James ENO, Sr.

1625 - 1682  (57 years)

• Name	James ENO
  Suffix	Sr.
  Birth	1625	London, Middlesex County, England   [1]
  Gender	Male
  Baptism	21 Aug 1625	London, Middlesex County, England   [1]
  	Threadneedle Street Church
  Death	11 Jun 1682	Windsor, Connecticut   [1]
  Notes	"Jacques Hennot (James Eno) was the son of Jean Hennot and Catelaine Joné. When James immigrated to America in 1648, he anglocized the spelling of his name to James Eno since the h and t are silent in French. The name has been spelled Henne, Hennot, Henno over the yeras and in America, Enno and after 1700 Eno. Jacques Hennot (James Eno), the immigrant to the New World, was baptized 21 Aug 1625 in the Threadneedle Street Church of London, England. This was the church for French Protestants or Huguenots. James Eno came to American in 16648 at the age of 23 and settled in Windsor, CT. In 1648 he bought the home of the widow Mary Collins on Silver Street in Windsor, CT. This house was occupied by direct Eno descendants for over 200 yers. Samuel Eno lived there in 1896. On 18 Aug 1848, James Eno married the widow Anna Bidwell. They were both 23. She had 2 children from her previous marriage, a child of 4 years named Anna Bidwell and another child whose name is not known. However within the first four months of the marriage disaster struck and the two Bidwell stepchildren died. James and Anna subsequently had 3 chldren of their own: Sarah in 1649, James in 1651 and John in 1654. James Eno was a man of many talents. He held a variety of public offices; Constable (1652/53), Juryman (1657), Way Warden (1658/1659) and Estate Appraiser. He owned lands in both Windsor and Simsbury. In 1666, acting as an agent for the twon of Windsor, James bought a tract of land 28,000 acres from Nassahegan, sachem of the Poquonnoc Indians. For this service, James was given land by the city. In the book History of Ancient Windsor, Ct 1635-1891 by Henry STiles it is noted that two Eno family heritage artifacts have been passed down from ancestors. The first is the Eno Baptismal Gown, with matching cap and mitts. It is made of heavy cotton and covered in silk sewed into stripes of dull green, bright blue and red. It was very colorful. It measures 3'4" x 2'8" with sleeves 8" and was in the possession of Mrs. Henry Jackson, a granddaughter of Eliphalet Eno of Torrington, CT in 1891. The other ancestral treasure is an ancient sword said to have been brought from England which was handed down for several generations in the line of the eldest son. In 191, this sword was in the possession of John Eno of Brewsters, NY. On 7 Oct 1657 James' wife Anna died, leaving James with three children ages 3-8 after a marriage of 9 yeras. The next year, on 5 August 1658, James married the widow Elizabeth Holcomb who had lost her husband Thomas Holcomb in Oct 1657. Thomas Holcomb had been a member of the Connecticut Constitutional Convention in 1639. Elizabeth Holcomb was about 8 yers older than James and she brought 5 stepchildren to the marriage ages 8-18 years. Three of her older children, Elizabeth, Mary and Abigail were already married and two children had died in infancy. From the Probate Court records, it is documented that Thomas Holdcomb left an estate of L24. The widow Elizabeth and oldest son Joshua each received L42 and the remaining children each received L28 from the estate to be held in trust until they became of age. There was a triple intermarriage between the Eno and the Holcomb families. James Eno Senior married Elizabeth Holcomb; their children Sarah Eno and Benajah Holcomb were married; and James Eno Junior married AbigailHolcombs daughter Abigail Bissell. So James Eno Senior, Sarah Eno and James Eno Junior married respectively Elizabeth Holcomb, Benajah Holcomb and granddaughter Abigail Bissell. James Eno was a member of the Episcopal Church in England. When he came to Connecticu;t, he attended the Puritan Congregational First Church in Windsor which had been founded by the Puritans 30 years before. In 1664, he questioned the Puritan church rules and wrote a petition to the Governor along with 6 others which questioned the payment of ministers tax along with some of the church restrictions regarding communion and baptism. They presented a petition to the court, asking for church privileges and baptism for their children if they were current on their church tax. This original petition is still preserved in the State Library at Hartford, CT. The matter went to the Connecticut General Court. The Court ruled that the matter was up to the Church and the issues were not ruled upon. The Governor of Connecticut later noted that Michael Hemphrey came to Windsor in 1643 and James Eno came in 1646 so were newcomers among the Puritans, and if they liked the Episcopal Church and not willing to follow the strict Puritan church rules then they should have stayed in England. (History of Ancient Windsor, CT, 1635-1891, by Henry Stiles). James continued to be active in the First Church of Windsor affairs. In 1669, Benjamin Woodbridge became minister of the church. In 1673, James was among 36 people who petitioned the Governor to recall the minister for relief from 'te spirite of bitterness boyling in the breste of those in this old congregation heare in Windsore.' After a 20 year marriage, Elizabeth Holcomb Eno died on 7 bOct 1679. All the Eno and Holcomb stepchildren were in their 30's or 40's by then. The next year, in 1680, James Eno married for the third time at the age of 55. He married the widow Hester Eggleston who had 8 children ranging in age from 3-20 years. Both James and Hester had lost their spouses the previous year. In the CT Probabe Court records it is noted that the Egglesto estate was valued at L275. Hester was given L35, the oldest son L45, and the other 7 children received L21 to be put in the trust and paid when each became of age. James Eno died in 1682. He left an estate valued over 300 British pounds which was wealthy by the s tandard of the day. James Eno had 3 children of his own, but he had been 'Father Eno' to an additional 16 stepchildren. After his death, the widow Hester Eno and the oldest son James were Estate Administrators of his estate. Hester received L20, and the remainder of the estate was divided by agreement of the heirs without involvement of the Probate Court. Hester subsequently married a John Williams. James Eno is buried in the First Church of Windsor cemetery in a family crypt next to his son James Eno." From Find a Grave: Birth: Aug. 21, 1625 London Greater London, England Death: Jul. 11, 1682 Windsor Hartford County Connecticut, USA The primary source for the genealogy of the Eno family is the 1973 typed manuscript "The Eno and Enos Family in America," by Douglas C. Richardson, an Eno descendant. During the mid to later stages of the 20th century Richardson was a frequent contributor to the NEHG Society's REGISTER and other genealogy publications. Jacques Hennot was bapt. of record on Aug. 21, 1625 at the Threadneedle Street French Huguenot Church at London, England, s. of Jean Hennot and his wife Catelaine (Catherine) Jone. Jacques came to America by 1648 and became James Eno, the immigrant ancestor of the Eno family of Windsor, Conn. On Aug. 18, 1648 at Windsor, Conn., James Eno m. 1) Anna, the widow of Richard Bidwell, latter who d. intestate and was buried at Windsor on Dec. 25, 1647. Anna's maiden name remains unknown including the date and place of her birth. Anna m. Richard Bidwell by early 1644 as one known child was born of record at Windsor, dau. Hannah, on Oct. 3, 1644. However, the child d. young. Anna d. of record at Windsor on Oct. 7, 1657, but no individual gravestone is known and her age at death is not of record. On Aug. 5, 1658 at Windsor, James Eno m. 2) Elizabeth, the widow of Thomas Holcomb q.v., Holcombe, whose maiden name, date and place of birth also remain unknown. She had ten children by her prior husband, who d. intestate at Windsor on Sept. 7, 1657. There were no children by James Eno and Elizabeth's marriage. Elizabeth d. of record at Windsor on Oct. 7, 1679, but no individual gravestone is known and her age at death is not of record. John Winthrop, Jr., s. of Gov. John Winthrop of the Mass. Bay Colony, who in addition to being Gov. of Conn. (1657, 1659-1676) was also a physican. His medical diary states he attended to James Eno's wife Elizabeth at Windsor in 1669, noting that she was then "aged" 52, or 51 years old b. circa 1618. On Apr. 29, 1680 at Windsor, James Eno m. 3) Esther Kelsey, the widow of James Eggleston and dau. of William Kelsey of Windsor, b. circa 1636 at Hartford, Conn. She had nine children by her first husband, who d. intestate at Windsor on Dec. 1, 1679. There were no children of James Eno and Esther Kelsey's marriage. Esther survived James and m. 3) on June 10, 1686 at Windsor, John Williams. She d. testate at Windsor on July 10, 1720 mentioning in her will her former husband James Eno and property that she had received from his estate. According to the land records of Windsor, Conn., James Eno was a barber, but not knowingly a barber-surgeon. In 1664 he signed a petition requesting permission to establish the first Anglican (Episcopal) church society in Conn., but the petition was rejected by the Conn. Court. This did not indicate that James favored the Episcopal Church particularly since he was baptized as a French Protestant. Rather, it was in opposition to the rights and rituals of baptism following the Congregational church's establishment of the "half-way" covenant, which prevented, for reasons too lengthy to summarize here, the children of his own children from being baptized and the children's parents from becoming communion members of the church at Windsor. James Eno had only three known children, all by first wife Anna. However, at his death he had at least 10 living step-children by his 2nd and 3rd wives. James Eno's brief estate record, abstracted by Manwaring in his "Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records," vol. I, p. 301, citing Hartford Probate vol. IV, pages 94-5, follows: ...James Ennoe, Sen. of Windsor. Inventory of £278-06-01 taken June 19, 1682 by Daniel Clarke sen., John Wolcott and Thomas Bissell sen. ...Court Record, Page 56--July 19, 1682: Inventory exhibited by the Widow. James [Jr.] & [the widow] Hester Ennoe appointed Administrators. ...Page 60--December 13, 1682: Capt. Clarke informs this Court that the Children of James Ennoe have an Agreement to settle the Estate of their Father. This Court appoint Lt. John Maudsley, Return Strong and John Moore as Distributors, and to Lay out to the widow Ennoe her jointure of £20. There is no individual gravestone for James Eno. He is memorialized in the large table-top memorial at the Palisado Cemetery at Windsor, Conn. for his grandson Capt. Samuel Eno, Esqr. and wife Eunice Marshall. However, the date of James' death thereon is mistated as July 11th when it is recorded in the Windsor town record as June 11th, 1682; his estate inventory was taken of record on June 19, 1682, eight days after his death. The children of James Eno and first wife Anna, all of record at Windsor, Conn., are: • i. Sarah Eno, b. June 15 (bapt. June 17), 1649, d. at Windsor in Apr 1732; m. Apr. 11, 1667 at Windsor her stepbrother, Sgt. Benajah Holcolm, s. of Thomas Holcomb and wife Elizabeth, latter Sarah Eno's stepmother, b. June 23, 1644 at Windsor and d. at Windsor on Jan. 25, 1735/6. Eleven children of the family. • ii. James Eno, Jr., b. Oct. 30 (bapt. Nov. 2), 1651, d. testate at Windsor on July 16, 1714; m. Dec. 26, 1678 at Windsor, Abigail Bissell, dau. of Samuel Bissell and Abigail Holcomb, and eldest dau. of James Eno junior's stepsister, b. July 6, 1661 at Windsor and d. testate in March 1728 at either Windsor or adjoining Simsbury, Conn. Nine children of the family, including five sons. • iii. John Eno, b. Dec. 2, 1654, d. after Aug. 27, 1694 poss. at Gloucester County in the Province of West Jersey, now the state of New Jersey; m. May 10, 1681 at Windsor, Mary Dibble (q.v., Deble), dau. of Ebenezer Dibble and Mary Wakefield, b. Dec. 24, 1664 at Windsor. She d. at Windsor, Conn. on Sept. 15, 1697. Five children of the family, all daughters. (bio by: Don Blauvelt) Family links: Spouses: Anna Bidwell Eno (____ - 1657) Elizabeth Holcomb Eno (1617 - 1679) Children: Sarah Eno Holcombe (1649 - 1732)* James Eno (1651 - 1714)* *Calculated relationship Inscription: On a large table-top memorial at Palisado Cemetery at Windsor, Conn.: In Memory of Samuel Esqr and Mrs Eunice his wife: He Died August 17th AD 1778 in the 83d Year of his Age: she Died May 7th AD 1792: in the 84th Year of her Age. [A]nd also Eunice Daughter of the sd Deced who Died March 23d AD 1737 Aged 9 Days. [A]nd also Sam(ue)l Son to Mr Samuel Eno Junr who Died February: 27th AD: 1782 in the 4th Year of his age. And also Mr James Eno who Came from England and Setled in Windsor AD 1646: and Died July [sic June] 11th AD 1682: his Wife Died October 7th AD: 1679: Also James Eno: 2d who Died July 16th AD 1714: his Wife Died March: [sic Apr.] AD: 1728 and was Buryed in Symsbury old burying Ground. Also Lieut Daniel Eno Died Decr 9th: 1797: in the 56th Year of his Age. Note: This table-top memorial was erected long after the named individuals died, certainly after the death of Samuel and Eunice Eno's son Lieut. Daniel Eno in 1797. As such, some of the inscribed dates conflict with actual recorded dates and [annotations] have been added for clarity. Also, the 2nd wife of the immigrant James Eno was not the mother of any of his children. Burial: Palisado Cemetery Windsor Hartford County Connecticut, USA Edit Virtual Cemetery info [?] Created by: Cathi Clore Frost Record added: Aug 07, 2006 Find A Grave Memorial# 15174002 [2]
  Person ID	I2890	Ellingboe
  Last Modified	2 Oct 2012

  
  

  Family ID

  F3053

  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Sources

  [S52] Mortison, J.E., James Eno of Windsor, (Joyce E. Mortison, 1999), p. 4 (Reliability: 3). [S52] Mortison, J.E., James Eno of Windsor, (Joyce E. Mortison, 1999), pp. 4-6 (Reliability: 3).