- English Immigrant to America
- Signer to the 1639 Guilford Plantation Covenant
Abraham Cruttenden, Sr. was born 30 September 1599 in Etchingham, Sussex, England, United Kingdom to Thomas Cruttenden (1561-) and died circa 1682 Guilford, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States of unspecified causes. He married Elizabeth Usborne (1598-1660) 1623 in England. He married Joanna Sheaffe (1614-1668) 31 May 1665 in Guilford, New Haven County, Connecticut.
Biography
1639 Plantation Covenant
GUILFORD>>On Tuesday, May 14, 2014, a dream came true for Guilford resident and member of the Board of Selectmen Carl Balestracci. That was the day on which a 27,000-pound slab of pink granite was put into place on a tiny parcel of land at the intersection of Whitfield and Old Whitfield streets.
The Guilford Covenant (or sometimes called the "Plantation Covenant" was a covenant signed on June 1, 1639 by English colonists during their Atlantic crossing as the founding document of what would become Guilford, Connecticut.
Led by Rev. Henry Whitfield, the Plantation Covenant was signed onboard ship after departing England.[1] The 25 signers were the male heads of household among the group of settlers bound first for Quinnipiac (later known as New Haven). Most of these families were from Surrey and Kent, who by September 1639 founded present-day Guilford after securing a land grant from Shaumpishuh, the Quinnipiac sachem of Menunkatuck.[2]
Abraham and William Chittenden (1594-1661), neighbors for many years in Hawkhurst, arrived in America at New Haven Connecticut in 1639 aboard the St. John with Reverend Henry Whitfield.[5] Their signatures appear on the "Plantation Covenant" that was signed 1 June 1639 at sea.[6] After landing at New Haven, the Whitfield party, including Abraham Cruttenden, soon made arrangements to settle at Guilford by purchasing the lands then called "Menunkatuck."[7]
Abraham Cruttenden held civic posts as a founder of the Guilford settlement. On 30 Apr 1646, he was appointed "overseer of the mill bay dams or floodgates."[8] On June 6, 1651, he was chosen assessor and on June 9, 1653, he was made a townsman.[9]
In addition to his home lot, Abraham owned more than fifty acres of other property in Guilford. He owned "a parcel of upland and marsh in the valley on each side of West River," a "parcel of upland 20 acres abutting the common woods," a "parcel of marsh land to the South 10 1/2 acres" and a "parcel of upland acres against the mill" containing 19 acres.[10]
After the death of his wife, Elizabeth, Abraham married the widow, Joanna (Sheaffe) Chittenden, on 31 May 1665.[11]Joanna died in Guilford on 16 August 1668.[12]
Death and Estate
Abraham died on 9 Sep 1683.[13] He left a will dated 14 September 1681,[14] proved 13 June 1683,[15] mentioning sons Thomas, Abraham and Isaac Cruttenden; grandchildren: Daniel Bartlett, John Grave, Abraham and Samuel Cruttenden; daughters Elizabeth Grave and Hannah Highland; grandchildren Daniel and Abraham Bartlett and Lydia, Elizabeth, Deborah and Hannah Crittenden.[16] Executors were sons Thomas and Isaac Crittenden.[17] A codicil dated 27 June 1682 added son Abraham as an executor.[18]
Disputed Origins
Abraham Cruttenden (Crittenden) was born about 1598-1599.[1] His parentage has not been definitively established but he may be the Abraham baptized in Etchingham, Sussex, England -- the son of Thomas Cruttenden.[2] Other sources identify his parents as Abraham Cruttenden and Elizabeth Roberts, but they have been detached as parents in Geni.
Children
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Thomas Cruttenden (1624-1698) | |||
| Abraham Cruttenden (1626-1694) | 1 November 1626 Hawkhurst, Kent, England, United Kingdom | 25 September 1694 Guilford, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States | Susanna Gregson (1637-1713) |
| Isaac Cruttenden (1629-1685) | 1629 Hawkhurst, Kent, England, United Kingdom | 10 July 1685 Guilford, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States | Lydia Thompson (1647-1729) |
| Mary Cruttenden (1632-1669) | |||
| Elizabeth Cruttenden (1634-1698) | |||
| Hannah Cruttenden (1637-1698) | January 1637 Hawkhurst, Kent, England, United Kingdom | 31 December 1698 Guilford, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States | George Hiland (1641-1692) |
| Deborah Cruttenden (1642-1658) | |||
Siblings
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Anne Cruttenden (1590-) | |||
| William Cruttenden (1592-) | |||
| Thomas Cruttenden (1595-1596) | |||
| Thomas Cruttenden (1596-) | |||
| Abraham Cruttenden (1599-1683) | 30 September 1599 Etchingham, Sussex, England, United Kingdom | 1682 Guilford, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States | Elizabeth Usborne (1598-1660) Joanna Sheaffe (1614-1668) |
| Sisley Cruttenden (1601-) | |||
| Isaack Cruttenden (1604-) | |||
| Joseph Cruttenden (1607-) | |||
| Mary Cruttenden (1610-) | |||
| William Cruttenden (1615-) | |||
Residences
See Also
- Abraham Cruttenden
- Cruttenden Family
- Cruttenden in Sussex
- Cruttenden in Kent
- Cruttenden in New Haven County, Connecticut
- Abraham Cruttenden, Geni.com, https://www.geni.com/people/Abraham-Cruttenden-of-Guilford/6000000003940540938, retrieved 12 Oct 2024
- Abraham Cruttenden, FindAGrave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/134425142/abraham_cruttenden, retrieved 12 Oct 2024
Footnotes (including sources)
- ^ Cutter, William Richard (2008). Genealogical and Personal Memoirs: Relating to the Families of Boston and Eastern Massachusetts, Volume 1. Baltimore, MD: Clearfield. pp. 1687. ISBN 978-0-8063-4960-2.
- ^ Smith, Ralph Dunning (1877). The History of Guilford, Connecticut: From Its First Settlement in 1639. Albany, New York: J. Munsell. pp. 11.