Willey of East Haddam, Connecticut, and New Shoreham, Newport, Rhode Island
Isaac Willey b abt 1614, England, d 1685, Haddam, Middlesex, CT. He md [1] Joanna Lutten abt 1636, poss Boston, Suffolk, MA. She was b abt 1618, d abt 1670, New London, CT. He md [2] Hannah Brooks 24 Apr 1672, New London, CT.
Children of Isaac Willey and Joanna Lutten were:
  • Joanna Willey b 1638, d 1660.
  • Isaac Willey b abt 1640, d Aug 1662.
  • Hannah Willey b abt 1640/41, d abt 1681.
  • Sarah Willey b abt Jun 1644, d 7 Mar 1711/12.
  • Mary Willey b 1646, d abt 1725.
  • John Willey b abt 1648.
  • Abraham Willey b 1650, d 1692.

John Willey b abt 1648, New London, New London, CT, d 2 May 1688, Haddam, Middlesex, CT. He md Miriam Moore 18 Mar 1668, New London, CT, daughter of Miles Moore and Isabel Joyner. She was b abt 1650, d 1706, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
Children of John Willey and Miriam Moore were:

  • Isaac Willey b 18 Jan 1670/71, d aft 1751.
  • Isabel Willey b 21 Oct 1673, New London, CT; md John Griffee.
  • John Willey b 24 Feb 1675/76.
  • Miriam Willey b 1 Nov 1677, New London, CT; md Thomas Harris.
  • Allen Willey b 25 Jan 1680, New London, CT.
  • Abel Willey b 3 Mar 1682/83.
  • Mary Willey b 10 Dec 1685.
John Willey b 24 Feb 1675/76, New London, New London, CT, d 19 Jun 1754, Hadlyme, New London, CT. He md Elizabeth Harvey Oct 1698, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, daughter of John Harvey and Elizabeth Willey. She was b 1680, Taunton, Bristol, MA, d 1752/53, Hadlyme, New London, CT.
Children of John Willey and Elizabeth Harvey were:
  • John Willey b 24 May 1699, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 13 Nov 1743, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT; md Sarah Saunders 5 Apr 1722, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
  • Allen Willey b 29 Sep 1700, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 7 Feb 1780, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT; md Mehitabel Richardson 7 May 1730, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
  • Elizabeth Willey b 29 Dec 1701, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 29 Aug 1767, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT; md Ebenezer Cone abt 1722.
  • Mary Willey b 13 Dec 1703/04, East Haddam.
  • Joseph Willey b 16 Apr 1705, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
  • Lydia Willey b 15 Apr 1707, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT; md Daniel Booge 29 Nov 1722.
  • Phebe Willey b 6 Jan 1709, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d abt 1722; md Arthur Scovel.
  • Mehitabel Willey b 14 Sep 1711, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT; md John Millard 18 Mar 1736, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
  • Lucretia Willey b 7 Jun 1713, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 5 Feb 1784; md John Holmes abt 1735.
  • Noah Willey b 28 Aug 1716, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 5 Feb 1784; md Sarah Hart abt 1740.
  • Sarah Willey b abt 1718, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 3 Aug 1746, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT; md Joseph Beckwith abt 1738.
  • Benajah Willey b abt 1720, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d Jan 1752, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT; md Rachel Dutton abt 1744.
  • Rachel Willey b abt 1722, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.

Joseph Willey b 16 Apr 1705, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 9 Jan 1790, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT. He md [1] Lucretia Holmes 22 May 1727, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, and [2] Rebecca aft 1746. She was b abt 1722 d 2 Nov 1807.
Children of Joseph Willey and Rebecca were:

  • Barnabas Willey b 27 Dec 1747, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d abt 1829, Watervile, Lamoille, VT; md Mercy Harvey.
  • Rebecca Willey b 20 Aug 1748, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 24 Dec 1839, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
  • Aaron Willey b 1 Sep 1751, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
  • Dimmis Willey b 27 May 1754, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 9 Nov 1836.
  • Seth Willey b 27 Dec 1756, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 8 Mar 1813, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
  • Jemima Willey b 6 Aug 1758, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d aft 1816; md [1] Thomas Harvey abt 1785, [2] Samuel Lee 11 Feb 1798.
  • Cyrus Willey b 22 Mar 1762, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d 13 Apr 1843, Millington, Middlesex, CT; md [1] Abigail Fuller Ackley 6 Apr 1788, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, and [2] Mary Ackley 7 Feb 1793, Millington, Middlesex, CT.
  • Titus Willey b 3 Jul 1764, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT, d abt 1854, Jefferson, NY; md Lucy Hungerford 21 Jun 1791, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
  • Caroline Willey b 22 Oct 1767.
Aaron Willey b 1 Sep 1751, East Haddam, CT, d 11 Dec 1821, New Shoreham, Newport, RI. He md Rebecca bef 1776. She was b abt 1754, d 9 Jan 1778, or 9 Jan 1812.
Children of Aaron Willey and Rebecca were:
  • Dr. Aaron C. Willey, b 2 Mar 1776, prob East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
  • John Willey b 9 Jan 1778, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.

Dr. Aaron C. Willey [a] b 1776, of East Haddam, Middlesex, CT and New Shoreham, Newport, RI, d 17 Mar 1826, New Shoreham, Newport, RI. He md [1] Joanna Hull 13 Nov 1803, New Shoreham, Newport, RI, and [2] Lydia Franklin Dodge aft 1807, daughter of Mark Dodge and Penelope Franklin.
Known children of Aaron C. Willey and Lydia Franklin Dodge were:

  • Octavia Lodiska Willey b Sep 1811, New Shoreham, Newport, RI; md William Clarke.
  • Ida Zoradia Willey b 6 Mar 1815, New Shoreham, Newport, RI; md Hosea Lewis.
  • Laura E. Willey b 1820.
Laura E. Willey b 1820, New Shoreham, Newport, RI, d 27 Jan 1889, Newport, Newport, RI. She md Thomas Horswell Tew 1 Jan 1844, Newport, Newport, RI, son of Benjamin Tew and Mary Horswell.

NOTES:
a. While his identification conflicts with what is shown on Kenneth Willey's large Willey descendants website, this author is confident that the son of Aaron, Sr. shown on his site is not the Aaron Willey, "a wealthy farmer" who migrated to Ashtabula, Ohio in 1819, and presumably the Aaron C. Willey who appears on the 1820 Ohio census. This is based on several records gleaned from the NEHGS' online site:

Death Records, from Vital Record of Rhode Island, 1636-1850, by James N. Arnold, Vol. 6, p 455:

WILLEY, Aaron, of East Haddam, CT, at New Shoreham, aged 71 years, Dec 11, 1821.
WILLEY, Dr. Aaron C., aged 51 years, at New Shoreham, March 17, 1826.

When one compares the exact dates of birth for the Aarons, father and son, on Kenneth Willey's site, to the above stated ages at death for Aaron, Sr. and his son Dr. Aaron C. Willey of New Shoreham, they are EXACT matches. Also noted is that there is no location nor date of death shown for Aaron, Sr. on Kenneth Willey's site, indicating a likely disappearance from the records in Conn.:

Aaron (Sr.) Willey b 1 Sep 1751, East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.
Aaron (Jr.) Willey b 2 Mar 1776. East Haddam, Middlesex, CT.

The Will Abstract of Dr. Aaron C. Willey of New Shoreham, Newport, RI:
WILLEY, Aaron C., of New Shoreham, physician. Will dated 9 July 1825, proved 9 June 1826, pgs 103-105. Mentions: Present wife Lydia Willey. Son Erasmus Darwin (Willey) under 21. Two eldest daughters Alzada R. Robinson & Cordelia I. Dodge who recd land in Conn. Six unnamed daughters born to me by my present wife all single. The will of my late friend Ray T. Sands. Friend Josiah S. Peckham coexor w/wife. Witn: Simon Ball, Samuel Ball, Edmond Ball.

The above will mentions his "two eldest daughters, Alzada R. Robinson and Cordelia J.[sic] Dodge who received land in Conn." and the marriage record of his daughter Alzada, below, may indicate where this land was located:

ROBINSON, Samuel P., of New Shoreham, and Alzayda Rosaline Willey, of South Kingstown, daughter of Dr. Aaron C., of former town, at Stonington Borough, CT, by Rev. Mr. Hart Feb 24, 1824.

Aaron Willey b 1751 in East Haddam is shown on Kenneth Willey's site as marrying Rebecca, and that she died in 9 Jan 1812 in East Haddam, although the entry is unclear in it's conclusion as to her identity, as it mentions a "second Rebecca" and one of the sources used for his compilation, the "Henry Willey" book states it is uncertain if Rebecca was his wife or a daughter of Joseph Willey (i.e., a sister to Aaron, Sr.). Another online site, which is simply a straight extraction of the first generations from Henry Willey's book, states that Rebecca d 9 Jan 1778, evidently in childbirth, as their only other child, John, was born on this date; this may be the origination of the theory of a "second Rebecca", and it would also explain why he had no further children by this "first" Rebecca, if she were his only wife. Either way, it does not at all interfere with the conclusion that this Aaron Sr., widower, would have migrated either with his son Aaron, or going late in life to live with, or near, his son in New Shoreham, where he died. This author has also found in studying this immediate branch of the Willeys of Connecticut, that several members did migrate to Ashtabula, Ohio, so this is possibly where the "jump" was made in connecting the Ohio Aaron Willey as son of this Aaron b 1751 in East Haddam. Additionally, a brother to Aaron Willey, Sr., namely Noah, is shown with eight sons, only one of which is further followed; all we know of the other seven sons are their birthdates and this hints that those that survived to adulthood and married likely migrated elsewhere. Interestingly, one member of this line who removed to Ohio, named a son Darwin Erasmus Willey, a rather unusual name, and almost identically-named to the son of Dr. Aaron Willey of New Shoreham....Erasmus Darwin Willey.

One wonders, if Aaron Sr.'s wife, Rebecca died in 1778, whether Aaron ever remarried. Worth noting is that contemporary to Dr. Aaron C. Willey of New Shoreham, there appears another small group of Willeys in neighboring Providence, RI, which records are shown below:

(From Vital Record of Rhode Island, 1636-1850, by James N. Arnold, Vol. 6, p 455)
WILLEY Mr......., while going down the Piscataqua river from Durham, in a small boat in which were Mr. Willey, his wife, his wife's sister and brother, the boat upset, and Mr. W. and his wife's sister were drowned." Gazette of Jan 9 1773 (death record).
WILLEY, Mrs. Phebe, wife of Capt. J....... Willey, at Elizabethtown, Gazette of Oct 24, 1795 (death record).
WILLEY, Rebecca, eldest daughter of John, and John A. McLane by Rev. Mr. Crocker, all of this town, at St. John's Church July 1, 1811 (marriage record).
WILLEY John, from a wound he received while loading a gun, 20 May 1817 (death record).
WILLEY John, while firing a salute he wounded his hand, which taking a bad turn resulted in his death, May 20, 1817.
WILLEY Mrs. Esther, wife of John, in this town, aged 50 years, leaves 7 children, March 15, 1821.
WILLEY, Esther, wife of John, aged 50 years, Mar 15, 1821.
SOURCES:
NEHGS: Vital Record of Rhode Island. 1663-1850, by James N. Arnold, Vol 6, p 455, Vol 7, p 448; GL: Rhode Island Vital Records, New Series, Volume 13, Newport County, RI Births 1751-1860 from Death and Marriage Records, p 356, New Series, Volume 12, p 227; Rhode Island Genealogical Register, Volume 8, No. 2, Abstracts of New Shoreham Wills, p 130, Abstracts of New Shoreham Wills, New Shoreham Probate Records, Vol A, 1798-1821, pp 179-180; New England Willeys, by Kenneth L. Willey.
Return to TOP of this page

Return to INDEX FOR WILLEY

Return to MAIN INDEX

Return to HOME