Mystery and danger have ever been fraught with temptation for restlessness and daring of man, but never more so than in the early days of the 17th Century when the lure of the trackless ocean and the unexplored vastness of the country west of the Atlantic persistently beckoned to him. To this innate, dare-devil propensity, so prominently developed in our forefathers at that time, we may add another condition which urged and drove them into action. They were weighted down by taxation, deprived of their liberties and tossed about on the turbulent waters of religious fanaticism. It was then that the colonizing agent came to their rescue. He painted in glowing colors, the beauty and fertility of the land beyond the seas, inflaming their imaginations with the happy prospects of that new Eldorado. The Old World exodus began.
ROBERT CHAPMAN, born 1616, in Hull, England. No hardier pioneer ever touched the rock-bound shores of New England than young Robert Chapman. He came early, landing there in 1635. Operating under the patent of Lord Say and Seal and Lord Brook, a company of twenty men was sent over by Sir Richard Saltonstall to erect a fort at the mouth of the Connecticut River and establish a settlement there. This band of adventurers landed in Boston in August, 1635, and among them was Robert Chapman, a young man of about nineteen years of age. This company left Boston on November 3, 1635, under the leadership of Lyon Gardiner, and proceeded to the mouth of the Connecticut River, where they erected a fort and called it “Say-Brook” in honor of Lord Say and Lord Brook. The Indians gave them so much trouble that it became necessary to ask for reinforcements, and in a short time John Underhill arrived with nineteen men. The most ferocious tribe in that vicinity was the Pequots. They became so aggressive and committed so many depredations that in 1637, a special court was summoned at Hartford to devise means of defense. A company of ninety men was raised and Captain Mason placed in its command. This group surprised the Pequots in their stronghold and completely routed them, forever destroying their power in New England.
Robert Chapman was also a man of influence in the Colony of Say-Brook (later Saybrook). He represented the Colony in the House of Representatives for 43 years and in the Senate for 9 years. Robert Chapman lived on a tract of land in Oyster River Quarter, about two miles west of Saybrook Fort. This land had been inherited by the youngest son in each generation, never having been bought or sold, and is still in possession of the family. On April 29, 1643, Robert Chapman married Ann Bliss, daughter of Thomas Bliss, Jr. and Margaret Lawrence. His wife died on November 20, 1685; he died on October 13, 1687. The second of the seven children born of this marriage was Robert Chapman, Jr.
ROBERT CHAPMAN, JR., born about September 15, 1646, at Say-brook. His principal occupation was farming, owning about 2,000 acres of land at the time of his death. For many years he was Commissioner and surveyor for the town of Saybrook. He represented Saybrook in the Legislature. He was a very religious man, as was his father; and represented his Church in the Assembly of 1708, which adopted the “Saybrook Platform.” On June 27, 1671, Robert Chapman, Jr. married Sarah Griswold, eldest daughter of Lieutenant Francis Griswold, of Norwich, Conn. She was born March 28, 1653, and died on April 7, 1692. Robert later married Mary Sheather. He died suddenly in the courtroom at Hartford, Conn., November 10, 1711. A tombstone marks his resting place in the old burial ground in Hartford, near the Center Church. Nine children were born of the marriage of Robert Chapman, Jr. and Sarah Griswold, the first of whom was Samuel Chapman.
SAMUEL CHAPMAN, born September 12, 1672, at Saybrook. Samuel was prominent in civil and military affairs of the Colony. He is generally recorded as Captain Samuel Chapman. On December 6, 1693, he married Margaret Griswold, daughter of John Griswold, youngest brother of Lieutenant Francis Griswold (a second cousin of Samuel). Margaret was born at Killingsworth (now Clinton), Connecticut, on December 10, 1675, and died on December 21, 1750. Samuel and his wife resided about four miles west of Saybrook; the community being later known as Westbrook. The date of Samuel’s death is unknown, but it occurred later than 1726, as records show that he and his wife joined with others in organizing a church at Westbrook on June 29, 1726. Four of his descendents were successively elected Deacons of that Church. Ten children were born of this marriage, the sixth of whom was Jedediah Chapman.
JEDEDIAH CHAPMAN, born October 9, 1703, at Saybrook. He was prominent in the civil, military and religious affairs of the Colony; a major in the infantry, and a lawyer. He was chosen Deacon of the Church in 1732, and served in that capacity until his death 32 years later. Jedediah married Hester Kirtland on June 5, 1723. She was born March 19, 1704, a daughter of John Kirtland, Jr., and Temperence Buckingham. Jedediah died at West-brook on February 10, 1764. Hester later married Robert Chapman, of East Haddam, a first cousin to Jedediah. Jedediah Chapman and Hester Kirtland had eight children, the second of whom was Jedediah Chapman, Jr.
JEDEDIAH CHAPMAN, JR., born December 15, 1726, at Westbrook. In 1775, he married Mary Grinnell, daughter of George Grinnell and Mary Bull. In contrast to his father’s military title, Jedediah bore one of a clerical nature. On November 8, 1771, he was chosen Deacon of the Church of Westbrook, serving in that capacity continuously for 45 years. Deacon Jedediah Chapman’s wife, Mary, died in July 1776; he died on February 29, 1816. Of their eight children, the fourth was Hester Chapman.
HESTER CHAPMAN, born in 1763, at Westbrook. She married Benjamin Wright, III on April 19, 1781, the son of David Wright and Hester Whittlesey.
The Chapman family thus merges into the Wright family.
The Lyons Family 
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