Edward and Francis were the parents of Elizabeth Stebbins, who married Robert Wilson, and the great-grandparents of Abigail Wilson, who married Benedict Alford. They are our Stebbins immigrant ancestors.

Edward was baptized on February 24, 1594/95, in Black Notley, Essex, England. This eight-hundred-year-old Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul is still in use. Edward's wife, Francis Tough, was the daughter of Ralph Tough of Burrough-on-the-Hill, Leicestershire, England. She was probably born between 1595 and 1597, but no church or government records remain from the town in that era.

Edward and Francis married in England, probably about 1629, and possibly after being introduced by Thomas Hooker. They had two children before Edward immigrated to Cambridge, Massachusetts, to make a new life for his family and prepare for Hooker's arrival in 1633. In 1635, Edward was one of the twenty-five men who explored the central Connecticut River Valley and selected the location to start a new community they initially called Newtown but changed it a few years later to Hartford.

Edward was a town leader, often representing Hartford as a Deputy to the Colonial Court and playing many other roles. He was also a deacon of Thomas Hooker's church for most of his life. He left a giant footprint on history. Edward and Francis are two of our immigrant ancestors.

Click on the icon on the left to read about the lives of Edward Stebbins and Francis Tough.