Deborah GRISWOLD, b.28 Jun 1646 in Windsor CT, d. 7 Feb 1717 in Killingworth, CT. Deborah was the 4th daughter of Edward Francis & Margaret Griswold, who immigrated to Windsor area by 1639, coming with Reverend Mr. Ephraim Huit [Hewett]. The Griswold couple had been living in Kenilworth, England, and married just before sailing to Connecticut. The Connecticut town was first named Kenilworth after his home in England, later renamed Killingworth.
More on these first Puritan settlers may be found in the book [A Catalogue of the Names of the First Puritan Settlers of the Colony of Connecticut,] published by Royal Ralph Hinman, in 1846.
Edward Francis GRISWOLD was a prominent man of this new colony, and he and his brother Matthew [who came earlier, in 1630] can be found in many histories of the region.
Deborah is my 8th great-grandmother on my maternal side. On 18 Nov 1662, she married Samuel William BUELL in Windsor. Samuel was the eldest son of William Buell & Mary Post who were early settlers in Dorchester near Boston in 1630, then moved to Windsor by 1635, where Samuel and his siblings were born. Samuel was a large landowner, and was well-respected, known as a "gentleman" according to Windsor town records.
Deborah and her husband had 12 children of whom 2 apparently died young. By the time she died, she was a grandmother and even a great-grandmother! As is usual with women ancestors in these times, she doesn't rate more than a few lines in any histories of the region, except in relation to her husband. However, it seems she was healthy and lived to a very reasonable age, and likely a relatively comfortable one.
Happily, there is a Griswold Family Association online, which can provide more details to other researchers in this interesting line.
And then there's the Griswold family made oh-so-famous in the 1980s - which my adult children pointed out to me! (I somehow missed these shows - working and going to university once again for yet-another degree). Definitely not relatives... but they'd fit into ours I'm sure!
If you are related to these ancestors of mine, and/or have any information to share, please comment below, or contact me via calewis at telus dot net.
