Cromwell, James H. R. (James Henry Roberts), 1896-

The Smith, Farrington, and Cromwell families were allied families residing in the northeastern United States, with certain family members residing in New York City, Brooklyn, and Queens. The common ancestor of the Smith and Farrington families was Thomas Bowne, who was born in England in 1595. His descendant, Mary Bowne (1723-1805), married John Farrington (d. 1783) in 1749. Their son, George Farrington (1750-1825), lived in the town of Flushing in Queens, and had several children, among them Catharine (1784-1856), Maria (1786-1857), Caroline, Edmund, and Jane (Farrington) Willets. Catharine Farrington married Elihu Smith (1771-1824?) of New Bedford in Bristol County, MA, in 1814. They later resided in New York City and had three children, including Jane (1816-1858), Maria (b. 1818), and Thomas T. (1820-1883?). Thomas T. Smith owned a hardware store at 89 Duane Street in New York City and lived at 123 Pierrepont Street in Brooklyn. In 1848, he married Sarah B. Cromwell, the daughter of David and Rebecca Cromwell of Orange Couny, N.Y. Sarah's brother, James Cromwell, served in the Civil War as a Captain and Major in the 124th New York Infantry Regiment, as well as a Captain in the 2nd New York Cavalry Regiment, but was killed before the War's end. Sarah had several other siblings, among them Maria Cromwell and Anna (Cromwell) Field. Sarah and Thomas T. Smith's son, Percival Cromwell Smith, was a New York City lawyer who resided in Brooklyn with his wife, Florence Kimball Cheney, the daughter of Francis W. and Florence Kimball Cheney of Boston.

From the guide to the Smith, Farrington, and Cromwell families papers, circa 1780 to 1935, (Brooklyn Historical Society)