Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1904-09-23
BROOkLINE.
The Ranney Family.

The announcement of the death of Lo-
rim Little Ranney in Brookine, at an adj
vanced age on Sept. 4. 1904, appears in
the copy of The Vermont Phoenix sent
me by a descendant AS this paper cir
culates so extensively in a region in
which the Ranney name has been ia
miliar since 1861, its readers may be in
terested in hearing somewhat of the
Ranney family.
In 1863 Thomas Ranney, born in Scot
land in 1916, came to Middetown Upper
Houses, Conn, suburb now of Middle
town, and married Mary Hubbard, born
in 1912, In Hartford, whose father George,
helped founded Middletown in 1850. Thorn
as Ranney was the father of II children,
10 of whom We're alive when he died June
81 1913. His burial was the first in
Upper Houses, and it cost two shilllngs
to dig his grave. His tombstone says he
lived 81 years. His son Thomas was
the father of a Thomas. To this last
Thomas were born Ephraim, Thomas
jeremiah and Abijah. Ephraim went to
Westminster, VT, with six children in
1I6l, and five were born to him there. He
was second lieutenant in the Revolution
airy war. Thomas, his brother, and Will
liam his son, both served in the Revo-
lutionary war here. The house built by
Thomas, and in which William, 1853 and
Rebecca, 1859, were born to him and
MS vile, mary Little, is well preserved
and will be reproduced in "Middletown
Upper Houses, Historical, Genealogical
and Biographical" in course of prepara-
ton by the undersigned. In 1880 Thorn
as sold his homestead and removed to
Westminster The history of Hartford
VT, gives a William Ranney as resid-
ing there in October, 1777, and also a Saw
age, "a Cromwell name-I presume that
William on marrying Lydia, daughter of
Ephraim, removed to Westminster when
he died, having in 1882 obtained pen
sion. Lydias birth is recorded in April.
1853, as being Ephraim by an oversight
of the town recorder. The real Ephraim,
Jr., was born here in 174S, and served in
the Revolutionary war, as did his broth
er, Daniel from Westminster. The de-
scendants of the many sons of Ephraim
have been like the sands of the sea shore
Those of William, only son of Thomas,
have not been so numerous. The long
evity of the Ranneys is remarkable
On Bunker Hill day, 1903, there was
Ranney reunion under the auspices of
the Ranney Memorial and Historical as
ISOLATION, and a dedication of boulder
placed on the, 1913, grave of the prog
enttor. and which was taken from Tim
Der Hill, whose first white owner was
this Thomas Ranney to whom it was
given as a grant in 1870. Another bould-
er, both being glacial, was dedicated to
the Revolutionary soldiers born here and
buried in Westminster and Westminster
West. on Bunker Hill day, 1904 we had
much grander celebration with dedica-
ton of a 200 pound mortar and pile
of cannon balls, thanking the boulder.
These are just outside the cemetery
fence. Thirty Revolutionary soldiers are
buried here and at each grave l have
placed the S. A. r. bronze marker.
While L have the addresses of many
Ranney descendants in Vermont l re-
greet to say that many have received our
costly illustrated pamphlet and lineage
books and have not taken even the troub-
lie to acknowledge the receipt of them.
For the Ranney genealogy l am compiling
| have claim on each to favor me with
their lineages. There are other Ran
ney descendants whose names and ad-
dresses l desire in order that l may send
them, gratis, this fine pamphlet and line
age blanks and l trust that any one know
ing of Ranney descendant, even though
not one himself or herself, will have pride
enough in their own clan to help me.
need to hear from Stockbridge, Bar
ton Landing, Pittsfield, Grafton, st.
Johnsbury South Londonderry and else
where where the Ranney blood still
flows. l married a Ranney whose father
was So and inherited the original home
stead of 1853. l have many interesting
Ranney relics and l invite the Vermont
clan to come in full force to our next re-
union which will be held on Friday June
16, 1895, and when on the site of the
first church, a majority of whose found
ers in 171S were Ranneys, we are to ded-
icate to the memory of the ten founders
or Middletown Upper Houses, a glacial
boulder taken from Timber Hill.
c. COLLARD ADAMS.
Cromwell, Conn.