Henry Stiles

---

---

Husband Henry Stiles ¹

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 27 Nov 1593 - Milbroke, Bedfordshire, England 2
           Died: 3 Oct 1651 - Hartford, Conn
         Buried: 

---

         Father: Thomas Styles (      -1614) 3
         Mother: Marie (      -1614) 3

---

---

---

Wife

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

Children

---

---

General Notes: Husband - Henry Stiles

---

Beginning on page 29 of The Stiles Family in America -- Genealogies of the Connecticut Family (Henry Reed Stiles, 1895) we find a description of the immigrant Henry Stiles including an inventory of his estate and of his debts. A summary follows. See notes under Francis Stiles for more information about the emigration.

Henry Stiles, the eldest brother of the family, was born in Milbroke, Bedfordshire, England, where he was baptized November 27, 1593, was admitted a citizen of London on the second Tuesday of April 1632 and was a carpenter by trade. He was 42 years of age and unmarried at the time of the family emigration to America, and he never married. He was the first person tried by a court in Connecticut for the offense of selling a gun to the Indians. In 1636 he was accused of trading a gun for corn, and he was ordered by the court to regain the firearm from the Indians in a fair and legal way, and an order was issued that no one should trade a firearm with the natives.

At the age of 58 on October 3, 1651 he was killed by the accidental discharge of a gun in the hands of Thomas Allyn of Windsor, who according to the indictment carelessly and negligently cocked his weapon and was carrying it behind the victim when it discharged. According to tradition they were part of a military escort waiting upon Gov. Winthrop when he was embarking on a voyage to England. An inventory of Henry's estate was shown to the court which appointed John Stiles as administrator, saying, "The courte grants John Styles to administer, and hee doth ingage his whole estate to pay such proporcons to the other brothers as the courte shall appointe." The court distributed the estate of Henry as follows: "To Francis Styles and to hee at Long Island, [Thomas], and to hee in England, [Christopher], £26 13s. 4d. apiece, which John Styles is to pay them, and if that brother in England bee dead then his proporcon shall be equally devided between the surviving brothers."

Even though Thomas Allyn was fined £20 for his "sinfull neglect" and was "bound to his good behavior" for a period of 12 months and was ordered not to bear arms during that period and even though the facts surrounding Henry's death seem to be clear, it is an interesting comment on the times that Lydea Gilburt, a relative of Thomas Gilburt, who was a neighbor and associate of Henry Stiles, was accused of engaging in witchcraft to aid in bringing about Henry's death. Henry, being a bachelor, boarded with Gilburt and was paying him "three shillings per week for diet". Specifically the court said

"Lydea Gilburt, thou are herein indited by that name of Lydea Gilburt, that, not having the feare of God before thine eyes, thou hast of late yeares, or still dost give Entertainment to Sathat[an], the great Enemy of God, and mankinde, and by his helpe hast killed the body of Henry Styles, besides other witchcrafts, for which, according to the law of God, and the Established law of this Commonwealth, thou deservest to dye."

She was found guilty of witchcraft by the jury, but of her ultimate fate nothing is known.

1 Henry Reed Stiles, The Stiles Family in America -- Genealogies of the Connecticut Family, 1895, pg 29. Repository: Clayton Library, Houston, Texas.

2 Henry Reed Stiles, The Stiles Family in America -- Genealogies of the Connecticut Family, 1895, pg 20 -- Milbrooke: Stylle extracts from the parish registers. Repository: Clayton Library, Houston, Texas.

3 Henry Reed Stiles, The Stiles Family in America -- Genealogies of the Connecticut Family, 1895, pg 20. Repository: Clayton Library, Houston, Texas.