Gad Wait (1751-03-10 – after 1793) and Hannah Brown (1750-12-07 – after 1790) were my 6th-great-grandparents, being the parents of Hannah Rutherford. Gad was born in Hatfield, Massachusetts, and Hannah was born in Colchester, Connecticut. Their families both moved to Whately, Massachusetts, where the couple married on 1771-12-19 and lived till 1778ref. They moved later to Hinsdale, Vermont (since renamed to Vernon), where Gad is noted to be living in 1793. After this, I can find no record of either, not even in the 1800 federal census. They may have removed to Ontario, Canada, since some of their children are later found there.
Gad was the son of Simeon Wait/Waite and Martha Dickinson. Simeon was a deacon credited as the earliest settler of Whately. Both parents have considerable traceable ancestry. Simeon had a brother Gad who died without issueref, who Gad was likely named after.
Hannah was the daughter of Edward Brown and Hannah Thomas. Edward’s father is William, but none of his other ancestors are known. Donald Lines Jacobus in an article in 1959 wrote he could find no connection to any other Brown family of Colchester, CT, where William is recorded first in 1718 and died in 1777ref; Edward is presumed to have been born not long before William moved there. No wife is mentioned in his 1776-04-11 will, so she presumably had died by then. Limited DNA evidence suggests he belongs to Y haplogroup R1b-BY67998, and indicates no connection to other tested Brown families. Hannah, the mother, has a well-documented ancestry, although her grandfather Josiah Thomas is often confused with others of the same name.
The noncupative will of Simeon Wait dated 1790-02-11ref is an important document for enumerating this family:
In the name of God Amen I Simeon Wait of Hinsdale in the County of Windham & State of Vermont, Gentleman, solemnly considering my present bodily infirmity & the great frailty of human life and being of sound mind & memory, blessed by God, do this eleventh day of February in the year of our Lord Christ one thousand seven hundred & ninety make and publish this my last will & testament in manner following, to wit:
Principally, I commend my soul unto the hand of God the Father of Spirits in full faith of the blessed and glorious gospel of my Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ for whose sake alone I hope for eternal life & I order that my Body be decently buried by my Executor hereafter named, believing the Doctrines of the resurrection of the Son of God. And the worldly Estate wherewith it hath pleased God to bless me I dispose of as followeth, that is to say, I give to each of my children five Spanish milled Dollars namely Martha Bridgman, Gad Wait. I order that all my just debts and funeral charges be discharged at a convenient time hereafter by my Executor, the remainder of my Estate I order to be paid to my ten grandchildren the whole of it both Real and Personal of any name or nature whatsoever as they arrive at the age of twenty one years to be divided equally between them the Children of Gad Wait & Hannah his wife my grandchildren by name Meriam Wait, Hannah Wait, Simeon Wait, Martha Wait, Electy Wait, Epaphroditus Wait, Brunzi Wait, Anne Wait, Fanni Wait, Paul Wait. And lastly I do name make & ordain my son Gad Wait Executor of this my last Will and Testament. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand & seal.
Gad and Hannah had at least ten children, these listed in his father’s 1790 will, for which I’ve been able to find only sketchy information:
They may have had more after Simeon’s death, and others who died young.
Gad’s parents are third cousins through Thomas Graves and Sarah Scott. I have a third descent from Sarah’s father Christopher Scott through Phebe Cossitt.