Individual Details

This second wife named Ruth isn't in the Comstock books. However, the children ascribed to John Comstock could not have been born to his first wife. His wife at the time of his death was Ruth; therefore he apparently married a second Ruth. That she was Ruth Aldrich is indicated in the will of Levi Aldrich in Smithfield, in 1799, when he names a sister as Ruth Hamilton.


There is something very wrong with the dates concerning Ruth and her children in the old Comstock books. She is given as the mother of all the children and said to have remarried after the death of John Comstock in 1790. Yet she is given a birth of ca 1724 and the couple married in 1746. If she was born in 1724, then several of the children were born when she was well into her 50's, maybe even 60's, which seems highly unlikely.

Then there is this:
Ruth Comstock, widow, and Wanton, her son, presented John's inventory 21 Jun 1790.
Does this record actual state that Wanton was Ruth's son, or does it say he was a son of the deceased? I believe John Jr. and Wanton to have been the eldest of the sons - however, they were born at least ten years after the marriage of Ruth Comstock to her cousin John. Zibiah may have been older and there may have been other children never identified.

1790 Census. Smithfield, Providence Co, RI
Ruth Comstock. 1 white male over 16, 1 under 16, 2 females
Ruth was next to Stephen Mowery in this census. In 1805, sons William and Levi would deed have of their father's farm in Smithfield to Stephen Charles Mowry.
This may or may not be the widow of John Comstock, but it is a possibility. I believe it is most likely the second wife, who was also named Ruth. She should have two males under 16, and possible two females plus herself in her household.


Nancy, daughter of John Comstock, died 13 Apr 1795. Francis Hamilton, her father in law [stepfather under the old meaning of the term], was appointed administrator of her estate, 29 Jun 1795. Would be interesting to see if he had failed to distribute the estate, or if it mentions minor siblings, or even lists all of Nancy's heirs. Obviously Nancy had property which indicates she was likely at least age 21, or several years older, when she died.

I think it is possible that the younger Ruth was Ruth Aldrich, daughter of Reuben and Ruth Verry Aldrich, who had married 22 Nov 1744. A son of Reuben & Ruth was Levi Aldrich of Smithfield and in his Will presented to the Town Council in Smithfield, 27 May 1799, he names sisters as Hannah Comstock [wife of Stephen & son of Hazadiah Comstock Jr, an older brother of this John Comstock], Unie [Eunice] Mowry, Ruth Hamilton and Patience Aldrich. An online database suggests that the children of Reuben & Ruth Aldrich were born between 1746 and 1767.

The marriage of Ruth Comstock to Francis Hamilton must have also been his second marriage.
He appears to have had children himself. Anne Hamilton (daughter of Francis Hamilton) , married 24 April 1800 in RI to Amasa Mowry, who was born 4 April 1778 in RI.

1790 Census. Smithfield Rhode Island
Francis Hamilton. 1 white male over 16, 2 white males under 16, 2 females.

1800 Census. Paris, Oneida Co, NY
Francis Hamilton: 2m under 10, 1m 10-16 [Levi?], 1m 16-26 [William?], 1m over 45. 3f 10-16 [Rhoda would fit here?], 1f 16-26 [Joanna?], 1f 26-45 [if this is Ruth, widow of John Comstock – it’s obvious she was much younger than her husband and not the Ruth Comstock born 1724. It’s also possible to account for those young children of John – William, Levi, Joanna, and Rhoda among the young people in the household. This also places Joanna in New York to meet and marry Kanah Mills.]

A confusing abstract of a power of attorney does not clear up the problem.
1810, 3 Sep William Comstock & Patty his wife, Kanah Mills & Joanna his wife, all of Paris, Oneida Co NY. Oliver Gillette & Rhoda his wife of Hamilton, Oneida Co NY, are seized in fee of land late in posession of John Comstock, dec'd. The said William, Joanna, & Rhoda being natural heirs of Nancy Comstock, dec'd who was heir of John Comstock, they appoint Levi Comstock their attorney to lands of our sister Nancy, dec'd.

The John A. Comstock book does give all the above as siblings and children of John and Ruth (Comstock) Comstock and states that Nancy died unmarried. But cemetery records in New York reveal William and Levi and Rhoda were born too late to be Ruth's children. The reference to "natural heirs" seems a bit odd. Are they her natural heirs because the other children of John were half-siblings? Or just a lawyer's slightly unusual wording? There should have been other heirs [siblings or half-siblings] of Nancy - specifically John Jr., Wanton, and Zibiah. John Jr. possibly recently deceased, but he left children. John Jr & Wanton were living in Thompson Co, CT - Zibiah may never have left Smithfield. They were not present in New York to be a part of this document. And these younger persons were all minors at the time Nancy died and could not have received their share.

In 1810, the Oneida census used only an initial for given names. There were two listed as "E" Hamilton, but there was no "F" Hamilton. In Madison Co NY, also by initial, there were three listed as "F" Hamilton.
One could be eliminated because he was age 16-26. The other two F. Hamiltons were listed in Hamilton, Madison Co, one after the other with a "Jn" in between.
The first F. Hamilton: 1m 10-16, 1m 16-26, 1 m over 45; 2f under 10, 1f 16-26, 1f over 45 [Would appear to possibly a married child with young children living with them - the young males could also be sons, see Very & Reuben Hamilton, later]]
The second F. Hamilton, a possible Junior: 1m 16-26, 1f under 10, 1f 16-26, and 1f over 45

Hamilton, Madison Co NY in 1820 had a very large family, or there are two families living together.
Francis Hamilton: 1m -10, 1m 16-18, 1m 16-26, 1m 26-45, 1m +45. 1f -10, 1f 10-16, 1f 16-26, 1f +45
It is quite possible a married child and grandchildren are living in the home [as in 1810]
Hamilton is found on the same page as Oliver Gillette who married Rhoda Comstock.

Several households away on the same page is Samuel Comstock: 1m -10, 1m 26-45, 1f 26-45. This Samuel seems to be a descendant of old William Comstock's son John - Samuel married Rhoda Lord. His family will continue to be found in Madison Co. Samuel & Rhoda are buried Hamilton Center Cemetery.


And I found this online - which seems at first to be a completely different and younger Francis Hamilton - it is possible he was the son of the older Frances. However, I think it could be the same man and his age has been grossly understated. He was much older, born before 1755. He married a younger Ruth [under 45 in 1800]. The sons Very & Reuben are seen online with assorted birth years. There is also the possibility that this is a Francis Jr as implied in the 1810 census - but that Francis had no young boys in 1810. In both 1800 and 1810, the older Francis Hamilton did have young males that could fit the approximate ages of Very and Reuben below.

"This Hamilton family starts with Francis HAMILTON who was born about 1785. He came from Scotland and settled in Rhode Island in the early days of the United States. Later he settled in Madison County, New York state. Hamilton married into the Berliner family."
There are discrepancies in the birth year of Francis in the following database, but he's still some twenty years younger than I believe he was.
1. Francis1 Hamilton was born Abt. 1776, and died Unknown in ?. He married Unknown. She died Unknown.
Children of Francis Hamilton and Unknown are:
+ 2 i. Very2 Hamilton, born Bet. 1796 - 1797 in Rhode Island; died December 28, 1859 in Poolville, Madison County, NY.
3 ii. Reuben Hamilton, born Abt. 1810; died Unknown.
2. Very2 Hamilton (Francis1) was born Bet. 1796 - 1797 in Rhode Island, and died December 28, 1859 in Poolville, Madison County, NY. He married (1) Harriet Gillette. She was born Abt. 1700 in Madison County, Ny, and died Aft. 1740 in Georgetown, Madison County, NY. He married (2) Mary Crumm. She died Unknown.
[The connection with the Gillette family should be noted as Rhoda Comstock, stepdaughter of Francis Hamilton, married Oliver Gillette.]

The 1830 Census, Hamilton, Madison Co NY, suggests indeed that Francis Hamilton might have had a son named Reuben. Perhaps Reuben and his wife are the couple that have been living with Francis in 1810 & 1820. In 1830, Reubin Hamilton is listed with 1 male age 40-50 [b. 1780-1790], 1m 80-90 [could this be Francis, b. 1740-1750?], 1f age 30-40.
It is also interesting to note that in this 1830 census, next to Oliver Gillet, is a young Reuben Gillet...he was age 20-30 and seems to have a spouse of the same age. They lived quite close to Reuben Hamilton.
There were 11 other Hamilton households in Madison Co at this time - three of the families in Hamilton; the families of Charles and Henry, other than Reuben.

In 1840, there was no Reuben Hamilton, but there was a Vary Hamilton. He had 1m under 5, 1m 5-10, 2m 10-15, 2m 15-20 and 1m 40-50 [Vary, b. 1790-1800]. There was 1f under 5, and 1f age 20-30.

I believe the following was Vary Hamilton in 1850. Georgetown, Madison Co NY, Hh 237
"Berry" Hamilton, age 54, b. NY. Mary Ann, age 30.
Charles 18, George 15, Harriet 11, Ambrose 7, Lucy 4, Sarah 2.
In Hh 236 was
Lyman Hamilton, age 29. Achsa, age 22, Lucy age 1.

FindAGrave.com
Lyman G. Hamilton, b. 1821, d. 1900, buried Erieville Cemetery, Nelson, Hamilton Co NY
Achsa M. Hamilton, b. 1828, d. 1907, buried with Lyman

The unusual name "Very" also ties the wife of Francis Hamilton to the Aldrich family, indicating the possibility that Very Hamilton was born to Francis and his second wife, Ruth Aldrich Comstock. Reuben Aldrich, b. 27 Jul 1728, Smithfield, RI, died before 1802 in Smithfield. He married Ruth VERRY, 22 Nov 1744 in Smithfield.
Not all databases found on the Internet list a daughter Ruth, but here is a list of children seen with possible birth dates.
Reuben & Ruth Verry had:
Reuben, b. 1746
Eunice, b. 26 Jun 1753, married Eleazer Mowry, 7 Nov 1773
Hannah, b. 1760, married Stephen Comstock
Nathan, b. 24 Aug 1762; died 26 Feb 1851
Levi, b. 1766, d. 1799 leaving the will which mentions his siblings
Patience, b. 16 Jul 1767

Spouse	John Comstock (1724 - 1790)
Child	William Comstock (1780 - 1842)
Child	Levi Comstock (1783 - 1859)
Child	Joanna Comstock (1780 - 1843)
Child	Rhoda Comstock (1789 - 1852)

Spouse	Francis Hamilton ( - )
Child	Very Hamilton (1796 - 1859)

Father	Reuben Aldrich (1728 - 1802)
Mother	Ruth Verry (1728 - 1786)
Sibling	Reuben Aldrich (1746 - )
Sibling	Hannah Aldrich ( - )
Sibling	Eunice Aldrich (1753 - )
Sibling	Nathan Aldrich (1762 - 1851)
Sibling	Levi Aldrich (1766 - 1799)
Sibling	Patience Aldrich (1767 - )