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PICKETT MURDER
The Pickett Family were Loyalists and they began with.... PICKETT: David Pickett b. 27 Jul 1743 in Norwalk, CT, d. 25/28 Nov 1826, m. 18 Mar 1769 Mrs. Sarah (Lewis) Gould b. 22 Aug 1739 in Stamford, CT, d. 21 Mar 1832: came from Stamford, CT to NB in 1783 as Loyalists: settled in Norton Parish, Kings County: Children: 1) Mercy Pickett bp. 15 Jan 1770 2) Gould Pickett b. 4 Feb 1770, d. 5 Jul 1840, married Mary/Polly Scribner or m. Mary Manchester and had seven children: 3) Hannah Pickett b. 25 Jul 1771, d. 29 Oct 1860, m. 16 Aug 1791 William Whitney or Whiting and had three children. 4) John Lewis Pickett born 9 Jul 1773, d. 3 Aug 1859, m. 30 Jan 1808 Mary Peters: had six children: 5) David Pickett b. 27 Dec 1776, d. 30 May 1861, m. 3 Sep 1826 at Carleton, Saint John, Ruth (Sherwood) Wetmore born 24 Aug 1798, died 29 Feb 1876: settled in Kingston Parish, Kings County and had eight children: 6) Sarah Pickett b. 6 May 1778, d. 6 Jun 1826, married 10 Jan 1813 Robert Smith: 7) Peter Pickett b. 27 Mar 1780, died 12 Apr 1834, m. 13 Dec 1807 Lavinia Sophia - : 8) Abraham Munson Pickett b. 6 May 1782, died 17 Jul 1862, married (1st) Harriet DeForest: had six children: m. (2nd) 6 Jun 1830 Fanny Lyon: had four children: settled in Kingston Parish.
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David Pickett was a prosperous weaver from Connecticut. Forced from his home and business, he had to support his family by farming near the refugee camp at Lloyd's Neck, Long Island. When British sailors plundered the loyalist's livestock to add to their ship's rations, Pickett and two other loyalists complained to the admiral of the fleet. Their quest for justice so angered one officer that he threatened to tie the three refugees to a ship's cannon and have them whipped. The loyalists escaped the enraged captain unharmed, but Pickett's sense of justice guided him the rest of his life. Thirty years later, he became a judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Kings County, New Brunswick.
David Pickett occupies a prominent place in Kingston History as one of the leaders of the settlement in early days. From his evidence before the Loyalist Claims Commission Feb 2 1787 we have first hand information on his estate and adventures in Connecticut as follows:
He was a resident of Stanford, Conn. At the outbreak of the revolution and a weaver by trade. In the early part of the war he signed a paper professing allegiance to the British, in consequence he was tried by a revolutionary committee and was advertised as an enemy to his country. For safety he had to flee to the British lines in September 1776. His buildings and property were confiscated and sold and his wife turned out of the house in Stamford eleven days after he left. She later joined him on Long Island.
He was employed in the wagon department of the British forces for a time and then engaged in the wood trade with New York until the sailing of the Loyalist fleet in 1783. He came to St. John in May of that year on the ship UNION and proceeded up the river soon after with the Kingston settlers. They encamped until they got their lots surveyed and settled on them in the fall of that year. Losses: He was possessed of a house and lot in Stamford, Connecticut. The lot of about 1/2 acre was purchased in 1766 for 47 pounds subject to widow's third and made an onto the house which he valued at 150 pounds. He lost weaving implements worth 40 pounds, furniture, provisions, one cow, one steer, one yearling, also 15 pounds of tea which he had on board a boat, and meant to sell; he also owned half a share in a schooner employed in carrying wood. His house was plundered and some money taken. He produced for the court a copy of the judgement of confiscation.
Witness: Isaac Bell. Isaac Bell said that he knew the claimant and that he declared his allegiance from the first and suffered as much as any one. He remembered that he was advertised as an enemy of the state. Witness was obliged to assist his family privately at that time. He was a weaver and carried on a good business. He thinks he had two or three looms going. He was esteemed an honest and good man. Mr. Bell was witness to Pickett's wife being turned off the place.
In Huntington's History of Stamford County we find the following: "In April, 1776, the committee of inspection advertised him (David Pickett) as an enemy of his country and recommended to all person to break off commerce and intercourse with him." "Accompanied by his wife and seven children he went to St. John, NB on the ship UNION in 1783. He passed the remainder of his life in that province where he was judge of the Court of Common Pleas and Treasurer of Kings County. He died in 1826.
"James Pickett of Connecticut went to St. John, NB on the ship UNION in 1783 and was a grantee of that city. He died in Portland in 1812. A son of David Picket, Justice S. Pickett, had a very long life and his wife still longer. The newspaper item at her death in 1922 tells in a few words the end of the Pickett family in Kingston.
"A life long resident of Kingston, NB passed peacefully away yesterday in her ninety-first year in the person of Mrs. Julia J. Pickett, widow of Justice Pickett. No children or any brothers or sisters survive." (Feb 1922)
Saint John Gazette of [Feb] 17 1797, there was printed one of the [...] advertisements of public business at Kings County, signed by David Pickett.
Notification
The subscriber request all those persons who have any demands against King's General Sessions of the Peace to be held in in Kingston, Kings County, and all those indebted to the county are desired to make payments without delay. Daniel Pickett Treasurer, Kingston, Kings Co. Jan 23 1797
The PICKETT MURDER AND TRAGEDY took place at the GOULD PICKETT's Homestead on Pickett Lake in Kingston. These newspaper accounts tell the story first-hand.
.The nasty events begin with a wedding, followed by a family feud, a murder and the tragic death of an only child.
Date April 8 1843
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper New Brunswick Courier
m. Thursday, by Rev. W.T. Wishart, Seymour Pickett of Golden Vale (Kings Co.) / Letitia F. AGNEW eldest d/o James AGNEW, Watchmaker of this city (St. John)
Date July 30 1886
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper The Daily Telegraph
Melancholy Results of A Family Feud - Seymour Pickett was murdered by his brother, Munson Pickett at Kingston (Kings Co.) Seymour, the eldest son was enamoured of Miss AGNEW, the daughter of James W. AGNEW, a jeweller who was well known to the citizens of St. John. A day was appointed for the marriage to take place and every preparation was made for the happy event. Seymour took his 18 year old bride to his country home where she was greeted by a stern-eyed mother-in-law, a displeased brother-in-law and two indifferent sisters-in-law. .. Two days after the funeral took place and while the wife was standing by the grave of her murdered husband, their youngest child and only son, a bright bonnie boy who was left at home, fell into a tub of hot water and was scalded to death.
Date September 7 1844
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper New Brunswick Courier
d. 1st inst., James Agnew Pickett only s/o Seymour Pickett, Golden Vale, Kingston (Kings Co.), age 5 mos.
Another Article , 'A Tragic Chapter' 9 which I have not yet found) - tells of the death of Miss Pickett at Provincial Lunatic Asylum. (No wonder) The story goes like this...
Date July 24 1847
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper New Brunswick Courier
The Circuit Court for (Kings Co.) commenced its sittings at Kingston on 13th inst. His Honor Judge Carter presiding. On Monday, Munson Gould Pickett and Charles DEFOREST who had been indicted for the murder of Seymour Pickett (brother of the former and brother-in-law of the latter) at Golden Vale near Kingston on 26th Dec. last were put upon their trial and the day following the Jury returned a verdict of guilty against the prisoner Pickett but recommended him to mercy on account of his youth (age 22) and acquitted Deforest... The brothers, with some of their sisters, who were not upon good terms, owing to a dispute about property left by their father, resided in separate apartments in the same house. During the absence of the deceased and his wife in St. John, the part of the house occupied by them was broken into and a bed and other articles taken away. On their return at night, after some ineffectual attempts to obtain the property, Seymour undertook to break open the door of a room occupied by Munson with an axe, and in doing so, the latter fired upon him with a fowling piece loaded with what appeared to be the largest description of swan shot, several of which entered the abdomen and caused his death in about two hours... His Honor the Judge passed the awful sentence of law upon the prisoner and ordered him for execution 29 October next...
Date July 30 1847
County York
Place Fredericton
Newspaper The Loyalist
Trial for Murder of Seymour Pickett. Testimonies of James BARNES, James COOKSON (spouce of Hannah P), William GREENSLADE, Eliza Pickett (sister of deceased), Stephen Pickett (brother of deceased), Abraham MAYBEE, Mary Anne Pickett (sister of deceased) and Mrs. Fanny Pickett (wife of Munson Pickett).
Mrs Fanny Pickett above was the wife of Munson Pickett , Gould Pickett's brother..... Munson, the murderer was Gould's son.
Date April 8 1848
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper New Brunswick Courier
Munson Pickett, who was convicted of the wilful murder of his brother Seymour Pickett in October last and sentenced to death, but who has since remained in confinement in (Kings County) jail, awaiting the decision of the Crown lawyers in England, on some law points raised at his trial, was conveyed to the Penitentiary on Saturday morning last, his sentence having been commuted to 14 years imprisonment with hard labor.
Date February 24 1852
County Carleton
Place Woodstock
Newspaper Carleton Sentinel
We learn from Fredericton that Executive Clemency has been extended to Munson Pickett who was sentenced to 14 year imprisonment with hard labour in Provincial Penitentiary for the shooting of his brother Seymour Pickett at Kingston (Kings Co.) in December 1846 and that he will be discharged 1st April next when he will have been confined four years. - 'Observer'
And did Munson Gould Pickett go to the States...
In 1880 American Census we find this family
My guesses seem right as I found this article about Letitia, Seymour's wife and widow.
We know little about Letitia's early life - her childhood and education. She was born in Ireland about 1825, and came with her parents, James and Eliza Agnew, to Saint John in 1833. It seems clear that she had brothers and sisters, but we do not know how many, nor exactly where Letitia 'stood' in the family; though she was the eldest daughter, and clearly one of the older children. Her father, James Agnew was a watchmaker and jeweller, and established a good trade in that business in Saint John. The Agnew family was probably Reformed Presbyterian, before they came to Saint John. James Agnew became a ruling elder in the Saint John Reformed Presbyterian congregation. We hear first of Letitia, when as an eighteen-year-old, she married, in 1843. The wedding itself was announced in the New Brunswick Courier of 8 April:
married Thurs. [April 6] by Rev. W.T. Wishart, Seymour Pickett of Golden Vale, Kings Co. [N.B.]/Letitia F., eldest daughter of James Agnew, watchmaker of this city [Saint John].
Rev. Wishart was at that time a Church of Scotland minister of Saint John. The Pickett family was staunchly Church of England.
The Seymour Pickett/Letitia Agnew marriage was to be very eventful.
Seymour was the second son of Gould Pickett. Gould Pickett, of solid Loyalist stock, had built, as a young man, the fulling mill at Pickett's Lake, and for the rest of his days maintained a thriving business there. He also owned good farm land. He was able to keep his wife, three sons and four daughters in comfortable circumstances, having built a large square two-and-one-half-storey house near the mill by the end of the lake.
Gould Pickett was proud of his children. They were smart and eager to learn. He had seen to it that they attended school regularly and were brought up by the teachings of the church. He had taught his sons the fulling business, and although his eldest son, Stephen, moved to a farm several miles away from Pickett's Lake, his other sons, Seymour and Munson, were anxious to carry on the father's business. Gould had expanded the fulling mill to include carding machines, looms and grindstones for gristing. The water to run the mills flowed from Pickett's Lake into a long wooden sluice-way along the outlet stream to feed into the big water wheel. Altogether the location was exceptionally fine, situated beside the road in a beautiful valley just two miles from the center of Kingston village. Small wonder that the entire Pickett home and establishment became known as 'Golden Vale.'
At the time of his death at 75, in 1840, Gould Pickett had reason to feel satisfied with his life. He had served well in a number of positions of public trust. Especially gratifying - he was leaving a well-established business for his two sons to carry on. This gratification was enshrined in his last will and testament.
Gould Pickett died a contented and gratified man. But in his last will and testament were contained the seeds of contention.
According to the terms of the will, Gould Pickett's widow and four daughters lived on at the homestead, as did Munson and Seymour. Munson was only fifteen when his father died and Seymour was twenty-eight, so he assumed sole management of the mills and farm. Seymour was his own boss and that was the way he liked it. Munson worked there, but still had another six years before he came of age and could claim his half of the property.
The mills prospered under Seymour's management. He had ideas and he devised and put into operation some original improvements in the machinery used in the manipulation of cloth.
As already mentioned, Seymour married Letitia Agnew, daughter of a prominent jeweller in Saint John; Letitia was well-educated, refined, sensitive and liked to write poetry. In 1843, a bride of eighteen, and city-bred, she went with her husband to the country to meet for the first time and move into the same household with his mother, four unmarried sisters and younger brother Munson. But the house was divided: Munson, his mother and sisters on one side, and Seymour with his young wife on the other. They lived in separate quarters on opposite sides of the hall of the big two-and-one-half-storey house.
In the spring of 1844, Seymour and Letitia had a baby son, whom they named James Agnew Seymour Pickett. Five months later the baby became ill and died. In the summer of 1845, Letitia bore another son, Henry Bernard.
On March 11th, 1846, Munson came of age. On that day he approached Seymour with a neighbour as witness to claim his half of the property or his property rights as stated in his father's will. Seymour said he would divide and give up everything belonging to Munson and seemed to admit that Munson had as much right there as himself. There was, however, a discrepancy between what Seymour said he would do and what he actually did. He refused to divide the property; to make partition or to allow Munson free access to his part of the farm and the mills. Munson tried to have the matter settled through arbitration, and by having friends reason with Seymour. Seymour reacted by locking doors against Munson, and by continuing sole possession of the property. He further agitated Munson by selling farm items, livestock and mill machinery, part of which rightfully belonged to Munson.
On the one hand, it appeared that Seymour, having enjoyed sole authority of the household, farm and mills during the five years since his father's death, considered that he deserved sole ownership. On the other hand, Munson had lived in anticipation of the day when he would no longer be dependent on his brother, and he was not about to relinquish his inheritance. Munson became increasingly angry and frustrated and stayed away from home, returning only when Seymour was absent.
For Christmas 1846, Seymour took his wife and nineteen-month old child to Saint John to visit Letitia's relatives, the Agnew family, and others. They returned by horse and sleigh late on Saturday afternoon, December 26. Letitia, tucked under blankets with their baby on her lap, enjoyed the ride home through the beautiful countryside, listening to the sleigh bells jingle in the frosty air. Across the frozen Kennebecasis River they rode, then to the heart of Kingston village, past the courthouse and gaol, past the church and cemetery, and Sam Foster's store. They waved and called seasonal greetings to a small group of neighbours standing on the doorstep of Sam's store. On up the hill they went, the horse pulling eagerly now that it was almost home.
The sun dipped below the western side of the creek, and immediately the air seemed to chill. There was Sam Hoyt coming up from his tanning-house. He made shoes as his father had done. When he saw Seymour and Letitia he waved, "I've got your boots ready", he called, "I'll bring them over tomorrow." Seymour nodded and waved.
They followed the road beside the lake, and in a few minutes saw smoke curling from the chimney on his mother's side of the house. They turned into their own yard and Seymour paused to let Letitia and the baby off at the door, then went to put the horse in the barn and feed it for the night. When he entered the back door of the house he heard gaiety coming from his mother's side. Munson was at home having a Christmas party with his mother and sisters. Seymour went into his own kitchen to light a fire to warm the house.
He soon noticed that some articles were awry. On closer inspection he discovered that some documents pertaining to the estate were missing. He stood stark still, his expression darkening. Then he turned abruptly and strode from the room. Letitia perceived his fury and followed nervously. Seymour went to the end of the hall, stopped opposite Munson's door and knocked loudly. "Open up!", he demanded. Munson refused.
"Open up! You've got my papers, I know you've got them!" Seymour's voice rose angrily as he kicked and pounded on the door. "You'll not come in here!", shouted Munson in reply. "You open this door or I'll get an axe and break it in", yelled Seymour in a rage. "Do that, and I'll shoot", warned Munson, just as raging.
Heedless of the warning, Seymour ordered his wife to bring him an axe. She did. He grabbed it, and with one terrific swing burst open a panel of the door. But, before he could strike another blow, there appeared through the opening the black muzzle of a gun. A sudden flash, a loud crack, and Seymour fell to the floor. His hand clasped to his chest, he lay at Letitia's feet, blood trickling and collecting on the floor. Letitia's screams brought Munson to his senses. Horror-stricken, the family carried Seymour to a cot and tried to dress his wounds. Letitia knelt beside him, begging God for his life, her tears mingling with the blood stains on his clothes.
Stunned at first by what had happened, Munson was soon beside himself with grief. In the midst of the horror, Seymour called out for Munson to be brought to his side, where he forgave him freely for what he had done. Four hours after he was shot, Seymour Pickett died.
Scarcely was he gone when a knock came on the door and a constable entered. He arrested the pale and shaken Munson and took him to the gaol in Kingston Square. The entire countryside was thrown into shock and disbelief. Seymour Pickett, known far and wide, shot dead at thirty-four by his brother Munson! Gould Pickett's sons! Such a thing just could not be.
The community pulled itself together long enough to pay their last respects and to attend the funeral for Seymour at Trinity Church. Just a few steps away, confined in the gaol on the other side of the road, Munson neither slept nor ate, but brooded over the consequences of his rash act.
Poor Letitia watched her husband's body being placed in the frozen ground to rest beside the body of their first-born son. Back at the Pickett house, some neighbours, full of pity for the family, had gone in to scrub away the awful bloodstains, using tubs of hot water. Amidst the hustle and bustle, Letitia's second-born, Henry Bernard, ventured too close to the steaming vats, and fell into the scalding water before anyone could grab him.
On hearing the terrible news, Letitia went into shock. The following day, little Henry died. Letitia began the New Year by burying her second son.
Although she was loved by the community, Letitia felt alone. Her husband and children were dead and the circumstances surrounding two of the deaths were too horrible to contemplate. Before long, and pregnant with another child, she moved back to Saint John to be near her parents.
I'll relate that next chapter of Letitia's life; but before doing so, I return for a few moments to Munson Pickett and Kingston Village.
Munson remained in Kingston gaol, charged with the murder of his brother Seymour. At his trial he was defended by Lemuel Allen Wilmot, who later became Attorney General of the province, but Wilmot lost the case. Munson was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged. The people of Kingston felt that they couldn't allow another tragedy to occur in the Pickett family, even in the name of justice. They agreed that Munson had done wrong to kill his brother, but they realized that Seymour was not without blame. They knew that Munson had tried repeatedly to gain his rights through peaceful means, although constantly rebuffed by Seymour. In view of this, they circulated a petition for mercy which was numerously signed. One of those signatures was that of Letitia Pickett. The petition was sent to the Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick, forwarded to the Secretary of State in England, and Munson's sentence was changed to life imprisonment.
While in prison Munson's health suffered, and after four years he was pardoned. Upon his release he returned to Pickett's Lake and began to manage the mills, although the property rights remained with the province. Three of his four sisters married and moved away. His mother moved away also, and the fourth sister, who was unmarried, went to live in Fredericton. Munson ran the mills successfully, and employed several people. In 1858 he married Mary Lee, and they lived at Pickett's Lake in the big old house where Munson had killed his brother twelve years earlier. During those years Munson refused to fix the shattered door still hanging on its hinges in the hallway. His wife and children found it a strain to live on the scene amidst constant reminders of the tragedy. Munson suffered too from the experience of his past, and was quite unhappy and depressed. Sometime after 1862, having operated the mills for about ten years, Munson moved with his family to the United States to make a fresh start.
However, the tragedy had deeply affected others, particularly his unmarried sister who lived in Fredericton. As time went on she became obsessed with the thought of the Pickett property, which had been confiscated by the Crown. She demanded that it be returned, and devoted her full time to achieving that end. She was constantly in and about the House of Assembly in Fredericton, where she seized every opportunity to buttonhole the members and relate her tale of injustice and plea for redress. She was a familiar figure on Queen Street, pacing up and down the street every day with slow, steady, majestic step seldom speaking with anyone, never women. The members of the legislature tried to avoid her, and as long as she didn't disturb the actual sitting of the House, they tolerated her. But finally they considered her too troublesome, and she was sent to the provincial asylum in Saint John. The farm she loved so much was sold to strangers.
Some time in 1847, Letitia took up residence in Saint John, probably with her parents. Later, she gave birth to another baby son, and called him Seymour Pickett.
From this point on, the details of Letitia's life become more sketchy. In the 1851 census of Saint John, it is clear that Letitia, and her four year old son, Seymour Pickett, are living with her widowed mother Eliza Agnew, and several brothers and sisters. Throughout the next period of her life, Letitia contributed poetry to Saint John, N.B., papers and to magazines in Scotland and Ireland. The collection of her poetry was published in 1869.
Late in 1855, she remarried. The New Brunswick Courier of 4 Jan. 1856 carries the announcement:
married Monday evening 31 December [1855] by Rev. A. McLeod Stavely, David Simson, Cupar, Fife, Scotland/Mrs. Letitia Picket, daughter of the late ... James Agnew of Saint John city.
Stavely, as already mentioned, was the Reformed Presbyterian minister of Saint John, and David Simson was a Reformed Presbyterian layman. There must have been children born to Letitia, now Mrs. Simson. And there was death in that family. On 19 January 1864, this newspaper announcement:
On Friday night, 15th [Jan. 1864] David Henry, youngest son of David and Letitia Simson, aged 1 year and 6 months.
Death - even tragic death - seemed to be Letitia's quite consistent companion. She wrote a poem "on the death of a brother, who was accidentally shot by a companion, at Red Head, [N.B.]."
Letitia was to be left a widow for a second time, though when David Simson died is not known. It seems clear that Letitia left Saint John and settled in Boston in the late 1870s. Perhaps it was as an indirect result of the Great Fire in that city in 1877.
We have very little information about Letitia's life in Boston. There is this one detail, carried in a Saint John newspaper in December 1882:
Mrs. Letitia F. Simson, has an appeal in the Georgetown (Mass.) Advocate in favor of the erection of a Home for Friendless Women. General Butler, Mayor Green, Collector Worthington, Gen. Sherman, and other notables are on the committee in aid of the object.
Perhaps Letitia's own life experiences had prepared her to understand the plight of 'friendless women.'
Letitia died on 6 February 1885, approximately sixty years old. There is another announcement in the Saint John press.
Mrs. Simson was known to a great many readers of the local press by her poetic contributions.... They gave evidence that the writer possessed a tender and sympathetic nature. Sometimes she dealt with a patriotic theme or public event, in the treatment of which she displayed poetic fervour. Her friends everywhere will hear with regret of her death.
My Kingston Peninsula Home
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David Pickett was a prosperous weaver from Connecticut. Forced from his home and business, he had to support his family by farming near the refugee camp at Lloyd's Neck, Long Island. When British sailors plundered the loyalist's livestock to add to their ship's rations, Pickett and two other loyalists complained to the admiral of the fleet. Their quest for justice so angered one officer that he threatened to tie the three refugees to a ship's cannon and have them whipped. The loyalists escaped the enraged captain unharmed, but Pickett's sense of justice guided him the rest of his life. Thirty years later, he became a judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Kings County, New Brunswick.
David Pickett occupies a prominent place in Kingston History as one of the leaders of the settlement in early days. From his evidence before the Loyalist Claims Commission Feb 2 1787 we have first hand information on his estate and adventures in Connecticut as follows:
He was a resident of Stanford, Conn. At the outbreak of the revolution and a weaver by trade. In the early part of the war he signed a paper professing allegiance to the British, in consequence he was tried by a revolutionary committee and was advertised as an enemy to his country. For safety he had to flee to the British lines in September 1776. His buildings and property were confiscated and sold and his wife turned out of the house in Stamford eleven days after he left. She later joined him on Long Island.
He was employed in the wagon department of the British forces for a time and then engaged in the wood trade with New York until the sailing of the Loyalist fleet in 1783. He came to St. John in May of that year on the ship UNION and proceeded up the river soon after with the Kingston settlers. They encamped until they got their lots surveyed and settled on them in the fall of that year. Losses: He was possessed of a house and lot in Stamford, Connecticut. The lot of about 1/2 acre was purchased in 1766 for 47 pounds subject to widow's third and made an onto the house which he valued at 150 pounds. He lost weaving implements worth 40 pounds, furniture, provisions, one cow, one steer, one yearling, also 15 pounds of tea which he had on board a boat, and meant to sell; he also owned half a share in a schooner employed in carrying wood. His house was plundered and some money taken. He produced for the court a copy of the judgement of confiscation.
Witness: Isaac Bell. Isaac Bell said that he knew the claimant and that he declared his allegiance from the first and suffered as much as any one. He remembered that he was advertised as an enemy of the state. Witness was obliged to assist his family privately at that time. He was a weaver and carried on a good business. He thinks he had two or three looms going. He was esteemed an honest and good man. Mr. Bell was witness to Pickett's wife being turned off the place.
In Huntington's History of Stamford County we find the following: "In April, 1776, the committee of inspection advertised him (David Pickett) as an enemy of his country and recommended to all person to break off commerce and intercourse with him." "Accompanied by his wife and seven children he went to St. John, NB on the ship UNION in 1783. He passed the remainder of his life in that province where he was judge of the Court of Common Pleas and Treasurer of Kings County. He died in 1826.
"James Pickett of Connecticut went to St. John, NB on the ship UNION in 1783 and was a grantee of that city. He died in Portland in 1812. A son of David Picket, Justice S. Pickett, had a very long life and his wife still longer. The newspaper item at her death in 1922 tells in a few words the end of the Pickett family in Kingston.
"A life long resident of Kingston, NB passed peacefully away yesterday in her ninety-first year in the person of Mrs. Julia J. Pickett, widow of Justice Pickett. No children or any brothers or sisters survive." (Feb 1922)
Saint John Gazette of [Feb] 17 1797, there was printed one of the [...] advertisements of public business at Kings County, signed by David Pickett.
Notification
The subscriber request all those persons who have any demands against King's General Sessions of the Peace to be held in in Kingston, Kings County, and all those indebted to the county are desired to make payments without delay. Daniel Pickett Treasurer, Kingston, Kings Co. Jan 23 1797
The PICKETT MURDER AND TRAGEDY took place at the GOULD PICKETT's Homestead on Pickett Lake in Kingston. These newspaper accounts tell the story first-hand.
.The nasty events begin with a wedding, followed by a family feud, a murder and the tragic death of an only child.
Date April 8 1843
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper New Brunswick Courier
m. Thursday, by Rev. W.T. Wishart, Seymour Pickett of Golden Vale (Kings Co.) / Letitia F. AGNEW eldest d/o James AGNEW, Watchmaker of this city (St. John)
Date July 30 1886
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper The Daily Telegraph
Melancholy Results of A Family Feud - Seymour Pickett was murdered by his brother, Munson Pickett at Kingston (Kings Co.) Seymour, the eldest son was enamoured of Miss AGNEW, the daughter of James W. AGNEW, a jeweller who was well known to the citizens of St. John. A day was appointed for the marriage to take place and every preparation was made for the happy event. Seymour took his 18 year old bride to his country home where she was greeted by a stern-eyed mother-in-law, a displeased brother-in-law and two indifferent sisters-in-law. .. Two days after the funeral took place and while the wife was standing by the grave of her murdered husband, their youngest child and only son, a bright bonnie boy who was left at home, fell into a tub of hot water and was scalded to death.
Date September 7 1844
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper New Brunswick Courier
d. 1st inst., James Agnew Pickett only s/o Seymour Pickett, Golden Vale, Kingston (Kings Co.), age 5 mos.
Another Article , 'A Tragic Chapter' 9 which I have not yet found) - tells of the death of Miss Pickett at Provincial Lunatic Asylum. (No wonder) The story goes like this...
Date July 24 1847
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper New Brunswick Courier
The Circuit Court for (Kings Co.) commenced its sittings at Kingston on 13th inst. His Honor Judge Carter presiding. On Monday, Munson Gould Pickett and Charles DEFOREST who had been indicted for the murder of Seymour Pickett (brother of the former and brother-in-law of the latter) at Golden Vale near Kingston on 26th Dec. last were put upon their trial and the day following the Jury returned a verdict of guilty against the prisoner Pickett but recommended him to mercy on account of his youth (age 22) and acquitted Deforest... The brothers, with some of their sisters, who were not upon good terms, owing to a dispute about property left by their father, resided in separate apartments in the same house. During the absence of the deceased and his wife in St. John, the part of the house occupied by them was broken into and a bed and other articles taken away. On their return at night, after some ineffectual attempts to obtain the property, Seymour undertook to break open the door of a room occupied by Munson with an axe, and in doing so, the latter fired upon him with a fowling piece loaded with what appeared to be the largest description of swan shot, several of which entered the abdomen and caused his death in about two hours... His Honor the Judge passed the awful sentence of law upon the prisoner and ordered him for execution 29 October next...
Date July 30 1847
County York
Place Fredericton
Newspaper The Loyalist
Trial for Murder of Seymour Pickett. Testimonies of James BARNES, James COOKSON (spouce of Hannah P), William GREENSLADE, Eliza Pickett (sister of deceased), Stephen Pickett (brother of deceased), Abraham MAYBEE, Mary Anne Pickett (sister of deceased) and Mrs. Fanny Pickett (wife of Munson Pickett).
Mrs Fanny Pickett above was the wife of Munson Pickett , Gould Pickett's brother..... Munson, the murderer was Gould's son.
Date April 8 1848
County Saint John
Place Saint John
Newspaper New Brunswick Courier
Munson Pickett, who was convicted of the wilful murder of his brother Seymour Pickett in October last and sentenced to death, but who has since remained in confinement in (Kings County) jail, awaiting the decision of the Crown lawyers in England, on some law points raised at his trial, was conveyed to the Penitentiary on Saturday morning last, his sentence having been commuted to 14 years imprisonment with hard labor.
Date February 24 1852
County Carleton
Place Woodstock
Newspaper Carleton Sentinel
We learn from Fredericton that Executive Clemency has been extended to Munson Pickett who was sentenced to 14 year imprisonment with hard labour in Provincial Penitentiary for the shooting of his brother Seymour Pickett at Kingston (Kings Co.) in December 1846 and that he will be discharged 1st April next when he will have been confined four years. - 'Observer'
And did Munson Gould Pickett go to the States...
In 1880 American Census we find this family
| Munson G PICKETT | Household | ||
| Male | |||
| | |||
| Other Information: | |||
| Birth Year | <1827> | ||
| Birthplace | CANADA | ||
| Age | 53 | ||
| Occupation | Machinist | ||
| Marital Status | W <Widowed> | ||
| Race | W <White> | ||
| Head of Household | Munson G PICKETT | ||
| Relation | Self | ||
| Father's Birthplace | CT | ||
| Mother's Birthplace | CANADA | ||
| | |||
| Source Information: | |||
| Census Place | Brooklyn, Kings (Brooklyn), New York City-Greater, New York | ||
| Family History Library Film | 1254845 | ||
| NA Film Number | T9-0845 | ||
| Page Number | 178B | ||
| Munson G PICKETT | Self | W | Male | W | 53 | CANADA | Machinist | CT | CANADA |
| Emma PICKETT | Dau | S | Female | W | 20 | CANADA | Keeping House | CANADA | CANADA |
| Amelia PICKETT | Dau | S | Female | W | 19 | CANADA | At Home | CANADA | CANADA |
| Ida L PICKETT | Dau | S | Female | W | 17 | CANADA | At Home | CANADA | CANADA |
| Elmira M PICKETT | Dau | S | Female | W | 15 | CANADA | At Home | CANADA | CANADA |
| Mary CALLAHAN | Other | S | Female | W | 27 | NY | Servant | IRE | IRE |
My guesses seem right as I found this article about Letitia, Seymour's wife and widow.
We know little about Letitia's early life - her childhood and education. She was born in Ireland about 1825, and came with her parents, James and Eliza Agnew, to Saint John in 1833. It seems clear that she had brothers and sisters, but we do not know how many, nor exactly where Letitia 'stood' in the family; though she was the eldest daughter, and clearly one of the older children. Her father, James Agnew was a watchmaker and jeweller, and established a good trade in that business in Saint John. The Agnew family was probably Reformed Presbyterian, before they came to Saint John. James Agnew became a ruling elder in the Saint John Reformed Presbyterian congregation. We hear first of Letitia, when as an eighteen-year-old, she married, in 1843. The wedding itself was announced in the New Brunswick Courier of 8 April:
married Thurs. [April 6] by Rev. W.T. Wishart, Seymour Pickett of Golden Vale, Kings Co. [N.B.]/Letitia F., eldest daughter of James Agnew, watchmaker of this city [Saint John].
Rev. Wishart was at that time a Church of Scotland minister of Saint John. The Pickett family was staunchly Church of England.
The Seymour Pickett/Letitia Agnew marriage was to be very eventful.
Seymour was the second son of Gould Pickett. Gould Pickett, of solid Loyalist stock, had built, as a young man, the fulling mill at Pickett's Lake, and for the rest of his days maintained a thriving business there. He also owned good farm land. He was able to keep his wife, three sons and four daughters in comfortable circumstances, having built a large square two-and-one-half-storey house near the mill by the end of the lake.
Gould Pickett was proud of his children. They were smart and eager to learn. He had seen to it that they attended school regularly and were brought up by the teachings of the church. He had taught his sons the fulling business, and although his eldest son, Stephen, moved to a farm several miles away from Pickett's Lake, his other sons, Seymour and Munson, were anxious to carry on the father's business. Gould had expanded the fulling mill to include carding machines, looms and grindstones for gristing. The water to run the mills flowed from Pickett's Lake into a long wooden sluice-way along the outlet stream to feed into the big water wheel. Altogether the location was exceptionally fine, situated beside the road in a beautiful valley just two miles from the center of Kingston village. Small wonder that the entire Pickett home and establishment became known as 'Golden Vale.'
At the time of his death at 75, in 1840, Gould Pickett had reason to feel satisfied with his life. He had served well in a number of positions of public trust. Especially gratifying - he was leaving a well-established business for his two sons to carry on. This gratification was enshrined in his last will and testament.
I, Gould Pickett, Esquire, of the Parish of Kingston in Kings County in the Province of New Brunswick being of sound body and mind thanks be to the great giver of all blessings do hereby make and publish this my Last Will and Testament ... The farm on which I now reside I give to my two sons Seymour and Munson together with all the privileges, buildings, improvements, Mills, Machinery, farming utensils and stock of all descriptions to be equally divided, or to be held as tenants in common when Munson arrives at the age of twenty-one years on condition that they provide for the [rest of the] family till they are able to provide for themselves ... Should my decease happen before Munson comes of age, Seymour is to have all he can realize after keeping Mills and Machinery in good repair, also the buildings, and furnishing the family in a decent and comfortable manner till Munson arrives at the age of twenty-one years ... I also recommend to my sons Seymour, and Munson to carry on business, in partnership after my decease and be sure and take no advantage of each other ... Signed Gould Pickett March 21, 1836.
Gould Pickett died a contented and gratified man. But in his last will and testament were contained the seeds of contention.
According to the terms of the will, Gould Pickett's widow and four daughters lived on at the homestead, as did Munson and Seymour. Munson was only fifteen when his father died and Seymour was twenty-eight, so he assumed sole management of the mills and farm. Seymour was his own boss and that was the way he liked it. Munson worked there, but still had another six years before he came of age and could claim his half of the property.
The mills prospered under Seymour's management. He had ideas and he devised and put into operation some original improvements in the machinery used in the manipulation of cloth.
As already mentioned, Seymour married Letitia Agnew, daughter of a prominent jeweller in Saint John; Letitia was well-educated, refined, sensitive and liked to write poetry. In 1843, a bride of eighteen, and city-bred, she went with her husband to the country to meet for the first time and move into the same household with his mother, four unmarried sisters and younger brother Munson. But the house was divided: Munson, his mother and sisters on one side, and Seymour with his young wife on the other. They lived in separate quarters on opposite sides of the hall of the big two-and-one-half-storey house.
In the spring of 1844, Seymour and Letitia had a baby son, whom they named James Agnew Seymour Pickett. Five months later the baby became ill and died. In the summer of 1845, Letitia bore another son, Henry Bernard.
On March 11th, 1846, Munson came of age. On that day he approached Seymour with a neighbour as witness to claim his half of the property or his property rights as stated in his father's will. Seymour said he would divide and give up everything belonging to Munson and seemed to admit that Munson had as much right there as himself. There was, however, a discrepancy between what Seymour said he would do and what he actually did. He refused to divide the property; to make partition or to allow Munson free access to his part of the farm and the mills. Munson tried to have the matter settled through arbitration, and by having friends reason with Seymour. Seymour reacted by locking doors against Munson, and by continuing sole possession of the property. He further agitated Munson by selling farm items, livestock and mill machinery, part of which rightfully belonged to Munson.
On the one hand, it appeared that Seymour, having enjoyed sole authority of the household, farm and mills during the five years since his father's death, considered that he deserved sole ownership. On the other hand, Munson had lived in anticipation of the day when he would no longer be dependent on his brother, and he was not about to relinquish his inheritance. Munson became increasingly angry and frustrated and stayed away from home, returning only when Seymour was absent.
For Christmas 1846, Seymour took his wife and nineteen-month old child to Saint John to visit Letitia's relatives, the Agnew family, and others. They returned by horse and sleigh late on Saturday afternoon, December 26. Letitia, tucked under blankets with their baby on her lap, enjoyed the ride home through the beautiful countryside, listening to the sleigh bells jingle in the frosty air. Across the frozen Kennebecasis River they rode, then to the heart of Kingston village, past the courthouse and gaol, past the church and cemetery, and Sam Foster's store. They waved and called seasonal greetings to a small group of neighbours standing on the doorstep of Sam's store. On up the hill they went, the horse pulling eagerly now that it was almost home.
The sun dipped below the western side of the creek, and immediately the air seemed to chill. There was Sam Hoyt coming up from his tanning-house. He made shoes as his father had done. When he saw Seymour and Letitia he waved, "I've got your boots ready", he called, "I'll bring them over tomorrow." Seymour nodded and waved.
They followed the road beside the lake, and in a few minutes saw smoke curling from the chimney on his mother's side of the house. They turned into their own yard and Seymour paused to let Letitia and the baby off at the door, then went to put the horse in the barn and feed it for the night. When he entered the back door of the house he heard gaiety coming from his mother's side. Munson was at home having a Christmas party with his mother and sisters. Seymour went into his own kitchen to light a fire to warm the house.
He soon noticed that some articles were awry. On closer inspection he discovered that some documents pertaining to the estate were missing. He stood stark still, his expression darkening. Then he turned abruptly and strode from the room. Letitia perceived his fury and followed nervously. Seymour went to the end of the hall, stopped opposite Munson's door and knocked loudly. "Open up!", he demanded. Munson refused.
"Open up! You've got my papers, I know you've got them!" Seymour's voice rose angrily as he kicked and pounded on the door. "You'll not come in here!", shouted Munson in reply. "You open this door or I'll get an axe and break it in", yelled Seymour in a rage. "Do that, and I'll shoot", warned Munson, just as raging.
Heedless of the warning, Seymour ordered his wife to bring him an axe. She did. He grabbed it, and with one terrific swing burst open a panel of the door. But, before he could strike another blow, there appeared through the opening the black muzzle of a gun. A sudden flash, a loud crack, and Seymour fell to the floor. His hand clasped to his chest, he lay at Letitia's feet, blood trickling and collecting on the floor. Letitia's screams brought Munson to his senses. Horror-stricken, the family carried Seymour to a cot and tried to dress his wounds. Letitia knelt beside him, begging God for his life, her tears mingling with the blood stains on his clothes.
Stunned at first by what had happened, Munson was soon beside himself with grief. In the midst of the horror, Seymour called out for Munson to be brought to his side, where he forgave him freely for what he had done. Four hours after he was shot, Seymour Pickett died.
Scarcely was he gone when a knock came on the door and a constable entered. He arrested the pale and shaken Munson and took him to the gaol in Kingston Square. The entire countryside was thrown into shock and disbelief. Seymour Pickett, known far and wide, shot dead at thirty-four by his brother Munson! Gould Pickett's sons! Such a thing just could not be.
The community pulled itself together long enough to pay their last respects and to attend the funeral for Seymour at Trinity Church. Just a few steps away, confined in the gaol on the other side of the road, Munson neither slept nor ate, but brooded over the consequences of his rash act.
Poor Letitia watched her husband's body being placed in the frozen ground to rest beside the body of their first-born son. Back at the Pickett house, some neighbours, full of pity for the family, had gone in to scrub away the awful bloodstains, using tubs of hot water. Amidst the hustle and bustle, Letitia's second-born, Henry Bernard, ventured too close to the steaming vats, and fell into the scalding water before anyone could grab him.
On hearing the terrible news, Letitia went into shock. The following day, little Henry died. Letitia began the New Year by burying her second son.
Although she was loved by the community, Letitia felt alone. Her husband and children were dead and the circumstances surrounding two of the deaths were too horrible to contemplate. Before long, and pregnant with another child, she moved back to Saint John to be near her parents.
I'll relate that next chapter of Letitia's life; but before doing so, I return for a few moments to Munson Pickett and Kingston Village.
Munson remained in Kingston gaol, charged with the murder of his brother Seymour. At his trial he was defended by Lemuel Allen Wilmot, who later became Attorney General of the province, but Wilmot lost the case. Munson was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged. The people of Kingston felt that they couldn't allow another tragedy to occur in the Pickett family, even in the name of justice. They agreed that Munson had done wrong to kill his brother, but they realized that Seymour was not without blame. They knew that Munson had tried repeatedly to gain his rights through peaceful means, although constantly rebuffed by Seymour. In view of this, they circulated a petition for mercy which was numerously signed. One of those signatures was that of Letitia Pickett. The petition was sent to the Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick, forwarded to the Secretary of State in England, and Munson's sentence was changed to life imprisonment.
While in prison Munson's health suffered, and after four years he was pardoned. Upon his release he returned to Pickett's Lake and began to manage the mills, although the property rights remained with the province. Three of his four sisters married and moved away. His mother moved away also, and the fourth sister, who was unmarried, went to live in Fredericton. Munson ran the mills successfully, and employed several people. In 1858 he married Mary Lee, and they lived at Pickett's Lake in the big old house where Munson had killed his brother twelve years earlier. During those years Munson refused to fix the shattered door still hanging on its hinges in the hallway. His wife and children found it a strain to live on the scene amidst constant reminders of the tragedy. Munson suffered too from the experience of his past, and was quite unhappy and depressed. Sometime after 1862, having operated the mills for about ten years, Munson moved with his family to the United States to make a fresh start.
However, the tragedy had deeply affected others, particularly his unmarried sister who lived in Fredericton. As time went on she became obsessed with the thought of the Pickett property, which had been confiscated by the Crown. She demanded that it be returned, and devoted her full time to achieving that end. She was constantly in and about the House of Assembly in Fredericton, where she seized every opportunity to buttonhole the members and relate her tale of injustice and plea for redress. She was a familiar figure on Queen Street, pacing up and down the street every day with slow, steady, majestic step seldom speaking with anyone, never women. The members of the legislature tried to avoid her, and as long as she didn't disturb the actual sitting of the House, they tolerated her. But finally they considered her too troublesome, and she was sent to the provincial asylum in Saint John. The farm she loved so much was sold to strangers.
Some time in 1847, Letitia took up residence in Saint John, probably with her parents. Later, she gave birth to another baby son, and called him Seymour Pickett.
From this point on, the details of Letitia's life become more sketchy. In the 1851 census of Saint John, it is clear that Letitia, and her four year old son, Seymour Pickett, are living with her widowed mother Eliza Agnew, and several brothers and sisters. Throughout the next period of her life, Letitia contributed poetry to Saint John, N.B., papers and to magazines in Scotland and Ireland. The collection of her poetry was published in 1869.
Late in 1855, she remarried. The New Brunswick Courier of 4 Jan. 1856 carries the announcement:
married Monday evening 31 December [1855] by Rev. A. McLeod Stavely, David Simson, Cupar, Fife, Scotland/Mrs. Letitia Picket, daughter of the late ... James Agnew of Saint John city.
Stavely, as already mentioned, was the Reformed Presbyterian minister of Saint John, and David Simson was a Reformed Presbyterian layman. There must have been children born to Letitia, now Mrs. Simson. And there was death in that family. On 19 January 1864, this newspaper announcement:
On Friday night, 15th [Jan. 1864] David Henry, youngest son of David and Letitia Simson, aged 1 year and 6 months.
Death - even tragic death - seemed to be Letitia's quite consistent companion. She wrote a poem "on the death of a brother, who was accidentally shot by a companion, at Red Head, [N.B.]."
Letitia was to be left a widow for a second time, though when David Simson died is not known. It seems clear that Letitia left Saint John and settled in Boston in the late 1870s. Perhaps it was as an indirect result of the Great Fire in that city in 1877.
We have very little information about Letitia's life in Boston. There is this one detail, carried in a Saint John newspaper in December 1882:
Mrs. Letitia F. Simson, has an appeal in the Georgetown (Mass.) Advocate in favor of the erection of a Home for Friendless Women. General Butler, Mayor Green, Collector Worthington, Gen. Sherman, and other notables are on the committee in aid of the object.
Perhaps Letitia's own life experiences had prepared her to understand the plight of 'friendless women.'
Letitia died on 6 February 1885, approximately sixty years old. There is another announcement in the Saint John press.
Mrs. Simson was known to a great many readers of the local press by her poetic contributions.... They gave evidence that the writer possessed a tender and sympathetic nature. Sometimes she dealt with a patriotic theme or public event, in the treatment of which she displayed poetic fervour. Her friends everywhere will hear with regret of her death.
My Kingston Peninsula Home
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