upon the great importance and, solemnity of the
transactions before them, and desired, that no man would
give his voice, in any matter, until he fully, understood it;
and that all would act, without respect to any man, but
give their vote in the fear of God. After due deliberation,
resolutions were passed adopting the following articles as
the basis of their government:
L That the scriptures hold forth a perfect rule for the
direction and government of all men in all duties which
they are to perform to God and men, as well in families and
commonwealth, as in matters of the church.
2.	That as in matters which concerned the gathering and
ordering of a church, so likewise in all public offices which
concern civil order, as the choice of magistrates and officers,
making and repealing laws, dividing allotments of inheri-
tance, and all things of like nature, they would all be go-
verned by those rules, which the scripture held forth to
them.
3.	That all those who had desired to be received as free
planters, had settled in the plantation, with a purpose, reso-
lution and desire, that they might be admitted into church
fellowship according to Christ.
4.	That all the free planters held themselves bound to
establish such civil order as might best conduce to the se-
curing of the purity and peace of the ordinance to them-
selves and their posterity according to God.
5.	That church members only should be free burgesses;
and that they only should choose magistrates among
themselves, to have power of transacting all the public ci-
vil affairs of the plantation: of making and repealing laws,
dividing inheritances, deciding of differences that may arise,
and doing all things and businesses of like nature.
6.	That twelve men should be chosen, that their fitness
for the foundation work might be tried, and that it should
be in the power of those twelve men to choose seven to be-
gin the church.
These propositions were severally adopted finally without
dissent,no objection being made during the discussion which
arose in the assembly, except by Samuel Ea;ton, the brother
of Theophilus Eaton. He declared, that while he assented478
MEMOIR OF
to the proposition that “the magistrates should be men
fearing God,” and that “ the church is ordinarily the compa-
ny whence such men may be expected ” he objected to the
test of church membership required of the voters, on the
ground that “ the free planters ought not to surrender this
power out of their hands.” He was evidently in advance
of his age, and when replied to by the labored arguments
of his brother and Mr. Davenport, he found so little sup-
port, that he withdrew his dissent, “ because he would not
hinder what they had agreed upon.” The fundamental
principle was thus adopted, and subscribed to by sixtv-three
persons, (all who were then present,)—“that church mem-
bers only should be free burgesses, and that they only Should
choose the magistrates, to have power of conducting the
civil affairs of the plantation.”	• . \
After the adoption of these essential provisions, which
settled the* character of the embryo commonwealth, their
next step was to proceed to the organization of the civil go-
vernment. The method was as follows :
The little town of New Haven, which had then some two
hundred inhabitants,* was divided into districts; each dis-
trict selected one whom they judged best qualified to be
one of the church; the individuals thus named in the dis-
tricts, assembling together, and reducing their number to
twelve, were to select from the twelve the seven persons to
he the “ pillars,” or members of the original church. Meet-
ing for this purpose, on the 22d August, 1639, Theophilus
Eaton, John Davenport, Robert Newman, Matthew Gilbert,
Thomas Fugill, John Punderson, and Jeremy Dixon, were
thus chosen to constitute the church. They met on the 25th
pf October following; and having admitted into their body,
and to the privileges of citizenship, all who were judged
qualified to become members of the church, they proceeded
to the election of civil officers. The possession of property
was not necessary to constitute a voter; character, as de-
veloped in church-membership being the only requisite qual-
ification of an elector.
On proceeding to the election, Mr. Theophilus Eaton re-
peived the united suffrages of the freemen for the office of
governor, ai&d with him were joined four magistrates, or
deputies, with a public notary and marshal—these several
officers constituting, for the time being, the entire civil go-
* The fundamental articles agreed upon at Newman’s barn, were subscribed
at the time by b*3 persons, and soon after by 48 others. The list of planters and
their families, in 1643, shows a total of 419 souls.THEOPHILUS EATON*
479
vernment of the colony. To provide for future elections, it
was decreed, that there should be a. general court held an-
nually in October, at which all the officers of the colony
should be ■ chosen ; and it was further decreed “ that the
Word of God should be the only rule for ordering the affairs
of government in the commonwealth.”* “ Thus New Haven
made the Bible its statute-book, and the elect its freemep.”f
This was the first, organization of civil government in the
colony of New Haven. The proceedings are remarkable
for their simplicity. The fifth article of this Constitution,
which limits the right of voting, and of holding public office,,
to church members, was a test not required in the elder
■ colony of Connecticut, and it met with some opposition, as
has already been mentioned, from the Re v. Samuel Eaton,
/brother of the Governor, but the objections were finally
withdrawn, and “it was adopted with one consent.” It
was obviously a favorite measure with Gov. Eaton and
Mr. Davenport. The same regulation had before been
adopted in Massachusetts; and it was, in fact, simply
adopting the principle of the English law, repealed within
a few years only, by which, receiving the sacrament in the
Established Church, was a necessary qualification to hold-
ing any office under Government. J It was, in fact, only
carrying out a principle, at this very hour in force in some
of the States, which declares those who are not of the
protestant religion ineligible to public office.§
It does not appear that any laws were enacted by the
authorities of New Haven, until the colony had been en-
larged by the admission of other towns. In the course of
five years, settlements had been made at Milford, Guilford,
Branford and Stamford, and at Southhold on Long Island.
These towns, though at first exercising each a separate
government, the two first strictly after the model of New
Haven, were finally united with the latter under one juris-
diction. In 1643, the New Haven records show the govern-
ment of the colony to have been fully organized. Courts
were established, and the mode of electing the deputies, and
magistrates* or assistants, and their powers, were defined.
The general court of the colony consisted of two branches,
both chosen by the people. One, the representatives or de-
puties of the towns, elected twice. a year; the other, the
magistrates, consisting of the governor, deputy governor,
* Trumbull, i. 104—107.	+ Bancroft, i. 404.
I Kingsley, 25.	§ See Art. 14, Part II. Const. N. H.480
MEMOIR OP
and assistants, or magistrates from each town chosen an-
nually. The concurrence of these two bodies made a pub-
lic act or law. The supreme administration, both civil
and military, was with the governor and deputy governor;
the judiciary, with the governor and magistrates. The
governor presided in all courts, from the general court for
the jurisdiction down to the town-meeting for New Haverb*
" The course of legal proceedings,” says Kingsley, " was
peculiar; especially as the courts conducted all trials with-
out a jury. We are told by Hubbard, that this exclusion
of juries was a measure urged by Gov. Eaton. It is pro-
bable that this gentleman, during his residence in the north
of Europe, where the institution of juries is unknown,
formed a favorable opinion of the courts of those countries,
and wished to conform the courts of the new settlement to
his favorite model. Legal proceedings were almost entire-
ly free from forms and technicalities; the parties told their
own stories, with very little check from the court; intro-
duced such evidence for the most part, as they pleased ; ar-
gued with the judges ; and decisions were given according
to what appeared to be the equity of the case.”f
In April, 1644, the following act was passed by the gen-
eral court, for the government of the jurisdiction :
" It is ordered that the Judicial Lawes of God as they were
delivered by Moses, ande as they are a fence to the m or all
lawes, being neither typicall nor ceremoniall, nor had any
reference to Canaan, shall be accounted ofr moral equity,
ande generally binde all offenders, ande be a rule to all
the courts in this jurisdiction in their proceedings against
offenders till they be branched out into particulars here-
after.”
Thus it appears that the Mosaic law was the only code
recognized in the early periods of the colony. Eleven years
afterwards, in 1655, the plantations finding it necessary
that the laws of Moses should “ be branched out into par-
ticulars,” to render them more applicable to their condition,
the general court requested Governor Eaton to prepare a
code of laws for the jurisdiction. For his assistance in its
compilation, he was directed to consult the Massachusetts
code, and the Rev. Mr. Cotton’s Discourse on " Civil Gow
ernment in a New Plantation.”:):	1
* Bacon, 357.	t Kingsley, 33, 34.
t Mather says—“ There is likewise published A Discourse about Civil Gov-
ernment in a New Plantation, whose design is religion: in the title pageTHEOPHILUS EATON,
481
The instructions to Governor Eaton to consult the Mas-
sachusetts code, seem to have been literally followed. He
copied a large portion of their code of 1649, particularly
the fifteen capital laws,-which, he adopted word for word,
with the same scriptural references. The first law estab-
lishing free schools in America was passed by Massachu-
setts, 27th of October, 1647, and commenced with a pream-
ble, which has often been cited as characteristic of the
early settlers of New England. This was copied verbatim
in Mr.'Eaton’s code, j*
The new code, drawn up by Governor Eaton, with the
assistance of the Rev. Mr. Davenport, was in due time pre-
sented, and having first been submitted to the examination
of the elders, and received their approval, was adopted
by the general court. They ordered its publication, but
there was at this time no printing press in the colony. The
manuscript was therefore sent to England, to be printed
under the superintendence of Governor Hopkins, of Con-
necticut, who was at that time in London. All this was
done so expeditiously, that at the court holden at New Ha-
ven, on the 5th of June, 1656, the Governor informed them
that the printed copies had been received, and they were
by order distributed among the towns J
Gov. Eaton’s code of laws, and the decisions of the New
Haven magistrates, have often been made the subject of
reproach and ridicule. Grave churchmen and ribald wits
have here joined hands; and many a one who perhaps be-
lieves in nothing else, most firmly believes in the “ Blue
Laws ’’ Why the epithet blue was given to the New Ha-
ven code, has been a matter of,question. By some, they
are said to have been called blue, because they were san-
guinary; by others, the term is supposed to refer to the
austerity of a particular sect—as in Butler’s description—
“ For his religion, it was fit
" To match his learning and his wit;
“ ’Twas Presbyterian true blue ”
whereof the name of Mr. Cotton is, by mistake, put for that of Mr. Davenport.”
Magnalia, b. iii. 46. In a copy of this Discourse, printed in 1663, by Green &
Johnson, at Cambridge, which I have seen, is a MS. note, in the handwriting of
Davenport, which conclusively proves him to have been the author.
t See an interesting paper by Hon. F. C. Gray, on the Early Laws of Massa-
chusetts, in III Mass. Hist. Col., viii. 191-237.
t A copy of the printed laws procured by Gov. Hopkins, is preserved in the
Library of the Amer. Antiq. Society.482
MEMOIR OF
Bartlett, in his Dictionary of Americanisms, says the term
“blue” was applied [in England] especially to the Presby-
terians, to denote their severe and mortified appearance.
Thus, beneath an old portrait of the seventeenth century, in
the Woodburn Gallery, is the following inscription i
J “A true blue Priest, a Linsey Woolsey Brother,
“ One legg a pulpit holds, a tub the other;
“ An orthodox, grave, moderate Presbyterian,
“ Half surplice-cloake, half Priest, half Puritan.”
The epithet “ blue,” v^as probably applied in this country
even more extensively than in England, in ridicule of the
institutions of the puritans ; and was employed particularly
to characterize the laws as over strict, and whimsical.*
But another and perhaps sufficient explanation is found
in the simple traditionary fact, that the original pamphlet
laws were stitched in blue paper covers—and hence the
name.
It is a singular fact, that while the laws of New Haven
■ were less sanguinary than those of the other4 colonies* the
popular belief has assigned to that colony the bad pre-emi-
nence. They were rigid, it is true, and wrere enforced by
unflinching and faithful magistrates; but the honest in-
quirer will look in vain for the fabled Blue Laws, except in
the spiteful story of a refugee parson, who, in 1774, foresee-
ing from the signs of the times that he might possibly be
visited by a revolutionary mob With a penalty not provided
for, even in the Blue Laws, prudently retired to England.
He employed himself in London, whilst the wrar lasted, in
reviling the colonists, more especially, in a spirit of retalia-
tion, misrepresenting persons and events in his native state;
In 1781; he published his history of Connecticut, filled
with extravagances and falsehoods so gross, that no one
thought of contradicting them Trumbull did not deem
them worth his notice ;—and yet, uncontradicted, this book
has created far and wide an impression as unfavorable to
the Puritan settlers of Connecticut, as has Diedrich’s fanci-
ful history to the character of the honest Knickerbockers of
New York.f
It is proper here to advert to the long and troublesome
controversy between the English colony at New Hayen an<J
• N. A. Review, xlviii. 504.
+ See remarks on the fiction of the Blue Laws, in Smith’s Hist. N. Y. ii, 13:8,'
383 ; and in Kingsley’s and Bacon’* Discourses,I
THEOMlLUS EATON.	4m
the Dutch at New Netherland, which embarrassed the ad-
ministration of Governor Eaton. In less than three years
after the establishment of the government of New Haven,
some of the more enterprising among the planters entered
into an agreement to form a new plantation further south,
at some convenient post upon the Delaware, principally for
purposes of trade. They entered into negotiations with
and purchased lands from the Indians, on both sides of that
river. Trading houses were erected during the year upon
their land; a post was fortified on the Schuylkill, and some
fifty families in all joined in the emigration, still holding
themselves to be under the jurisdiction of New Haven.
The Dutch of New Netherland, who had protested against
the occupation of the Delaware by the Swedes, chose to
consider this movement of the New Haven people as an
act of aggression. Director General Kieft, while the vessel
containing the emigrants was on its way south, issued his
protest against their settlement anywhere upon lands ad-
joining the Delaware. He asserted the claim of New
Netherland to all the lands there Occupied by the English,
and in the following year, sending an armed force into the
Delaware, he succeeded in breaking up and destroying the
settlements. The goods of the settlers were seized, their
trading houses burnt, their vessels taken, and a number of
the planters sent prisoners to New Amsterdam. An attempt
was made upon the life of George Lamberton, the princi-
pal man of the settlement, and he was put on trial for trea-
son ; but the Dutch magistrates finding the evidence insuffi-
cient to convict him, dismissed the charge. They compelled
him, however, to render an account of his traffic upon the
Delaware, and amerced him in heavy damages.* Some of
the planters returned to New Haven, and the few who
remained submitted to the government of New Nether-
land.
The exasperation growing out of these summary proceed-
ings was very great at New Haven; and it required all the
address and influence of Governor Eaton to prevent open
acts of retaliation.
The desire of the colonists to extend their possessions
was in no way repressed by the results of their adventure
upon the Delaware. They rriade purchases of other lands
from the natives, beyond their original possessions, west, to-
* Trumbull, i. 122. See also the account of this controversy, given by O'Cal-
laghan, Hist. New Netherland, i.9 231,253.
SECOND SERIES, VOL. II. 47484
MEMOIR OP
wards the Hudson. The Dutch authorities at New Am-
sterdam, who claimed jurisdiction to the Connecticut, looked
upon this proceeding as an aggression, and charged the
New Haven people with an insatiable desire to usurp their
lands. Director General Keift wrote in strong terms to Go-
vernor Eaton, protesting against his planting his toot near
the Mauritius river. Governor Eaton, in reply, told him
that he knew of no such river as the Mauritius, and had en-
tered upon no lands to which the Dutch had any’known
title.. The English had, indeed, built a small house on the
Paugassett river, but it was at leagues distance from any
post on the Hudson, or the Manhattoes ; and they had not
built even there, until they had first purchased a title from
the true proprietors.
The controversy came before the commissioners of the
United Colonies, where the course of New Haven was jus-
tified. Kieft unfortunately grew passionate in proportion
as he lost ground in' argument, and ended his action in
the controversy by fulminating a protest against the author-
ity of the commissioners.
Director Kieft not long afterwards (1647,) was super-
ceded in the government of Newr Netherlapd, by Petrus
Stuyvesant, and embarked for Holland, bearing with him
the character of a bad man and magistrate. The vessel in
which he sailed was lost at sea, and all on board perished.
Stuyvesant, the new director general, commenced by
the nijost friendly salutations to the New England govern-
ments, which were cordially reciprocated. It was not long,
however, before a Dutch ship from North Holland was dis-
covered trading directly with New Haven, without a per-
mit, or the payment of duties—a specimen of free trade not
altogether agreeable to the authorities at New Amsterdam.
The ship was armed, and as it would be a difficult matter
to capture her, a permit, which had been at length applied
for* was sent to New Haven. But the owners of the ship,
instead of paying the duties, or taking her round to New
Amsterdam, announced that she was ready to sail direct for
Virginia. The director general Stuyvesant was not the
man to be trifled with in a matter of this importance. It
happened that the authorities at New Amsterdam had just
before sold a ship to Mr. Goodyear, deputy governor of
New Haven, and had contracted to deliver the vessel at the
latfer port. On board this^vessel, Stuyvesant sent a body of
armed men, with instructions to cut the other ship out of
fhe harbor, by force of arms if necessary, and bring her toTHEOPHILUS EATON.
465
the Manhattans. This was adroitly accomplished ; the offi-
cers and. crew of the Dutch free trader were taken to New
Amsterdam in triumph, and the vessel and cargo were confis-
cated. Si.uyvesant accompanied this act with a protest, iil
which he claimed all the lands from cape Henlopeh to cape
Cod!
These proceedings, of course, caused great excitement at
New Haven. Governor Eaton, in a calm but resolute tone$
protested against the hostile proceedings of the Dutch ; re-
citing the conditions in which the respective colonies stood
towards the sovereign power abroad, and to each other*
But his remonstrances were unheeded, and the dispute was
not healed. Some of the Dutch company’s servants at New
Amsterdam, to escape punishment or hard service, had fled
to New Haven. Stuyvesant demanded their surrender.
Eaton declined to surrender the fugitives; whereupon, af-
ter an angry correspondence between the two governors,
Stuyvesant issued a proclamation offering protection to
slaves, debtors, or other runaways from New Haven. When
these extreme measures, however, began to be questioned
by the honest burghers of New Amsterdam, as tending to
Convert their city into a receptacle for the worst classes of
*all the neighboring plantations, Stuyvesant is said to have
outwitted Governor Eaton by privately offering pardon and
good treatment to all the Dutch runaways who should vo-
luntarily return ; and then to have cancelled the objectiona-
ble proclamation.
At a meeting of the commissioners of the New England co*
lonies in 1649, Governor Eaton proposed that effectual mea-
sures betaken for the settlement of lands on the Delaware.
But no encouragement was given b}7 the commissioners*
and the New Haven proprietors were advised to dispose of
their land and avoid further controversy. At the close of
the next year, however, they made another attempt to es-
tablish a colony on the Delaware. For this purpose they
chartered a vessel, in which some fifty persons sailed under
a commission from Governor Eaton. Touching at New
Amsterdam on their way, the commander of the vessel and
several of the passengers Were arrested by director general
Stuyvesant* and were only released from duress on a pro-
mise at once to abandon their enterprise and return home*
This proceeding on the part of Stuyvesant was a rash one,
and provoked a strong remonstrance from the United Colo-
nies ; but it answered the purpose of " Peter the Head*486
MEMOIK OF
strong,” and was? effectual, in preventing the settlement of
the English of New Haven upon the Delaware.
In looking back from this point of time to that when the
war of protests and proclamations raged between these
Dutch and English magistrates, we cannot but admire the
skill both of Governor Eaton and Director Stuyvesant, in
avoiding the shedding of blood. Stuyvesant had great faith
in the efficacy of sonorous protests, and these he thundered
without stint at the offending puritans. Governor Eaton,
on the other hand, was a man of peace, and of prudent
counsels, and hoped to obtain redress of grievances without
an appeal to force, or the doctrine of reprisals. His hopes,
however, were no farther realized than in being able to
prevent hostile collisions as long as he lived. The differ-
ences between the people of New Haven and their neigh-
bors of New Netherland, ceased only with the surrender of
the latter colony to the English in 1664.
The pecuniary losses to the colony, growing out of the
attempt to establish a plantation on the Delaware, are said
to have amounted to more than a thousand pounds sterling.
Sacrifices so great began to alarm the colonists. Some
who had brought large estates into the colony, now beheld
their substance rapidly wasting, away; and after much re-
flection they determined upon an effort to repair their for-
mer losses. Combining their money and labor, they built a
ship at Rhode Island, of 150 tons, and freighted her for
England, with the greater portion of their commercial
estates. Thomas Gregson, George Lamberton, and others
of their principal men, embarked in this vessel, which sail-
ed from New Haven, in January, 1647. The ship, which
probably foundered at sea, was never heard of after she
sailed.
The traditions of New Haven connect a wonderful atmos-
pheric phenomenon, or appai ition, with the loss of this ship,
Winthrop (ii, 328,) gives the first account of the phenome-
non ; and the Rev. Mr. Pierpont, in reply to inquiries of
Cotton Mather, gives the following relation, well suited to
swell the marvels of the Magnalia:—6< In June, (1646,) a
great thunder storm arose out of the northwest; after which
(the hemisphere being serene) about an hour before sunse,t,
a ship with like dimensions with the aforsaid, with her
canvass and colors abroad, appeared in the air coming up
from our harbor’s mouth, which lies southward from the
town, seemingly with her sails filled under a fresh gale,
holding her course north, and continuing under observation*THEOPHILUS EATON,
487
sailing against the wind, for the space of half an hour, and
then vanished into a smoky cloud.”#
The colonists now began to despair of bettering their
condition by trade ; they saw that their original design of
creating a great commercial mart at New Haven, was hope-
less ; and considering themselves but poorly calculated to
engage in agricultural pursuits, of which few had any prac-
tical knowledge, they for a time seriously entertained the
design of quitting the country. Some few of them, despair-
ing of success here, actually returned to England.
Of the leading men of New Haven, there was one or
more, connected with Cromwell by family alliances, who
had corresponded with him; and it is said that the New
Haven people received offers from him of territory in Ire-
land, or Jamaica, and that they entered into treaty for the
city of Galloway, in Ireland, where they intended to settle,
and form a small province by themselves. But the unto-
ward reduction of their estates opposed a serious obstacle
to any new enterprise, that would involve expense; in-
fluenced, moreover, by attachment to their new home, and
dreading to encounter the persecution from which they had
fled,—they at length resigned themselves quietly to agricul-
tural pursuits ; became substantial farmers, and their settle-
ment henceforward flourished as rapidly as those of the
adjoining colonies.
It has been already stated that Governor Eaton was an-
nually re-elected to the chief magistracy of the colony, from
its foundation to the period of his death—twenty years in
succession.
Governor Eaton died suddenly at his residence in New
Haven, on the 7th day of January, 1657, in the 67th year
of his age.	-
This good man had been wont to say, “ some count it a
great matter to die well; but I am sure it is a greater mat-
ter to live well. All our care should be, while we have
our life, to use it well; and so when death puts an end to
that, it will put an end to all our cares.” Having lived ac-
cording to the spirit of this maxim, making it all his care to
live well, “ God would have him to die well,” says the quaint
historian, “ without any room or time then given to care at
all; for he enjoyed a death sudden to every one but him-
self.” Having worshipped God with his family after his
usual manner, and upon some occasion having charged all
the family to be attentive to their mistress, then confined
* Mather’s Magnalia, b, i. 25.488
MEMOIR OF
by sickness, “he supped; and then took a turn or two
abroad for his meditations.” After that he came in to bid
his wife good night, before leaving her with those who were
to watch with her. She said to him, “ Methinks you look
sad.” ■ He replied, “ The differences arising in the church
of Hartford, make me sad.” She then, discontented as she
long had been, said, “Let us even go back to bur native
country.” To which, he answered, “ You may, but I shall
die here.” This was the last word she ever heard him
speak. He retired to his chamber; and about midnight he
was heard to groan ; and to some one who instantly came
in to inquire how he did, he answered only, “ very ill,” and
immediately fell asleep in Jesus.#
In the discharge of his various duties, the conduct of Go*
vernor Eatoh was marked by great energy, skill and pru-
dence, and a fervent desire to promote the public welfare.
During the perils of the two first winters at New Haven;
in the embarrassing disputes with the Dutch authorities of
New Netherland, and the difficulties with the native tribes
of Connecticut, Governor Eaton , exhibited a benevolent
care, wisdom and foresight, that were of inestimable value
to the colony. And so unanimous are the historians in his
praise, that we can realize a degree of propriety in the ex-
travagant eulogium of Mather, who says he was “ the guide
of the blind, the staff of the lame, the helper of the widow
and the orphan, and all the distressed; hone that had a
good cause were afraid of coming before him; on the one
side, in his days did the righteous flourish; on the other
side, he was the terror of evil doers. As in the government
of the common wealth, so in the government of his family,
he wTas prudent, serious, happy to a wonder. A word of his
was enough to steer them !”
Hubbard, himself, partly cotemporary with Governor
Eaton, says of him, “ After he saw the manner of the coun-
try, he soon gave over trading, and betook himself to hus*
bandry, wherein, though he met w ith the inconveniences
usual to others, wrhich very much consumed his estate, yet
he maintained a port in some measure answrerable to his
place; and although he was capable of, and had been
much used in, affairs of a far nobler and broader nature, as
having with good advantage more than once stood before
kings, yet did he apply himself to the mean and low things
of New England, w7ith that dexterity and humility as was
* Magnalia, ii., 39.THEOPHILUS EATON.
489
much to see, and with so much constancy that no tempta-
tions or solicitations could prevail with him to leave his
work and look back towards Europe again.” “This man
had in him great gifts, and as many excellencies as are
usually found in any one map: he had an excellent prince-
ly face and port, and commanding respect from all others:
he was a good scholar, a traveller, a great reader, of an
exceeding steady and even spirit, not easily moved to pas-
sion, and standing unshaken in his principles when once
fixed upon, of a profound judgment, full of majesty and au-
thority in his judicatures, so that it was a vain thing to offer
to head him out, and yet in his ordinary conversation, and
among friends, of such pleasantness of behavior, and such
felicity and fecundity of harmless wit as can hardly be-par-
alleled ; but above all he Was seasoned with religion, close
in closet duties, solemn and substantial in family worship,
a diligent and constant attender upon all public ordinances,
taking notes of the sermons he heard exactly, and im-
proving them accordingly; in short, approving himself in
the whole course of his life, in faithfulness, wisdom and in-
offensiveness before God and man.”*
“ And albeit, he sometimes had a large family, consisting
of no less than thirty persons, yet he managed them with
such an even temper, that observers have affirmed, they
never saw a house ordered with more wisdom. He kept an
honorable and hospitable table ; but one thing that still
made the entertainment thereof better, was the continual
presence of his aged mother, by feeding of whom with an
exemplary piety till she died, he ensured his own prosperi-
ty as long as he lived.”f
The author of “Wonder-working Providence of Zion’s
Saviour ” says, “ This government of New Haven, although
the younger sister of the four, yet was she as beautiful as
any oi this broode of travellers, and most minding the end
of her coming hither, to keep close to the rule of Christ both
in doctrine and discipline.” Of Eaton, he thus discourses:
“ Thou noble thus, Theophilus, before great kings to stand,
More noble far, for Christ his war, thou leav’st thy native land ;
With thy rich store thou com’st on shore Christ’s churches to assist;
What if it waste ? tliou purchast hast that Pearl that most have mist,
Nay, rather he hath purchased thee, and whatso’er thou hast,
With graces store to govern o’er his people, he thee placed.
* Hubbard, 329, 330.
t Mather. Mrs. Mary Eaton, mother of Gov. Eaton, died at the residence
of her son in New Haven, 1647.—MS. Letter of Rev. Isaac Jones.490
MEMOift OF*
Out State affaires thy will repairs, assistant thou hast bin,
Firm league to make, for Gospel’s sake, four Colonys within;
With Swedes, French, Dutch, and Indians much,\God’s people’s peace this bred:
Then Eaton aye, remember may, the child that’s yet unfed.”
Eaton was evidently the ruling mind of the colony, in all
that related to the administration of the laws; and from the
length of time he presided over the colony he became iden-
tified with all its interests.*
Governor Eaton was twice married. Of his first wife
we have no other account than that she died after becom-
ing the mother of two of his children. His second wife
was Ann, the widow of David Yale, Esq., and daughter of
Dr. Thomas Morton, the bishop of Chester. At the time of
this marriage, she had three children, David, Thomas and
Ann Yale, to whom, says Mather, Mr. Eaton “became a
most exemplary, loving and faithful father.” Edward
Hopkins married Ann, and the three children came to New
England with their mother.
Governor Eaton, in his will, names three children only—
doubtless all who were at that time living. Mather says
that two of his children died of the plague in London. Of
those who died before him, his son Samuel was the most
distinguished. He was born in 1629, came with his father
to New England, graduated at Harvard college in 1649,
and was chosen a magistrate of New Haven colony in May,
1654. He and his wife died within two days of each other,
in June, 1655.”f
The three children named in the Will, were Theophilus,
Mary, and Hannah. Theophilus, a soil by the first mar-
riage, came to this country, but returned and settled in
Dublin* Mary was married to Valentine Hill, who, in 1658,
removed to Pascataqua in New Hampshire. He had been
a deacon fh the First Church of Boston. Hannah, after the
death of her father, accompanied her mother to England,
where, in 1659, she was married to William Jones, an
English barrister, son of Col. John Jones, brother-in-law of
Cromwell, and one of the regicides executed on the Restora-
on in 1660.
Hon. William Jones, Deputy Governor of New Haven,
and afterwards Lieut. Governor of Connecticut Colony,
was born in London, A. D. 1624. He was the eldest son of
Col. John Jones, one of the Judges of Charles I., who after
the restoration of Charles II., was beheaded at Charing
* Bacon, 357.
t Kingsley, 76.fllEOPUlLUS EATON.
401
Gross, Oct: 17, 1660* aged 81 years. He was the son of the
Rt, Rev. William Jones, who was consecrated Bishop of
Durham in 1597, and died in 1617, aged 91. Col. Jones
was born in the parish of Tregacon, Isle of Anglesey, North
Wales, A. D. 1579. He was married in 1023, to Henrietta,
third daughter of Robert and Elizabeth Cromwell, (errone-
ously named Catharine by Carlyle, and Jane by Noble, in
his Memoirs of the Protectorate of Cromwell.) Elizabeth,
who was married to Robert Cromwell, was the daughter
of Sir Thomas and Elizabeth Stuart of the Isle of Ely,
Knight, descended from the Royal Family of Stuart in
Scotland. Sir Robert died at Huntingdon, June, 1617 ; his
wife Elizabeth, survived the elevation of her son to the Pro-
tectorate, and died Nov. 17, 1654, at a Very advanced age.
Foster, in his “ Statesmen of the Commonwealth of Eng-
land,” has paid a beautiful tribute to her memory and
worth. This distinguished lady of the British Isle, was the
mother of Henrietta Cromwell, who was first married to
Roger Whetstone, Esq. an officer iti the parliamentary
army, and afterwards to Col. John Jones,,in 1623; the
maternal grandparent of Hon. William Jones, who married
Hannah, youngest daughter of Governor Eaton of New
Haven ; and was also the great grandparent of Sir William
Jones of India, and Rev. William Jones of Nay land, so emi-
nent in the annals of literature and science. The year of
the death of Henrietta Jones, who was born Feb. 7, 159?*
has not been ascertained. The children of this marriage
were William, John, and Morgan. Jobn, was the grand-
parent of Sir William Jones, and Morgan of Rev. Williani
Jones. Hon. William Jones, ancestor of the Rev. Isaac
Jones of Litchfield, Conn, was born in London, 1624, was
a lawyer at Westminster, and married to Hannah Eaton,
daughter of Governor Eaton, July 4, 1650, in St* Andrew’s
Church, Holborn, by Rev. Joseph Rowe. They arrived at
Boston, July 27, 1660, in company with the Judges Whal-
ley and Goffe. They removed to New Haven in August
of the same year, took possession of the mansion of Gov;
Eaton, and continued in it till their deaths. The mansion
was demolished in 1710.
Mr. Jones was made a freeman in 1661; was chosen
magistrate in 1662, and Deputy Governor of New Haven
Colony in 1664. On the union of this Colony with Connecti-
cut, May 11, 1665, he was chosen one of the magistrates.
In July 1691, in consequence of the death of Lieut. Gover-
nor Bishop, he was elected Lieut; Governor by the General
SECOND SERIES, VOL. fl. 4849 2
MEMOIR OF
Assembly. He was elected to the same office by the free-
men in 1692, and retired May 12, 1698. He had acquired
great respectability and influence, both in town and Colony*
in his day. He died October 17, 1706, aged 82. His con-
sort, Hannah Jones, born in London, 1683, died May 4*
(not 10th as has been stated,) 1707, aged 74.*
At the first General Court after the death of Governor
Eaton, it was resolved to erect a monument to his memory—
in the words of the record, “ a comely tomb, such as we are
capable of.” A plain sandstone tablet, in the cemetery at
New Haven, marks the place of his burial, with the follow-
ing inscription:
Theophilus Eaton, Esq,, Gov. clec. 7 Jan. 1657, cetat 67.
“ Eaton, so fam’d, so wise, so meek, so just,
“ The Phoenix of our world, here hides his dust,
u This name forget New England never must.”
Lieut. Gov. Jones and his wife Hannah, were buried, one
on the right, and the other on the left of Governor Eaton*
and to the former inscription, the following was added :
“ T’ attend you, sir, under these framed stones,
“ Are come your honor’d son and daughter Jones,
" On each side to repose their wearied bones.”t
On the death of Gov. Eaton, his widow returned to Eng-
land with her two sons, David and Thomas Yale. Elihu
Yale, governor of the East India Company, and one of the
principal founders of Yale College, was a son of Thomas
Vale. Mrs. Eaton, the widow of Gov. Eaton, died in Lon-
don, in 1659.
Samuel Eaton, the brother of Governor Eaton, who has
before been mentioned in this sketch, was the first teacher
in the church at New Haven. In 1640, he obtained a grant
from the colony of the township of Brandford, (Tetoket, of
the Indians,) on condition that he would procure emigrants
from England to settle upon it. He soon after went to
England, for the purpose of procuring settlers for the new
plantation ; but being invited to take the pastoral charge
of the church at Duckinfield,J in Cheshire, he never return-
* For these particulars relating to the family of Deputy Governor Jones, the
writer is indebted to the Rev. Isaac Jones of Litchfield, Connecticut.
t The stone has been removed to the new burial ground, and the old inscrip-
tion erased. That on Gov. Eaton has been re-engraved.—Kingsley, 77.
X Duckinfield, township and barony, were portions of the property of a family
of that name, who date back to the days of the conquest. The township has some
valuable mines and quarries. It is on the river Tame, which here constitutedTHEOPHILUS EATON.
493
ed. He was one of the two thousand ministers who in
1062, were silenced in one day by the act of uniformity. He
is described as “ a very holy man, of great learning and
judgment, and an incomparable preacher.” A list of his
publications is given by Wood. He died at Denton, in Lan-
cashire, England, 9th of June, 1665, and was buried in the
chapel. The sermon preached at his funeral is found in
the works of Oliver Hey wood, v. 509.*
Dr. Mather, speaking of the services rendered to the com-
mercial interest of London, by Gov. Eaton, while in Den-
mark, in 1613, says the Eastland Company, on his return,
presented his wife with a basin and ewer, curiously wrought
with gold, and weighing above sixty pounds.f At Gov-
ernor Eaton’s death, this relic was valued at £41. Miss
Hannah Eaton, afterwards Mrs. Jones, in an exchange of
property transferred it to Theophilus Eaton, her only bro-
ther, who lived and died in Dublin. Gov. Eaton left no
male descendants in this country. Among other treasures,
a silver urn, valued at $30, made at Copenhagen, was pre-
sented to Mrs. Eaton in 1615, and is now in possession of
the venerable antiquary, the Rev. Isaac Jones, resident
Episcopal Minister at Litchfield, Conn.
the boundary between Cheshire and Lancashire,—Beauties of England and
Wales, ii. 272.
* Wood’s Athense Oxon. Bacon’s Hist. Disc, 60.
t Magnalia, b. ii. 27.