| Notes |
- William was supposedly a direct descendant of King Henry II of England. His current day descendants 37 point DNA matches that of Thomas Cornell of Rhode Island's decendants linked via George Cornell, b. 1545 in Faristead Manor, Terlling, Essex, England. (F-669) William, the immigrant ancestor, is first listed in America in the Reverend John Elio's list of the members of his church in Roxbury, Massachusetts as William Cornewell and Joane Cornewell, the wife of William Cornewell, 1633. By 1636, he joined a group of settlers moving to Connecticut according to a "Commemorative Biographical Records of Middlesex Co., CT. (F-576.8)
According to an unnamed genealogy on William Cornwell, his parents were William Cornwell and Joan Martyn instead of Margary Hayward and it's source was the Parish Records of Terling. I suspect from other writings that the author was a J. Ferren at Jferren1@cs.com. The Parish records however, only list his father, William. In 1639 when the land records began in Hartford, Connecticut, he was already living there at #54, west of South Street, south from the Lane with eight acres of land in the village. He was not an original landowner of Hartford but was still one of it's earliest residents. He is listed on the Needle Statue at Hartford as one of it's founders. Part of his lands were received for his services in the Pequot War. A land inventory was taken of Hartford in 1639 where he is called "William Cornwell, Sergeant-at-arms". Family tradition according to Edward Cornwall, M.D. in "William Cornwall and his Descendants" in 1901 said that this title comes from the fact that he was a body guard for Charles I before emigrating to the new world, but this has not been proven. All indications from records in England is that he was a farmer, pure and simple.
He emigrated to New England about the time he married and became a Puritan. Historian, Christopher Kylin, believes this would have been in the early 1630's. Shortly after his first marriage he traveled to the Americas in search of other opportunities. He is listed as a founder of Hartford in their monument in 1636. He was an Indian Fighter in the territories here, participating in what is now the famous Pequot Massacre of 1637 in Mystic, Connecticut. Under John Mason, he fought along with Sachem Thannough/Hyanno, Chief of the Cummaquid to attack the Pequot Indians. This is where he achieved the rank of Sergeant. He was one of 77 soldiers involved, 58 of them from Hartford, CT under John Mason, and 19 from Massachusetts under Capt. John Underhill. It is statistically likely that William had moved to Connecticut by 1637. In any case, he joined up under John Mason as his troops moved through Hartford on his way to Fort Saybrook. In 1638, he helped negotiate the purchase of Indian lands for the Stratford Colony in Connecticut through Chief "John Hyanno".
In 1639, he was granted a plot of land in Hartford and was called the "Sgt." in these records. By 1639, he supposedly had married again by the person of the Christian name Mary. No marriage record exists for this marriage at a time period when all other Puritan marriages were recorded in Hartford, Connecticut. (E)
United Ancestries, a professional genealogical research group, published on CD-100 that Mary's maiden name was Hyanno. This happens to be the name of an Indian "Princess", daughter of Sacham Hyanno (whom had died at age 23) of that time period. This was research done for Sharon L. Dodson and they gave her no sourcing for their work. (F-639) Research by Rosalie Hart states that there is a Massachussetts Bay history which states that William Cornwell lived for a time in an Indian village under information on William Lucas. According to her, Naragansset and Wampanoag tribes records include William Cornwell in their traced lineages.
These tribes however, are no longer providing information on this connection as they do not want anyone trying to gain claim to their casino profits. I'm sure that's not the interest any of us have to finding our actual ancestors, so it is sad that it prevents the truth from being known. (E) It should be noted that I have found an Indian on the Internet whom has given an oral history of Mary Hyanno as being the wife of an Austin/Augustine Bearce instead living in Hyannis, Massachusetts. He did not know if the oral history was true, but it is the other commonly held belief about Mary Hyanno's familial marriage instead. Hyannis is where Mary's father is in deed records as owning land and that is a good 150 miles from where this William and Mary Cornwell lived.
It is entirely possible that Mary Hyanno as listed here was the wife of Austin Bearce insted. Until DNA testing gets refined enough, this will remain a mystery in these 2 lines. In any case, William and his wife, Mary, next were found living in Middletown (Mattabeseck Settlement) on the Connecticut River, fifteen miles below Hartford. He could have actually moved to the Mattabeseck settlement by as early as 1642.
It appears that William had some land he was renting in Hartford previous to June of 1644, that he sublet out to a William Lewis. William Lewis defaulted on his payments, for which the landlord, Matthew Allen, sued him. The court case mentions the fact that Mr. Lewis had made arrangements with William Cornwall for the rental agreement. William Cornwell is also involved in court cases in Hartford in the Particular Court on Sept. 6, 1649, and the first Thursday of Dec., 1655. I am assuming that he had to return to Hartford to take up issues with the court as evidence indicates that he lived elsewhere by 1648. (F-576.9)
William and Mary moved to the east side of the Connecticut river at Hocanum, an Indian village within the boundaries of Hartford, CT probably years before Mar. 5, 1648. On that date, he indentured his seven year old second son, William, to Susannah Hooker of Hartford, CT for his education. (E)
According to the research of Christopher Kylin, he and his sons helped found Middletown and could have been some of it's earliest settlers around 1650 or 1651. They and their eldest son John lived next to each other near the present day corners of Main and Washington streets. (F-322) He owned 5 acres at the intersection of these streets and ten acres across the street from his home as well as 900 acres in Middletown and "a great lot over the Great River." He was granted 903 acres of this land on Mar 15, 1652, and the deed was recorded for it on Feb. 30, 1657. It is interesting to note that his will indicates that he owns multiple acres on Indian Hill (Indian lands before his ownership of them). (F-576)
William and family joined the church in Middletown on 3 Dec. 1668 shortly after it was founded. William became a representative from Middletown in the Colonial Legislature in 1654, 1664 and 1665. He was also a constable in 1664. A March 26, 1670 tax list gives 52 house holders in Middletown, CT, including him and three of his sons, the other two having stayed behind in Hartford. He was included in this list even though the General Court in 1667 had freed him from paying taxes, probably due to his age. Sons John, Samuel and William Jr. had accompanied him to Middletown. William's house was taxed or worth 160 lbs. at that time. (F-534)
He was 64 when he signed his will in 1674 and he called himself "well stricken in years and much abated in any natural strength." "William Cornwell, Senior, of Midletowne," gave to his son "John Cornwell so much addition to his present house lot out of my house lot as may make up his present house lot the full half of the whole,"..."two acres of the meadow and swap at the riverlet"...and "one half of that wood land in the south division of the land beyond the mill"..the other half of this lot to his daughter Sarah Cornwell, ... to his "son William Cornwell ten acres of of land upon the Indian Hill" as well as "one third part of (his)0 land yet to be divided by the list of 1674 on the east side of the river, the other two thirds of the aforesaid land to (his) sons Samuel and Thomas equally to be divided between them"; to his "son Samuel one hundred acres of my wood lot at the Long Hill, the reminder to go to (his) son Jacob", to his "son Thomas what is aforesaid the remainder of (his) lot at the Indian Hill, the ten acres as above mentioned being taken out of it"; to his "daughter Hester Willcox (his) whole lot lying on the east side of the river"; to his "daughter Elizabeth Hall one parcel of upland lying in the Boggy Meadow Quarter"; to his "loving wife Mary Cornwell (his) house, homestead, all the buildings, household stuff and movables whatsover with the remainder of (his) meadow at the riverlet .. during the term of her widowhood," She was told to maintain their daughter Sarah while she was single; after his wife's decease, he willed the "above mentioned house, household and meadow land at the riverlet to (his) son Jacob Cornwell." Jacob was told to pay his sister, Sarah, "one third part of the valuation of the forementioned housing and land" unless of course his wife remarried. In that case, when she died, their 3 daughters were to have the household stuffs divided amongst them. He signed his name as William Cornell, not Cornwell. In any case, Cornwell in England is pronounced "Cornell". The inventory of his estate on Feb 22, 1677 included a listing of his lands: The house, barn & 3 acres of land, 5 acres of meadow by the ferry, 10 acres of upland at the Indian Hill, 27 acres joining the other, 395 acres beyond the mill, 250 acres at the Long Hill, 65 acres in the Boggy Meadow Quarter, 24 acres over the Great River, 4 acres of pond and a great lot over the Great River. He is probably buried in Riverside Cemetery, though no tombstones exist from that date. (F-322, 576) He actually spelled his name Cornell in all the Middletown, CT deeds and records I'm seen from him there.
This William, original immigrant, had a Thomas Cornell follow him shortly after he arrived who settled in Rhode Island. According to a Prentiss Glazier, William is the nephew through a half-brother to this Thomas of MA, NY and Rhode Island . DNA Evidence has now supported this connection. (F-383, 576.6) An LDS family file says that William was married twice, with his second wife being named Mary Bull. This is a mix-up with their son William who married Mary Bull.
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1609 - 1678 (69 years)
[14, 15, 16] 