Wolcott Family at the Litchfield Historical Society

Wolcott Family

Introduction
Individual Family Members
The Wolcott Homes
Wolcott Research Materials at the Litchfield Historical Society

Introduction
The WOLCOTT family first settled in Litchfield in the mid-eighteenth century. Roger Wolcott (1679-1767), an early governor of the colony of Connecticut, purchased land in Litchfield in 1725 but never actually lived here.

His son, Oliver Wolcott (1726-1797), moved to Litchfield in 1751. Oliver was a member of the Continental Congress, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, a general in the Revolutionary War, and, late in his life, the governor of the state of Connecticut.

Frederick Wolcott

Oliver Wolcott's two sons, Oliver Wolcott, Jr. (1760 -1833) and Frederick Wolcott (1767 -1837), also lived in Litchfield. Oliver Jr. and Frederick were both graduates of the Litchfield Law School. Oliver Jr. went on to become the second Secretary of the Treasury, holding the position under both George Washington and John Adams. He, like his father and grandfather, was governor of Connecticut. Frederick was Clerk of the Superior Court in Litchfield County and a member of the Connecticut State Assembly. Both Oliver Jr. and Frederick were businessmen who engaged in the manufacturing of woolen cloth and in cattle breeding.

Oliver Jr.'s son, Oliver Stoughton Wolcott (1800 - 1832), also attended the Litchfield Law School. Oliver Jr.'s daughters, Laura Wolcott Gibbs (1794 - 1870), and Elizabeth

The Wolcott Seal

The Latin reads Nullius Addictus Jurare in Verba Magistri
It translates to: "Accustomed to swear in the words of no master." It means that one should not blindly trust, act on,or swear on the words of another (such as a teacher/master).

Stoughton Wolcott Gracie (1795 - 1813), both attended Sarah Pierce's Litchfield Female Academy. Many of Frederick's children also attended the Litchfield Female Academy: Mary Ann Goodrich Wolcott Whitehead (1801 - 1864), Hannah Huntington Wolcott Freeman (1803 - 1838), Joshua Huntington Wolcott (1804 - 1891), Elizabeth Wolcott Jackson (1806 - 1875), Frederick Henry Wolcott (1808 - 1883), Laura Maria Wolcott Rankin (1811 - 1887), and Charles Moseley Wolcott (1816 - 1889).

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Individual Family Members

For more information on an individual family member, click on their name listed below:
Oliver Wolcott, Sr.
Oliver Wolcott, Jr.
Mariann Wolcott, Oliver Jr. and Frederick's sister
Frederick Wolcott
Oliver Stoughton Wolcott
Laura Maria Wolcott Rankin

The Wolcott Homes

For information on Oliver Sr. and Oliver Jr.'s homes
that remain standing and inhabited in Litchfield today, click here.

Wolcott Research Materials at the Historical Society

For a list of Wolcott Family research materials available at the Litchfield Historical Society, click here.

For more Wolcott family information, see the website for the Wolcott Family Society (formerly the Society of Descendants of Henry Wolcott).

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