Notes |
- The Thrall Genealogy 1605-1965 by Stephen D Thrall says ... "Lt. WILLIAM THIULL was apparently a rather colorful character and popular as a young man, as he was elected Lt. of the Trained Band, and later elected Captain of Windsor Trained Band, but not approved by Legislature. He was in debit, and jailed for it in a neighboring town. Members of the Trained Band released him from jail. Everyone heard of the escapade and Legislature felt that a person with so much military pwoer should not disregard law so freely. Evidently he was not a good financier. He borrowed from one to pay another until the old court record would make it appear he was a daily visitor. His death at the age of 38 was inexplicable, as most Thrall's are long-lived. No knowledge of how or where he died. He was in great financial trouble at the time. His will was not settled for several years, as there was a suspician that perhaps he was not dead but had gone to some other part of the country."
and
"In July, 1737, Lt. William Thrall made & proposal to build a bridge 'across the Rivulet at the ferry' and & committee was chosen to consider the matter. The Lieutenant was somewhat ahead of his more conservative neighbors, as we find no further mention of a bridge until April, 1745 (Lt. Wn. Thrall died in 1738 at the age of 38) at which time a town meeting was warned to consider 'about the Rivulet ferry' and 'about a bridge there.' The latter was again negatived. In April, 1748, however, the subject again came before the town meeting and it was then agreed that any person or persons might have liberty to build a bridge, provided they did so at their own expense and made it a free bridge, forever. Said persons were to leave their names with the Town Clerk within one year from date. In December following, Peletiah Allyn, Daniel Bissell, Isaac Burr, and sundry others, announced to the Town Clerk their intention of -accepting this extremely liberal offer. Accordingly, in 1749 they erected a good cart bridge, the first ever erected across the Tunxis, and made it free. In 1759 it needed repairs or rebuilding, but the town voted "not to build or repair." Whereupon (December 1759) the original builders of the bridge petitioned the Assembly that they 'would order the Town of Windsor to rebuild or make such repairs as were necessary.' The Assembly did so order (May 1760) but the refactory and illiberal town merely contented themselves with making a few slight and temporary repairs, and thus the matter rested until 1762, when the necessity of a good, new and substantial bridge became too imperious to be any longer evaded. In 1762 they finally received permission from the Assembly at Hartford to run a lottery to pay for the bridge, which they did, in October 1762. Unfortunately, five years later, a flood washed the bridge away, so that it had to be rebuilt."
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