Grace Irene Chafee

Notes:

George owned the Chafee Hotel in Middletown, CT.

In the front of my grandmother's old Bible there is this notation, written in her handwriting: "Lest I forget, I must write down the Chafee family motto -- 'As we journey through life, let us live by the way.' It is above the large fireplace in the Chafee Hotel in Middletown Conn. made in the masonry."

George married Matilda Pitt 23 Nov 1864, Middletown, CT. Matilda (daughter of John R. Pitt and Elizabeth Reading) was born Dec 1840, England; died 16 Dec 1900. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

The name George T. B. Chafee first came to my attention in a copy of an old letter of Great Uncle Frank's which he sent to his mother, Mary Elizabeth Chafee (nee Andrews), my great-grandmother. In this letter he lists our Chafee ancestors, but without any documentation or details, save that he says this person's son invented a propeller boat which used to sail from Connecticut to New York City. This ties in somewhat with the information I found in the Bristol town records, which identify his occupation as sea captain, and his place of death as Middletown, CT. (Bristol Vol. #5, p. 139)

According to Frank's letter, the son George Austin (brother of my great-great-grandfather, Samuel Russel Chafee) was a restaurant and hotel man in Middletown, CT. He had a son Charles Austin and a daughter Grace. Around 1870 he built a propeller ship that ran between Portland, CT (across the river from Middletown, CT) and New York City. The ship was named after him: The George Austin Chafee. (Need to check out all these details!)

George T. B.'s name came to me also from an Austin family genealogist (Bonnie Austin Bigolin of Green River, WY), in an e-mail replying to my query through their web site. They have his name in their database as having been married to Harriet N. Austin, and she listed his children for me, one of whom is my gr-great-grandfather, Samuel Russel Chafee. The name Austin has since been passed down in our family in the form of the middle name of his son George and of my grandma's brother Charles, and the first name of one of Charles's sons, among others.

Also, it appears that the name Harriet has also been passed down, being the name of one of George and Harriet's daughters, the name of a granddaughter ("Hattie" who married DeWitt Bolster), and the name of a great-granddaughter -- my grandma's sister Hattie, a name which I presume was also Harriet in this generation. She died very young. My parents have her old rocking chair.

Since acquiring the above information, I have viewed and copied George and Harriet's marriage record at Bristol Town Hall, as well as other family records of birth, marriage, and death. I also have photographed their gravestone(s) at Bristol's North Burial Ground.

In addition to the above sources of information, I have transcripts from the following census records which show the various Chafee families: 1850, 1860, and 1870 for Bristol, RI; 1870, 1880, 1900, 1910, and 1920 for Middletown, CT.

"The Chaffee Genealogy" by William H. Chaffee, published in 1909, says that Mr. George T. B. Chafee "served as a sutler in the Union Army during the Civil War. He was a mechanic and restaurant keeper. He had a light complexion, blue eyes, a jovial disposition, and was five feet, four inches in height. In 1883 he lived in Middletown [CT], where he died of pneumonia at the age of seventy-five in the home of his son, Stephen B. Chafee. He was buried in the family lot in Bristol."

In the front of my grandmother's old Bible there is this notation, written in her handwriting: "Lest I forget, I must write down the Chafee family motto -- 'As we journey through life, let us live by the way.' It is above the large fireplace in the Chafee Hotel in Middletown Conn. made in the masonry."

George married Harriet Newell AUSTIN 18 Mar 1839, Bristol, Bristol Co., RI. Harriet (daughter of Samuel Ward AUSTIN and Mary MITCHELL) was born 1822, North Kingstown, Washington Co., RI; died 29 Jul 1856, Bristol, Bristol Co., RI; was buried Jul 1856, North Burial Ground, Bristol, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

From burials at St. Michael's, Bristol, RI: Mrs. Harriet N. Chafee, 29 July 1856.

Her death record at Bristol names her as Harriet N. Austin, and identifies her father as Samuel Austin. Neither her married name nor her mother are mentioned. This is probably a clerk's oversight or due to the confusion of the informant.

Harriet Newell Austin was named after a young American missionary who died in her first year of service, at age 19. She died of consumption at Isle of France, after giving birth prematurely, in 1812. Many girls were named after her.

Notes:

This information was found in the Bristol town records, p. 43 of the old marriage listings. I have a photocopy.
It is also listed in James N. Arnold's Index of Vital Records for Bristol (a tan library-bound book).

John — Elizabeth Reading. Elizabeth was born 1815, England; died 17 Oct 1875. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

These birth records were found in the vault at the Bristol Town Hall, in Vol. 4, p. 249. I have a photocopy.

According to "The Chaffee Genealogy" by William H. Chaffee, p. 276, Stephen & Deborah "were members first of the Episcopal and later of the Methodist Church. November 2, 1814, Stephen Chafee bought land of James Usher in Bristol, where he made his home. He was a country storekeeper and shipper of merchandise, and is said to have been eccentric in manner. He had a light complexion, blue eyes, and was five feet, four inches in height."

James Usher was brother to Deborah.

In the 1850 Federal Census, Stephen & Deborah Chafee are both aged 60, living in Bristol, RI. Son Cyril, aged 20, is with them. They are next door to sons Zechariah & Thomas and their families. In the 1860 Federal Census, Stephen & Deborah Chafee are both aged 70, still living at Bristol, RI.

Stephen married Deborah USHER 13 Dec 1812, Bristol, RI. Deborah (daughter of Allen USHER, Jr. and Susanna DIMAN) was born Abt 1791, Rehoboth, MA; died 19 Feb 1861, Bristol, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

They were married in St. Michael's Church.

Notes:

I have a photocopy of the original death entry from the North Kingstown Archives.

Samuel Ward Austin, a prosperous farmer, owned property in North Kingstown near the well-known landmark called "Devil's Foot." Although he himself was a member of the Six-Principal Baptist Church on Stony Lane, he deeded the northern corner of his land, located on Post Road between Wickford and East Greenwich, to the Quidnessett Church Society in 1841. Its church was dedicated there August 11, 1842. A new church building, called the Quidnessett Baptist Church, now occupies the site. After Samuel's death, his wife Mary (Mitchel) Austin donated an additional piece of land in 1869 for stables to be built next to the church, for horses and carriages.

This church fellowship, some of whom may be descended from the original congregation, is where I was baptized and brought up, and is where my parents were still active members until they died in 2007 and 2010. I have old negative photocopies of sections of the original deeds, as well as a lawyer's transcript of them dating from the 1950s or thereabouts.

In the 1850 Federal Census, Samuel & Mary Austin, ages 71 & 69, are living at North Kingstown, RI. Wilth them are: Julia A. Austin 42, Hannah E. Thurber 25, and Samuel Austin 23; these are three of their children.

In the 1860 Federal Census, Samuel & Mary Austin, ages 80 & 77, are living at North Kingstown, RI. With them are two of their adult children, Samuel W., 33, and Julia A., 52.

I believe Samuel Ward Austin was given his first and middle names in honor of Samuel Ward (1725-1776), a Rhode Island political leader in the days preceding the Revolutionary War. This leader was one of the founders of Rhode Island's two-party system, said to be the very first in America. The merchants and farmers of southern Rhode Island were led by Samuel Ward in their political battles against the politicians and businessmen from the Providence area, who were led by Stephen Hopkins. Ward was elected as governor in 1762, and again at least twice after that. He and Hopkins served together representing Rhode Island in the 1775-1776 Continental Congress in Philadelphia, where Ward was a committee leader, and was instrumental in appointing George Washington as general of the colonial army. In March 1776 he suddenly became ill with smallpox and died.

Since Samuel Ward Austin was born three years later, in the midst of this struggle to birth a new nation, it is likely that he was named after this Rhode Island hero.

Apparently other parents named their sons after this respected leader also. During the 1840s, Rhode Island's governor was Samuel Ward King, who headed a state faction that supported the voting power of landowners, opposing Thomas Wilson Dorr's proposal to institute a new state constitution which would grant voting rights to all free adult males (regardless of whether or not they were property owners), in recognition of the increased urbanization of the state. Dorr's Rebellion went down in defeat, but popular citizen support led to the drafting of a new state constitution in 1842. However, even in this document, all cities and towns -- regardless of population, were granted one senator each for representation in the state Senate; this provision afforded Senate control to the rural towns. I wonder what Samuel Ward Austin, as a substantial property owner and farmer, thought of all this?

From The Narragansett Historical Register, Volume II, July 1883, No. 2; Historical Sketch of the Quidnessett Baptist Church, North Kingstown, RI, pp 81-97
"Another matter, more local in its influence, claimed also the attention of the church at this time. Their house of worship had long been too small for their use. It also was not sufficiently central in its location as to be adapted to the best development of the religious interests of the field. It was decided, therefore, to build anew. Samuel Austin, a member of a neighboring Six Principle Baptist church, gave the building site, situated on the post-road from Wickford to East Greenwich, about equal distance from each village, and near the three manufacturing villages of the Quidnesset field. Possibly no site could have been selected more central, or better adapted to the wants of the Quidnesset people than this. Funds were raised by subscription on the field itself to build the new meeting-house, which was dedicated Thursday, Aug. 11, 1842, free from debt. The dedication sermon was preached by Rev. John Dowling, of Providence, from the text, Haggai ii.,7: 'And I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts.' "

Samuel married Mary MITCHELL Abt 1801. Mary (daughter of Samuel MITCHELL and Margaret GARDNER) was born 9 Dec 1780, Warwick, Kent Co., RI; died 16 Oct 1874, North Kingstown, Washington Co., RI; was buried , Austin Burial Ground, Hunt's River, North Kingstown, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

I have a photocopy of the original death entry from the North Kingstown Archives.

In the 1870 Federal Census, Mary Austin is age 89, living at North Kingstown, RI, as "Keeper of House." With her are daughter and son-in-law Sally R. & Samuel Dyer, and three of their children.