The archangel of the Old Whippany Burying Ground gazes from the top of the headstone of John 3 BIGELOW. It is regarded locally as the "chief angel" because of its elaborate design, its size, unique beauty, and its 264 year longevity.(see below)
With few facts to substantiate, a possible list below:
123(1-4) several daughters. (see note)
1235 John, b circa 1720 Hanover, NJ; d Feb 1773 Hanover; m Elizabeth DICKERSON. 9 children (8 listed in Howe).
1236 Aaron, b circa 1722 Hanover, NJ; living 1753. (see note)
1237 Daniel.
1238 Samuel, m 28 July 1767 Elizabeth CONRON, and had issue. Naval Capt. in Rev. War.
1239 Jonathan, m 14 Apr 1752 Sarah LADD.
123A Joshua.
All the above named sons and some grandsons, are listed as taxpayers of
NJ in 1783-1784.(see note)
see Bigelows of New Jersey, some of the Bigelows
from that State,
Sources:
Bigelow Family Genealogy, Vol I page 19-20;
Howe, Bigelow Family of America, page 30-31;
Biographies and Encyclopedia of NJ;
several NJ histories;
NJ Archives, early wills and probate;
Early New Jersy marriages;
Bigelow-Clevenger Bible records from NEHG Register, 1961, pp. 310-311.
Forge: The Bigelow Society Quarterly, vol.27,
no 1; p.06, Jan 1998.
Forge: The Bigelow Society Quarterly, vol.28,
no 1; p.15, Jan 1999:
Article about the burying ground and Richards Family as well as the Bigelow
Family.
Descendant note:
I am descended from the NJ Bigelow's and have been working on the family line,
ellusive as it is. A cousin recently discovered some records which
shed a little light on this line and conflicts somewhat with that in the
Bigelow volumes. From deed records in OH: Heirs of Aaron Bigelow:
Mary, Jabez, Sarah, Catherine, Daniel, John, Jonathan, William, described
as all "brothers and sisters" to Aaron. Aaron, Jabez, John, Jonathan
were also most probably the signers of the Petition in Morris County with
the same names listed, they would have been in their mid twentys to mid thirtys
at the time of the signing. Aaron's widow is Hannah, the record is not real
clear, but indicates "widow Hannah", presumably referring to Aaron who the
land records relate to. By 1817 Aaron, Daniel, John and Jonathan appeared
to have died. From these records we also know that sister Mary Bigelow married
Isaac Beach who was b. in 1742, Mary b. in 1748; sister Sarah Bigelow m.Samuel
Cobb. Using Mary as a dob guide, her brothers and sisters dob's would
be somewhere in the neighborhood of 1735-60. The information was recently
located by Bette Dickover also working on this line with me. The source:
Butler County, OH Land Records, Vol 2:
1816-23, by Shirley Keller Mikesell, printed Heritage Books, Inc, pp 30-33,
52. As we progress on the line we will update you for those interested
in the line. Any info on the NJ lines from your readers might help
clear up muddled information. Particularily, info on the parents of Aaron,
et al. It currently appears that they are descended from Jonathan 2 and Rebecca (Shepard)
Bigelow, seeking confirmation source James R. Barbour
E-mail barbour9@pacbell.net in CA with thanks to Bette Dickover.
The angel decorating the headstone of John
3 Bigelow [123] in the old Whippany burying ground bears the
local distinction of "chief angel" of the many gravestone angels in the cemetery.
This distinction of "archangel" comes from the uniqueness of the angel design,
its unusual beauty and its 264-year longevity. The cherub is the oldest,
largest and most elaborate of those decorating dozens of 18th century headstones
in the burial ground.
The Old Whippany Cemetery was founded in 1718 on
land donated by John 3 Bigelow's father-in-law, John
Richards. It is northwest New Jersey's first and oldest burial ground.
John 3 Bigelow, son of Rebecca (Shepard) and Jonathan Bigelow
was born circa 1679 in Hartford, CT. He married Abigail Richards on
11 January 1710. John was a large landowner in Glastonbury, CT where his
name appears on a tax list of 1713. His father had given him 270 acres in
Glastonbury on 13 November 1709. He sold a portion of this land on 22 December
1716 and moved shortly afterwards to Hanover, Hunterdon
County, NJ. He sold the last of his Glastonbury property on 8 December 1719,
and land records list him then "of Hanover, Hunterdon, Providence of West
Jersey, and sometime of Glastonbury, Conn." In 1723, he was a tax collector
in Hanover. A history of New Jersey states he was a farmer and foundryman,
having established a bloomary along the Whippany River. Another source claims
him a ship builder.
Several of John's sons and grandsons signed the
Pequannoc Remonstrance (see Encyclopedia and Biographies of New Jersey). Howe's
Genealogy mentions that as early as 1753, an Aaron Bigelow, believed to be
John's son, owned a forge or ironworks with John Jr., his brother, in Hanover.
Abigail (Richards) Bigelow died 5 September 1749
and is also buried in the Old Whippany Burying Ground. According to his gravestone,
John died 25 October 1733; however, the Bigelow Family
Genealogy, Volume I gives his death date variously as 25 December 1733 and
25 July 1733.
Thanks to Janis Pahnke, Chicago, IL, for submitting headstone photo to Forge.
See "Forge", Vol.28, No.1, Jan 1999, page 15, 16,17 Donald Kiddo
states that John Bigelow's tombstone is decorated by a magnificent cherub
with a large roundface, largest and most elaborate of cherubs or angels' images
on dozens of 18th century gravestones in the cemetery. In respect of its
distinction among the flock of beautiful gravestone angels, Bigelow's has
been whimsically dubbed the "Archangel of the Whippanong." It is in
good condition with only slight cracking in the carved areas. It is
the finest piece of early Eighteenth Century tombstone art extant in the
old burying yard.................A Sibling Archangel Found in Middlesex:
Another example of the same gravestone design has been reported in the burying
ground associated with the Dutch Reformed Church at Six Mile Run in Franklin
Township of Middlesex Co., NJ, west of New Brunswick. the duplicate stone
is for Jacob Wickof who died in1738. The existence of the second stone
with identical design implies that these gravestones were commercially manufactured
products during the period 1733-1738.
< rodbigelow@netzero.net > 
