Ebenezer Billings

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Ensign Ebenezer Billings (c. 1661–1727), son of William Billings and Mary Unknown

Anne Comstock (c. 1661–aft. 1726), daughter of Daniel Comstock and Paltiah Elderkin

Ebenezer Billings was born about 1661, based on his gravestone. He died on 16 September 1727. [1] He married Anne Comstock on the last of February or the first of March 1680/1. [1] Ebenezer was buried in the North Stonington cemetery and his gravestone says, “Here lies the body of Ensign Ebenezer Billing who died Sep. 16th, 1727 in the 67th year of his age.” [1]

Thomas Minor wrote in his diary, “The last of ffebruarie or the ffirst of march 1680-81 Ebenezer billings was to An Comstock maried.” [2, 164].

Anne Comstock was probably born about 1661, based on the date of her marriage. She was baptized on 9 April 1671. [3] She died after 20 February 1726.

Anne Comstock, the wife of Ebenezer Billings, was probably the daughter of Daniel Comstock as there were no other Anne Comstock at the time. [1]

Ebenezer Billings owned the covenant at the first church in Stonington on 16 April 1689. Ebenezer Billing, Sr. was admitted to the church in Stonington on 18 May 1712. [4, 192–3] Anne, wife of Ebenezer Billings, was admitted to the first church in Stonington on 30 September 1705. [4, 191]

Ebenezer was a soldier in King Philip’s War. [1]

Ebenezer Billing of North Stoningon “being something indisposed” made his will on 20 [?] February 1726. He left bequests to his wife Ann Billing, his sons Ebenezer, William, James, Benjamin and Increase Billings, his daughters Anna Hakes, Zipporah Stickland, Thankful Smith, Margaret Burch, and Jemima Baldwin and his grandchild Mercy Powers. He refers to his deceased father William Billing. His witnesses testified on 5 October 1727. Inventory on his estate was taken on 9 October 1727 and amounted to about 1,496 pounds. [5]

Ebenezer and Elisabeth were baptized on 3 Mar. 1705/6 in Stonington and the record says that they were the twin children of Ebenezer Billings, but they were undoubtedly the children of Ebenezer Williams. [1]

Children of Ebenezer Billings and Anne Comstock: Births, as children of Ebenezer, except Mary's, and marriages of Margaret, Increase (first marriage), Thankful and Benjamin recorded in Stonington. [6] Baptisms recorded in Stonington. [4, 198–205]

i. Anna (Hannah) Billings was born on 7 October 1681 in Stonington. She was baptized on 11 May 1690 in Stonington She died about 1752. [1] She married Solomon Hakes on 16 January 1717/8 in Stonington. [6] He died about 1752. [1]

ii. Lieutenant Ebenezer Billings was born on 1 January 1684 in Stonington. He was baptized on 11 May 1690 in Stonington. He died on 20 July 1760 in Stonington. [6] He married Phebe Denison on 2 April 1706 in Stonington. [6] Phebe was the daughter of John Denison and the granddaughter of Captain George Denison (#66). [1] She was born on 6 April 1690 and she died on 30 December 1775. [1]

On 25 March 1705/6 Manasseh Minor wrote in his diary, “Ebenezer billing publish.” [7, 91]

Ebenezer and Phebe owned the covenant in the first church in Stonington on 22 June 1707. [4, 206]

Ebenezer was a deputy for Stonington in 1721 and 1722. He was a lieutenant of the second Stonington military company on 14 October 1731. [1]

Ebenezer signed his will on 1 July 1760; it was proved on 29 July 1760. [1]

iii. William Billings was born on 4 April 1686 in Stonington. He was baptized on 11 May 1690 in Stonington.

William Billings and his wife made a public confession in the first church in Stonington on 10 July 1715. On 10 July 1715 Manasseh Minor wrote in his diary, “will billing made confession fornication.” [4, 211][7, 124]

iv. Ensign James Billings was born on 4 October 1688 in Stonington. He died between 23 July and 9 October 1761. He married Mary Hewitt.

v. Zipporah Billings was born on 13 May 1691 in Stonington. She was baptized on 5 April 1691 in Stonington. She married Thomas Strickland on 16 March 1714. [1]

vi. Margaret Billings was born on 11 April 1693 in Stonington. She was baptized on 11 June 1693 in Stonington. She married Jeremiah Burch on 8 February 1716/7 in Stonington. Jeremiah, the son of Jeremiah Burch, was born on 14 July 1673. [1]

If the birthdate is correct, her husband was twenty years older than she was.

vii. Mary Billings was baptized on 8 April 1694 in Stonington. She probably died before 20 February 1726, when she was not mentioned in her father’s will.

viii. Jemima Billings was born on 15 April 1695 in Stonington. She was baptized on 26 May 1695 in Stonington. She probably married Unknown Baldwin.

ix. Ensign Increase Billings was born on 13 May 1697 in Stonington. He was baptized on 27 June 1697 in Stonington. He died on 12 October 1777 in Preston. He married first Hannah Hewitt of Stonington on 26 December 1720 in Stonington. Hannah was the sister of his brother James’s wife. He married second Sarah (Perkins) Stoddard. Sarah was the widow of Robert Stoddard. [1]

Increase was a deputy from Stonington on 11 May 1727 and later. He was an ensign of the second Stonington company in October 1737. He was justice of the peace for New London County in 1738 to 1742. [1]

x. Thankful Billings was born on 5 February 1698/9 in Stonington. She was baptized on 19 March 1698/9 in Stonington. She married Daniel Smith on 18 March 1724/5 in Stonington. Daniel, the son of John Smith, was born on 1 August 1700 and died on 26 August 1741. [1]

Thankful's birth date is from Spencer-Mounsey [1] as the town record (or its transcription) appears to be an error.

xi. Captain Benjamin Billings was born on 28 September 1703 in Stonington. He was baptized on 5 June 1704 in Stonington. He died in 1742. He married Mary Denison on 22 June 1724 in Stonington or Westerly. Mary was the daughter of Edward Denison and the great-granddaughter of Captain George Denison (#66). [1]

Benjamin signed his will on 16 November 1741; it was proved on 31 August 1742. [1]

Endnotes

1. Creighton Spencer-Mounsey, “The Billings Family of Connecticut,” New England Historical and Genealogical Register 81 (1927), 156–78.

2. Sydney H. Miner and George D. Stanton, Jr., The Diary of Thomas Minor, Stonington Connecticut, 1653 to 1684, New London: Press of the Day, 1899.

3. Cyrus B. Comstock, A Comstock Genealogy (New York: Knickerbocker Press, 1903), 2–12.

4. Richard A Wheeler, History of the First Congregational Church, Stonington, Conn., 1674–1874 (Norwich, T.H. Davis and Co., 1875).

5. Connecticut, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1609–1999," database with images, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/9049) > Windham > Probate Packets, vol. 5–7, 1762–1790 > image 209 and Hartford > Probate Packets, Billings, B.–Bolles, Amos, 1675–1850 > images 119–42.

6. "Connecticut: Vital Records (The Barbour Collection), 1630–1870," database with images, AmericanAncestors.org > Stonington, 19–22.

7. Manasseh Minor, The Diary of Manasseh Minor: Stonington, Conn., 1696–1720 (n.p: published by Frank Denison Miner with the assistance of Hannah Miner, 1988).

Revised July 3, 2023