Abel Brace

Grandfather of Sarah (Sally) Brace, and the founder of Winfield, New York. The son of Capt. Henry Brace of Hartford, he married Keziah Woodruff of Farmington in 1761 and "Later he removed from Hartford to Hartland, Connecticut. Here he took an active part in public affairs, being repeatedly sent as Representative to the General Assembly. When the Revolution broke out he was made a Captain in the 18th Regiment of the Connecticut Militia and served with honor and distinction in the war" (source). His descendant Ella (Chapin) Browne joined the DAR on his service: "Abel Brace, (1740-1832), commanded an independent company when Tryon invaded the colony" (source).

Winfield. "In 1793 he removed with his wife, nine sons and five daughters to New York State, being one of the earliest settlers in what is now Winfield. At that time, in this locality, there were no roads leading south from the Mohawk and travelers were guided by marked trees. A home was built in the wilderness and most of his children settled near" (source). The county history adds that he brought "his wife's aged mother" too, that "Mr. Brace was a man of standing, had been a captain in the Revolutionary War and a member of the State Legislature. He built a log house not far from the present residence of his youngest great-grandson, Seward H. Brace," and that all his sons but one settled near him (source, p. 369). His son James went with him but, "not liking the country returned to Connecticut and settled at Litchfield"; James's grandson was Charles Loring Brace, founder of the Children's Aid Society of New York. At the first town meeting of Litchfield, which then took in the Brace farms, on 5 Apr 1796, "Abel Brace" was chosen supervisor and a school commissioner, and "Abel Brace, jr." constable and collector (p. 384); the supervisor was presumably the captain. He died in 1832, and his son Capt. Asahel Brace kept the homestead at West Winfield.

His children with Keziah were Abel (1761-1816), Keziah, Charles (1764-1823), Orange, James, Marvin, Jeduthan, Almira, Lydia, Rhoda, Asenath, Asahel, two named Erastus and Thadeus.

Research: Patricia Hatten's Browne–Chapin side: the pedigree, notable ancestors and famous kin.

Open questions

• His terms in the Connecticut Assembly for Hartland, and his militia commission, need the Connecticut records (Roll of State Officers, 1881; Connecticut Men in the Revolution).