There is only one Matthew Grant diary; distinct from his Windsor town records
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In reply to:
Re: Eltweed Pomeroy (1585-1673)- blacksmith? What source?
Alma LaFrance 2/23/11
Alma,
Thanks very much for your reply.I agree that sorting out the primary sources relating to Eltweed Pomeroy can be confusing.It has stymied many researchers over the past century and I admire anyone who has the tenacity to stick with it – this is how accurate family history research is accomplished.
For any followers of this thread, it is good to remember that I am seeking ANY primary source record that indicates Eltweed Pomeroy (1585-1673) was a blacksmith or gunsmith.I and many others can provide references to literally dozens of secondary sources, including Frank Thistlethwaite’s“Dorset Pilgrims,” which state that Eltweed Pomeroy, who emigrated to New England in 1632, was a blacksmith and gunsmith in Dorchester, MA and Windsor, CT. But when I trace all of the references in these secondary sources, I have so far been unable to locate even one primary record that proves Eltweed was a blacksmith and/or gunsmith.There is primary evidence, cited earlier in this thread, that in England before he emigrated, Eltweed said he was a felt maker.
Matthew Grant was a surveyor and town clerk in early Windsor CT while Eltweed Pomeroy lived there. There is only one known Matthew Grant diary. As I mentioned in my earlier post in this thread, images of the original diary as well as a transcription are published online by the Connecticut State Library: http://cslib.cdmhost.com/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/p128501coll8&CISOPTR=295&CISOSHOW=0http://cslib.cdmhost.com/cdm4/document.php?CISOROOT=/p128501coll8&CISOPTR=295&CISOSHOW=0 . In this diary, regrettably there is no mention of Eltweed Pomeroy as having been a blacksmith/gunsmith.The Connecticut archives you mention are a division of the Connecticut State Library (CSL), as may be seen at the CSL home page: http://www.cslib.org/http://www.cslib.org/ .Mr. Thistlethwaite wasaccurate to state that the Matthew Grant diary is in the archives, but it is the parent organization of the archives, the CSL, that has published the Matthew Grant diary online.As we have both noted, this Matthew Grant “diary” largely comprises notes from sermons heard by Matthew Grant. It also contains several pages of the family record of Matthew Grant. There is no other known Matthew Grant diary.
However, Matthew Grant, in his capacity as Windsor Town Clerk from 1652-1677, also kept public records separate and distinct from his personal “diary” mentioned above.When Stiles published his “History of Ancient Windsor” in 1892, he published some excerpts from the Windsor Town Records recorded by Matthew Grant. Thistlethwaite notes this fact in “Dorset Pilgrims” at pp. 277-278.It was not until 38 years after Stiles published “History of Ancient Windsor” that the COMPLETE Matthew Grant town records (together with other related material) were published by the Connecticut Historical Society:“Some Early Records and Documents of and Related to the Town of Windsor Connecticut, 1639-1703”.While Eltweed Pomeroy is mentioned in these records, no record states his occupation, either as blacksmith, gunsmith, or otherwise.
As I also mentioned, the monumental NEHGS publication by Robert Charles Anderson: “The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633” contains what is the most authoritative and documented profile of Eltweed Pomeroy published thus far. It is found in Volume III (published in 1995), pp. 1486-1490 (related abbreviations of his source documents are found in the same volume, pages xxi-lii). While Anderson has documented occupations for many of the immigrants in his book, he states nothing regarding Eltweed Pomeroy’s occupation.Since Anderson has combed virtually all of the known sources, including the mss. Winthrop Medical Journal which does mention the health of Eltweed and his wife, we can say with confidence that through 1995 Anderson found no records in New England as to Eltweed’s occupation. Given Anderson’s staggering volume of research, that's saying a lot.I certainly hope that you, I or someone else locates a primary record that can prove what Eltweed’s occupation in New England was.
Best regards,
Russell Patience
Apple Valley, Minnesota