Chester Jackson's Forebears

The Jackson Line


Click to see full sized

Henry (1606-82), Samuel (1648-1712), Ebenezer (1698-1766), Abraham Sr. (1725/26-1791), Abraham Jr. (1751-1833), and Jacob (1787-1871).  Finally, see miscellaneous Jackson information and relationships.

Henry Jackson, first of the family to arrive in the Colonies (1635, at age 29), is discussed widely on the web.  Some extracts:

Henry Jackson was probably the man who came [from London, England] in the ship Elizabeth and Ann in 1635, aged 29, having taken the oath of allegiance & supremacy to the crown, & brought a certificate from the minister & justice of the peace, in the place he resided in England, (not mentioned) of his conformity to the Church of England, & that he was no subsidy man. (Hotten's List of Emigrants to America.)

In the same ship came Robert Hawkins, Nicholas St. John & several of the Whitney family [very likely John Whitney and his family, ancestors to the Cobb line]. He was at Watertown [Massachusetts] in 1637, & was, says Savage, "one of the lessers of the fishing grounds of that place."

He was at Fairfield in 1648, where Feb. 2, 1648/9 he made an agreement with the town to erect a grist-mill on the stream running into the west side of Uncoway River, which he sold in 1653 to Samuel Morehouse. His home-lot was bounded n.w. with Nathan Gold's pasture lot, n.e. the Unocoway mill-creek at high water-mark, s.e. highway, & s.w. with his own land.

He removed after selling the mill, to Pequonnock & purchased, the house & home-lot of Thomas Wheeler jr. He was made a freeman 10 Oct. 1669 and was one of the dividend land holders of the town. His will is dated 11, Nov. 1682, in which he provides for a wife (Christian name not mentioned); to son Moses housing & Ludlow's lot, except one acre at Pequonnock, and in Uncoway Indian Fields; ¼ of his pasture-lot, building-lot & long-lot: to the children of his deceased daughter Hannah, who had married Philip Galpin, £5 each when of age; to s. Samuell land previously deeded him, several parcels of land and ¼ of his pasture-lot, building-lot & long-lot: to grandson Moses Jackson 4 acres at Try's Field, bounded n.w. with highway that goes through the filed; s.w. John Roots, s.e. the Indian Field, n.e. land that was Richard Fowles, also his Compo allotment: to s. John of his pasture-lot, building-lot & long lot; to his grand-son Samuel Jackson, his loom & "all things thereto belonging; & to his wife his best feather-bed & bedstead, curtains & valance, & all the furniture thereto belonging; the bigest kettle & his house in town, & the least kettle, the middle iron-pot, the bell-metal skillet, the red cow and her calf, also the third part of his pewter dishes, spoons, and beer vessels in his house at Pequonnock, the great chest & her own chests, the use of housing & lands at town, with its table, stools & chairs, with any other of the house-hold estate, except the axe, that is commonly called Dina's axe," ¼ of table linen, & if left alone, the old, negro woman to care for her; & £6 per annum from sons Moses & Samuel; to s. Joseph's five children, under the guardianship of son Samuel £5, each of them to receive 20 shillings when of age; to Major Nathan Gold & Josiah Harvey, as over-seers of his estate £20. Upon the death of his wife the house at Fairfield & all things belonging to it, were to be divided between son Joseph's five children allowing the eldest son a double portion. He requests that the shares of his s. Joseph's widow in her father-in-law George Goodwin's estate, be paid over to the estate of Joseph's children. He entailed all his estate to his surviving male heirs, in case of the death of any one of his sons.  [Emphasis added.  The Will is reproduced in the Chester Jackson monograph.]

  • Note that by terms of the will Henry was a slave owner.  (We don't know what happened to the "old, negro woman," or if succeeding generations also owned slaves.  Samuel Jackson's will, twenty-eight years later, mentions no slaves, but that is not dispositive.  Whatever the case, at some generation, probably sometime in the 17th or early 18th century, the Jackson's acquired the anti-slavery mentality that pervaded the North, and certainly was strongly held by much, if not most, if not all the family at the time of the Civil War.)
     

  • Several web sources say his wife's name is unknown, but we know her as "Mary Abbott" (1608-89).  It appears she came separately from England, because the first of their children was born five years after Henry's arrival.  One source says he married in 1639, which is consistent with birth of John, his first child, in 1640.  The same source says the family moved to Fairfield by 1648.

Samuel Jackson (1645-1714), next in the line, left no record of note.  He lived his entire life in Fairfield, CT, marrying another Fairfield resident, Jedidiah Higbee.  Samuel left a will, which is reproduced in the Chester Jackson monograph.  (Jedidiah's father, Edward, is probably also ancestor to Norman Lawrence Higbee, an Elsie, Michigan, resident, whose daughter Myra was Chester Jackson's 5th cousin, married to John Sheldon.)

Ebenezer Jackson, Sr. (1698-1766), was born to Samuel in Fairfield, CT, and moved later to Sharon, CT (apparently by way of Wilton, at least for a time, since several children, including son Abraham, were born there). 

From one genealogical source on the web:

Ebenezer Jackson was baptized on October 16, 1698. He choose Henry Jackson as his guardian on January 5, 1714/1715. Ebenezer married Esther Abbott about 1717. Ester was born about 1700. They lived in Wilton County, Ebenezer and Esther moved to Sharon County in 1740 which had been settled the year before Ebenezer was called Deacon Jackson in some records. He was a leader of a church, probably in Sharon County.

And another web source:

Deacon Ebenezer [Jackson] was from Norwalk, and settled on the 42d home lot, now owned by John Jackson on the mountain. He was early chosen Deacon of the church, and was a highly reputable and useful man. He had six sons, Ebenezer, Joshua, John, Abraham, Stephen and Joseph, most of whom settled in the eastern part of the town. In 1763 he sold his home lot to Job Gould, and from that time lived with one of his sons at the River till his death, in 1766. An uncommon incident attaches to the farm on which he settled, in the fact, that it has been held by owners of the family of Jackson and Gould from the first ownership by Deacon Jackson to the present time.

Ebenezer's son was the first Abraham Jackson, known to us as "Sr."  He also made the Jackson family's most radical geographic move to that point, from Sharon, CT, to Wallingford, Vermont.  At the time, Vermont was politically part of New Hampshire.  (Abraham was born in Wilton, CT, but married his wife Eleanor Bumpus in Sharon; Eleanor had been born in Rochester, Massachusetts).  Abraham, Eleanor and family were the first settlers of Wallingford, arriving there in or before 1773.  From the Chester Jackson monograph:

He owned 1000 acres of land, was the first deacon of the Congregational Church, first town representative and first town clerk. In 1778 he was chosen selectman, tythingman, treasurer and “lister brander” as well.

Subsequently, he acquired a considerable tract of land which became known as “Jackson’s Gore”. He settled there in 1791; the land was later organized into the town of Mt. Holly.

In July 1776, respected community leaders from across New Hampshire (as noted, including Vermont) gathered at Dorset, Vermont, to consider options in light of British oppression.  Only twenty days following the Declaration of Independence the attendees signed a "Convention at Dorset"; Abraham Jackson was the sixth to sign.  The declaration read:

We the subscribers, inhabitants of that District of Land commonly called and known by the name of the New Hampshire Grants, do voluntarily and Solemnly Engage under all the ties held sacred amongst Mankind at the Risque of our Lives and fortunes to Defend, by arms, the United American States against the Hostile attempts of the British Fleets and Armies, until the present unhappy Controversy between the two Countries shall be settled.

As noted elsewhere on the web and certified by the Vermont Adjutant General, Abraham Sr. served during the Revolutionary War as a Captain in the Wallingford Militia, perhaps only for a brief time.  We have several substantiations for his service:

While residing at Wallingford, Vermont, he enlisted in July 1777 and served three months in Captain Joseph Barnes' Company, and was at the battle of Bennington.

He continued to serve at various times until in 1783, on alarms and scouting against the Indians, and Tories, was also stationed at Castleton on guard, all of this service was in the Vermont Troops, under Captains Hinman, Abraham Ives, Abraham Jackson, and Colonels Claghorn, Lee, and Lyon, amounting in all to eight months.

[H]e served with the Vermont troops as follows:  from the first of September, 1780, two months in Captain Abraham Jackson's company under Colonel Ethan Allen [of the famed Green Mountain Boys]; from the first of December, 1780, two months under Captain Abraham Jackson and Colonel Ethan Allen; from the first of August, 1781, two months under Captain Abraham Jackson and Colonel Ethan Allen; ....

  • Payroll for Abraham Jackson's unit as of October 14, 1781, in service at Castleton (the list includes Abraham's sons, Asahel Jackson, shown as "Sergeant," Jedidiah Jackson (no rank), and Jethro Jackson (no rank)).
     

  • A list of service of Vermont citizens for 1781-82.

(Some of these records come to us because in 1836 Congress enacted a supplemental pension for some widows of Revolutionary War soldiers, and the War Department saved all such applications, which are now available via the service Fold3, although some only for those subscribing to their premium service.)

Additional material relating to Abraham Jackson and family in Wallingford, VT, and to Jackson's Gore:

Abraham Jackson, from Cornwall, Ct., came here with his family in the summer of 1773. He was the first who possessed legal title to the lands he occupied. He was an estimable man, accustomed to discharge all his duties promptly and faithfully. He had eleven children. His eldest son, Abraham, was the first town clerk and the first representative, and held many other positions of trust in this town. The youngest son, William, was educated in Dartmouth College, was largely instrumental in the establishment of Middlebury College and was pastor of the Congregational Church in Dorset from 1796 until the year of his death, 1842 [see William's portrait above]. He was also a tavern-keeper.

See also rootsweb page for Wallingford.

There once was a leftover wedge of land between Wallingford and Ludlow, granted in 1781 to Abraham Jackson and 29 others. including 6 other Jacksons. There was a stipulation in the grant that Jackson Gore, as it was known, was to be part of Wallingford.

The association was apparently not a happy one, because ten years later, residents of the gore, along with some neighbors in Wallingford and Ludlow petitioned the Legislature for a town of their own. The request was met, and Mount Holly is the result.


....

(The daughter referred to was Henrietta Jackson (1811-1850), four of whose children were born in Constantinople (today's Istanbul).)

The land that eventually became Mount Holly lay unsettled between the towns of Ludlow and Wallingford until the end of the Revolutionary War, when the Vermont General Assembly decided to raise money by selling ungranted land. On February 23, 1781, Abraham Jackson, one of the first settlers in Wallingford, along with 29 others paid 270 English pounds for 9,700 acres between Wallingford and Ludlow which came to be known as Jackson's Gore.

Bowlsville, in the western half of Jackson Gore, was the site of the first grist mill in Mount Holly, built on the still un-named branch of the Mill River.

Log cabins were built in the vicinity of today’s Mount Holly Post Office. Another group of settlers came from Ludlow Town to settle near today’s railroad track crossing on Healdville Road. Though within three miles of one another, each group of settlers was totally unaware, until 1786, that the other settlement existed. On October 31, 1792, Vermont's General Assembly formally created Mount Holly from Jackson Gore and portions of land from Wallingford and Ludlow.

Abraham Jackson built the Town's first sawmill by damming the outlet of a pond (Jackson Pond). Additional dams increased the size of the Pond to become today’s Star Lake. In 1863, A.P. Chase purchased the sawmill, the Pond, and water rights to construct a wooden toy factory. By 1885 the factory employed forty to fifty men in a village called Mechanicsville – today’s Belmont.

See also rootsweb page for Mt. Holly.


This town lies on the southeastern border of Rutland county, in latitude 4° 29' and longitude 4° 14' east from Washington ; it is bounded on the north by Shrewsbury and Plymouth ; east by Ludlow ; south by Weston and Mount Tabor, and west by Wallingford and Mount Tabor. It was not one of the original townships. In surveying the towns on the east and west sides of the Green Mountains, there was left between Ludlow on the east and Wallingford on the west, a gore of land [see note following] which became known as " Jackson's Gore," from Abraham Jackson, one of the original proprietors and an early settler.

The present town of Mount Holly was incorporated at the October session of the Legislature of 1792, held in Rutland. The town as incorporated comprised Jackson's Gore with all that portion of the town of Ludlow lying west of the highest ridge of what is known as " Ludlow Mountain," and on the west a tract one mile in width, or two tiers of lots, from the east side of the town of Wallingford.

The town lies in a sort of shallow basin, or depression, in the Green Mountains, and in the old days of stage coaching over the road from Burlington to Boston, afforded the best place for crossing the Green Mountains south of Montpelier. The land was originally heavily timbered with maple, beech; birch, spruce and hemlock, with a lesser quantity of fir, basswood, black and white ash, wild cherry and poplar. By far the greater portion of the old forests have fallen before the axes of the inhabitants.

The rock is mostly Green Mountain gneiss. In the extreme southern part limestone is found from which a good quality of lime was formerly made. The soil is largely a strong and somewhat heavy loam ; while clay beds are found in several localities, suitable for brick making. Brick were made in a yard near the site of the Mount Holly railroad station many years ago in quantities sufficient for the then comparatively small demands of this and neighboring towns.

Mill River is the only considerable stream ; it rises in the extreme south-west part part of the town, flows northerly and crosses a corner of Wallingford, emptying into Otter Creek in the town of Clarendon. There are numerous smaller streams, all of which on the western slope empty into Mill River; those on the eastern slope find their way to Black River and thus into the Connecticut.

The surface of the town is uneven and hilly, though less so than most of the mountain towns ; there is less waste land in it than in the majority of towns in the State, in spite of its situation on and near the mountain; it has no swamps, no rugged ledges and no abrupt and inaccessible mountains¹ The soil is better adapted to grass than grain, and not very much of the latter is. raised. The farmers generally find it more profitable to keep their land in grass and devote their attention to the raising of stock or the manufacture of butter and cheese, than to even raise their own breadstuffs. Oats are, however, raised in considerable quantities, but mainly for home consumption.

Early Settlements —The first settlement on Jackson's Gore was made by Abraham Jackson, and Stephen, Ichabod G. and Chauncey Clark, of Connecticut, in the year 1782. In the following year they were joined by Jacob Wilcox and Benjamin G. Dawley, from Rhode Island, and soon after by Jonah, Amos and Ebenezer Ives, also from Connecticut ; they were gradually followed by others. The first settlers in that part of the town which was formerly Ludlow were Joseph Green, Nathaniel Pingrey, Abram Crowley, David Bent and Silas Proctor, who came in about the year 1786. They were soon joined by John and Jonas Hadley, Joseph and Jonathan Pingrey, Richard Lawrence and Samuel Cook. These two settlements, though only about three miles apart, were, according to Dr. John Crowley (from whose sketch many of these facts are taken), " for some time ignorant of their proximity to each other. Those on the west side, or the ‘Gore,’ supposed the settlement nearest them was in the valley of Otter Creek, while those on the east side thought their nearest neighbors were on Black River in Ludlow. They were separated by an unbroken wilderness, with not even a ‘ blazed ’ footpath between them, each having reached their settlements from opposite directions. They are said to have discovered each other in the following manner : Some of the settlers on the east side started out on Sunday morning to look for stray cattle; after traveling westward some two miles, they were about to take another direction, when they were surprised by hearing the barking of a dog still farther west. They followed the sound, and soon came to the log cabin of Ichabod G. Clark, which stood some forty rods northwesterly from the spot where the Mount Holly railroad depot now stands. At this cabin the people of the ‘Gore ’were on that day assembled for religious worship. The surprise of each party was equaled only by their gratification at finding neighbors so near. They at once set about providing means of intercommunication by marked trees and subsequently by primitive roads ; and the acquaintance thus begun soon ripened into friendship and constant intercourse, and resulted in the union of the two settlements into one town, as before described."

....

Abraham Jackson [Jr.] was one of the Quaker settlers of Mount Holly, and Nelson W. Cook has furnished us with the following sketch of his life : He was born at Cornwall, Conn., in 1750, and came to Wallingford with his father in 1773. He was made the first town clerk of the town and the first representative. holding the latter office in the years 1778, 1780, 1781, 1785, 1789 and 1790. In 1781 he was successful in securing the large grant of land from the Legislature which has always borne his name and forms a large part of the town of Mount Holly. He was a large owner in this tract, his possession including a small lake and valuable water privileges at its outlet. Here he erected the first saw-mill in the town. The first house he built stood on the elevated land east of Mechanicsville, now owned by Elwin Dickerman. Mr. Jackson sold the house to a Mr. Morrison in 1800 [1806 -- see copy of the deed] and built the house directly north, now owned by George Mead. He possessed in a large degree those great moral and religious principles by which men's lives should be guided ; and it was at his house that the meetings of the first religious society in the town were held. It was in his “spacious kitchen ” that they sat in silent worship. He removed to “the Gore” in 1791 and was chosen moderator of the meeting that organized the town ; he was also its first representative in 1793. In 1810 he sold out his real estate and removed to northern New York.

Note

When the General Assembly, at its session of October, 1780, resolved to raise money to place Vermont on a war footing, for resistance to the decree of Congress abolishing its government, three expedients were adopted, viz.: The confiscation and sale of the lands of all British adherents, thus raising the sum of £430,000 ; second, the sale of all ungranted lands ; and third, the issue of money. Under the second expedient this gore was transferred to Abraham Jackson and twenty-nine associated residents of Wallingford. This charter of transfer is dated February 23, 1781, and reads as follows :

Resolved, That a certain tract or gore of land, lying and being situate on the east side of Wallingford, containing by estimation nine thousand seven hundred acres, be granted to Abraham Jackson, esq., and his associates to the number of thirty. To be annexed to, and incorporated with the town of Wallingford."

The fees for this grant were nine pounds per right, realizing the sum of two hundred and seventy pounds.

Abraham Jackson was a farmer with 1000 acres in and around Wallingford. He was first representative, and town clerk. Abraham went to Dorset in July 1776 for the memorable convention there. This is what is meant by "first representative". State records show he signed the covenant as number 6 on the list. This convention followed the Declaration of Independence by 20 days. Swift runners had undoubtedly brought the news to Dorset. With his signing he shared the same risks as those who signed at Philadelphia.

He held the rank of Captain in the Revolutionary Army. Capt. Abraham Jackson was at the fort at Castleton, or otherwise concerned with defense efforts. Many times in succeeding years he served as the choice of the citizens as their representative. He attended the March and October sessions at Windsor in 1778. He was at Bennington in October of 1780 and at Windsor in February 1781, as well as Windsor in October 1781. He was at Bennington in January 1782. This was an adjourned session. At this time he served on a committee to prepare a bill to enable the several towns to raise their quotas of men for the ensuing campaign and was to make a report thereof. He was interested in the development of roads and concerned with the standardization of weights and measures. In 1785 he was at the convention in Windsor and attended the conventions at Manchester in 1786, at Westminster in 1789, at Castleton in 1790, and at Bennington in 1791.

Tradition says that his first house was built just south of the present village of Wallingford, near the Otter River. He built a mill at South Wallingford in 1778. Abraham Sr. was chosen Selectman, Treasurer, Tythingman, Lister, Brander, and Clerk. He was also listed as a farmer.

In 1782 Abraham moved to Jackson's Gore. Among the 30 original grantees of land in this unsettled area, he was 1 of 7 Jacksons. The other 6 grantees being his sons Abraham Jr., Jethro, Jedidiah, Asahel, William, and a Joseph Jackson who was Abraham Sr's brother. Jackson's Gore was added to Mount Holly in 1792. Town records show Abraham Sr. took an active part in community affairs, for his name is mentioned many times. His son Abraham Jr. also was active in community affairs after finishing his term in the military.

Abraham Jackson Sr. was the first representative of the group meetings of the Committee of Safety and Correspondence, which preceded the organized government. Deacon Abraham Jackson was the moderator of the first town meeting of Wallingford VT after Vermont became the 14 state. Vermont did not give up its independence as a Republic willingly. Abraham Jackson Sr. did not live long after this. Abraham Sr. was very active in the Revolutionary War. His 4 sons, Abraham Jr., Asahel, Jedidiah, and Jethro were in the Revolutionary Army, although Jethro later deserted for the British.

Abraham's wife, Eleanor who was born May 8, 1729, in Rochester, Massachusetts, was not listed as one of the 14 members of the Rutland church. This tends to confirm the belief that she was a Quaker. In Abraham's will her name is spelled Elenor. This spelling shows up in several places. Abraham Jackson Sr. died at Wallingford, Vermont, September 18, 1791. He is buried in Green Hills Cemetery in Wallingford Village. A small white stone marking his grave states: " Here lies the body of Abraham Jackson who died Sept. 18 1791 in the 65th. year of his age."

  • Abraham's great grandson Chester Jackson wrote his (Chester's) 2nd great niece Mildred Ida Marvin (or possibly Mildred's mother Ida (Pritchard) Marvin) (date unknown, but probably 1920-30):

    Some years ago the inhabitants of Wallingford [VT] celebrated with a large pageant, the anniversary of the birth of their beautiful city, which was attended by a large body, from over the state, by Sunday excursion.  One of the attractions was the "Coming into Town" by the Jackson family, numbering some ten children and escorted by Abraham Jackson, Esq., on horseback in 1773.  They had been a number of days on the roads over the mountains, through valleys, stones, roots and ruts innumerable, and all the way from Cornwall, Connecticut.  An effort was made by the officers to get a descendant of the Jacksons to represent Abraham Jackson as escort.  But not a Jackson could be found.  And here was I in profound ignorance of the need.  If I had only known, all the King's horses and all the King's men could not have prevented me from showing what a poor horseman I could be.

Abraham Jackson, Jr., born in Connecticut, accompanied his parents to Wallingford and Jackson's Gore (Mt. Holly), Vermont, and then traveled on from there to Arcade, New York (known at the time as "China").  While in Wallingford, Abraham, Jr., served in local government, as related above, and served at least four separate times in units of the Revolutionary Army, in ranks of "private" and "ensign," in 1775, 1778 and 1780, all of his service being in Vermont except once, apparently on a military expedition into Canada.

His service during the Revolutionary War is documented in several places:

Although still very much alive at the time of the War of 1812, Abraham apparently sat out the war in Arcade.  His son Jacob provided the Jacksons' notable service in that war.

Abraham Jackson, Jr., is credited as one of the earliest explorers of the Arcade area, having come there in 1807. 

Abraham Jackson, of Vermont, was the first explorer of this section and came in 1807.  He located ten sections of land and returned to Vermont.  In the spring of 1809 he came back with his son, Jacob Jackson, Silas Parker and their families [Jacob had married Millicent Parker in 1808]. 

In fact, Leonard Parker was Silas's father, so it was his family that accompanied the Jackson's on the trek to Arcade, arriving there in 1809 (the town had been founded in 1807), and both families purchased lots of land in Arcade (purchasers are listed as Abraham Jr. in 1809 and 1810, Silas Parker (Leonard's son) in 1809, Leonard Parker in 1809, Jacob Jackson in 1809, Abraham Jackson Jr. and Sr. in 1810 (this must have been Abraham Jr. and Abraham III, since Abraham Sr. had died in 1791), and Charles Jackson in 1809.  Abraham III and Charles were Jacob's brothers.)

(Jackson and Parker heirs later co-located in Ortonville, MN, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.  See the list of children of Jacob Jackson and Millicent Parker, below.)

Abraham Jr. had two wives, Jerusha Steele and Mary Button, and Jacob Jackson, Chester's father, was born to the latter in Wallingford, Vermont, in 1787.  He travelled with his parents to Arcade, fought there in the War of 1812, and then followed the American frontier in a move to Racine, Wisconsin, where Chester was born to Jacob and his second wife, Fanny Goodrich.  What we know:

  • War of 1812:

Jacob fought and was wounded in the War of 1812 Battle of Black Rock, described in Historical Collections of State of New York, by Barber and Howe, 1841:

The British troops which crossed over at Black Rock on the 10th inst. were commanded by Cols. Bishop and Warren. They crossed the Niagara below Squaw Island, and marched far above the navy yard before any alarm was given. The detached militia being surprised, retreated up the beach, and left the enemy in quiet possession of the village, who proceeded to burn the sailors' barracks and blockhouses at the great battery. They then proceeded to the batteries, dismounted and spiked three 12 pounders, and took away 3 field-pieces and one 12 pounder; they took from a storehouse a quantity of whiskey, salt, flour, pork, and c. [corn?], which, with four citizens, they took across the river. At the first moment of the alarm, Gen. Porter left Black Rock for Buffalo, at which place he assembled a body of volunteers and a few regulars, which, with 100 militia and 25 Indians, formed a junction about a mile from the enemy. After being formed, with the militia and Indians on the flanks and the volunteers and the regulars in the center, they attacked, and the enemy, after a contest of 20 minutes, retreated in the utmost confusion to the beach, embarked in several of our boats, and pulled for the opposite shore; all the boats got off without injury, except the last, which suffered severely from our fire, and from appearance nearly all the men in her were killed or wounded.

Jacob is listed as one of the American prisoners taken at Black Rock, noted as having been shot in both thighs.

A history of Arcade describes Jacob's part in the battle:

Nearly all of the early settlers participated in the battle of Black Rock.  Captain Kilbourn was killed, and report says that six others were neither seen or heard from afterward.  Among those who were in that engagement ... Silas Parker ... and three or four others returned; Jacob Jackson was taken prisoner and sent to Halifax, but after a year and a half was exchanged and allowed to return.  The war stopped settlement from 1812 to 1815.

From the Chester Jackson monograph:

Western New York was especially alive to the situation of danger of invasion by the British from their point of vantage, the Niagara River. The whole country was alive with militia or minute men drilled and armed and trained by the code called “General Training.” Every community had its company. They met en masse and formed regiments. The Jackson Settlement had a company commanded by one Amasa Kilbourne. The Jacksons were represented by Jacob, my father, and his brother, Charles.

The British and Indians (Senecas) were active in the Buffalo region with Fort Erie as a base, and the Kilbourne Company, with others, was called to the defense of the border. This was in December, 1813. My father’s story ran as follows: They marched from home to Black Rock near Buffalo, just below, and made camp. A big ball was in operation, mostly Masonic, when they were surprised by the enemy. They grabbed their arms and made a fight, but were routed. Father was shot through both thighs and crawled into a patch of currant brush in a garden to hide from the Indians who were busy scalping the dead and wounded. Close by him was a British officer, also wounded. An Indian appeared with his tomahawk and scalping knife, and was about to finish the work of the British bullet when the British officer commanded the Indian to move on. It seems the officer recognized that Father belonged to a Masonic order, from a Masonic emblem which he had worn at the ball.

He was picked up and carried across the Niagara River as prisoner of war with a number of others, where they were transferred to ox sleds and started for Montreal The journey lasted over two weeks. Winter had set in. The bullet was not extracted at that time, and was carried a number of years. It was extracted at Racine by Dr. P. H. Hoy in about 1864.

It weighed fully an ounce and became an heirloom; we used to play with it as a marble. I swallowed it one time, I distinctly remember, but it was not lost. Finally, it naturally was missed and thoroughly lost, and probably lies buried or is groveling in the dust ‘round about the old homestead at Racine this very day. One hundred dollars in gold would I pay for its recovery.

One can fancy the misery of a journey of that kind in winter to one so badly wounded. Upon arrival in Montreal, the prisoner was put in prison with other prisoners, and kept ‘till April, when he was exchanged and came home unexpectedly, for he had been mourned as dead. His brother, Charles, was killed in the same battle.

I visited the site of the old prison barracks in Montreal in 1903, but it was occupied by the Canadian Pacific terminal and not a vestige left.

One incident of his prison life, I remember well. His blankets were stolen from his bunk, and he learned that they had been taken by a big Kentuckian soldier and fellow-prisoner not far away. Father marched over and demanded the return of his blankets. The Kentuckian drew his knife and invited Father to come right in and get his blankets, whereupon Father jumped into him and as the big knife descended, the hand was caught and the arm and hand so wrenched that the knife flew across the room and Mr. Kaintuck yelled with pain. Father secured his blankets and had no more trouble from that quarter.

(Oral histories handed down through the generations can lead to interesting variations.  E.g., note from Randall Smith, 8/17/2011:  "Jacob Jackson's Battle of Niagara (1814) bullet removed from his hip in [British] prison camp during the War of 1812 ... was lost, ... somewhere in the Ovid house where Chester used to flip it in front of the fireplace."  And, according to Chester's brother Charles, Jacob was wounded twice in the legs.)

  • Relocation from Wallingford to Jackson's Gore to Arcade:

The Jackson family's own account of Jacob's growing up and moves from Wallingford, to Jackson's Gore, to Arcade, and then finally to Racine is in the Chester Jackson monograph, at p. 6.  Chester wrote that the family bible recorded Jacob's marriage to his first wife occurred December 4, 1808, following the trip from Vermont to Arcade.  Since other records show Abraham Jr. and Jacob first arriving in Arcade in 1809, there is a slight discrepancy.  Travel from Jackson's Gore to Arcade would not have been practicable in winter months, so -- assuming the wedding date is accurate (see end of this paragraph) -- Jacob and Millicent were married in Jackson's Gore, traveling to Arcade Spring or Summer of 1809, or were married in Arcade after arriving in Summer 1808.  Since the Jacksons and Parkers purchased land in Arcade in 1909, I am inclined to believe they were married in Jackson's Gore.  (I have the Jacob Jackson family bible, and indeed Jacob's marriage to Millicent is recorded as December 4, 1808.)

A history of Arcade records Abraham, Jacob and Millicent arriving Spring of 1809.

A letter saved by Chester Jackson, however, Addison Jackson Parker to Chester, 10/14/1917, supports an arrival in Arcade in 1808: "Leonard [Parker] ... brought his family to the town of China, NY, in 1808 -- being 3 sons & some daughters and my grandfather Jacob Jackson."

  • The "Bear Story":

Chester Jackson writing Beulah Jackson, January 22, 1927:

Glad you found the bear story -- thanks [implies there's more to the story than what follows]. As to the progress of the story would say that the old she-bear is killed and gran'pa [by implication, Abraham Jackson, Jr., 1751-1833] has taken possession of the hollow and has fitted it out in a grand and comfortable manner. The 'slat' is giving a mellow light, a little fire is glowing in the little fireplace; the dishes are washed and the water poured down through the trap door into the swift-running brook below; the little brass kettle has been lowered and drawn up filled with lovely pellucid water ready for the morning meal of bearmeat and beechnuts!

Bunches of yarbs [herbs?] and roots hang on pegs along the walls and cast long shadows into the far reaches of the hollow and Peace and plenty seem to reign.

The bear being killed brings great peace and plenty of bear meat -- plenty.

Granpa is reading in his old and well-thumbed bible -- the pin hole bible -- some of the songs of David, how David slewed his enemies (the bear) and how he is ready for more of 'em -- say three or four.

The day has been mostly spent in curing the great skin through the aid of a big fire in front of his new home. When cured he will have a grand spread to put on his bed of hemlock boughs. And now he has stuck the pin in the leaf of the treasured bible at the word 'and' and has turned to his store of beech nuts and is peeling off the thin husks and throwing the husks in the fire, where they flash up and show granpa munching the savory things and gloating over how he beat the red squirrels.

The brook gurgles below; the old hoot owl is hooting his hooter; the little screech owl is screeching his screecher, and grandpa has stepped out of the door and views the great trees of the great wilderness and hears the great sounds of nature and draws in great deep breaths of Ozone -- no finer in the world -- heaves a great sigh that his 'bacca was lost in the great fight. Would give a dollar for a chew -- and then slowly turns to his new home, turns the wooden key in the wooden lock, and, and goes to munching beechnuts."

(Chester appended to the story, "Please retain this for I may want a little of it and don't remember very well.")

  • Jacob and Millicent:

All of Jacob and Millicent's thirteen children were born in or near Arcade, 1810-30.

Eliza Jackson b: 23 Jan 1810 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 12 May 1895 in Mt Pleasant, , Wisconsin, USA
Mary Jackson b: 16 May 1811 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 22 Aug 1841 in Mt. Pleasant, Racine, WI
Addison Jackson b: 29 Jan 1813 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 20 Mar 1835 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA
Lucretia Jackson b: 01 Jun 1815 in Sandusky, Cattaraugus, New York, USA, d: 03 Nov 1865 in Sandusky, Cattaraugus, New York, USA
Lorenda Jackson b: 05 May 1817 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 08 Jan 1907 in Ortonville, Big Stone, Minnesota, USA
Angeline Jackson b: 11 Apr 1819 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 11 Aug 1898 in Ortonville, Big Stone, Minnesota, USA
Lydia Jackson b: 13 Dec 1820 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 09 Feb 1823 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, United States
Abraham Jackson III b: 15 Sep 1822 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 20 Jun 1894 in Ortonville, Big Stone, Minnesota, USA
Cornelia Jackson b: 19 Apr 1824 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 28 Jan 1916 in Crandon, Forest, Wisconsin, USA
Andrew Parker Jackson b: 04 Apr 1826 in Wyoming, New York, United States, d: 08 Oct 1895 in Ortonville, Big Stone, Minnesota, USA
Salome Jackson b: 17 Apr 1828 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 06 Mar 1838 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA
Sally Emeline Jackson b: 11 Sep 1830 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 29 Sep 1899 in Hartford, Washington, Wisconsin, USA
Harriet Newell Jackson b: 17 Dec 1833 in Arcade, Wyoming, New York, USA, d: 17 Oct 1850 in Racine, Wisconsin, USA
  • The trip to Racine:

In 1842 Jacob, Millicent and ten children moved by wagon to Mt. Pleasant, Wisconsin, just west of Racine, arriving there August 1.  At the same time, the Bones family traveled there from Kentucky.  Susanna Bones Frey, Chester's first school teacher, wrote an undated account of the Bones's journey, which mentions the Jackson family arrival.  The two families lived close to each other, and in fact a Bones son was instrumental in securing Chester his Antigua consulship.

Millicent died July 27, 1844, and Jacob married Fanny Goodrich, my great great grandmother, on Christmas Day that year.  Chester, my great grandfather and root of this section of my family history, was born November 19, 1945; his brother Charles was born October 13, 1848; and some speak of a daughter, too, who died in infancy, but I've found no direct evidence of that.

Miscellaneous Jacksons:

  • One of the more interesting offshoots of the Jackson family is Jethro, son of Abraham Sr. and Eleanor Bumpus.  He fled to Canada during the Revolutionary War.  One web commentary:

Jethro Jackson Sr., the 4th son of Abraham Jackson Sr. is the one that all Canadian Jacksons of this family are descended from. He was a bit of a rogue and opportunist. He is believed to have been born in Cornwall Ct. about 1758. His wife's name was Zelicia Coggelshall. Jethro served in the revolutionary Army in 1776 as a member of Bradley's Battalion, Connecticut State Troops, Wadsworth Brigade, in Captain Benjamin Mill's Company. He enlisted on June 20, 1776 and deserted to His Majesty's Army on Long Island in August. He joined His Majesty's Army under the command of General Howe (according to Upper Canada land petition RG 1L3 I/J bundle, petition #35, reel C2108, Vol. 254), where he was an assistant commissary in the Commissary Dept. He was ordered to Turtle Bay on York Island and in November was ordered on an expedition with 10,000 troops which landed on Rhode Island where he remained for 3 years. Interestingly, the State of Vermont Revolutionary War Rolls shows, that during October 12 to October 31, 1780, Jethro Jackson was in Capt. Abraham Ive's Company of Militia a part of Colonel Ebenezer Allen's Regiment. During October 13 to November 4, 1780 Sergeant Jethro Jackson is shown as being among Capt. Samuel Allen's Company of Volunteers. It would be interesting to find out how he could be in two Companies of Volunteers in the Revolutionary Army and also in His Majesty's Army at the same time. Three Companies in two Armies is stretching it a bit. His father might have had some help from Col. Ebenezer Allen and Capt. Samuel Allen in covering up Jethro's desertion. Capt. Abraham Jackson Sr. was an important figure in the Wallingford, Vermont area during the Revolution.

  • William Jackson (1768-1842) is a famous non-lineal Jackson ancestor (another of Abraham Sr.'s son).  Some notes:

Letter from Marion (Wheelock) Everett to Chester Jackson, 1/17/1917:

"What a wonderful amount of active 'gray matter' a man must have to remain pastor of his flock so many years as did Wm. Jackson -- that is to keep them from thinking they would like a change."

 Letter from Henrietta "Carrie" (Maltby) Cushman to Chester Jackson, 3/8/1917:

"I remember him [William Jackson] well, as I sat on his shoulder watching the cattle drinking from the long trough in the baynyard -- feeling so safe from their horns!

"He died suddenly when I was a mere child. All the Dorset parsonage's precious relics and records I know little about. They were so precious to my mother. But as the home was emptied after Aunt Susan's death -- under Sec. Baldwin's jurisdiction -- 'who cared for some of these things' -- I never knew where the family Bible ... landed. You write, 'Some one inherited the Bible of Abraham J. Esq.' Do you know that or only suppose it must be true?"

 His portrait comes down from his parsonage in Dorset:

An early 20th century pamphlet regarding the Dorset church history praised William.

Anonymous notes in Chester Jackson's genealogy files: "William collected $1500 towards a fund to aid worthy young men preparing for the ministry. This was the first educational fund in America.

  • The Parkers (who accompanied Abraham Jr. to Arcade) continued to play a role in the Jackson lines.  Not only was Jacob Jackson married to Millicent Parker at the time they moved to Arcade (following him then to Racine, where she died), but Leonard's grandson, George Washington Parker, married his 1st cousin, Lorinda Jackson.  The Parkers were also closely tied to the Fletcher family, who apparently followed the Parkers and Jacksons to Arcade:  Elias Parker and Dorothy Fletcher, who married in Massachusetts but settled in Arcade, were second cousins.  And, as mentioned above, the two families co-located in Ortonville in western Minnesota.
     

  • And then there is the curious story of the Higbee family (or Higbie or Higby):  Edward Higbee's (1616-99) daughter Jedidiah married Samuel Jackson of our line, and therefore is my 6th great grandmother.  Edward's son Nathaniel heads a line that ends five generations later with Myra Ann Higbee (b. 1867), who married a Sheldon, who great grandfather LaMott Bates may have thought was a relation (since his last name was the same as Emily (Robinson) Bates's sister Mary Robinson's husband), because LaMott included a photograph of Myra Higbee in the Bentley Library Album.  All this is curious because, although in fact no relation to the Bateses, Myra Higbee was Chester Jackson's 5th cousin, and for thirty or more years she lived in Elsie and Duplain Township only a few miles distance from the cousin she probably never knew about.

Myra (Higbee) Sheldon

Finally, see the map at "The Allure of Western New York" for a record of the concentration of my families' ancestors in the 19th century.

[Return to Chester Jackson Forebears]

[Jump to Button]
[Jump to Goodrich]
[Jump to Stratton]