Having discussed Sandford and Tuttle origins in early colonial Connecticut, we now turn to another founding family, the Wright branch of Janelle’s family. The ancestors of her maternal grandfather, Arthur Wright, came to New England as early as the mid 1630s, establishing homesteads in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.
(As a reminder, there is no known connection between Janelle’s Wright ancestors and our Wright ancestors, who came to Connecticut from Prince Edward Island in the 1880s.)
A 1913 genealogy compiled by Janelle’s distant cousins William Henry Wright and Gertrude Wright Ketcham (which we will henceforth refer to as the Wright Genealogy) provides details on Janelle’s Wright ancestry as well as a clearly written summary of the first migrations from the Massachusetts colonies to the new Connecticut colonies.
Janelle’s Wright ancestors came to Wethersfield, Connecticut via Watertown, Massachusetts. Our Sandford ancestors (and uncle Andrew Warner) came to Hartford via Cambridge, Mass.
The Connecticut flag has three grapevines, depicting its three original settlements. The Connecticut motto Qui Transtulit Sustinet is problematic in its translation, but roughly means “he who transplanted still sustains”. The meaning of the motto is also problematic but, based on the background above, seems to mean “the sooner we get away from Massachusetts, the better“.
Wethersfield was founded in 1634 and is today considered the oldies city in Connecticut (today it is essentially a residental part of the greater Hartford area). The Wrights, although not among the ten original Wethersfield founders were among its original settlers.
The Wright Genealogy gives details on the life of Thomas Wright, Janelle’s 8th great grandfather, and Wright Island in the Connecticut River, the site of the original Wright homestead in Wethersfield.
Wright Island no longer exists, having long ago been washed away by the Connecticut River. A recreated 1640 map shows it’s former position relative to the town.
The Wright Genealogy provides information on Janelle’s ancestry down to the level of her 4th great grandfather, Moses Wright.
Another source, The History of Ancient Wethersfield, provides corroborating detail on Thomas Wright and two generations of Samuel Wrights that followed.
The Wrights remained in Wethersfield for five generations, more than a century, before Moses Wright moved to Colebrook in northwestern Connecticut, the first move in the direction of Lee in western Mass, which would later become the home of Janelle’s grandparents.
Janelle’s Wright ancestry is summarized below…
Thomas Wright lived in Wethersfield until is death in 1670, Robert Sandford in Hartford until his death in 1676. So our two eighth great grandfathers lived within a few miles of each other for more than three decades.
Bridging the Silences 