James Avery (American colonist)

For other people named James Avery, see James Avery (disambiguation).
James Avery

Bust of James Avery
Born 1620 (1620)
Groton, Connecticut, U.S.
Died April 18, 1700 (aged 79–80)
Spouse Joanna Greenslade (1622-1697)

James Avery (b. 1620 in Cornwall, Kingdom of England - April 18, 1700 in Groton, Connecticut) was an American colonial landowner, legislator, and a military commander in King Philip's War.

Avery was born in Cornwall and emigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony as a child with his parents.[1] As an adult he received several land grants in the vicinity of New London, in Connecticut.

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Battles

Avery served as a captain in command of forty Englishmen from Stonington, Lyme, and New London. In 1676. He also served as captain of one of four companies which protected the frontier. In the Great Swamp Fight, a battle at Kingston, Rhode Island, Avery commanded a group of ally Pequot Indians.[1]

General Assembly

He was Deputy to the General Court 12 times from 1656 to 1680.[2]

Pioneer

Avery was among Groton, Connecticut’s early settlers, for whom Avery Point is named. A monument stands on the location of his 1656 home, called The Hive of the Averys. The home burned down in a fire started from an ember of a passing train on July 20, 1894.

References

  1. ^ a b Benjamin Tinkham Marshall (1922). A Modern History of New London County, Connecticut. Lewis Historical Printing Company. http://books.google.com/books?id=cmIMAAAAYAAJ. 
  2. ^ Avery, Elroy McKendree (1893). The Groton Averys, Christopher and James. pp. 9–10. http://books.google.com/books?id=PSIfAAAAMAAJ. 

External links