Sgt Elihu MINER Jr. (1745 – 1821) is Alex’s 6th Great Grandfather, one of 128 in this generation.

Elihu Miner was born on 2 Sep 1745 in East Haddam, son ofElihu MINER Sr and Keziah WILLEY.  He married Mrs Mary DEAN about 1769 in Sharon, Litchfield, CT.  They lived in East Haddam, CT.  Elihu died 31 May 1821 in East Haddam CT.

Elihu was born and died in East Haddam, Middlesex, Connecticut

Mary [__?__] Dean was born about 1749 in Sharon, Litchfield, Connecticut.  Alternatively, Mary was born in East Haddam, CT.  Mary first married Israel Dean in 1763. Their first child, Amos Dean was born in 5 Aug 1764 in Marlborough, Hartford, CT and second child Lydia Dean was born 28 Feb 1767 in Salisbury, CT.   Mary belonged to the Hadlyme Congregation Church.  Mary died in 1782 in East Haddam, Connecticut.

Sharon, CT

Mary’s son Amos Dean married Marilvah Ingham on 5 Nov 1795 – Hebron, Tolland, CT.    Amos died 17 Sep 1844 in Marlborough, Hartford, CT.

Mary’s first husband Israel Dean (Israel Doane or Done?) was born about 1740 in Colchester, New London, CT.  His parents were Seth Dean (7 Apr 1697, Rehoboth, Bristol, Mass – 29 Nov 1758, Canaan, Litchfield, CT) and Ann Skinner (01 Oct 1700, Colchester, New London, CT – ).  Seth and Ann were married 29 Oct 1721 in Colchester, New London, CT.   In 1762, an Israel Dean was in the 2nd Connecticut Regiment commanded by Colonel  Nathan Whiting. Israel was in the 8th Company under the command of Capt. Samuel Elmer.  Israel died in 1768 in Salisbury, CT.

Children of Elihu and Mary all born in East Haddam, CT:

• Elihu enlisted 12 May 1775, 1st Company, Col Joseph Spencer‘s 2nd Connecticut Provincial Regiment

Elihu’s commanding officer Col Joseph Spencer

• Served at the Siege of Boston,  Bunker Hill, and Arnold’s expedition to Canada.
• He enlisted again 4 Mar 1777, in Capt Eliphalet Holmes 1st Connecticut Regiment, Col Jedediah Huntington‘s Brigade.
• Dec 1777 – Jan 1778 On Command
• Feb 1778 – On Command at Fishkill .  During the Revolution, Fishkill New York was the site of a large supply depot. The depot supplied the northern department of the Continental Army, who were responsible for securing the Highlands and keeping the British from moving north of New York City.
• Mar 1778 – Sick at Fishkill
• Apr – Jun 1778 – Tending Sick at Yellow Springs.     America’s first true military’ hospital constructed for that purpose was built at Yellow Springs, a popular health spa about 10 miles west of Valley Forge.  About 300 sick men were accommodated in the large three-story wood structure.
  

  Yellow Springs Revolutionary War Hospital

• Washington once visited the Yellow Springs Hospital and stopped to exchange a few words with each patient. Dr. Bodo Otto, an elderly German and his two physician sons, ran the hospital until the end of the war.
• Much of the sickness was traceable to unhealthy sanitation and poor personal hygiene. Washington constantly complained of the failure to clear the Encampment of filth, which included rotting carcasses of horses. The Commander-in-Chief even issued orders concerning the use and care of privies, but men relieved themselves wherever they felt.  In the absence of wells, water was drawn from the Schuylkill River and nearby creeks. Men and animals often relieved themselves upstream from where water for drinking was drawn.
• Elihu enlisted third time as Sgt in Capt Zechariah Hungerford’s Company, Col. Samuel McClellan‘s Connecticut militia.
• Elihu probably participated in the Battle of Groton Heights which was very near his home in East Haddam.
• He filed for pension, S-36135, 14 Apr 1818 in Middlesex Co, CT.

Elihu Miner – Revolutionary War Pension

Mary belonged to the Hadlyme CongregationalChurch, and Elihu was confirmed in St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, East Haddam.

Elihu is listed in the East Haddam CT census in 1790, 1800, 1810 and 1820

More About the Deans

Israel’ father Seth Dean’s birth is documented in “A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England” by James Savage, vol. 2, page 578. Supporting documentation comes from the John Ward Dean papers which include notebook with handwritten account of “John and William Dean of Dedham” in the NIHGS Archives at Boston, Massachusetts. This also agrees with the LDS Temple Ordinance Archive Record family sheet of William and Mehitable (Wood) Dean at Salt Lake City, Utah. His marriage to Ann Skinner is documented in the Colchester, Connecticut Vital Records, 1699-1850, Arnold Copy, Barbour Collection, FHL roll #0002968, citing Colchester vol. L(and)-1, p. 444. Further documentation is found in “Extracts from the Records of Colchester, Connecticut” by Michael Traintor, 1864, p. 85. According to records of Sylvia Dean Phillips, 1981, Seth and Ann (Skinner) Dean family lived in Hebron, Connecticut.

In an abstract from Cochester v. Hebron, Hartford Superior Court, 1761, 1764, relating to the cost of care for Joseph Dean, part of notes received by Ken Dean from Sylvia Dean Phillips of Medina, Washington: In 1740–Seth Dean was in the Oblong, while his family was in Colchester; 1742, spring–Seth and eldest son went away and left rest of the family in Hebron; 1743–Seth returned for his family; 1757(about)–They returned to Colchester from Salisbury; 1761, Sept.–Seth (Jr.) and Oliver Dean of Salisbury summoned as witnesses; also Abner Dean.

Ann Skinner (Wife) b. 1 Oct 1700 in Colchester, New London, CT.

Marriage: 29 Oct 1721 in Colchester, New London County, Connecticut

Children (Israel’s brothers and sisters)  Many of their spouses maiden names are also unrecorded, but we do have Jane Isham, Rachel Jones and Lydia Hills:

i. Seth Dean b. 8 Sep 1723 in Lebanon, New London, CT; d. Aft. 1786; m. Sarah [__?__] c.  1746

ii. Joseph Dean b. 13 Jun 1725 in Lebanon, CT; d. After. 1764

iii. Abner Dean b. 25 Aug 1729 in Lebanon, CT; d. 11 May 1821 in Marlboro, CT; m1. Jane Isham in 1752 ( b. 2 Feb 1733/34 in Colchester, New London, CT); m2. Mary Bliss

iv. Oliver Dean b. 1731 in Lebanon, CT; d. 19 Oct 1820 in Canaan, Litchfield, CT; m.Mary (Wife) (b. 1742 – )

v. John Dean b. About. 1733 in Colchester, New London, CT; d. 29 Apr 1827 in Canaan, Litchfield, CT;  m. Rachel Jones 1 Mar 1759 in Caanan, Litchfield, Connecticut (b. About. 1741 in Canaan, Litchfield, CT)

vi. Ann Dean b. 1736; d. 9 Oct 1738

vii. Uriah Dean b. 1738; d. 1738

viii. Esther Dean b. About. 1740 in Unknown

ix. Israel Dean b. About. 1740 in Unknown m.  Mary [__?__]

x. Amos Dean b. About. 1745 in Colchester, New London, CT; d. 10 Apr 1821 in Marlboro, CT; m. Lydia Hills about 1773 in Hebron, CT  (b. 13 Oct 1750 in Lebanon, CT – ) m2. Sybil Gates 10 Apr 1821 in Marlboro, CT (b. 3 Mar 1760 – )

xi. Isaac Dean b. Unknown in Unknown

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Children

5. Azel Miner

Azel’s wife Sylvia Munson was born 18 Aug 1782 in Ontario, Wayne, New York. Her parents were Stephen Munson and Ann Cogswell.  Alternatively, her mother was Lucenia Russell.   Her brother Nathan also moved to New London, OH in 1817.  Sylvia died 6 Jan 1853 in New London, Ohio and is buried in Butterfield Cemetery , New London, Huron County, Ohio

In the year of 1815 Albert and his family moved from New York to New London, Huron County, Ohio.  In the 1820 census, Azel and Sylvia were living in New London, Huron, OH.  New London is part of the The Firelands or Sufferers’ Lands tract located at the western end of the Connecticut Western Reserve.   The land was set aside for residents of the Connecticut towns of Danbury, Fairfield, Greenwich, Groton, New Haven, New London, Norwalk, and Ridgefield who lost their homes in 1779 and 1781 due to fires set by British forces during the American Revolutionary War.

In 1792, the Connecticut legislature set aside 500,000 acres for the Sufferers at the western end of the Western Reserve, consisting of all of the present-day counties of Huron County and Erie County (except for a small piece in the west) as well as Danbury Township and part of Catawba Island Township in Ottawa County and Ruggles Township in Ashland County.

The Fire Lands, Huron County are on the left of this 1826 map  of the Western Reserve  Azel and Sylvia moved to New London township which is on the eastern border of Huron County, one township up from the southern edge.

About 30 towns, cities and villages ended up being situated in the Firelands near the southern shore of Lake Erie.

However, very few of the original “Sufferers” ever settled in the Firelands, as the land was not given for settlement until many years after the war. Even then, the land was not readily hospitable due to Indian hostilities prior to and during the War of 1812 and the necessity of clearing dense forests from most of the land so that it could be used for farming purposes.

On April 15, 1803, the Sufferers, or their heirs, legal agents, and purchasers of their deeds, formed a corporation to manage the lands to which they were entitled in the newly formed state of Ohio. The land was divided into 30 five mile square survey townships, which were further subdivided into 120 quarters, each containing 4,000 acres. (Note: Although the standard for U.S. survey townships in the Northwest Territory was six miles square at that time, the older standard for survey townships in the Western Reserve was employed.) A drawing was held to determine the land received by each individual. Many of the local communities and townships in the Firelands are named for locations in Connecticut.

In 1809, Huron County was formed from the entire Firelands. For the next 30 years, all of the Firelands would lie within – and therefore co-exist with – Huron County.

The population of New London, Ohio was 2,696 at the 2000 census. New London is thoroughly Midwestern, and the village’s economy is closely tied to agriculture and manufacturing. Although well within the Great Lakes region and arguably located at the center of the Rust Belt, significant influences from New England and the South have contributed to New London’s cultural identity. The village was founded by settlers from Connecticut  along with neighboring communities in the Firelands in the early nineteenth century. The village’s New England heritage is most evident in its architecture, the names of local families, and the presence of a village green (a common characteristic of many cities and towns in Northern Ohio).

In the 1850 census, Silva was living with her son Asel in New London, Huron, Ohio.

Azel Miner Headstone — Butterfield Cemetery New London Huron County Ohio

Children of Azel and Sylvia

i. Polly Elmina “Emma” Miner b. 13 Sep 1803 Genesee County, NY.   The County was not fully organized so it remained under the supervision of Ontario County until it achieved full organization and separation during March 1803;  d. 11 Oct 1875 in Turtle Township, Beloit,  Rock County, Wisconsin;  m. 19 Sep 1821 New London, Huron County, Ohio to Philo Thomas Porter  (b. 23 Oct 1795 in Connecticut – d. 30 May 1876 in New London, Huron, OH)  His parents were Thomas Porter (b.1770) and Phebe Bassett (b. 1775)

In the 1850 census, Philo T and Polly were farming in New London, Huron, Ohio with seven children at home ages 5 to 26.

ii. George Miner b. 13 Feb 1804  Jefferson County, NY; d. 25 Jul 1861 New London, OH; m1. ~1829 NY to Sarah Palmer (b. ~1808 New York), m2. ~1839 to Susan Nobles Stanley (b. 1810 NY)

In the 1850 census, George was a widower farming in New London, Ohio with seven children at home

Blockquote>Amos (1830 – ?) m Nancy Saxton
Mahala (8 Sep 1832 – ?) m Alva Peck
Ira P (1836 – ?)
Edward (1808 – ?) m. Lydia Baker -> New London, OH
Lydia (1840 – ?)
Ann Elizabeth (5 Aug 1842 – 24 Mar 1922) m Alva Peck
Sarah A (1847 – ?) m David Crissey

iii. Almira Miner b. 20 Jan 1806 NY; d. 9 Jul 1809)

iv. Albert Miner b. 31 Mar 1809 NY; d. 3 Jan 1848 Selma, Van Buren County, IA; m. 9 Aug 1831 in New London, OH to Tamma Durfee (6 Mar 1813 – 30 Jan 1885)
Converted to Mormon in Feb 1832. Moved to Kirtland, OH in May 1832. Moved to IL in 1842. Tamma moved to Salt Lake in 1850 and married 2nd Enos Curtis on 20 Oct 1850. Tamma married 3rd John White Curtis in April 1857.  Albert was a personal body guard for Joseph Smith, but didn’t make it all the way to the promised land in Utah. See the dramatic story of Albert and his family in my post Albert Miner.

v. Amos Deen Miner b. 21 Jun 1812 NY; d. 17 Apr 1827

vi. Joel Miner b. 12 Feb 1816 in Genesse, New York; d. 10 Mar 1884 in Clinton, Rock, Wisconsin; m. 10 Mar 1838 – Genesse, Allegany, New York to Charlotte Adeline Treat (01 Jun 1819 in Angelica, Allegany, New York –  Aft. 1 Jun 1905 census Clinton, Rock, Wisconsin age 86)   Charlotte’s parents were Amaziah Treat (1790 – 1839) and Sally Colvin (1790 – 1854).  Joel and Charlotte had seven children born between 1839 and 1863.

Many genealogies say that Joel died in 1874, but I found a record for him and C. Adeline in Turtle, Rock, Wisconsin in the 1880 census.  They also say he was born in New London, Ohio, but the 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880 censuses all show New York.

While they married in 1838 in New York, by the 1840 census, they had moved to Huron, Ohio and by 1845 to Wisconsin.  In the 1860 census, Joel and Adeline were farming in Turtle, Rock, Wisconsin.  Their daughter Jane (age 21) was teaching school.

vii. Asel Miner b. 19 Apr 1822 OH; d. 4 Mar 1910 New London, Huron County, Ohio; Burial: Grove Street Cemetery;  m. 28 Oct 1847 to Harriet Peck  (7 Jul 1831 New York – d. 23 May 23 1901 New London, Huron County, Ohio; Burial: Grove Street Cemetery)

In the 1860 census, Asel and Harriett were farming in New London, Huron, Ohio.

6. Selden MINER  (See his page)

Sources:

Elihu Miner Sons of the American Revolution Application

Thomas Minor Family History – Elihu Miner

http://www.gencircles.com/users/ttuagr162/2/data/229680

http://www.genealogyofnewengland.com/b_m.htm

http://www.gencircles.com/users/ndenis/1/data/1123