GENERATION 10

GENERATION 9

Biography

MOSES DIMON, the eldest son of MOSES DIMON and ABIGAIL WARD, was born Oct. 7, 1672, in Fairfield, Fairfield, CT. Under his father's will the younger MOSES inherited all of the Dimon family land in Fairfield when he came of age in 1693. MOSES apparently used his inheritance wisely, for within several decades he became one of Fairfield's wealthiest and most influential citizens. He probably earned most of his profits from planting and trading, but these occupations were not his only pursuit.

MOSES served as an officer in the Fairfield militia. Town records refer to him in 1709 as a lieutenant in the East Company, and by 1712 he had risen to the rank of captain. MOSES also held several civilian posts during his life. In 1722, he served as deputy in Fairfield, and between 1723 and 1736 he served his town as a justice. Also, in 1733 he was elected a deacon in the Fairfield Congregational Church.

The name MOSES DIMON appears frequently in the records of early Fairfield land transactions. In 1688, when only 16, he was included in a division and apportionment of town common lands. Then on Feb. 25, 1695, he sold land to John Osborn; on Nov. 30, 1705, he bought land from John Ward; on Apr. 23, 1705, he exchanged land with Thomas Williams; and on Oct. 27, 1707, he bought more land from John Ward. After 1707, the buying and selling did not stop but rather increased until MOSES became one of the largest owners of Fairfield lands.

MOSES married three times. His first wife and the mother of all of his children was JANE PINCKNEY. MOSES' and JANES' marriage took place about 1696, but the exact date does not appear in Fairfield records. In fact the marriage may have taken place in Eastchester, NY, where JANE's father, PHILIP PINCKNEY, had resided at his death.

MOSES and JANE had a relatively short married life. JANE died sometime after 1714, and MOSES then married Mrs. Jane Dirck Gilbert. The second Jane Dimon died prior to 1738, for on March 7, 1737/38, MOSES entered into a marriage contract with Jane, the widow of John Hill, of Fairfield. MOSES died in Fairfield on Aug. 7, 1748. His slate tombstone still stands in the Old Fairfield Burying Ground, and its inscription remains quite legible:

Samuel Rowland, Jr., and Andrew Burr proved the will of MOSES DIMON in the Fairfield Court on Aug. 26, 1748. The subsequent appraisement of Moses' property revealed that he left an estate valued at more than £15,000. However, Moses had deeded most of this property to his three sons, Moses, John, and Ebenezer prior to his death. Consequently, when Samuel Burr, James Dennie, and Lathrop Lewis distributed the estate on Apr. 28, 1749, only £2,115 remained to be divided among the heirs.

After MOSES' death, Jane Hill Dimon remained a widow only briefly. On Aug 3, 1749, she married her third husband, Lieutenant Gideon Allen, in Fairfield. Allen died in 1751, but Jane lived until July 22, 1774. She died in Redding, Connecticut at the age of 98.

Moses Dimon, eldest son of MOSES DIMON and JANE PINCKNEY, married Hannah Gilbert, daughter of Moses and Jane Gilbert of Fairfield. About the time of their marriage Moses moved from his father's residence in the town of Fairfield and settled at Greenfield Hill, a thriving agricultural community about 3 miles north of Fairfield. When Greenfield Hill citizens established their own Congregational Church in 1725, MOSES joined with them in the effort. In 1726, church members chose him to serve as one of the first Greenfield deacons.

That same year he was elected lieutenant of the North Society Company of militia. In 1752, he rose to the rank of captain in what was then known as the Greenfield Company of militia. Moses also served a justice from 1745 until 1766.

Moses died at Greenfield Hill on Nov. 28 1766. He was buried in the village cemetery, but the tombstone which once marked his grave has disappeared.

John lived his early life in Fairfield. After coming of age his father gave him a house and property on the eastern slope of Mill Hill, lying in Fairfield township just north of the village of Fairfield on the road to Greenfield Hill. This ancient house remained in the John Dimon family for four generations, and although completely remodeled between 1850 and 1860, it still stands today (1983) on Bronson Road in Fairfield. John Dimon purchased and inherited other tracts of land in the Fairfield township, and he apparently made his living by farming then. Like his father MOSES, John served as an officer in the Fairfield militia. Town records refer to him as lieutenant of the Second Company in 1741, and by May of 1745 he had risen to the rank of captain.

He married Elizabeth Wheeler, daughter of John and Abigail (Burr) Wheeler. Both of her parents were descended from early Fairfield settlers. Her great-grandfather, Thomas Wheeler was the brother of EPHRAIM WHEELER. John and Elizabeth had nine children, all born at the family homestead on Mill Hill. John died at the family homestead May 4, 1764, and is buried at the Old Fairfield Burying Ground, near the grave of his father.

Elizabeth continued to live at the Dimon home on Mill Hill until her death on Feb. 8, 1786. She was buried beside her husband in the Old Fairfield Burying Ground.

Ebenezer attended Yale College in New Haven, New Haven, CT, and graduated there in 1723. He settled in Fairfield, and was for a number of years sheriff of the county. About 1730 he married Mary Burr, daughter of Colonel John Burr of Fairfield. Ebenezer died at Fairfield, May 28, 1746, and left an estate valued at £5,800 which was divided among his wife, seven living children, and one unborn child. He is buried at the Old Fairfield Burying Ground.

On Jan. 4, 1747/48, Mary married Colonel James Smedley, by whom she had one child, Samuel. James Smedley was the cousin of Ebenezer. Mary died in Fairfield on Sep. 12, 1766, and is buried at the Old Fairfield Burying Ground.

Damaris married Peter Bradley of Greenfield Hill. He was the son of Francis and Sarah (Jackson) Bradley. Damaris died in 1750 shortly after the birth of her ninth child. Peter married second, Sarah Middlebrook Price.