First Squatter on Joshua's Tract
Title
First Squatter on Joshua's Tract
Description
In the fall of 1688, a mysterious Englishman named John Cates and his enslaved servant, Joe Ginne, squats on Joshua's Tract. According to folklore, Cates was a former Cromwellian official fleeing Stuart persecution. After the Glorious Revolution of 1689, Cates emerges from hiding and purchases a Windham allotment from Daniel Mason.
Source
Ellen Douglas Larned, History of Windham County, Connecticut, Volume I: 1600-1760 (Worcester, MA: Charles Hamilton, 1874), 66-7.
Date
1688
Contributor
horn_allen
Abstract
Larned calls Old Windham village "The Hither Place."
Collection
Citation
“First Squatter on Joshua's Tract,” History Digitized, accessed October 24, 2024, https://easternct-digitalhistory.com/items/show/661.