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Thomas Putnam & West Family, Town of Chemung
Mary Ellen P. Kunst, Historian, Town of Chemung
Thomas Putnam from Chemung
Thomas Putnam was a pioneer settler to the north eastern area of the Town of Chemung.
The mountain he and his family settled sits at a stately elevation of 1700 feet. It is part of the Allegheny Plateau Region of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range. The area was named Putnam Hill and today is known as Putt Hill.
Thomas was born August 12, 1789 in Charlestown, New Hampshire to Thomas and Polly (Young) Putnam. Lucy Bowman Morse and Thomas were married in Vermont in the year 1813. Lucy was born in Concord, Vermont on March 10, 1792. Thomas was a Vermont veteran of the War of 1812.
He and his wife came to Chemung with their three children between the years of 1830 and 1840. They may have traveled to this region from Colesville, Broome County, NY via Penfield, Ontario County, NY (now Monroe County) before settling on the mountain in Chemung.
Three births were listed for Thomas and Lucy Putnam. Nothing is known of their two children Eleanor and Charles. George Washington Putnam was their third child. George lived next door to his parents in the 1840 census with his young bride. George W. Putnam and Eleanor Jackson were wed November 14, 1839 in Chemung, NY by J. Piersall, Minister. Eleven children would be blessed to their household: Dean, Mahala, Wilson, Martha, Lucy, Freelove, Jahiel, Hattie, Mary Elizabeth, Clarissa (Clara), Frances (Frankie).
It was sometime during the 1840 and 1850 census that George Washington Putnam changed his name and became George Putnam West. His children and wife all carry the name of West as evidenced by the family bible. The family bible also lists George’s parents as Thomas and Lucy (Bowman) Putnam. So why would a young man with a large family change his name to West, yet keep his family name as a middle name as to not lose his identity? The home of G.P. West is notated on Putnam Hill on the 1869 map of the Town of Chemung. The land was farmed for many years by the Putnam family in the wilds of the mountain.
By the year 1850, aging Thomas and Lucy were living with their son George and his family. Five grandchildren were living in the household at that time: Dean, Mahala, Wilson, Martha and Lucy, all under ten years of age. Thomas and Lucy Putnam were laid to rest in the Hicks Cemetery, Baldwin (N.Chemung), NY. Thomas died in Chemung, February 10, 1879 at the age of 89 years, 6 months. Lucy died September 4, 1865 in Chemung, at 74 years. Clarissa (Clara), daughter of George and Eleanor, died in 1854, at the age of 20 years. She and her parents are buried in the Chemung Village Cemetery. Eleanor died March 15, 1888, George, March 8, 1901. In the later part of his life, George lived with his daughter and her family: Mary Elizabeth and James Bronlow, in Elmira.
Pages of George Putnam West’s bible include the names of his children and wife and his parents, Thomas and Lucy Putnam.
Births include:
Family deaths include: (seem to be of Eleanor Jackson West’s family)
Marriages:
Thomas Putnam’s ancestral lineage:
Notoriety in the Putnam family: Thomas Putnam’s second great grandfather, Thomas Putnam born 1653, lived his life in Salem Village, MA. He was a significant accuser in the 1692 Salem witch trials.
Thomas Putnam was a pioneer settler to the north eastern area of the Town of Chemung.
The mountain he and his family settled sits at a stately elevation of 1700 feet. It is part of the Allegheny Plateau Region of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range. The area was named Putnam Hill and today is known as Putt Hill.
Thomas was born August 12, 1789 in Charlestown, New Hampshire to Thomas and Polly (Young) Putnam. Lucy Bowman Morse and Thomas were married in Vermont in the year 1813. Lucy was born in Concord, Vermont on March 10, 1792. Thomas was a Vermont veteran of the War of 1812.
He and his wife came to Chemung with their three children between the years of 1830 and 1840. They may have traveled to this region from Colesville, Broome County, NY via Penfield, Ontario County, NY (now Monroe County) before settling on the mountain in Chemung.
Three births were listed for Thomas and Lucy Putnam. Nothing is known of their two children Eleanor and Charles. George Washington Putnam was their third child. George lived next door to his parents in the 1840 census with his young bride. George W. Putnam and Eleanor Jackson were wed November 14, 1839 in Chemung, NY by J. Piersall, Minister. Eleven children would be blessed to their household: Dean, Mahala, Wilson, Martha, Lucy, Freelove, Jahiel, Hattie, Mary Elizabeth, Clarissa (Clara), Frances (Frankie).
It was sometime during the 1840 and 1850 census that George Washington Putnam changed his name and became George Putnam West. His children and wife all carry the name of West as evidenced by the family bible. The family bible also lists George’s parents as Thomas and Lucy (Bowman) Putnam. So why would a young man with a large family change his name to West, yet keep his family name as a middle name as to not lose his identity? The home of G.P. West is notated on Putnam Hill on the 1869 map of the Town of Chemung. The land was farmed for many years by the Putnam family in the wilds of the mountain.
By the year 1850, aging Thomas and Lucy were living with their son George and his family. Five grandchildren were living in the household at that time: Dean, Mahala, Wilson, Martha and Lucy, all under ten years of age. Thomas and Lucy Putnam were laid to rest in the Hicks Cemetery, Baldwin (N.Chemung), NY. Thomas died in Chemung, February 10, 1879 at the age of 89 years, 6 months. Lucy died September 4, 1865 in Chemung, at 74 years. Clarissa (Clara), daughter of George and Eleanor, died in 1854, at the age of 20 years. She and her parents are buried in the Chemung Village Cemetery. Eleanor died March 15, 1888, George, March 8, 1901. In the later part of his life, George lived with his daughter and her family: Mary Elizabeth and James Bronlow, in Elmira.
Pages of George Putnam West’s bible include the names of his children and wife and his parents, Thomas and Lucy Putnam.
Births include:
- George Putnam West b. March 14, 1816
- Eleanor West b. December 14, 1820
- Dean West b. March 12, 1841
- Mahala West b. October 18, 1842
- Wilson William West b. March 10, 1845
- Martha West b. March 20, 1847
- Lucy West b. August 15, 1849
- Freelove West b. November 8, 1851
- Clarissa West b. January 21, 1854
- Jahiel Jackson West b. April 3, 1856
- Mary Elizabeth West b. January 13, 1859
- Hattie West b. April 25, 1861
- Frances West b. not legible
Family deaths include: (seem to be of Eleanor Jackson West’s family)
- Mary Foulke d. July 5, 1843
- Elizabeth Jackson d. July 27, 1857
- John H. Brown d. April 27, 1857
- Elizabeth Jackson d. November 21, 1862
- William Jackson d. May 4, 1867
- Freelove (?) d. March 31, 1871
- William Jackson Jr. d. January 13, 1874
- Mary Jackson (wife) d. December 9, 1880
- Eleanor West d. March 15, 1888 (Thursday, at quarter past ten a.m.)
- George P. West d. March 8, 1901 (Friday at eleven in the evening, Laid to rest at Sunday at 2 at the ME Church Chemung, Mr. Shurger Preached text Deuteronomy 3 chapter 27 verse.)
Marriages:
- Dean & Sarah (Dilly) West, January 3, 1861 Chemung, NY by Rev. J. Emory Hyde.
- Theodore M. & Mahala (West) Hicks, March 18, 1863 in Elmira, NY by Pastor E.I. Hermans.
- George W. & Martha (West) Simcoe, October 23, 1866 by the Rev. M.C. Dean.
- David & Lucy (West) Banfield, November 15, 1871 by Rev. R. L. Stilwell.
- Wilson Wm. & Nellie (Barnes) West, December 28, 1871 by the Rev. M. Heathy.
- Eli & Freelove (West) Simcoe, May 7, 1873 in Waverly, NY by Rev. Olin.
- Arthur D. & Lucy (West/Banfield) Banfield, April 30, 1882 by the Rev. Chubbuck of Chemung.
- Jahiel J. & Anna (Unknown) West, November 7, 1883 by the Rev. Taylor of Waverly.
- George M. & Hattie M. (West) Straitor, March 12, 1884 by the Rev. Chubbick of Chemung.
- James & Mary Elizabeth (West) Bronlow, November 25, 1884 by the Rev. S. Moore, Waverly.
- Andrew D. & Frances D. (West) Everett, August 24, 1886 by the Rev. Woodruff, Waverly.
Thomas Putnam’s ancestral lineage:
- Thomas Putnam b. 8/12/1789 Charlestown, NH d. 2/10/1879 Chemung, NY
- Thomas Putnam b. 2/27/1758 Lunedburg, MA d.9/4/1836 Charlestown, NH
- Thomas Putnam b. 10/27/1728 MA d. 1773
- Seth Putnam b. 1695 Danvers, MA d. 1775 Charlestown, NH
- Thomas Putnam b. 1653 Salem Village, MA d. 1699 Salem Village, MA
- Thomas Putnam b. 3/8/1615 Aston Abbotts, England d. 1686 MA
- John Putnam b. England
Notoriety in the Putnam family: Thomas Putnam’s second great grandfather, Thomas Putnam born 1653, lived his life in Salem Village, MA. He was a significant accuser in the 1692 Salem witch trials.