Person Page - 138

       Ens. Benjamin/1 Cooley, possibly the son of William and Joan Cooley of Trig Parish, St. Albans, Hertfordshire, was born in England circa 1617.¹ A weaver, he came to New England about 1640, and settled at Springfield, MA.¹ He married, by 1643, Sarah (–?–), with whom he had 8 children.^1,2 Chosen for Springfield's second board of selectmen, 3 Nov 1646.³ He was a juror, 1648 and 1654, and took the oath of fidelity 6 Feb 1649.⁴ Chosen a Springfield selectman, 1657 (and 14 other years through 1691).^5,6 He lived in Longmeadow, then a farming hamlet within the plantation of Springfield, later set off as its own township in 1783.⁷ One of 16 petitioners for the establishment of a plantation at Stony River, now Suffield, CT presented to the General Court of Massachusetts Bay, May 1670, and granted the following year. "Not one of the petitioners became a settler, but many of them labored faithfully for more than ten years to fill the complement of settlers, as required by the Grant."⁸ One of six men appointed by the Court, 12 Oct 1670, a committee to order the settlement of Stony River.⁹ He died at Longmeadow, MA, 17 Aug 1684.¹ His wife died there 23 Aug 1684, six days later.¹