The original Town of Sudbury was incorporated over 360 years ago in 1639, however, the first permanent Colonial settlements in Sudbury took place in 1638. The original Town of Sudbury was the nineteenth colonial, permanent "Town" within the boundaries of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, but was considered its third "inland" town. The first, in 1635, was the original town of Concord, then and now, the immediate northern neighbor of Sudbury, and the second, in 1636, the original town of Dedham.Our main Eaton line in Sudbury begins when Samuel3 Eaton (Jonathan2, Jonas1) brought his wife Ruth (Russell) and four eldest children from Woburn after 1729 to Sudbury, where Elizabeth was born in 1730/1, and then moved his family to Worcester by 1733, where their other children were born. The older brother, Samuel4 (Samuel3, Jonathan2, Jonas1) moved back to Sudbury later and married the lovely Millicent Wheeler in 1748, leaving many descendants.
The first settlements were in the eastern part of the original Town of Sudbury, where a substantial river (now called the Sudbury River) flowed from south to north through the original Town and gave some protection to those settlers living east of it. The central feature of this typical "Puritan Village" was the church/meeting house in the eastern part of the original town at the site of the old North Cemetery where graves of Eaton ancestors abound.
Interestingly enough, it is said that the town of Sudbury drew its name from settlers who originated in the region of that same name in England, and we find that there was a small settlement called Sudbury based around the manor owned by the de Sudbury family (now Crosshall, part of Eaton Ford).
Eaton Ford was in Anglo Saxon times known as Sudbury, but became known as Eaton Ford as it was next to the village of Eatun, now Eaton Socon. Eaton Ford is part of the town of St Neots in Cambridgeshire, England. Until 1965 it was a separate village in the county of Bedfordshire, when it was absorbed by its larger neighbour. Eaton Ford lies on the west bank of the River Great Ouse, on the western side of St Neots. The old village centre is still identifiable with a triangular village green and several old farmhouses remaining amongst the newer houses.
A castle was built on the riverbank at Eaton (modern Eaton Socon) around 1140AD, apparently without permission of the monarch. It was probably of timber construction and may never have been completed, but the earth mound still exists and can be seen from the path along the opposite bank. The castle was demolished about 15 years later by order of Henry II. The Sudbury manor fell into disrepair in the early 1300s, but traces of the old fields still remain.
Surrounded by living history, the festivities continued late into the evening as dinner and conversation were enjoyed by nearly 50 participants in the dining room of the Clarion Inn. After dinner, Don Eaton made his opening remarks, followed by Lee Swanson, Curator of the Sudbury Historical Society. Last, but certainly not least was Philip Converse, who reported on our EFA DNA study.
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