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Descendants of Jonathan Armstrong

Generation No. 1

1. JONATHAN¹ ARMSTRONG was born Abt. 1613 in England, and died in Roxbury, Ma. He married UNKNOWN Abt. 1643 in Westerley, RI. She was born 1626.

Notes for JONATHAN ARMSTRONG:

Book Title Unknown:
Jonathan Armstrong of Westerly, RI 1670; perhaps removed to Norwich Conn, 1678 as land was granted to him ther Oct 1677; later Removed to Roxbury, Ma. m and jad issue (of Record, d: in Roxbury): 1- Mercy (d Oct 2, 1694); 2- Martha (d Dec 15, 1709)

At Westerly, or Pawcatuck, in that debatable part of the Narragansett territory which was called in the native speech Misquamicut, and which was claimed by Connecticut jurisdiction as belinging jto their plantation of Stonington, there lived one Jonathan Armstrong who was made a freeman of the colony of Rhode Island, October 28, 1668. He removed to Norwich in 1678, at which time land was granted him there, but later he jrobably moved to Roxbury, MA. (1)
Eric has copies of the Norwich land records that show the location of his property and also records of his sale to Henry Allyn of Boston (Roxbury) in 1693.

Notes from George Armstrong of N. Franklin, Ct
Not much is known about Jonathan. No passenger list contains his name, and his origins in England are unknown. There is no record showing his birth, marriage, or death date, nor can we find the name of his wife.

The town originally known as Misquamicut (now Westerly), Rhode Island, was founded in 1661, by a group of settlers who came from the Newport, RI area. The first list of Westerly's free inhabitants was taken on May 18, 1669, listing only 24 heads of families. Here we find the earlies record of Jonathan Armstrong.

Today, Westerly, RI lies just over the border from Stonington, Connecticut, but in early colonial days the boundaries were unclear, with both Connecticut and Rhode Island claiming parts ow Westerly/Stonington area. Settlers of one town were considered by the other Colony as intruders on their land.

In 1667, John Reynolds, an early settler of Misquamicut, was ousted by the constables of Stonington as an intruder on lands belonging to Stonington. He submitted to Connecticut authority and became an inhabitant of Stonington. In September 1670, John Reynolds complained to the County Court at New London, CT, against Jonathan Armstrong, a Rhode Island man, "for unjust molestation and contemptuous improving" of Mr. Reynolds's land. The jury found in favor of the Plaintiff and awarded Jonathan to pay 14lbs and costs. Jonathan appealed the decision to the Court of Assistants, which upheld the decision, but reduced the damages to be paid to Reynolds from 14lbs to 10:15:6lbs. Jonathan appealed again, and on October 18, 1677, "in partial redress of his grievances", he was granted "one hundred acres of land near the bounds of Norwich, CT, provided he take it up where it may not prejudice any former grant to any plantation or perticuler person".(2)

Of the 'Early Puritan" Armstrongs of 'The Colony of Connecticut', Jonathan and Benjamin Armstrong were at Norwich soon after its settlement.(3)

Thus began the Armstrong settlement in Norwich, CT.

Jonathan later sold some of his land and moved to Roxbury, MA, where he died.

(1). Representative Men and Old Families of Rhode Island, vol 2, part 2, pg 1829
(2).
(3). Chronicles of the Armstrongs pg. 332

Notes from " Armstrong Family Genealogy" by L.H. Armstrong of Newark, NJ
(Have of the page is missing) Jonathan Armstrong came from England & Settled in Westerly, RI(?) His son Benjamin moved over into Connecticut.
[L. H. Armstrong is Lucius H. Armstrong born in 1811, son of Ambrose & Elizabeth Armstrong]

Children of JONATHAN ARMSTRONG and UNKNOWN are:

MARY² ARMSTRONG, b. WFT Est. 1646-1673; m. EBENEZER LAMB, May 06, 1690, Norwich, CT.

Notes for MARY ARMSTRONG:
Jonathan's daughter Mary was married at Norwich, Ct on 6 May 1690 to Ebenezer Lamb.(4)

(4). Conrad Armstrong, June 27, 1993

2.	ii.	BENJAMIN ARMSTRONG, b. 1648, Norwich, CT; d. January 10, 1718, Norwich, CT.
	iii.	MERCY ARMSTRONG, b. Abt. 1650, Norwich, CT; d. October 02, 1694, Roxbury, Ma.
	iv.	MARTHA ARMSTRONG, b. Abt. 1652, Norwich, CT; d. December 15, 1709, Roxbury, Ma.
3.	v.	SARAH ARMSTRONG, b. WFT Est. 1652-1679.
	vi.	NATHANIEL ARMSTRONG, b. Abt. 1658.

Notes for NATHANIEL ARMSTRONG:
Nathaniel Armstrong was a grantee of the town (Norwich) in 1679.(5)

(5). Frances Manwaringj Caulkins, "History of Norwich, Connecticut", Published by the Author, 1866, p. 223.
Conrad Armstrong states that he has not discoved any other mention of "Nathaniel" and believes that Jonathan was misread as "Nathan" or "Nathaniel"
.

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