Person Page 846

Bidwell, John sen., Hartford. Invt. 419 pounds-10-06. Taken 4 June, 1687, by William Pitkin, Joseph Olmsted. Will dated 10 February, 1680.

I John Bidwell of Hartford do make this my last Will & Testament: I doe give to my son John Biddoll, & his Heirs forever, my Lott in the swamp on the east side of the Connecticut River, being about Two acres & a half, Lyeing between Thomas Bunce his land & the Land of Goodman Easton; and allso I doe give & confirme unto him & his heirs forever all my lands and buildings & appurtenances of them whatsoever, which Lye or are in the township of Hartford, on the west side of the Connecticut River. Also I give unto my son Joseph Bidwell 30 pounds in current pay of this colony, 20 pounds to be payd within two years after my decease, and 10 pounds to be payd him for the use of his children after my wife's decease. Also I give my son Samuel Bidwell 20 pounds-10 pounds to be payd him two years after my decease, and 10 pounds for the use of his children after my wife's decease. Also I give to each of my Two daughters, Sarah House & Hannah Waddams, 20 pounds apiece. Also I give to my daughter Mary Meekins the one halfe of my upper Lott in the swamp, Lyeing south of Ozias Goodwins Land thereby, and the other halfe I give to my grand son John Meekins, to be to them & their heirs forever, only my will is that my wife shall have the one halfe Lott during her Life, & that John Meekins shall not have the the halfe of that lot unless he live with me or my wife until he be twenty years of age, If my self or my wife do Live soe long. Also my will is that my wife Sarah Bidwell shall have all my household goods & stuffe, to be dispose forever; & I doe moreover give her the one halfe part of all my estate whatsoever that is not before disposed of, both Lands, houseing, Chattells, Cattell, or any other thing whatever it be, to be For her proper use during her natural Life & no Longer; & If it shall seem good to my wife at any time to leave that part of the houseing & Lands & Cattell which I have given her during her Life as before unto my son Daniel Bidwell, Then I doe give her 8 pounds by the year out of it, the Lands, houseing & Cattell to be payd her in current pay of the Colony by my son Daniel Bidwell or who soever enjoyeth the sayd Lands, houses, Chattells & Cattell. Also I doe give the other halfe of my whole estate not before disposed of, both Lands, houseing, Chattells, Cattell, & every other thing not before disposed of, unto my sayd son Daniel Bidwell & his heirs & assigns forever. Also I doe in like manner give unto him, after the decease of my wife, the other halfe of my estate which was before given my wife for and during her natural life. I make my wife Sarah Bidwell and my son Daniel Bidwell Executors, and Mr. John Crow to be Overseer. John X Bidwell, Ls. Witness: William Pitkin, Joseph Olmsted.

A Codicill, dated 22 August, 1683: I give to my wife Sarah Bidwell, in addition, 2 cows; to my son John Bidwell 4 acres of Land adjoyning Bartholomew Barnards Land. Son John Bidwell is to pay to Rev. John Whiting 20 shillings, and 20 pounds to my son Joseph Bidwell. And whereas Sarah House & Hannah Waddams were to receive 20 pounds to each, my will is that my daughter House shall have 30 pounds, my daughter Waddams 10 pounds. John X Bidwell, Ls. Witness: William Pitkin, John Makins. Court Record, Page 133-1 September, 1687: Will Proven.

On the twentieth of March 1630, a group of men and women, one hundred and forty in number, set sail from Plymouth, England, in the good ship, the "MARY AND JOHN." The company had been selected and assembled largely through the efforts of the Reverend John White, of Dorchester, England, with whom they spent the day before sailing, "fasting, preaching and praying." These people had come from the western counties of England, mostly from Devonshire, Dorsetshire and Somerset. They had chosen two ministers to accompany them, men who were interested in the idea of bringing the Indians to the knowledge of the gospel.

The Reverend John Maverick was an elderly man from Devon, a minister of the established church. Reverend John Warham was also an ordained minister of the church of England, in Exeter, eminent as a preacher. There is some evidence that both of these men were in some difficulties with the church on account of their sympathies with the Puritans.

It had been their original intent to land in the Charles River, but a dispute with Captain Squeb, the commander of the vessel caused the whole company, on May 30, 1630, to be put ashore at Nantasket. The "Mary and John" was the first of the fleet of 1630 to arrive in the bay. At that time there could not have been pilots, or charts of the channel, and it does not seem unreasonable that the Captain refused to undertake the passage. According to tradition they landed upon the south side of Dorchester Neck, or South Boston, in Old Harbor.

Ten of the men, under the command of Captain Southcote, found a small boat, and went up the river to Charlestown Neck, where they found an old planter, who fed them "a dinner of fish without bread." Later they continued their journey up the Charles River, as far as what is now Watertown, returning several days later to the company who had found pasture for their cattle at Mattapan. 'The settlement was later called Dorchester, in honor of the Reverend John White, of Dorchester, England. Many hardships followed, they had little food, and were forced to live on clams and fish. The men built small boats, and the Indians came with baskets of corn. The place was a true wilderness. Here they lived for five or six years. Other boats arrived and other towns were settled. But the life at Dorchester was not entirely congenial to the lovers of liberty of the "Mary and John."

The group of settlements around Massachusetts Bay was dominated by clergymen and officials of aristocratic tendencies. Their Governor, John Winthrop, had little sympathy with the common people. "The best part (of the people)," he declared, "is always the least, and that best part, the wiser is always the lesser." And the Reverend John Cotton put it more bluntly when he said, "Never did God ordain democracy for the government of the church or the people."These principles were repugnant to the people of the "Mary and John," who had come to America to escape such restraint. They had no wish to interfere with the methods of worship of others, and they did not wish others to interfere with them.

Too, they were land-hungry, after centuries of vassalage to the lords of the manors, leading hopeless lives without chance of independence. Perhaps they were influenced also, by the fact that a great smallpox epidemic had raged among the Indians, killing off so many that they were not the menace that they had been at first.

The settlers turned their attention toward the fertile meadows of the Connecticut Valley. In October, 1635, about 60 men, women and children set forth from Dorchester to Connecticut, their furniture, etc., was sent around by water. 'The compass was their only guide. After a tedious and difficult march through the swamp and rivers and over mountains and rough ground, they arrived safely at their destination. They had lost so much time in passing rivers, etc., that winter was upon them before they were prepared. By November 15th, the cold was so intense that the river was frozen over and the snow very deep. By December 1st, the provisions gave out and famine and death stared them in the face. Some started through the wilderness for Boston, but the greater number on December 3rd, took passage on the Rebecca, a vessel of 60 tons, but she ran aground on the bar at the mouth of the river and they were obliged to unload to get her off. After this they reached Boston in five days. Those that remained at Hartford just managed to keep from starving by the help of the Indians and eating acorns, etc.

Hartford was called Suckiage by the Indians; by the Dutch on the point in 1633, the Huise (or house) of Good Hope and Newtown, by the English on their arrival to form a settlement in 1636. The name was changed to Hartford by the court, February 21, 1636.


According to old family records, Richard Bidwell and son, John were passengers on the vessel, "Mary and John" coming to America in 1630 to make a new life for themselves on this new land.

It is uncertain in what exact location in England this Bidwell family had resided before coming to America, but according to notes of family historian, Frederick David Bidwell 1873-1947 he states that Richard Bidwell and son John came from County Devon. Through correspondence dated 1979, between Rev, John Scott, Vicar of Newton St. Cyres in County Devon, and Robert F. Bidwell of Urbana, Ohio, we are informed that a manor is located in Newton St. Cyres called Bidwell Barton, which according to parish historical materials, was where the Bidwell family lived in the 16th Century and was the beginning of the Bidwell family in England, and presumably where the family took it's name. Rev. Scott states the fact that the parish records contain a mass of entries relating to the Bidwell family, including the baptism of a John Bidwell, who may be the son of Richard Bidwell. However, no documented proof has been found that Richard Bidwell was the name of the father of John, Joseph, Samuel and Richard, although all evidence certainly leads one to believe this is the correct relationship.
Richard Bidwell b. 1587 d. 25 Dec. 1647
John Bidwell b. 1620 d. 1687 Hartford, CT m. 1640 Sarah Wilcox at Hartford, CT, b. 1623 d. 15 June 1690 Hartford, CT, dau. of John and Mary (___) Wilcox


Richard and John Bidwell…from “New England Families,genealogical and memorial…” by W. R. Cutter 1913



The name Bidwell is of Saxon origin, the spelling Biddulph meaning War Wolf. From Biddulph the following names are derived : Bedwelle, Bydewell, Bidewell, Bidwell, Bidwill, Bidwelle, Bidle, Biddle, Biclel, Biddel, Biddell, Biddol, Biddoll and Biddulps. Those now in use are Bidwell, Bedwell, Biddel and Biddulph.



One of the oldest castles in England is the Biddulph castle, in Norfolk county. It was built about 1066, and tradition says that one of William the Conqueror's generals married the Biddulph heiress of that time and assumed her name. In 1400 Sir William Berdewelle is mentioned in Thetford, Norfolk county, as having given a legacy. In 1426 lands were let at Gashorp to Robert Berdewell, Esq., at twenty shillings per annum. The following coat-of-arms is given in Burke's "Encyclopedia of Heraldry," as belonging to the Bidwells of Thetford: "Gyronny of 4 or and gules 4 roundles each charged with as many martletts all countercharged. Crest a martlett proper.


Richard Bidwell, immigrant ancestor, was an early settler of Windsor, Connecticut. He is called Goodman Bidwell in records, and died December 25, 1647. Children: John, mentioned below, Hannah, born October 22, 1644, Joseph, Samuel, Richard.


John son of Richard Bidwell, married Sarah, daughter of John and Mary Wilcox. She died June 15, 1690. Her father, John Wilcox, died before October, 1666. His wife survived him, and her will is dated March 4, 1668-69, Hartford.

John Bidwell was an early settler at Hartford, and had four acres of land allotted him in the division of lands there in 1639. In 1640 he had a house lot on the east side of Trumbull street, near Pearl, and in 1666 had land allotted him at East Hartford. In 1640 he owned a tan yard on an island in Little river, in what is now Bushnell's Park. November 9, 1670, he was "freed from Training Watching and Wardeing by the town of Hartford." He and his wife Sarah were original members of the Second or Centre Church, February, 1672. May 13, 1669, John Bidwell and Joseph Bull had granted to them two hundred acres of land "in the next commons to the place where their Saw Mill stands, with liberty to take timber out of the common for the improvement of their saw mill as their need shall require." October 13, 1669, in a list of freemen on the north side of Little river, John Bidwell. Sr., is mentioned. His will was dated February 10, 1680, and mentions his wife Sarah, sons John, Joseph, Daniel and Samuel, and daughters Sarah House, Hannah Waddams and Mary Meekins. He died 1687. Children: John, born about 1641, mentioned below: Joseph, died 1692; Samuel, born 1650; Sarah, Hannah, Mary, Daniel, 1655.

wendydrladded this on 18 Oct 2010

Comments (0)

There are no comments on Richard & John Bidwell from Bidwell Family History yet. You can add a comment.