Joseph Booth's son Zachariah Booth Sr.

Author's Introduction: I'm spending a lot of time looking at the Booth Family of early Connecticut colony. Sometimes I may interrupt this series to look at other ancestors, but I am very interested in getting some more information about my mother's family roots.

Zachariah Booth Sr. (1693-1762) was my 7 times great grandfather. I offered some information about him HERE.

Zachariah's son -
Zachariah Jr, (6 greats) was the father of
Isaac Booth Sr. (5 greats) who was father of
Isaac Booth, Jr,(4 greats) father of
William Lewis Booth (3 greats) father of
Richard R. Booth (2 Greats) father of
Eugenia Almeta Booth Miller, my great grandmother on my mother's side, (for whom I carry the middle name of Booth.)

My ancestry tree also looks at Zachariah's mother (Joseph Booth's wife) who was Hannah Wilcoxson Booth..HERE.  Her sister married Barnabus Beers, and their grandchild married the child of Zachariah and Anna Curtiss Booth, Zachariah Jr.

No matter how I  chart this, it still is confusing. And yet those people were all alive at the same time, and they kept it straight.  They knew who was an aunt and who was a cousin, and who was grandparent to which children.

I am so happy when I find craftsmen in my tree...Zachariah built a home for his family. Many of my other grandfathers also built homes. Some were blacksmiths. Some were tanners, and one at least was a shoemaker.  I'm sure many a grandmother had a loom and wove cloth out of the spun wool thread she also made.  Later there may have been some grandmothers who wove with cotton threads.  It makes each piece of precious cloth that became their clothes so much more special, thinking of all the hours it took to make things.  And many times if the family had limited resources, each adult only had one or two sets of clothing to wear.

OK, that's my thoughts on this foggy day just a bit over a week before the equinox says spring is supposed to be here (or at least starting!)

Spinning wheel and loom from Swannanoa History Museum in Black Mountain, NC. Photos by Barbara Booth Rogers

Zachiariah Booth Sr.

Zachariah Booth Sr. had written a will in 1760.
Then he wrote a codicil in 1762, shortly before his death.

I'm so glad they were both provided with his probate records in Stratford CT.
Here's the codicil which shocked me.

Stratford March 15th 1762.

I Zachariah Booth of Stratford do make this codicil to my last will and Testament (illegible) I give to my beloved wife Sarah the sum of forty pounds lawful money over and above (illigible) to her mentioned in my (illigible) Last Will. I give unto my daughter Chabee(?) the sum of fifteen pounds lawfull over and above the legacy to her mentioned in my said last will. I give unto my daughter Anna Curtis wife to Nathan Curtis of Durham the sum of five shillings lawfl money which is to be the whole of her portion at the same time hereby occuling revoking and making null and void the legacy mentioned and given in my said last will, having advanced her already since the making of my said last will. - I give unto my son Daniel Booth the sum of ten pounds lawful money over and above what is mentioned given him in my said last will & testament. I do appoint and (illigible) my beloved wife Sarah and my two sons Hezkiah and Abel to be Executors of my last will and testament confirming this to be a part and partial of my said last will and testament in confirmation whereof thence hereunto set my hand and seal the day and date above.

Very shaky signature Zachariah Booth

Witnessed

Entered by Rob Fairchild Justice of the PEace

The shock was hearing him say his beloved wife was Sarah.  His wife that I knew of had died, and her name was Anna.  All the records I'd read, other ancestry trees, other trees from other Boothes in the community, mentioned only Anna, and their three sons, Nathan,  Zachariah Jr, and Daniel.

There are lots of different people here mentioned, and first I think my interpretation of the hand writing, probably by my ancestor himself, isn't "Chafee," but Phoebe.  That's a name that occurs in the original will also.

And then there's a daughter "Anna Booth Curtis, wife of Nathan Curtis of Durham".  She didn't get much because he says he's already advanced her the money set for her in his last will.  And now there are sons, Hezkiah and Abel, to be executors.

The signature is shaky on the codicil, but has the same loops on the "B" of Booth as the will from 2 years earlier, where yes, even more children are mentioned.

This is where my detective thrills are in genealogy.  Finding a source document, even microfilmed originals, that tell about people I never heard of otherwise.  Now I plan to spend some time looking at these children, who would have been great aunts and uncles - six greats because Zach Sr. was a 7 times great grandpa.

But first, let me give you some more details about Grandpa Zach.  He was the one who built the home still standing in Stratford, CT (at least I think so, it's been moved at least once.)

After the Revolutionary War, General Joseph Walker purchased the Zachariah Booth homestead, which had been built in 1690.   Apparently Grandpa Zachariah sold it earlier than that however...

There are more details of the home, which I'll show you tomorrow!

Editor's note: I just realized the house couldn't have been built in Zachariah's lifetime if the foundation was built in 1609...as the caption on the photo says.  I'm going for 1690!