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(III) John (_•) Shipman, son of John
(i) and Martha (Humphries) Shipman.
was horn at Saybrook, January 6, 1687,
and died there, July 7, 171-'. He married,
January it, 1715. Elizabeth Kirtland.
(IV) Nathaniel Shipman, third son of
John 1 - 1 and
man, was horn between [720 and 1
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
Elizabeth (Kirtland) Ship-
7 _' 5 in
Saybrook. About 175c, he removed to
Norwich, Connecticut, where he was
chosen elder of the Sixth or Chelsea (now
the Second) Congregational Church at
Norwich, December 30, 1763. He was a
founder of this church, and a leading citi-
zen of Norwich. He was married twice;
first to Ruth Reynolds, in 1747, and sec-
ond, July 18, 1756, to Elizabeth Leffing-
well, who was horn at Norwich, January
4, 1729, and died there June 8, 1S01, the
daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth
(Lord) Leffingwell.
(V) Nathaniel (2) Shipman, fourth
son of Nathaniel (1) and Elizabeth (Leffingwell)
Shipman, was born in Norwich,
May 17, 1764, and died there, July 14,
1853. In his youth he learned the trade of
goldsmith, and became a man of great influence
and importance in the community.
His natural ability to lead men placed him
very often at the head of important meet-
ings of the town and public gatherings.
For many years he was the representative
of Norwich in the General Assembly ; was
judge of probate and also county judge.
Miss F. M. Caulkins, historian of Norwich,
has very aptly portrayed Judge
Shipman in the following extract from
her "History of Norwich :"
Judge Shipman was a man of great simplicity
of habits, of vigorous common sense, upright,
honorable and independent, both in his inward
promptings and in his whole course of action.
He was almost always in office, serving the town
and the State in a variety of ways—municipal,
legislative and judicial—displaying more than
common ability, and giving general satisfaction
in all three departments. Affability and a taste
375
for social enjoymenl mad him a delightful 1
panion, Hi- to appreciate, his richly
stored memory, an.] his abundant H adi-
held tin li tening
.•ar bound :' his voice as by an in. irm.
A Bentiment of gratitude leads me t.»
ther trait— his kind and winning attentions to
tli.- young. Hr was indulgent '>f their
Oi their vivacity and their sports ;
them with some tale of the olden time;
to make them happy with some little
Rowers or fruit; to compliment their self-respect
by asking them t read to him or leading them
to converse on subjects rather above than 1
their standing. This is a rare characteristic in
this hurrying, impetuous age. Pleasant are all
the memories connected with this honored and
exemplary son of Norwich.
Judge Shipman married Abigail Coit,
daughter of Judge Benjamin and Mary
(Boardman) Coit, October 11, 1794; she
died July 31, 1800.
(VI) Rev. Thomas Leffingwell Shipman,
only son and youngest child of Judge
Nathaniel (2) and Abigail (Coit) Shipman,
was born in Norwich, August 28,
1798. He received his education in the
public schools of Norwich and entered
Yale University, from which he was
graduated in the class of 1818. Three
years later he was graduated from the
Andover Theological Seminary, after
which he began his duties as a minister in
missionary w^ork in Charleston, South
Carolina. After some months, Mr. Shipman
returned to college at Andover to
continue his studies. He was appointed
to the pulpit of the Congregational Society
at Lebanon, Connecticut, where
through his zeal and enthusiasm he se-
cured thirty-five new members. His next
call was to Brooklyn, New York, and
then to Brooklyn, Connecticut, Vernon,
Connecticut, and Hartford. In 1824 he
spent considerable time in Huron, Ohio,
a pioneer missionary sowing seed in new-
ground. The following year he spent in
his native town, and was later ordained
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