William Sumner (1687) / Hannah (Henchman) Sumner

Name: William Sumner

Birth: February 9, 1656, Boston, Mass. (SAV)

Emigration: Born in Massachusetts Bay Colony; to Middletown, Conn. c. 1687. (HMC)

Death: July 20, 1703, Middletown, Conn. (NEHGSR)

Occupation & Public Service: Blacksmith (SAV); deacon of the church; deputy to the General Court (CAF).

Marriage: m. (1) Rachel Avery, May 22, 1677, Boston, Mass. (b. September 20, 1657, Dedham, Mass.; d. soon after marriage) She was the daughter of William Avery of Dedham, Mass. (Genealogical Record of the Dedham Branch of the Avery Family in America/Carter); m. (2) Hannah Henchman, abt. 1678, Boston, Mass. (b. unknown; d. September 23, 1719, Middletown, Conn.) She was the daughter of Daniel Henchman of Boston, Mass. (Connecticut Nutmegger).

Children: 6 children between 1679-1691. (BCVR) (SAV) (See in-depth profile in Member Area for details.)

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The First Meeting House, Middletown, Conn. The engraving below by W.C. Butler was a fanciful illustration for David Field's Centennial Address published in 1853. In 1939 the image was used on the title page of The Log Cabin Myth by Harold R. Shurtleff. Surrounding the engraving are signatures of some of the first settlers as found on wills and deeds by Charles C. Adams in preparation of Middletown Upper Houses (1908).