“They put the fishnet into the river, but they catched no shad.”—David Hickok, South Britain, Connecticut, April 1771. Shad, a fish in the herring family, was prevalent in early Farmington and the Great River, now known as the Housatonic River, … Continue reading
David Hickok was the older brother of my ancestor Asa Hickok, who settled in Lumberland. David and Asa each had a daughter named Hannah Hickok. David Hickok was involved in at least one skirmish in the French-Indian War. He spoke … Continue reading
Lake George is without comparison, the most beautiful water I ever saw; formed by a contour of mountains into a basin…finely interspersed with islands, its water limpid as crystal, and the mountain sides covered with rich groves…here and there precipices … Continue reading
Taking a short break from the 1700s. Here is a photo I think was taken in the Town of Highland, I assume at either the Eldred or Barryville Methodist Church. I love the round glasses. My grandmother Myrtie Briggs is … Continue reading
Calendar Complications 1582 The Julian Calendar, which the English continued to use from 1582–1752, started the new year on March 25. So December was the tenth month. Parliament declared that the day after September 2, 1752 was to be September … Continue reading
The Stanley-Whitman House on 37 High Street (east of Main Street) in Farmington, Connecticut, is an example of early New England architecture and homes the early Colonists had known in England. A center chimney flanked by parlor and hall with … Continue reading
English, Irish, and Scottish indentured servants did the majority of work on Barbados Plantations, until the 1640s. Unable to compete with tobacco from Virginia, Barbados Plantations switched to raising sugar cane which was in demand for tea, coffee, and cocoa. … Continue reading
The Booke of Psalmes The Puritan immigrants brought over several versions of the Psalms, including the 1562 edition of the Sternhold and Hopkins Psalter. In 1640 the Bay Psalm Book (The Whole Booke of Psalmes Faithfully Translated into English Metre), … Continue reading
In October 1582 the Roman Catholic world adopted the Gregorian Calendar introduced by Pope Gregory XIII. But the English (and their future colonies) kept the Julian Calendar until 1752. March 24 was the last day of the year in the … Continue reading
Hemp and flax were two major crops in early New England. The age old lengthy, labor-intensive procedure of processing the flaxen or blond-colored fibers of flax plants into linen thread, was still used in the 1770s by David Hickok, a … Continue reading
