Walter Hoyt

Walter Hoyt (also seen as Haite, Hayte, Hoit, Haight) (September 6, 1618 – 1698) was a founding settler of Norwalk, Connecticut. He served as a deputy of the General Court of the Connecticut Colony from Norwalk between 1658 and 1662, and, when it was renamed, as a deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly between 1662 and 1681. He was a Norwalk selectman in 1672.

Walter Hoyt
Deputy of the General Court
of the Connecticut Colony
In office
1658–1681
Personal details
BornSeptember 6, 1618
West Hatch, Somerset, England
Died1698
Norwalk, Connecticut
Spouse(s)
Elizabeth Susanna St. John
(m. 1638; died 1647)

Rhoda Tinker
(m. 16491698)
RelationsNicholas Hoyt (brother)
ChildrenZerubbabel, Elizabeth, John
ParentsSimon Haite
Deborah Stowers
Military service
RankSergeant (May 1659)
UnitNorwalk Trainband

Early life

He was the son of Simon Haite (1595–1657) and Deborah Stowers. He came to America in 1628, with his father and brother, Nicholas Hoyt (b. 1620), at the age of ten.[1]

Career

In 1640, he was known to own about 64 acres of land in Windsor, Connecticut Colony. In 1653, Walter came to Norwalk, among the first settlers.[1][2]

He served in the General Court of the Connecticut Colony in the sessions of October 1658, May and October 1661, May and October 1667, October 1668, May 1670, May 1671, May 1672, October 1673, October 1674, May 1676, May 1678, and October 1681.[2]

In May 1672, Walter Hoyte was among those whose names were given to the General Court "for the beginning of a plantation neare the backside of Norwalke."

He, along with Ralph Keeler, was contracted by the settlement to cut the timber and build a house for Reverend Thomas Hanford.[3]

He voted in the town meetings in Norwalk, and was confirmed by the General Court as one of the proprietors of Norwalk in 1685.

Personal life

His first wife is unknown. After her death, he married Rhoda Tinker Hobbs Taylor (1611–1698) in 1653 in Windsor, Connecticut. He and Rhoda had one child, Zerubbabel Hoyt. His other three children were from his previous marriage.

  • John Hoyt (1644–1711), who married Mary Lindall, daughter of Henry Lindall
  • Elizabeth Hoyt, who married Samuel Sension, son of his sister-in-law, Mary Tinker Sension and brother-in-law Mathias Sension(St. John, Senchon)
  • Hannah Hoyt, who married Judah Gregory
  • Zerubbabel Hoyt (1652–1739), who married Hannah Knapp (1642–1696)

Honors

Hoyt's Hill, named after Walter Hoyt, is the historical name of the hill in the Green at the northeast corner of East Avenue and Willow Street. The place name dates back at least as early as 1679.[4]

He is listed on the Founders Stone bearing the names of the founding settlers of Norwalk in the East Norwalk Historical Cemetery.

References

Preceded by
Richard Olmsted
Matthew Canfield
Deputy of the General Court of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

October 1658
With: Nathaniel Richards
Succeeded by
Matthew Canfield
John Gregory
Preceded by
Richard Olmsted
Samuel Hales
Deputy of the General Court of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

May and October 1661
With: Matthew Canfield
Succeeded by
Richard Olmsted
Matthew Canfield
Preceded by
Richard Olmsted
Matthew Canfield
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

May and October 1667
With: Richard Olmsted,
John Gregory
Succeeded by
Richard Olmsted
John Gregory
Preceded by
Richard Olmsted
John Gregory
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

October 1668
With: Richard Olmsted
Succeeded by
Richard Olmsted
Preceded by
John Gregory
John Douglas
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

May 1670
With: Thomas Benedict
Succeeded by
John Gregory
Daniel Kellogg
Preceded by
John Gregory
Daniel Kellogg
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

May 1671
With: Richard Olmsted
Succeeded by
John Gregory
John Bowton
Preceded by
John Gregory
John Bowton
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

May 1672
With: Daniel Kellogg
Succeeded by
Nicholas Hoyt
Mark Sension
Preceded by
Thomas Fitch
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

October 1673
With: John Bowton
Succeeded by
John Gregory
John Bowton
Preceded by
John Gregory
John Bowton
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

October 1674
With: Daniel Kellogg
Succeeded by
John Gregory
Thomas Benedict
John Bowton
Preceded by
Daniel Kellogg
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

May 1676
Succeeded by
John Bowton
Mark Sension
Preceded by
John Gregory
John Bowton
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

May 1678
With: John Bowton
Succeeded by
Mark Sension
John Platt
Preceded by
John Gregory
John Bowton
Deputy of the Connecticut General Assembly of the
Colony of Connecticut from Norwalk

October 1681
With: John Platt
Succeeded by
John Bowton
John Platt
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