Goodwin, William, 1591 - 1674
Most likely born in Essex County, England, William Goodwin removed to Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1632, where he became an elder of the congregation and deputy to the Massachusetts General Court. Goodwin was a member of the Adventurers Party which explored the land around the Connecticut River that would become Hartford, Connecticut.
In 1636, Goodwin served the town as an agent in purchasing Tunxis land to establish the town of Farmington. Two years later, Connecticut authorities authorized Samuel Stone, Thomas Stanton, and him to settle affairs between Soheague, the Sachem of Wethersfield, and the settlers. Goodwin would become one of Hartford's largest landowners. With many Hartford residents, Goodwin removed to Massachusetts to settle Hadley but he returned to Farmington by 1669, where he died in 1674.
Society of the Descendants of the Founders of Harford, https://www.foundersofhartford.org/the-founders/elder-william-goodwin/. George Walker, "William Goodwin," James Junius Goodwin, ed. The Goodwins of Hartford, Connecticut (Hartford, CT: Brown and Gross, 1891), 80-4, 89. Sources for this biography come from the Related Digital Heritage Items listed below.
Born:
1591Died:
March 11, 1674