Update: Deacon Jeffrey B. Mead (jmead@aloha.net) wrote yesterday, regarding the upcoming demolition of the Benjamin MEAD II estate in Greenwich. He reported that the Greenwich Times printed a feature on the Mead Family Burial Grounds Association yesterday (Tuesday, August 7, 2000), along with the reported upcoming demolition of the five buildings at the estate. http://www.greenwichtime.com/ "Descendant goes high-tech to tell family's history By Martin B. Cassidy Staff Writer Historian Spencer Mead published the original history of Greenwich in 1857. Hester Bush Mead, an African American and painter, was a daughter of Candice Bush, a slave owned by David Bush. She acquired the Mead name after marrying a freed slave who once was owned by the Mead family. Oliver Deliverance Mead, a prosperous farmer, sold his 120 acres of land at Field Point as homesites in the area now known as Belle Haven. He lived to the age of 96 and was president of the Greenwich National Bank. >From the early days of Greenwich, the Mead clan - which appeared in town before 1700 - has had a powerful formative influence on the town of Greenwich, a legacy which is still evidenced by the scattered 18th and 19th century houses they built and several graveyards around town. Now, a family member has created a Web site at www.meadburyinggrounds.org in hopes of garnering the attention of the family's descendants. " <snip> "Several Mead homes are still in existence in town including the home of Oliver D. Mead on Pear Lane, Susan Richardson, an archivist for The Historical Society of the Town of Greenwich said. A handful of Mead descendants also remain in the area, and the historical society has amassed a large collection of documents, artifacts and clothing from the Mead family, Richardson said, but she had not seen the Web site. "The Meads were great savers and they loved to write history," she said. "They intermarried quite a lot so their genealogy is very challenging." The Mead family was unusually large and made up of local farmers, merchants, business people and lawyers, Richardson said. Jeffrey Mead expressed disappointment about the impending demolition of the Benjamin Mead Homestead on Cliffdale Road. The land was bought by Benjamin Mead in 1707 and contains one of the burial plots that Mead restored. The new owner of the house has permits to level six Colonial-era buildings to make way for a new residence. "There are a lot of Mead houses left in Greenwich but it's sad to see that one go," he said. Source: http://www.greenwichtime.com/ Tuesday feature, August 7, 2001. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --------------------- Maureen Mead mmeadpond@aol.com USGenWeb Project CC: http://www.rootsweb.com/~ctfairfi