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"JOHN (Samuel, Edmond, Henry, Henry) was born in Stratford, Conn., Feb. 8, 1651, and was a deacon in the Congregational
church. On the occurrence of a difference in regard to the minister, he led a party which left and settled the town of Woodbury,
Conn., where he held a controlling influence. He was town-clerk 25 years, and captain of militia. A man of intelligence, energy
and ability, his influence was felt throughout the colony.
"He was a judge 44 years, representative 17 sessions; and speaker of the Assembly in 1711-12; so that he may
very appropriately be called a pillar of the state."
-from "The Sherman Family" by the Rev. David Sherman, published in the NEHGS Register, vol. 24.
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As one enters Woodbury (CT) village from the north, there is the First Congregational Church, organized in 1670, the oldest
in Litchfield county, from which churches were set off in six neighboring towns. The present building dates from 1817. Farther
down the street stands St. Paul's Episcopal Church (2) an interesting Colonial building, erected in 1785. In the old Burial
Ground (3) the tall granite shaft of the Fathers' Monument commemorates the first three pastors of the First Congregational
Church, whose united ministry covered a period of 143 years. Near this monument rest the ancestors of Pres. U. S. Grant and
Gen. Wm. T. Sherman (my great great uncle). In the Marshall House (4) on the same side of the street, the roof curves upward
to cover a 2-story porch with Tuscan columns; the oldest portion is the wing, which probably goes back to 1771.
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