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Cyndi's List of Genealogy
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ANNOUNCING THE 2010 MICHAEL GRISWOLD
HOUSE RESTORATION PROJECT
During our recent deliberations on the Long Term
Maintenance/Restoration Plan the house committee and Board have focused on
the state of our GFA Endowment Fund. When the GFA received the bequest that
enabled us to establish the fund we developed an investment strategy and our
goals and objectives for the fund. With the recent economic crisis in our
country the fund took a bad hit. The endowment fund was created with the
primary goals of maintenance and restoration of the Michael Griswold house
and to fund our genealogical research efforts.
The GFA Executive Board has been conservative with our investment philosophy
and prudent with our spending. The GFA has not had another bequest since the
initial one, so the fund has been slowly downsized with our operational
needs.
The GFA Executive Board is currently planning and
organizing a Michael Griswold House Restoration Fundraiser. We have
established a goal of fundraising for some of the upcoming major restoration
projects. Our plan calls for the replacement of all window sash and
surrounds, and resurfacing of the house with insulation material and new
clapboards. We have preserved the window sash and clapboards with TLC but
have exceeded their life expectancy. Contractors recommend that we
accomplish both tasks at the same time and we hope to accomplish this
project within the next five years.
The GFA members can be very proud of our house and
national headquarters. The house is one of the finest architectural and
historical structures in the Wethersfield Historic District. We should do
everything we can to preserve and protect this family treasure. We will be
doing everything the Board can to stabilize our endowment fund and to seek
out funding sources to assist us in our efforts.
Much of our effort in this Restoration Project will be
focused on our membership. We hope to encourage members to include the GFA
in their plans for wills and bequests. We hope to enlist financial memorial
donations to the Michael Griswold house and to specific restoration
projects. The last time the GFA sponsored a restoration fundraiser, over 20
years ago, we were very successful in raising the necessary funds to
complete the project.
The details of our Restoration Project and cost estimates
will be published in the first GFA Bulletin of 2010.
Richard Griswold
House Committee Chairperson
MG House restoration plans
Click here to see additional photographs
of the Michael Griswold House |
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We received a query about the cemetery in
Killingworth...
My name is Tom Lentz and I am the Municipal Historian for the
Town of Killingworth. I am in the process of documenting and photographing
the early gravestones of Killingworth. Many of these, especially the
sandstone ones, are deteriorating and need to be documented. There are still
many intact Griswold markers. I have two questions concerning Griswold
gravestones.
1. Is the Margaret Griswold stone (MG 1670) in the Indian River cemetery a
replica of the original and, if so, where is the original?
2. The fine Griswold memorial erected by the Griswold Family Association in
the Indian River cemetery gives Edward Griswold's dates as 1607-1690,
whereas most genealogies place his death on August 30, 1691.
Coralee Griswold responded:
1) According to our records: Margaret died August 23, 1670 at
Clinton, originally Killingworth, CT. Her gravestone marked "M. G. 1670" is
the oldest stone in the cemetery behind the Congregational Church in
Clinton.
2) Edward died in his 84th year, his burial place being unknown, except it
may be the vacant place next to that of Margaret. His christening records
give a date of 26 Jul 1607, which would indicate he died 1691 and in fact my
records state he died 30 Aug 1691 (but I'm not sure where that exact date
originated from). I cannot explain why the Griswold Memorial has a different
year, perhaps someone within the Association that was more involved with
that can explain?
Sara French responded:
That Edward Memorial was put up in 1990. I have (somewhere!)
a picture of my mother, that my father took, when we went to Clinton in
search of Margaret & Edward. Mom is pointing at the M.G. stone with triumph.
Coralee added:
He was in his "84th" year according to all the records I've
found. That means the death date should have been 1691, so it appears the
memorial is off by a year. As Municipal Historian for the Town of
Killingworth, I guess the important thing is that Tom document it properly
in the records. Sara do you know if the marker for Margaret was replaced
with a replica? Tom, seems to think so. It might be interesting if you found
that picture with your mom, to compare against what is there today.
Does anyone else want to weigh in on this discussion? You can contact Tom
Lentz by email at thomas.lentz@yale.edu
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Griswold Facts & Places
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- Griswold is the 3,955th most
popular last name (surname) in the United States; frequency is 0.003%;
percentile is 60.418
- Griswold, Illinois, United
States [Place] is in Livingston County; location is 40°54'47"N 88°21'14"W
- Griswold, Iowa, United States
[City]; population was 1,049 in 1990; housing units was 502 in 1990;
location is 41°14'N 95°8'W; land area is 0.61 square miles (393 acres)
- Griswold, Iowa, United States
[Populated Place] is in Cass County; location is 41°14'6"N 95°8'14"W
- Griswold, Maine, United States
[Place] is in Aroostook County; location is 46°24'35"N 68°17'55"W
- Griswold, New York, United
States [Place] is in Chautauqua County; location is 42°22'2"N 79°13'48"W;
elevation is 1,435 feet
- Griswold, New York, United
States [Place] is in Genesee County; location is 42°53'26"N 78°20'43"W
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HISTORY OF MILLS IN GRISWOLDVILLE FROM 1680-1880
COMPILED BY RICHARD B. LASHER
(HONORARY MAYOR OF GRISWOLDVILLE)
The first mill was built by Jacob Griswold in 1680. It was a
woolen fulling mill believed to be the first in New England. The site was on
Two Stone Brook where it crossed High Street (now named Highland Street).
The successive mills at this site remained in the Griswold family for 159
years.
In 1839 the Griswoldville Manufacturing Co. was established.
They produced satinelle cloth for ladies’ stockings and underwear in a three
story building. In 1854 a fire broke out and destroyed most of this mill
building putting 40 people out of work. In 1860 J.W. Griswold revived the
company and built a large yellow brick mill building. At the time of the
Civil War this mill had a government contract for woolen cloth for uniforms
for the Northern soldiers. They also produced stockings, shirts and
underwear. History shows that about 400 people were employed at this mill.
The supervisor was Austin Standish.
Leonard Chester’s grist mill was probably the first in New
England. It was built in 1637 on Mill Brook near the presently named Bell
Dam. This mill later became a saw mill with an overshot wheel./ The mill was
later owned by Amasa Adams and became a cider and grist mill in 1797.
In 1697 Zachariah Seymour set up another fulling mill
downstream from the Chester mill.
Captain Thomas Williams built a grist mill near the mill pond in 1866; later
it was under the management of John Knapp who lived on Knapp Hill.
The Justus Griswold grist mill was built in 1810. (There were four Justus
Griswolds). In successive years owners of this mill, located on Griswold
Pond (now named Murphy’s Pond) produced woven mill cloth and also dyed it.
Thomas Griswold built a satinet mill upstream on Two Stone
Brook in 1825. They employed a Frenchman by the name of Thomas Tousley who
was experienced in satinet manufacturing. The remains of this mill can be
seen on Stockingmill Rd. where it crosses Two Stone Brook.
Albro Griswold (related to Jacob Griswold) and his
brother-in-law Elisha Wolcott formed a company to manufacture woolen goods
in 1827. They built a large brick two-story building. The company failed in
1838. A new company named the Bailey & Wolcott Co. was formed with Oliver
Wolcott in 1840. The blacksmith mill produced hand forged hammers, plow
shares, axes, hoes and rakes. This building burned down in 1845.
The Hewitt Mattress Mfg. Co./ was the last mill in Griswoldville. It was
located on Two Stone Brook about where Maple St. crosses the brook, and was
founded by Lyman & Ransom T. Hewitt in 1853. These mattresses were made from
chopped up corn leaves and stalks. This miss burned down in 1894. They
relocated their business near the new railroad tracks in South Wethersfield.
They sold the business in 1914 to the Acme Mattress Co.
The end of the water-powered mills in Griswoldville came with
the moving of people to Glastonbury and Dividend in Rocky Hill, where there
were large flowing brooks year round. When steam power came into being
factories could be built anywhere as they did not need brooks for water
power.
Bibliography: Jared Standish
History of Ancient Wethersfield by Sherman Adams
Henry Stiles
PHOTO: Left Right
Williams Gristmill Jacob Griswold homestead
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Lamoille, Nevada From National Geographic Traveler, October 2001: Places Of A Lifetime
The Ruby Mountains - a steep, jagged wall of gray and
white, shadow and light - seem painted across the horizon. They are perhaps
the most spectacular example of Nevada's unique basin-and-range landscape,
dwarfing the surrounding valley. At the foot of the Rubies, about 30 miles
southeast of Elko, is the small town of Lamoille...this tiny ranching
community might be the most beautiful spot in Nevada. With its groves of
aspens and cottonwoods, steepled Presbyterian church, rustic ranch houses,
and fields of green, Lamoille is a postcard-image town...Be sure not to miss
the 130mile scenic drive on Lamoille Canyon Road (Richard Moreno, publisher
of Nevada Magazine)
The GFA Western Heritage Tour visited Elko, Nevada, in
July, 2000. Featured activities were a hike to Griswold Lake in the Ruby
Mountains and a bus trip through Lamoille Canyon. |
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Lemoille
Canyon |
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Griswold Lake,
Ruby Mountains, Nevada |
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Major Joseph Griswold Homestead -
Privately owned
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| The Major Joseph Griswold house is at
8 Old Upper Street,
Buckland, Massachusetts. This Buckland Landmark Is listed In The National
Register Of Historic Places. Built in 1816 it remained in the
Griswold family until 2002. The third floor ballroom was the site of
Mary Lyon’s early school for young women and is accurately restored to
that time period. The back porch overlooks inspiring gardens
and Buckland hills. |
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