Joseph Kilbourne or Kyllborn was born 1639 in Weathersfield, Hartford County, Connecticut to John Kilbourne (1624-1703) and Sarah Brownson (1639-1711) and died 1744 Litchfield, Litchfield County, Connecticut of unspecified causes. He married Hester Gibbs (1672-1720) 29 June 1710 in Litchfield County, Connecticut.
Biography
Joseph Kilbourne or Kyllborn was before 1722 was resident of Glastonbury. 1720 was one of early settlers of Litchfield, Conn. He was one of six, born in Wethersfield, CT. He added an "e" to his name and married Dorothy Butler. IN 1721 he moved his family to Litchfield, CT.
He married Dorothy Butler in 1696 and after her death he married Hester Gibbs in 1710.
Settler of Litchfield CT
In 1721 Joseph and Dorothy moved their family to Litchfield, CT where he was one of the first settlers, and one of the founders of the Presbyterian church of that town. He was admitted an inhabitant of Litchfield on the 12th of December, 1721, and at the next annual Town Meeting (holden Dec. 17, 1722) he was chosen a Selectman, his colleagues being John Stodder and Nathaniel Horsford. At an adjourned meeting holden on the 26th of the same month, he was appointed, with two others, "a committee for building the meeting-house." He served his fellow-townsmen in various offices, and occasionally as Moderator of their town meetings, until his death. For the following accounts of the lands of Joseph Kilborn and their location, I am indebted to Geo. C. Woodruff, Esq., the Post Master of Litchfield.
Samuel Lewis and John Man were original proprietors of the town of Litchfield, owning each one-sixtieth part of the township. Jan. 11, 1719-20, Lewis conveyed his right to Thomas Treadway.
The 20 acre division belonging to Joseph Kilborn, under Man's right, was bounded east on Bantam river and south on highway; it embraced the land lying north of the East Burying Ground - the Burying Ground lying mostly in the original highway.
Joseph Kilborn having thus purchased the original rights of Lewis and Man, had sundry lots surveyed to him under those rights; each right entitled him to something like seven hundred acres of land.
Will of Joseph Kilbourne
His Will, (omitting the preamble, which is very similar in form to those already printed) bears date "in the Eleventh year of the Reign of Our Sovereign Lord, George the Second. Anno Domini, 1737," and is as follows:
"Imp's. I give and bequeath to ESTHER K., by dearly beloved Wife, my gray pacing mare, and one milch cow. "Item. I give and bequeath to my three daughters, DOROTHY, wife of Joseph Birge, ESTHER, wife of Samuel Smedley, and ELIZABETH, wife of Isaac Catlin, Ten Shillings apiece, that being the complement of what I design for their portion of my estate. "Item. I give and bequeath to my son, JONATHAN KILBORN, Twenty Acres of land, viz., the last Twenty Acre Division granted and drawn for upon the right of land in Litchfield. "Item. I give and bequeath to my two sons, JOSEPH and JAMES KILBORN, their heirs and assigns, all the remaining part of my estate, both real and personal, to be equally divided between the, the said JOSEPH and JAMES KILBORN; always provided that they, the said JOSEPH and JAMES KILBORN, shall comfortably amd decently provide for me and my wife both in sickness and health, for the whole term of our natural lives. Furthermore, I do hereby constitute and appoint my two sons, JOSEPH and JAMES KILBORN, Executors of this my last Will and Testament, and I do by these presents disallow and revoke all former Wills and Testaments, ratifying and confirming this and no other, as my last Will and Testament, in virtue whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal the day and year mentioned.
JOSEPH KYLLBORN (seal) The above Will was "witnessed" by Rev. Timothy Collens, Elizabeth Collens, and Thomas Lamson; and was proved before the Court in 1744, which renders it probable that Joseph Kilborn died in that year.
Marriage and Family
1st Marriage: Dorothy Butler
Joseph Kilbourne was born in Wethersfield about the year 1672, and was married to Dorothy Butler (1676-1709), daughter of Deac. Samuel Butler, June 4, 1696, by Capt. John Chester, Commissioner. She having died on the 19th of August, 1709, their children were:
- Dorothy Kilbourne (1697-1747) -wife of Joseph Birge (per father's will)
- Joseph Kilbourne (1700-1756)
- Jonathan Kilbourne (1703-1776) - Adopted
- James Kilbourne (1707-1762)
2nd Marriage: Hester Gibbs
Joseph Kilbourne was married, a second time, to Hester Gibbs (1672-1720), daughter of Jacob Gibbs of Windsor, June 29, 1710, by Col. Mathew Allyn, Assistant. Te children of Joseph and Hester were, Benjamin, Hester, Elizabeth and Mary.
- Benjamin Kilborune
- Hester Kilbourne (1713-1756) - wife of Samuel Smedley (see father's will)
- Elizabeth Kilbourne (1716-1768) - (or Betsy) wife of Isaac Catlin (see father's will)
- Mary Kilbourne (1719-1784) - possibly dead before 1744, not mentioned in father's will (?)
Children
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Dorothy Kilbourne (1697-1747) | 1697 Hartford County, Connecticut | 1747 Litchfield County, Connecticut | Joseph Birge (1690-) |
| Joseph Kilbourne (1700-1756) | |||
| Jonathan Kilbourne (1703-1776) | |||
| James Kilbourne (1707-1762) | |||
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Benjamin Kilbourne | |||
| Hester Kilbourne (1713-1756) | |||
| Elizabeth Kilbourne (1716-1768) | |||
| Mary Kilborne (1719-1784) | |||
Siblings
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Joseph Kilbourne (1672-1744) | 1639 Weathersfield, Hartford County, Connecticut | 1744 Litchfield, Litchfield County, Connecticut | Dorothy Butler (1676-1709) Hester Gibbs (1672-1720) |
Research Notes
- James Olmstead List of Famous Descendants
- Ancestry of Joseph Kilbourne
- Butler-Olmstead Family Genealogy - Probably Best info for this family.
SOURCES:
- The Family Memorial by Payne Kenyon Kilbourne page 27
Jack R. Lewis, P.O. Box 570050, Sigurd, UT 84657-0050