Person:Thomas Stanton (1)

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Thomas Stanton (1616?–1677) was a trader and an accomplished Indian interpreter and negotiator in the Connecticut Colony, one of the original settlers of Hartford. He was also one of four founders of Stonington, Connecticut, along with William Chesebrough, Thomas Miner, and Walter Palmer.

He first appears in the historical record as an interpreter for John Winthrop, Jr. in 1636. He fought in the Pequot War, nearly losing his life in the Fairfield Swamp Fight in 1637. In 1638, he was a delegate at the Treaty of Hartford which ended that war. In 1643, the United Colonies of New England appointed him as Indian Interpreter.

Following the war, Stanton returned to Hartford where he married and became a successful trader. In 1649, he settled a tract of land alongside the Pawcatuck River in present-day Stonington. In 1649 or 1650, he was given permission to establish a trading post on the river and was granted a three-year monopoly over Indian trade in the area. The trading house was built in 1651. During this time, Stanton's family remained in Hartford or New London, joining him in Stonington in about 1657 after the trading venture had become established and a suitable house constructed.

Stanton's first house in Stonington was demolished in the 19th century and today the site is marked by a large inscribed stone. A subsequent dwelling built beginning about 1670 is the oldest house still standing in Stonington and is now preserved as the Stanton-Davis Homestead Museum.

Stanton and his wife Anna are buried in Stonington at the Wequetequock Cemetery.

Origins

There have been claims^[1],^[2], ^[10] that Thomas is the son of Thomas and Katherine (Washington) Stanton of Wolverton, Warwickshire. In "The American Genealogists" Volume XIV, D.L. Jacobus, New Haven, Conn. 1937, is an article by Clarence Almon Torrey, PH.B of Dorchester, Mass - The Stanton-Washington Ancestry". Almon consulted published works on Oxford students and John Burke's "A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Commoners of Great Britain and Ireland". From these records "it is evident that Thomas Stanton, son of Thomas and Katherine (Washington) Stanton, remained in England; that he entered Oxford, aged 17 years, in 1634; that he married Elizabeth Cookes and had a son Thomas, who was 17 in 1664, when he was admitted to Oxford."

However, Bernard Stanton the President of The Thomas Stanton Society resurrected the theory in April 1999, writing in his newsletter that "the root of the problem lies with two Stanton brothers having the same name. This unusual practice was bound to cause problems. [Its precedent was established by the family of John and Elizabeth (Townesend) Stanton, great grandparents of our Thomas]." Regarding the Terry's identification of the third Thomas, "we claim (he) has been wrongly identified. The reason for our opinion lies on the Stanton memorials found on the wall of Wolverton's Church, St. Mary the Virgin. Here Thomas Stanton, Lord of the Manor, was born in 1621 and died in 1664. His birth was two years after the visitation. This Thomas married Elizabeth Cooks, the daughter of Edward (This was so noted by Terry in referring to the chart "Staunton of Longbridge, 1835"). It was also found on the church memorial. Another memorial notes the birth of Thomas, son and heir of Thomas and Elizabeth, born 1646, died 1715 (He was the third Stanton on the Oxford list). Terry was not aware of the church memorials that revealed a second Stanton child in the family to carry the name Thomas."

"Oxford records as quoted by Terry, tell of Thomas Stanton Sr. born in 1595, enrolling in Jan. 1610 at age 15. He was the father of Thomas Stanton (Staunton) Jr., 1st son of Thomas of Wolverton, enrolled July 1634 at age 17. A third Thomas, "son of Tho. of Wolverton, c. Warwickshire, gent." was born. He enrolled 13 July, 1664, at age 17. His memorial claims him the son of Thomas and Elizabeth. That makes him the nephew of our Thomas, not the son as reported."

"We now have two Thomas Stantons born of Thomas and Katherine (Washington) Stanton. The first son Thomas is spelled out in the visitation chart. The second son Thomas is called out in the Staunton of Longbridge chart; in addition, he is identified as the husband of Elizabeth Cooks."

In 2006, Eugene Zubrinsky dismantled this latter theory as based on nothing more than unlikely speculation The memorial cited as having the 1621 date does not in fact have any birth date. To the contrary, it says that Thomas died 1664 at the age of of 47 - which matches the visitation record. Moreover, the theory requires that the older Thomas abandon his birthright and immigrate at 18 - not impossible, but not a safe assumption. In addition, the will of the father Thomas in 1626 names only one son Thomas.

Life in New England

Thomas Stanton was at Hartford early in its settlement, as indicated by the placement of his home lots and the 11 lots he possessed by 1640.^[14] LIkely sometime before that, he gained experience with local Indians as a trader and interpreter that eventually were put to use at Saybrook in 1636.

In July 1636, George Fenwick and Rev. Hugh Peter went to Saybrook to assess construction of a fort and settlement. They arrived there with two others - John Oldham and Thomas Stanton, "bringing with them some Otter-skin coats, and Beaver, and skeins of wampum, which the Pequits had sent for a present."^[15]

The services of Mr. Stanton as interpreter during the Pequot war were invaluable, says the history of New London, Connecticut: "He was, moreover, a man of trust and intelligence and his knowledge of the country and of the natives made him a useful pioneer and counsellor in all land questions, as well as difficulties with the Indians." DeForest's History of Connecticut says: "Some time in April (1637) a small vessel arrived at the fort (Saybrook), having on board Thos. Stanton, a man well acquainted with the Indian language, and long useful to the colonial authorities as interpreter." Thomas Stanton served through the Pequot war and special mention is made of his bravery in the battle of Fairfield Swamp, where he nearly lost his life.^[4]

Stanton was among those granted trading rights with the Indians on 5 April 1638, when the General Court ordered that "none shall trade in this River with the Indains for beau except Stanton and Whiting, both of Hartford..."^[16]

He was interpreter for the Yorkshire. England, colonists at New Haven, November 24, 1638, when the land on which the city of New Haven is located, was bought of the Indians.^[4], ^[5] He appears to have moved to Pequot by July 1651, when he was a deputy to the General Session. ^[17] He received land grants at Pequot in the early 1650s.^[18] In 1650 the general court appointed him interpreter to the elders who were required to preach the gospel to the Indians at least twice a year. Caulkins said of him: "From the year 1636, when he was Winthrop's interpreter with the Nahantic sachem, to 1670 when the Uncas visited him with a train of warriors and captains to get him to write his will, his name is connected with almost every Indian transaction on record."^[4]

In 1658 he removed to Wequetequock Cove, two miles and a half east of Stonington, where he was the third settler; it was then called Southington, Massachusetts, and part of Suffolk county, and Stanton was appointed in 1658 one of the managers. His farm was on the west side of the Pawkatuck river near its mouth. In 1664 he was a commissioner to try small causes and in 1665 had authority to hold a semi-annual court at New London. In 1666 he was re-elected commissioner of county judges, also overseer-general, of the Coassatuck Indians, a commissioner of appeals in Indian affairs, and he was successively re-elected commissioner until his death in 1677. He was member of the general assembly in 1666 and was elected in succeeding years without interruption until 1674. In 1667 he was granted two hundred and fifty acres on the Pachaug river and in the same year he was called upon to settle threatening trouble between Uncas and the Niantic tribe. Almost constantly he was engaged in the public service, especially in the discharge of the duties of his office as Indian commissioner. He and his sons were active in King Philip's war and all of his sons were useful and prominent as Indian interpreters and peace-makers.^[4]

The Woquetequock Burial Ground Association in Stonington, Connecticut, on 31 August 1899, dedicated a monument which had been erected as a memorial to the first four settlers of Waquetequock --- William Chesebrough, Thomas Minor, Walter Palmer and Thomas Stanton. Each side of the monument carries an epitaph, above which has been carved a coat of arms. The Stanton epitaph reads as follows:

Thomas Stanton Interpreter General for the New England Colonies, died Dec. 2, 1677, aged 62 years. He came from England in 1635, was of Boston in 1636, Hartford 1637, and Stonington in 1650. Was Marshall of the Colony, County Commissioner, member of the General Court and one of the founders of the First Church in Stonington, a man of widespread and lasting importance to the Colonies, and identified with nearly every transaction between the natives and colonists up to the year of his death. ^[5]

William Stanton, in his 1891 Thomas Stanton genealogy claimed that Stanton was a magistrate in Boston in 1636 and 1637. Aside from being inconsistent with Stanton's appearance at Hartford and his age of about 21, the records Stanton cite pertain to Israel Stoughton, not Stanton.^[9]

Virginia?

Thomas Stanton of Connecticut is often (e.g., Savage, Cutter) said to have immigrated first to Virginia, by virtue of the passenger list of the Merchant Bonaventura, which contains an entry for a Tho. Stanton, 20.^[19]. It is then claimed that Stanton made his way over land north to New England, learning the Indian language (sic), thereby qualifying him as an interpreter for the Indians in Connecticut.

There is no direct support for this account, which is in itself highly improbable. There are virtually no documented cases of Virginia immigrants ending up in New England. The Indian languages Stanton would have encountered between Virginia and New England bear no resemblance to the language(s) of the Connecticut tribes for which he translated. In addition, there are records for Thomas Stanton in Virginia in the 1640s, consistent with the time and place of arrival of the Virginia immigrant, and the records, involving him in administration of estates and suggesting substantial business relationships, imply relationships of trust built over time. ^[9]

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Lord, Kenneth. Genealogy of the Descendants of Thomas Lord: an Original Proprietor and Founder of Hartford, Conn., in 1636. (New York: The Compiler, 1946)
   page 55-56.

   'Anne Lord, bapt. England, Sept. 18, 1614 ... married, in Hartford, Conn., in 1637, Thomas Stanton. ... Thomas Stanton died in Stonington, Conn., December 2, 1677, ... The Stanton epitaph reads, as follows: THOMAS STANTON INTERPRETER GENERAL FOR THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES, DIED DEC. 2, 1677, AGED 62 YEARS. ...' 'Thomas Stanton, son of Thomas and Katherine Washington Stanton, whe went from London to Virginia n 1635 and then to Hartford. Lived in Hartford and Stonington.'

2. ↑ Stanton, William A. A Record, Genealogical, Biographical, Statistical, of Thomas Stanton of Connecticut and His Descendants, 1635-1891. (Albany: J. Munsell, 1891).
3.   Savage, James. A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England: Showing Three Generations of Those Who Came Before May, 1692, on the Basis of Farmer's Register. (Boston: Little, Brown, and Co, 1860-1862)
   4:167.

   THOMAS, Stonington, came from Virginia, whither, in 1635, he had gone from London, at the age of 20, was one of the orig[inal]. propr[ietor]s. of Hartford, and there resid[ed]. many y[ea]rs. for it is tho[ugh]t. that all of his nine ch[ildren]. were b[orn]. at that place; yet with a traveller's spirit learn[ed]. the lang[uage]. of the Ind[ians]. and so was of prime import[ance]. as an interp[retor]. He seems to have shown his ability first in this kind 1637, when Stoughton, in his advice of Aug. on the first exped[ition]. ment[ioned]. his serv[ant]. Perhaps a[bout]. 1658 he sett[led]. at S[tonington]. with w[ife]. Ann, d[aughter]. of Thomas Lord the first, by wh[om]. as is inferr[ed]. by Miss Caulkins, aft[er]. dilig[ently]. inq[uiring]. he had Thomas, b[orn]. prob[ably]. 1639; John, 1641; Hannah; Mary; Joseph, bapt[ized]. 21 Mar. 1647; Daniel, or David; Dorothy, 1652; Robert, 1653; Samuel, and Sarah, a[bout]. 1655. Hannah m[arried]. 20 Nov. 1662, Nehemiah Palmer; Mary m[arried]. 17 Nov. 1664, tho[ugh]. in ano[ther]. p. Caulkins says 1662, Samuel Rogers; Dorothy m[arried]. 11 Sept. 1674, Rev. James Noyes, and d[ied]. 19 Jan. 1742, aged 90; Sarah m[arried]. first Thomas Prentice, and next, Capt[ain]. William Denison, and d[ied]. 1713, aged 59. He was rep[resentative]. 1666, and aft[er]. the chief inhab[itant]. active in the founda[tion]. of ch[urch]. 3 June 1674, and obtain[ed]. ordina[tion]. of Rev. Mr. Noyes in Sept. foll[owing]. his name being first, and that of Thomas Jr. sixth, and of addit[ion]. to the ch[urch]. in 1675, is sec[ond]. name of Mrs. Ann his w[ife]. wh[o]. d[ied]. 1688. He d[ied]. 1678, his will being pro[ved]. in June of that y[ea]r.

4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3} Cutter, William Richard. New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial: A Record of the Achievements of Her People in the Making of the Commonwealths and the Founding of a Nation. (New York, New York, United States: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1913-14)
   Series I, pp. 1040-1042.
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2} Compiled By William L Decoursey. It's About Time. (1735 - 19th Terrace Nw New Brighton, Minnesota 55112)
   citing among others.

   The Second Boat, Vol. 7, p. 176-178; William Haynes, Stonington Chronology (1976), p. 11, passim.

6.   Wildey, Anna Chesebrough. Genealogy of the descendants of William Chesebrough of Boston, Rehoboth, Mass. (New York: T.A. Wright, 1903)
   p. 535-536.

   William (Cheesbrough) Chesebrough, Thomas Stanton, Walter Palmer, and Thomas (Minor) Miner were the first settlers of European descent in Stonington , New London County, Connecticut (originally Southertown, Suffolk County, Massachusetts) beginning in the year 1649.

7.   Cutter, William Richard. Genealogical and family history of the State of Connecticut: a record of the achievements of her people in the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation. (New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Co., 1911)
   p. 40-44.
8. ↑ Zubrinsky, Eugene Cole. "Thomas Stanton of Connecticut and the Longbridge Tradition", in The American Genealogist (TAG). (Donald Lines Jacobus, et.al.)
   June 2006, at 50.

   Article discusses the (lacking, misquoted, and unreliable) evidence underlying the claim that Thomas Stanton the Connecticut immigrant was the son of Thomas Stanton and Katherine Washington, born 1616 in Wolverton, Warwickshire, and the additional evidence that makes it extremely improbable that that Thomas was the immigrant.

9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1 9.2} Zubrinsky, Eugene Cole. "The Immigration and Early Whereabouts in America of Thomas Stanton of Connecticut.", in The American Genealogist (TAG). (Donald Lines Jacobus, et.al.).

   Deposition by Thomas Stanton at Stonington, Connecticut, on 7 July 1663, describes his age as "48 yeares or thereabouts"

10. ↑ ^10.0 10.1 Baldwin, John D. (John Denison). Thomas Stanton of Stonington, Conn. : an incomplete record of his descendants. (Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1977).

    Thomas Stanton of Stonington, came to America in 1634. He embarked at London January 2, 1634, in the ship Bonaventura, and landed in Virginia. It is supposed, with strong probability, that he was son of Thomas and Katherine (Washington) Stanton, of the Longbridge family; that he was born in 1616; and that he was 18 years old when he embarked for America, although, to be sure of securing a passage in the ship, he professed to be 20. On arriving in Virginia, he went immediately among the Indians. In 1636, he was in Boston, and went from Boston to Saybrook with Mr. Fenwick and Hugh Peters, who were Commissioners to negotiate a treaty with the Pequot Indians. At this time Mr. Stanton was master of the Indian dialects.
    
    In 1637 he settled in Hartford, Conn., and was married to Ann Lord, daughter of Dr. Thomas and Dorothy Lord of that place. The Commissioners of the United Colonies appointed him "Indian Interpreter General of New England" and he also held the position of Special Indian Interpreter for the Connecticut Colony. After he went to Stonington, he was, from year to year, a "Commissioner to try Civil and Criminal Cases." When the county courts were established, he was one of the three Judges of the New London County Court; and he held this position until the year before his death. He was a deputy to the General Court every year, from 1666 to 1675, inclusive.
    
    In 1650, Thomas Stanton, being licensed by the General Court, established a trading house in Stonington, on the Pawcatuck river. William Chesebro was already there; and they were the first two settlers in the town called Pawcatuck, Southerton, Mystic, etc., until it became finally and permanently the town of Stonington. Mr. Stanton's wife and children resided in New London after 1650, until their residence was permanently fixed on the Pawcatuck. His trading house prospered; he became a very extensive landholder. As he was endowed with very superior mental qualities, was well educated and had great force of character, he became naturally a chief personage in that part of the colony.

11. ↑ Thomas Stanton, in Find A Grave.
12. ↑ Minor, Thomas; Sidney H (Editor) Miner; and George D (Editor) Stanton. The diary of Thomas Minor, Stonington, Connecticut, 1653-1684. (New London, Connecticut: Press of the Day Publishing Company, 1899)
    page 146.

    1677: 'The Tenth moneth is december ... sabath day the .2d. mr Tho: stanton departed'

13.   Thomas Stanton, in Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.
14. ↑ Zubrinsky, "Whereabouts",citing Original Distribution of the Lands in Hartford...1639, Conn. Hist. Soc. Coll., 14 (Hartford 1912), 328-30
15. ↑ Zubrinsky, "Whereabouts", citing Charles Orr, ed., History of the Pequot War, (Cleveland, 1897), at 122-123. Note that the contemporary account differs from the oft-repeated assertion that Stanton himself was affirmatively selected by the Boston authorities.
16. ↑ Zubrinsky, "Whereabouts", citing Public Recs. Col. of Conn., 1:17 [date], 20
17. ↑ Zubrinsky, "Whereabouts", note 57
18. ↑ Zubrinsky, "Whereabouts", at 273
19. ↑ See NEHGR 2 (1848):111-113; Hotten 35-36.