● ·   Elizabeth Eddy, daughter of Zachariah and Alice (Paddock) Eddy of Swansea, married Samuel Whipple, Jr. of Providence, Rhode Island, in 1680 and moved to Groton around 1711, where they remained and raised their children. Several of their children and their families, Samuel, Daniel, hope, Zachariah, and Zephaniah were living in the Groton area when Mary Eddy was married to Joseph Culver III.

  ●     Constant Eddy, son of Obadiah and Abigail (Devotion) Eddy, was a nephew of Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple and a grandson of Zachariah and Alice (Paddock) Eddy. In September 1749 Constant Eddy purchased land in Groton from his cousin Timothy Whipple. Several of Constant Eddy’s children--Devotion, Silva, Tisdale, Mary, and Ruth--settled in Groton, and most, like the children of Samuel and Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple, married into the established families of Groton.

  ●     Jemima Eddy, daughter of Zachariah and Mercy (Brown) Eddy[1] was a niece of Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple and a granddaughter of Zachariah and Alice (Paddock) Eddy, married Stephen Harding of Providence, Rhode Island in 1707. Stephen Harding was either a brother or first cousin of Sarah Harding of Providence, Rhode Island, who married Ebenezer Eddy, another sibling of Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple. Stephen and Jemima (Eddy) Harding moved to New London, the town adjacent to Groton, in 1732. [1]  She is named as Jemima Harding in her father Zachariah Eddy's will dated 25 February 1736/37 and proved 4 June 1737 (Eddy, 1930)

Map showing the location of residences of various members of the Eddy family in 18th century Groton, Connecticut.  Map by S.R.Cox.

Samuel and Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple
who moved from Swansea, Massachusetts to Groton, Connecticut

Elizabeth Eddy, born 3 August 1670 in Swansea, Massachusetts, was the daughter of Zachariah and Alice (Paddock) Eddy.  She married on 26 February 1680, Samuel Whipple, Jr. of Providence, Rhode Island, son of Samuel and Mary (Harris) Whipple.

On April 11, 1707, Samuel Whipple Jr., late of Providence, Rhode Island, purchased land on the east side of the New London River, in Groton, partly in Norwich, consisting of 200 acres at the “head of the Paucatannuck [Poquetanuck] Cove.” from John Picket of New London, Connecticut (Groton Land Records).

Around 1711, Samuel and Elizabeth moved their family to the part of Groton that later became Preston, Connecticut.  Samuel purchased the remainder of 1,000 acres of land near the present village of Poquetanuck. Here, he built a successful ironworks and sawmill along a stream on his property. (Williams & Bolles, 1904)  Samuel furnished the iron for the first large vessel built in New London, the 300-ton Starling. A large number of people assembled to see its launch from the old shipyard in New London (Whipple Family History, 1892). 

Samuel and Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple had the following children, seven of whom survived to adulthood:

i.    Alice Whipple, b. Apr. 10, 1693, twin.  Alice Whipple is named in her father’s will, written 18 April 1728, and probated 7 May 1728; however no additional information has been found about her.

ii.   Samuel Whipple, b. Apr. 10, 1693, twin, d. before 1695.

iii.   Samuel Whipple, b. Nov. 8, 1695. Samuel Whipple married Ruth Card in 1720 and had four sons born in Groton between 1722 and 1728.

 iv.  Daniel Whipple, b. Oct. 27, 1698. He married Anne Hough in 1746 and had seven children born in Groton between 1746 and 1757. Daniel became a minister of a Baptist Church in North Groton and assisted Elder Valentine Wightman of the First Baptist Church of Groton. By 1679, Daniel and his second wife Mary moved to Brattleboro, Vermont,, and by 1770 he was living in Westminster, Vermont, which was then part of Cumberland County, New York. He was appointed sheriff of Cumberland County in April of 1770, a post he held until 1772. He died on 9 September 1774.  His second wife, Mary took out letters of administration on his estate in April 1775.  Elder Daniel Whipple’s papers are held in the Henry Stevens, Sr. Collection at the Vermont State Archives (Durfee & Sanford, 1989).

v.    Hope Whipple, b. Aug. 12, 1701. She married Walter Capron about 1721 and had seven children born in New London and Norwich between 1722 and 1732.

vi.   Nathan Whipple, b. Apr. 5, 1704, died 1 Apr. 1725. Nathan Whipple died at the age of 20 in Preston, Connecticut and is buried at Brown Cemetery in Preston.

vii.  Zachariah Whipple, b. Feb. 2, 1707. He married Elizabeth Rogers in 1728 and had 10 children born in Groton and Ledyard between 1729 and 1758. Elizabeth (Rogers) Whipple died on 18 September 1751 in Groton, and Zachariah married Mary (__), whom he named in his will, written on 8 February 1758 and proved on 4 February 1760.  It is very likely that Mary Whipple was  “Mary Whipple widow”, whom Elijah Newton of Groton named in his will, written 13 January 1773 and probated 26 March 1773 (CT. Probate Records, 1609-1999). Mary Whipple was the mother of Elijah Newton's wife, Amy (Culver). The marriage record for Zachariah Whipple and Mary (__) has not been found. Zachariah and his first wife had eight children between 1729 and 1745.  He named five of the children in his will: Zachariah Whipple, Elizabeth Williams, Bathsheba Turner, Hope Whipple, and Content Whipple.

viii. Zephaniah Whipple, b. abt. 1709.  He married Keziah Parke in 1741 and had four children born in North Groton (Poquetanuck) between 1743 and about 1750.

ix.   Elizabeth Whipple, b. Feb. 1717/1718, died Nov. 1718.

 
Photo and Information Source: The Preston Connecticut Historical Society
In 1707 Samuel Whipple purchased from John Pickett, Jonathan Brewster's son-in-law, 200 acres on the north side of Pickett's "old farm." The land on which this house (circa 1740) stands was part of that acreage. This was devised to Samuel's son Zachariah in 1728 - 102 acres with buildings. By the 1780's, the homestead was owned by Zachariah Whipple's nephew, Joseph Whipple.  Joseph bequeathed the homestead to his duaghter, Mary, who married Jared Gallup,after which the home became known as the Whipple-Gallup Homestead.

Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple died 14 March 1718 in Groton, and at some point following her death, Samuel married a woman named Deborah Card.  He died 19 April 1728.  His will, written 18 April 1728 and probated 7 May 1728, names his second wife, Deborah, and children Daniel, Samuel, Zachariah, Zephaniah, Aly (Alice), and Hope Capron. 

Samuel Whipple left the ironworks and sawmill to his son, Elder Daniel Whipple; and his lands with buildings were divided between his sons Samuel, Zachariah and Zephaniah. Samuel and Elizabeth are buried at the Old Poquetanuck Cemetery No. 17, along with several of their children and grandchildren (Hale, 1932-5; Old Poquetanuck Cemetery No.17 Memorials).

 Four of Samuel and Elizabeth’s sons and their daughter Hope married into the established families of New London County, and raising families there.  Daniel, Zachariah, and Zephaniah married and raised their families during the same time Joseph and Mary (Eddy) Culver married and raised their family.

The Groton land transactions and meetings of Samuel and Elizabeth’s sons provide a glimpse into their relationships with the Groton community, including with their Eddy cousins who had also moved to Groton from Swansea, Massachusetts:

 ●   On April 17, 1731, the boundary line was determined between the land of Daniel Whipple and John Spicer, "beginning at a heap of stones on the highway in the fence between Zephaniah Whipple and Isaac Geer's land…”

●   On 1 September 1749, Constant Eddy of Groton bought for £ 250 from Timothy Whipple of Norwich, Connecticut, 20 acres of land situated in Groton. Timothy Whipple signed the deed, which Christopher Avery and Mary Avery witnessed. Constant Eddy and Timothy Whipple were first cousins once removed.  Timothy Whipple was Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple’s grandson, son of her son, Samuel Whipple III. Constant Eddy was a nephew of Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple.  His father was Elizabeth’s brother, Obadiah Eddy.

●    On 5 June 1758, Abel Spicer wrote in his diary, “We met at Nathan Allyn's, and William Fanning and David Fanning and Joshua Gore and myself was sent after David Whipple and took him…”

 ●   On 20 January 1769, Devotion Eddy of Groton bought for £ 468 from Daniel Whipple, Jr. of Groton about 90 acres of land situated in Groton, containing a dwelling house and barn and bounded by the land of Samuel Whipple, Elder Daniel Whipple, Nathan Avery, Daniel Whipple, Jr., John Spicer, Benjamin Geer, Captain Robert Geer, Humphry Avery, Samuel Geer, Robert Geer II, Samuel Capron, Old Wharf, and a cellar partly dug by Indian Sampson.  The deed was signed by Daniel Whipple and Mary Whipple and witnessed by Jeremiah Pollard and Elisha Pierce. (Groton Land Records) [1] Devotion Eddy was the son of Constant Eddy. Daniel Whipple, Jr. was the son of Elder Daniel Whipple and his first wife Anne Hough. Constant Eddy and Elder Daniel Whipple were first cousins.

  ●   On 24 February 1769, Devotion Eddy of Groton sold for  £ 468 to Tisdale Eddy of “Swansey in the County of Bristol and Provence of Massechussets Bay”, about 94 acres of land situated in Groton, containing a dwelling house, half a barn, and fencings, and bounded by the property of Elder Daniel Whipple; Nathan Avery; John Spicer; Captain Geer; Humphry Avery; Samuel Geer; the heirs of Ebenezer Geer, Decd.; and “also One Acre of Land Adjoining to the Cove where Indian Sampson partly Dugg a Cellar; and also One Quarter of all the sedge and Salt Meadow; on the said of Elder Whipple Homestead”. (This appears to be the same property that Devotion Eddy bought from Daniel Whipple and Daniel Whipple, Jr. in January of 1769.) The deed was signed by Devotion Edy and witnessed by Humphry Avery and Christopher Avery.  [3] Tisdale Eddy was another son of Constant Eddy.

  ●   In his will written 6 May 1769, John Spicer bequeathed “the land I lately purchased of Daniel Whipple” to his sons John and Cyrus Spicer (Groton Land Records).

Constant, Devotion and Tisdale Eddy
who moved from Swansea, Massachusetts to Groton, Connecticut

Constant Eddy, born 1710, was the son of Obadiah and Abigail (Devotion) Eddy of Swansea, Massachusetts, a nephew of Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple, and a grandson of Zachariah and Alice (Paddock) Eddy. Constant married Mary Winslow in Swansea on 16 Dec 1733, and all nine of his children were born there between 1733 and 1759 (Eddy, 1930).

In September 1749, Constant Eddy purchased land in Groton from his cousin Timothy Whipple.  This was when Mary (Eddy) Culver was married to Joseph Culver III (she was about to give birth to her fourth child).  Although it is believed Constant Eddy didn’t permanently move to Groton until 1769, he must have spent some time in Groton at the time of the 1749 land transaction, at least long enough for his daughter Silva to become acquainted with Jacob Avery, because Silva and Jacob married four years later in Swansea on 4 June 1753 (Avery & Avery, 1912), returning to Groton, where their son was born on 6 April 1757 (Barbour, Groton Vital Records). 

Several of Constant Eddy’s children, Devotion, Silva, Tisdale, Mary, and Ruth, settled in Groton, and most, like the children of Samuel and Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple, married into the established families there:

  i.   Devotion Eddy, born 8 September 1734 in Swansea, married Mercie Sherman.  Devotion went to Groton from Swansea with his parents. He became interested in farming and later in shipping. He reportedly owned several privateers during the Revolutionary War with which he assisted the American cause. He appears in the Land Registry of Groton until about 1781, after which time he went to New York State and settled near Pittstown (Eddy, 1930).

 ii.   Silva (or Sylvia) Eddy, born 27 February 1736 in Swansea married 4 June 1753 Jacob Avery, born 26 August 1721, the son of Christopher and Prudence (Payson) Avery of Groton (Avery & Avery, 1912). The wedding was officiated by Russel Mason, Elder of a Church of Christ in Swansea (Avery & Avery, 1912).  They had 10 children, all born in Groton between about 1757 and 1779 (Avery & Avery, 1912; Eddy, 1930).

 iii.   Jemima Eddy, born 13 October 1737 in Swansea; married 1) Job Slade of Swansea 10 April 1755 (Eddy, 1930) m. (2) Joshua Chapman 27 Jan 1783 at Swansea, Massachusetts (Barbour, Groton Vital Records, Pre-1870). Groton, Connecticut Vital Records, Volume 2, Page 2 from Family History Center Film #007730036, Image 1321 of 1455 provides a scan of the original marriage record of Joshua Chapman of Groton, Connecticut to Jemima (Eddy) Slead [Slade] in Swanzey [Swansea], Massachusetts on 27 January 1783 by Russell Mason, pastor of a Church of Christ. Joshua Chapman was the son of  William and Mary “Mercy” (Stoddard) Chapman of Groton, Connecticut. 

  iv.  Abigail Eddy, born 19 November 1739; married 26 August 1762, Edward Thurber of Swansea (Swansea Vital Records). Although they remained in Swansea for the rest of their lives, their son Darius Thurber married his first cousin Mary Spicer of Groton, daughter of Abigail’s sister Mary Eddy and her husband Cyrus Spicer (Avery & Avery, 1912; Eddy, 1930).

 v.   Obadiah Eddy, born 21 March 1742, married 1) Lois Palmer, 15 June 1769; she died 2 June 1770; 2) Rose Chase.  Obadiah was a soldier in the Revolutionary War.  He lived in Swansea and Somerset, Massachusetts. He and his second wife, Rose, joined his siblings in Pittstown, New York. According to History of Pittstown, New York, “The second church established in the town apparently was that of the society of Friends, toward the close of the eighteenth century. The first meeting house was built about the time the society was founded and a second one was erected in 1819. It was repaired in 1874 and has served the society for many years. One of the earliest ministers was Mrs. Rose Eddy.” (Anderson, 1897)

 vi.  Tisdale Eddy, born 16 January 1743 (Eddy, 1930), his wife’s name is not known, however they had five children, all born in Groton.  His sons were named Humphrey and Avery, so these names may provide a clue to Tisdale's wife’s family (Humphrey Avery was named in several of the land transactions with Devotion Eddy, above).  Around 1770, Tisdale was in Pittstown, New York. According to the Eddy Supplement 1980, an old paper was found stating that an Indian named John Philips delivered newspapers to Tisdale Eddy in Pittstown in 1770. Philips was paid in rum, cider and “night lodging for two” by Johannes Hayner, Jr., innkeeper of Brunswick, who charged these expenses to Tisdale's account (Breck, 1980). Tisdale died July 1783. His brother Devotion was named administrator of his estate and his brother-in-law, Jacob Avery (Silva’s husband) was allowed a sum for the care of Tisdale’s minor son, Avery Eddy (Eddy, 1930). His father, Constant Eddy, named four of Tisdale’s children - Sybil, Humphrey, Hannah, and Nancy - in the codicil to his will, written 6 November 1784 and probated 22 November 1784 (Meech & Meech, 1911).

vii.  Elizabeth Eddy, born 25 October 1745 in Swansea married Ebenezer Winslow on 27 February 1766 at Swansea.  She died in Swansea on 2 April 1797 (Eddy, 1930).

viii. Mary Eddy, born 16 December 1750 married in North Groton 28 July 1771 Cyrus Spicer, son of John and Mercy (Chapman) Spicer of North Groton (Meech & Meech, 1911).  Cyrus Spicer received the easterly half of his father's farm. 29 November 1782, he bought two hundred and forty acres for four hundred pounds from Tisdale Eddy.  On 21 January 1788, Cyrus Spicer sold to Isaac Avery, all the farm or tract of land given him by his father John Spicer, (at that date improved by Simeon Button [Ruth Eddy’s husband]) situated in Groton, bounded by land owned by Devotion Eddy, Benjamin Geer, the heirs of George Geer, his brother John Spicer, and the heirs of the late Captain Isaac Geer. Shortly thereafter, Cyrus and Mary (Eddy) Spicer moved to Pittstown, New York where Devotion Eddy had settled.  They had seven children between 1773 and 1792, the first 6 born in North Groton, now Ledyard, Connecticut. The youngest child was born in Pittstown. Their daughter, Mary Spicer, married her first cousin, Darius Thurber, son of Mary’s sister Abigail Eddy and her husband Edward Thurber.  Cyrus died 1 February 1826 in Hoosick, New York. Mary died there 21 July 1828 (Meech & Meech, 1911) According to the article, “Pittstowners Move West”, published in the Pittstown Historical Society Newsletter, “In the late 1700s there were so many New Englanders moving into New York State that the migration was dubbed the “invasion of the Yankees”. Many of these New Englanders settled in Pittstown, arriving in groups of families and friends. Their motives for the move often included seeking more productive farmland and economic opportunities. The land in New England had become depleted from poor farming practices and the custom of primogeniture in which the eldest son inherited ownership of the farm, leaving younger siblings without a means of support.” (Kheel, 2019)

 ix.  Ruth Eddy, born 12 July 1759 (Nye, 1971) or 11 July 1765 (Eddy, 1930); married 27 June 1782, Simeon Button, born 5 April 1757(Pittstown Historical Society, 2008). Several online sources state he was a son of Jedediah and Elizabeth (Newberry) Button of Stonington, Connecticut.  No proof of this relationship has been found; however, he is the right age and living at the right place to have been their child.  If so, he was the brother of Asa Button, husband of Abigail Culver (daughter of Joseph and Mary (Eddy) Culver), which would further connect these families.  Constant Eddy selected Simeon Button as the executor of his will, written 30 October 1784 and probated 22 November 1784 in Stonington (Meech & Meech, 1911).  Simeon and Ruth also moved to Pittstown, New York (Nye, 1971; Pittstown Historical Society, 2008) where he was actively involved in local affairs (Pittstown Historical Society, 2008).  

There were several land transactions between the family of Constant Eddy and the family of Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple.  Nearly 20 years after Constant Eddy’s Groton land transaction, his son, Devotion Eddy bought 96 acres of land in two deeds from Timothy Whipple’s brother, Daniel Whipple and his son, Daniel Whipple, Jr.  One month later, Devotion Eddy sold that same land to his son, Tisdale Eddy (Groton Land Records). Tisdale Eddy settled on this land and died in Groton in 1783, having lived in Groton for about 14 years.

Stephen and Jemima (Eddy) Harding
who moved from Warwick, Rhode Island to New London, Connecticut

Jemima Eddy was born 5 August 1688 in Swansea, Massachusetts.  She was the daughter of Zachariah and Mercy (Baker) Eddy.  On 21 April 1707, she married Stephen Harding of Providence, Rhode Island.  He was born 1681 in Providence, Rhode Island, the son of Abraham and Deborah (Gardner) Harding. Stephen Harding was either a brother or a first cousin of Sarah Harding who married Jemima Eddy's uncle, Ebenezer Eddy.   Around 1715, Stephen and Jemima (Eddy) Harding moved to Warwick, Rhode Island  (Harding, 1925). Before leaving Rhode Island, it's believed Stephen Harding built and sailed his own vessel , hence his title "Captain" (Harding, 1925). Ship building may have been a connection between Captain Stephen Harding and Samuel Whipple, Jr., husband of Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple. The two men undoubtedly knew each other before settling in Connecticut, because on 31 December 1712, Captain Stephen Harding bought three acres of meadow from Samuel and Thomas Whipple. This had to be Samuel Whipple, Jr. who married Elizabeth Eddy because Samuel Whipple, Sr. died 12 March 1711.

Stephen and Jemima (Eddy) Harding's daughter, Almy or Amy, married William Angell on 31 August 1731/32 in Warwick.  Around this time, Stephen and Jemima, along with Almy/Amy and her new husband, moved to New London, Connecticut by 1732, where they settled in the area west of the Thames River.

In the Harding genealogy, Wilber J. Harding wrote about Stephen Harding,

“In his early life he was a tanner and currier, but it is probable that before removing from Rhode Island he had built and sailed his own vessel. In middle life he appears to have been a man of considerable wealth, as soon after his removal to Warwick he purchased from Col. Livingston of New London, a son-in-law of Gov. John Winthrop, a highly improved farm of 400 acres on which was located a saw mill, which was a part of the original Mohegan tract, near Uncasville. Capt. Harding settled upon this farm in company with his brother Israel, and engaged in commerce, sailing from New London, but sustaining heavy losses at sea he again resumed his early occupation and ended his days upon the farm, which was afterwards included in Waterford, and which remained for many years the geographical center of the family;” (Harding, 1925)

Colonel John Livingston married Mary Winthrop, daughter of Governor Fitz John Winthrop, and it was through her that he came into possession of the land later purchased by Stephen Harding.  Mary (Winthrop) Livingston died 8 January 1713 and Colonel Livingston married  later that year, Elizabeth Knight, the daughter of Richard and Sarah (Kemble) Knight. Colonel  Livingston initially mortgaged and then sold the farm to his mother-in-law, Sarah Knight.  In late 1718, Colonel Livingston went to England on business and died there. Elizabeth (Knight) Livingston inherited the farm from her mother and sold it to Stephen Harding around 1732 when he is believed to have moved to New London (Harding W. J., 1925). Elizabeth (Knight) Livingston died  17 March 1735 and is buried at the Old Burial Ground, Ye Townes Antientest Burial Place at 225-245 Hempsted Street in New London.

The specific location of Stephen Harding’s farm is not documented, but Sawmill Brook was an early name for the Oxoboxo River (Hughes & Morse, 1976).  Caulkins described it as being "on Saw-mill Brook, (now Uncasville) of 400 acres  ... Here he had his mills and dwelling-house, the latter standing on the west side of the road to Norwich." (Caulkins) In The Repository, F.M.C. described it as being located "upon high ground near Uncasville"(The Repository, 1860). The intersection of Norwich Road with Sawmill Brook (Oxoboxo River) is at the base of a landform known as Haughton Mountain.  Perhaps this is the "high ground near Uncasville" referenced by F.M.C. The photo below shows this general area, which is close to the border between Waterford and Uncasville.  This location is directly across the Thames River from Gales Ferry in the part of Groton that is now Ledyard, Connecticut.  Stephen Harding lived there for the remainder of his life (Harding W. J., 1925; Harding C. M., 2014).  

Stephen and Jemima (Eddy) Harding had six known children, one daughter and five sons, born between 1711 and 1733, probably all born in Rhode Island except the youngest son, Israel, however his birthplace has also been given as Warwick as well (Harding C. M., 2014).   Jemima (Eddy) Harding wa sliving at least unitl 1736/37 when she was named in her father Zachariah Eddy's will. dated 25 February 1736/37 and proved 4 June 1737 (Eddy, 1930).With the exception of the two oldest children, the four younger sons met and married women from Connecticut and began families there. Three of the children, Almy, Stephen, and Thomas, named their daughters Jemima, probably after their mother, Jemima (Eddy) Harding. All of the sons fought in the Revolutionary War.  The youngest son, Israel, was a Loyalist and this apparently created deep division in the family  (Harding C. M., 2014). The children are:

   i.   Almy or Amy Harding, born about 1711 in Warwick, Rhode Island.  She is called Almy in Rhode Island recordss, and Amy in Connecticut records. She died 17 August 1750 in New London at age 39, so her birth year is estimated as 1711.  She married William Angell, son of James and Mary (Brown) Angell of Warwick, on 31 August 1731/32 in Warwick.  Her marriage is recorded in vital records in both Warwick, Rhode Island, and New London, Connecticut.  Both town records list her as the daughter of Stephen Harding of Warwick, and William Angell as the son of James Angell of Warwick.  Her marriage occurred around the same time the Harding family moved to New London, Connecticut, where Amy and William Angell also went.  Their six known children were born there, including their firstborn child, a daughter named Jemima, probably named after Almy’s mother, Jemima (Eddy) Harding. William Angell was the first witness to the will of Zachariah Whipple (son of Elizabeth (Eddy) Whipple and the first cousin of Jemimah (Eddy) Harding in 1758.  This indicates that the Harding, Whipple, and Eddy families in Groton were probably fairly closely connected. 

 ii.    John Harding, born about 1717 in Warwick, Rhode Island, was about 15 when his family moved to Waterford.  According to some of his descendants, he went to Elizabeth, Union, New Jersey, about 1741-2 and married Sarah Moss (Wulfeck, 1965).  No record of the marriage has been found.  They had 9 children there, born between 1743 and 1762.  John Harding then moved with his family to Redstone, Fayette County, Pennsylvania and later moved to Green County, Kentucky (Wulfeck, 1965). He dropped the “g” at the end of his name and is the progenitor of the large Hardin clan in Kentucky (Harding W. J., 1925). Sarah (Moss) Harding died in 1758, and John Harding died in Feb 1783, both in Henry County, Kentucky.  They are both buried at the Dutch Tract Cemetery at Pleasureville, Kentucky (Dutch Tract Cemetery Memorials). 

  iii.  Abraham Harding, born 14 June 1720 in Warwick, Rhode Island, was about 12 years old when his family moved to Waterford.  He married 1) Mercy Vibber of Montville, New London, Connecticut in 1741, daughter of John and Joanna (Williams) Vibber (Connecticut Church Records, 1630-1920). She was born on 9 Jan 1715 in New London, Connecticut, and died on 19 January 1754 (Blair, 1924). With her, he had three known children: a daughter and two sons. His daughter Mercy married Timothy Bishop, and they went to Nova Scotia, where they are buried at the Old Burying Ground in Wolfville (Old Burying Ground Memorials).  In 1761, Abraham went to Minisink, Orange County, New York.  At some point, he married 2) Anna Dolson (Harding W. J., 1925). He served in the Revolutionary War under Col. William Allison as 2nd Lieutenant, and 2nd Major, and was commissioned Captain on 1 December 1775 (Babcock, 1922). He later moved to Clifford, Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania where he died in 1806 (Harding W. J., 1925).   

My line of descent from Mary (Eddy) Culver down to my maternal grandmother is as follows: