Biography of the Clift Family
Capt. Amos Clift was born May 27, 1769 in Preston, Connecticut and died November 15, 1818 in Mystic, Connecticut. He was son of Amos Clift (1737-1806) of Marshfield, Massachusetts and Mary Coit (1739-1797) of Preston, Connecticut. He was married to Esther Williams (b. 1772) on September 28, 1791, and had three children, Lydia, Denison and Lemuel. Esther died in 1798 and Amos married Thankful Denison (b. 1780) on August 4, 1798, and had eight children, Margery, Amos, Esther, John C., Waterman, Horatio, Frederick, and Nancy. Amos Clift and his brother Nathaniel (1775-1837) were shipmasters engaged in coastal and West Indies trade. Amos was captain of the schooners POLLY and AMELIA , smack ROVER and brig LYON. Capt. Amos Clift’s son Amos (1805-1878) was a probate judge and was actively involved in Mystic town affairs. Waterman Clift (1809-1890), another son of Capt. Amos Clift, was also a shipmaster. Waterman was captain of the U.S. transport HAZE that made regular trips between New York City and Newbern, North Carolina during the Civil War. Captain Amos’ grandchildren include Edmund Clift, Esq. (b. 1842) who was a prominent lawyer in Mystic and conservator for the Denison family; Charles W. Clift (1840-1925) who was Chief Engineer on the U.S. steamboat UNDILLA and Amos Clift (1830-1887) who was a lighthouse keeper in San Francisco, California and then served as a lieutenant in the Civil War.
Restrictions
Restrictions on Access
Available for use in the Manuscripts Division
Restrictions on Use
Various copying restriction apply. Guidelines are available from the Manuscripts Division.
Index Terms
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the G. W. Blunt White Library. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.
Persons:
Beebe, Silas
Burroughs, Warren
Burrows, Enoch
Clift, Amos, 1737-1806
Clift, Amos, 1769-1818
Clift, Amos, 1805-1878
Clift, Amos, 1830-1887
Clift, Charles W., 1840-1925
Clift, Edmund, 1842-1906
Clift, Frederick D., 1815-1864
Clift, Hiram, b. 1803
Clift, Horace H., 1821-1886
Clift, Ira H., b. 1818
Clift, Isaac D., 1824-1892
Clift, Lemuel, b. 1834
Clift, Nathan
Clift, Nathaniel, 1775-1837
Clift, Thankful, 1780-1861
Clift, Waterman, 1809-1890
Daboll family
Denison family
Fish, Asa
Fitch, Joseph
Greenman family
Holmes, Joseph Warren
Huntington, Jed
Irons, Dexter
Miner, Ephraim
Williams, William
Corporate Bodies (Including Vessels):
Amelia (Schooner)
America (Ship)
Andrew Jackson (Ship)
Betsey (Schooner)
Bolina (Schooner)
Dispatch (Schooner)
Eleanor (Yacht)
Fox (Sloop)
Gallant (Sloop)
Genius (Brig)
Hamilton (Ship)
Haze (Ship)
Helvetia (Ship)
Hope (Schooner)
Hudson (Ship)
Iris (Bark)
John Enders (Brig)
Lyon (Brig)
Osprey (Brig)
Polly (Schooner)
Rebecca (Sloop)
Revenue (Sloop)
Rover (Smack)
Shepherdess (Bark)
Spermaciti (Sloop)
Tampico (Brig)
Washington (Ship)
William C. Nye (Ship)
Places:
Mystic (Conn.)–Politics and government
United States–Commerce–West Indies
West Indies–Commerce–United States
Subjects:
Coastwise shipping–Atlantic Coast (U.S.)
International trade
Probate courts–Connecticut–Groton
Sails
Ships–Equipment and supplies
Document Types:
Bills of sale
Charter-parties
Daybooks
Deeds
Ledgers
Mortgages
Ship’s papers
Occupations:
Dairy farmers–Connecticut–Mystic
Judges–Connecticut–Groton
Lawyers–Connecticut
Lighthouse keepers–California–San Francisco
Marine engineers
Sailmakers–Connecticut–Mystic
Shipmasters–Connecticut–Mystic Soldiers
Administrative Information
Coll. 65, Manuscripts Collection, G. W. Blunt White Library, Mystic Seaport Museum, Inc.
Indexes
Detailed Description of the Collection
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.
| Papers of Capt. Amos Clift (1768-1818) and Amos Clift; 1800-1879 | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Indenture of lease, letters, bonds, bills, etc. relating to Amos Cheesebrough, Amos Clift, Ephraim Miner, the sloop REBECCA, and schooner POLLY; 1716, 1749-1799 | |||||||||||
| 2 | Letters, bills of lading, crew list, bills, and accounts of Capt. Amos Clift and the schooner POLLY; 1800 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Agreements, receipts, and accounts of Capt. Amos Clift and the schooners DISPATCH and POLLY; 1801 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Bills, receipts, accounts, certificates, general clearance document, and articles of agreement of Capt. Amos Clift, Nathan Clift, the sloop REVENUE and schooner AMELIA; 1802 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Accounts, bills, receipts, repairs to schooner, letters, etc. of Amos Clift, Enoch Burrows, and the schooner AMELIA; 1803 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Bills, receipts, accounts, bill of sale, registry certificate, etc. of Amos Clift, Enoch Burrows, the brig GENIUS, and schooner AMELIA; 1804 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Accounts, bills, receipts and disbursements, etc. of Capt. Amos Clift, Enoch Burrows, Nathaniel Clift, the brig GENIUS, schooner HOPE, and schooner AMELIA; 1805 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | Receipts, accounts, bills, crew lists, cargo invoice, etc. of Capt. Amos Clift, Nathaniel Clift, Enoch Burrows, the brig LYON, and schooner AMELIA; 1806 | ||||||||||||
| 9 | Bills, protests, accounts, bills of lading, receipts, letters, certificates, customs documents of Capt. Amos Clift, Enoch Burrows, Jed Huntington, William Williams, and the brig LYON; 1807 | ||||||||||||
| 10 | Business letters, debt settlement receipts, charter party, etc. of Capt. Amos Clift, Thankful Clift, William Williams, and the brig LYON; 1808-1809 | ||||||||||||
| 11 | Receipts, bills, promissory notes, real estate bills of sale, disbursements, bills of lading, etc. of Capt. Amos Clift, Silas Beebe, and the smack ROVER; 1809-1815 | ||||||||||||
| 12 | Receipts, disbursements, bills, accounts, articles of agreement, estate papers, etc. of Capt. Amos Clift, Thankful Clift, Asa Fish, the sloop FOX, and schooner BETSEY; 1816-1826 | ||||||||||||
| 13 | Letters of Capt. Amos Clift; ca. 1810-1815 | ||||||||||||
| 14 | Receipts and disbursements of Capt. Amos Clift and the smack REVENUE; undated | ||||||||||||
| 15 | Property deeds, mortgages, and leases; 1816-1887 | ||||||||||||
| Papers of Judge Amos Clift, and Edmund Clift; 1834-1912 | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 2 | 1 | Bills and receipts of Judge Amos Clift and the Daboll family; 1834-1850 | |||||||||||
| 2 | Business and family letters of Judge Amos Clift; 1840-1912 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Probate court documents, of Judge Amos Clift, Asa Fish, and the Daboll family; 1851-1855 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Probate letters and Groton court documents of Judge Amos Clift, Warren Burroughs, the Daboll family, and the whaleship WASHINGTON; 1856 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Personal letter from Amos Clift (IV), probate letters, notes, documents of Judge Amos Clift, the Daboll family, and Joseph Fitch; 1857-1862 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Civil War papers, probate letters, and documents relating to Judge Amos Clift, and the Williams, Fish, Greenman, and other families, the Elm Grove Cemetery, and the clipper ship ANDREW JACKSON; 1858-1863 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Bills and probate documents, etc., of Judge Amos Clift, and Silas Burrows; 1864-1869 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | Probate letters and documents of Judge Amos Clift; 1868 | ||||||||||||
| 9 | Probate letter and documents of Judge Amos Clift; 1869 | ||||||||||||
| 10 | Letters and probate court documents of Judge Amos Clift; 1870-1879 | ||||||||||||
| 11 | Probate letters and documents of Judge Amos Clift; 1871 | ||||||||||||
| 12 | Probate letters and documents of Judge Amos Clift; 1872 | ||||||||||||
| 13 | Probate letters and documents of Judge Amos Clift; 1875 | ||||||||||||
| 14 | Probate letters and documents of Judge Amos Clift; 1876 | ||||||||||||
| 15 | Household receipts, bills, accts, etc. of E.C.H. Denison, Mrs. D.W. Denison, Daniel Denison, James Denison, Edmund Clift, and the yacht ELEANOR; 1855-1888 | ||||||||||||
| 16 | Household receipts, bills etc. of Edmund Clift, and Eleanor Denison and family; 1889 | ||||||||||||
| 17 | Household receipts, bills etc. of the Denison family, Edmund Clift, conservator; 1890-1891 | ||||||||||||
| Documents and letters of Charles, Hiram, Edmund, Horace, Isaac D. and Waterman Clift. Miscellaneous family papers; 1827-1920 | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 3 | 1 | Whaleman’s Temperance Pledge and slop chest list, of Capt. Hiram Clift and the brig OSPREY, bark IRIS, bark SHEPHERDESS, and sloop SPERMACITI; 1835-1849 | |||||||||||
| 2 | Bills of sale for various vessels relating to Waterman Clift; 1836-1855 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Bill of sale and marine insurance policy relating to Waterman Clift and the schooner BOLINA; 1836-1837 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Deeds, leases, and personal letters relating to Waterman Clift, and ship’s papers for ship HAZE; 1827-1890 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Unbound journal/account book pages and personal letters of Charles H. Clift; 1868-1869 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Bills, receipts, cow pedigrees, roads and highway memoranda, John Mason Monument letters of Horace Clift, and papers relating to Clift’s Aerating Churn; 1874-1886 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Letters, and Union Baptist newspaper clippings of Horace Clift and Lemuel Clift; 1884-1885 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | Receipts, bills, letters, deeds, of Horace Clift and Eunice Riley, G.A.R. Post Chaplain’s Memorial Day Report; 1886-1920 | ||||||||||||
| 9 | Bills and receipts relating to Folger Clift, Frederick Clift, Ira Clift, Mrs. Frances Clift, and Lemuel Clift; 1839-1888 | ||||||||||||
| 10 | Miscellaneous material relative to the Clift family; 1800-1900 | ||||||||||||
| 11 | Pamphlets, brochures, booklets, and political flyers; 1840-1870 | ||||||||||||
| 12 | Newspaper clippings about Capt. Joseph Warren Holmes and others; 1900-1912 | ||||||||||||
| 13 | Empty envelopes, stamped and addressed to Amos Clift | ||||||||||||
| Volumes, 1800-1877 | |||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 4 | 1 | Vol. 1: Record book of milk bills; 1860 | |||||||||||
| 2 | Vol. 2: Account book of Judge Amos Clift, with the Mystic River National Bank; 1864-1877 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Vol. 3: Account book of the brig LYON, Capt. Amos Clift; 1806 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Vol. 4: Account book of Capt. Amos Clift, master of various vessels; 1800-1807 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Vol. 5: Account book of Judge Amos Clift, for estates of Frederick D. Clift, and Dexter Irons; 1864-1866 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Vol. 6: Account book of Judge Amos Clift; 1848-1849 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Vol. 7: Assessment book of Judge Amos Clift, including the Amos Clift estate with Thankful Clift; 1816-1818 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | Vol. 8: Account book of Capt. Amos Clift; 1802-1815 | ||||||||||||
| 9 | Vol. 9: Account book of Isaac D. Clift, sailmaker; 1853-1875 | ||||||||||||
| 10 | Vol. 10: Assessment record book for the town of Groton, Judge Amos Clift; 1836 | ||||||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
| 5 | 1 | Vol. 11: Journal of the sloop GALLANT of New London, kept by Hiram Clift; 1824-1825 | |||||||||||
| 2 | Vol. 12: Journal of the brig OSPREY, bark IRIS, brig TAMPICO, brig JOHN ENDERS, bark SHEPHERDESS, and ship HUDSON, kept by Capt. Hiram Clift; 1835-1852 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Vol. 13: Account book of the ship WILLIAM C. NYE, ship HAMILTON, ship HELVETIA, ship AMERICA, and bark SHEPHERDESS, kept by Hiram Clift; 1842-1847 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Vol. 14: Journal of the ship HUDSON, kept by Hiram Clift; 1852-1853 | ||||||||||||
| Volume | |||||||||||||
| 15 | Account book of Judge Amos Clift; 1836 | ||||||||||||
| 16 | Day book of Judge Amos Clift; 1841 | ||||||||||||