Norwich bulletin., 1914-06-04

7 a
 Saturday. June eth. Founders day, Norwich honors the courageous msn who, two hundred and flfty-five years ago. established in the wilderness the little colony from which the present city has sprung. And since it hap pens that on this anniversary of her birthday she is busily engaged in counting her blessings and giving due recognition to her many benefactors, 1t is fitting that her citizens, in this month of June, recall gratefully. rev. erently and tenderly Capt John Mason, the Rev. James Fitch and the company of men and women from Saybrook colony who formed the first settlement of English on this spot and who, because they are the creators of Norwich, must be called her greatest benefactorS.
 Monument To First Proprietors.
 Earliest records indicate that there were thirty-five of the first proprie- tors of land grants. In 1872 a nonu-
 Maj. John Mason and thirty eight proprietors. It stands on a lot to the left of the original main street of the
 town, about half mile above the Nor wich Town green. The illustration gives one view Of the stone, but the
 names are inscribed on the four sides Of it They have a familiar appear ance, for many of the founders de- scendants live in Norwich today, and the townspeople are using their names constantly:-
 Names of Founders.
 Thomas Adgate, Robert Allyn. Will jam Backus, Sr., Lieut. William Back us, Jr.. John Baldwin, Deacon Thomas Bingham. John Birchard, Thomas
 Bliss. Morgan Bowers. John Bradford Husn Cankina. John Caulkins, Rich
 ard Edgerton, Rev. James Fitch, John Gager, Lieut.. Francis sGriswoid Thomas Howard. Christopher Hunt 1 ington, Deacon Simon Huntington
 Samuel Hyde. William Hyde. Lieut. Mason. Dr. John Olmstead, John Pease, John Post. Thomas Post, Josiah Reed, John Reynolds, Jonathan Royce, -Rev. Nehemiah Smith, Ser geant John Tracy. Lieut.. Thomas Tracy. Robert Wade, Sergeant Thomas Deed Passed In 1859.
 It was not until the spring of 16et that women, children and cattle were brought to the Norwich colony. but ir June 1859 the great Mohegan chieftain Uncas, and his sons conveyed to the proprietors, for the sum of seventy pounds. the nine miies-square which ] made the township of Norwich. Capt John Mason. acting under g. commits sion from the General Court at Hart l ford, obtained this deed. The original document is not in existence.
 Purchased Covered By Three Deeds. It was. however, the second time that Uncas legally ceded his right ts the land to the English. for in 164o he had surrundered his Jurisdiction of the 1 territory to the colonial authorities al | Hartford. Again, in August 1859, Un- cas and his brother Wawequa signed another deed of eession. So the pur- chase of Norwich is covered by three deeds. each enc of which seems te have been obtained under fair anC honorable terms. The deed of 16b! | was witnessed by William Fhemp-
 son. Thomas LeffingWeil and Benjamir l Brewster,
 In March, iees, the General eeuFt ordered the deed Blaeed on record 1T Hartferd: Fhis was done, and evi- dentiy done with some slight varia- tien from the original document Int copy of the deed printed here is taker from the beck ef Norwich Prepriet, l Records into which it was transcribed
 about 1880, probably from the Hart, feFd es5- of 1663, It also varies slightly frem the eeey tr0n which j - = = ---s -< --