Simsbury Free Library Quarterly

Gifford Pinchot: Early Simsbury Connections

Volume 7 Issue 3 Fall 2000

First U.S. Forester, Governor of Pennsylvania Was Born Here

Gifford Pinchot was born on August 11, 1865 in his grandparents’ summer home in the center of Simsbury. In front of that house on August 11 this year the Society of American Foresters, which Pinchot founded 100 years ago, dedicated a monument celebrating his life full of accomplishments. The New England Society of American Foresters hosted the event which featured speakers from those two organizations, the Yale School of Forestry and Environment Studies, the National Association of State Foresters, the Milford (PA) Experimental Forest, the Pinchot Institute for Conservation, representatives of the Pinchot and Eno families and local dignitaries.

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Fall Open House

Volume 3 Issue 4 October 1996

Saturday November 23rd – 10 AM – 3 PM

Jump start your lagging genealogical Project or get it organized for the long winter research period at our Fall Open House. Our Librarian and volunteers will be available to help you. Come see that the Library has been up to since your last visit. Spin through the NEHGS Register 1847-1994 on CD-ROM. Check out the ever expanding microfilm collection.

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Elisha Cornish, 18th Century Man of Law

Volume 7 Issue 2 Summer 2000

His Ledger Lists More Than Two Thousand Legal Services

Elisha Cornish’s account book shows the multiplicity of occupations that men often had during the late colonial and Revolutionary War periods, but his interest in all aspects of the law predominates. The account book, along with public records, reveals that he evolved over the years from holding law enforcement positions to serving as an attorney. He began the account book in 1752 and made his last entry in 1793, a year before his death. In it he recorded accounts for at least 573 clients and mentioned over 2900 names of individuals. They are a mix of Simsbury townspeople and others whose residence cannot always be determined. A few, like Oliver Ellsworth, are very distinguished persons. A few are debtors or criminals whom he must commit to prison. The preponderance of the entries are for legal services, but a significant number of entries record various other types of assistance that he provided for his clients and their animals.

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Francis Barnard of Simsbury (1719-1789)

Volume 7 Issue 1 Spring 2000

His Seven Sons Fought in the Revolutionary War

Although not one of the very earliest families of Simsbury, that of Francis Barnard extends back over two and a half centuries in town, and few families anywhere can claim the distinction of having as many participants in the American Revolutionary War as this family can.

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