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{{Short description|1st and 3rd Mayor of New York City (1665-66, 1667-68)}} |
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{{Infobox Officeholder |
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{{for|the New York fireboat|Thomas Willett (fireboat)}} |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2021}} |
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{{Infobox officeholder |
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|name = Thomas Willett |
|name = Thomas Willett |
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|caption = |
|caption = |
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|order = 1st and 3rd |
|order = 1st and 3rd |
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|office =Mayor of New York City |
|office = Mayor of New York City |
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|term_start = 1665 |
|term_start = June 1665 |
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|term_end = 1666 |
|term_end = June 1666 |
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|governor = |
|governor = |
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|predecessor = ''Office established'' |
|predecessor = ''Office established'' |
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|successor = [[Thomas Delavall]] |
|successor = [[Thomas Delavall]] |
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|term_start2 = 1667 |
|term_start2 = June 1667 |
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|term_end2 = 1668 |
|term_end2 = June 1668 |
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|governor2 = |
|governor2 = |
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|predecessor2 = [[Thomas Delavall]] |
|predecessor2 = [[Thomas Delavall]] |
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|successor2 = [[Cornelius Van Steenwyk]] |
|successor2 = [[Cornelius Van Steenwyk]] |
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|birth_date= |
|birth_date = about 1607 |
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|birth_place |
|birth_place = England or Holland |
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|death_date |
|death_date = {{death date|1674|8|29}} |
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|death_place= [[Swansea, Massachusetts|Swansea]], [[Plymouth Colony]] (now approximately [[ |
|death_place = [[Swansea, Massachusetts|Swansea]], [[Plymouth Colony]] (now approximately [[Riverside, Rhode Island]]) |
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|alma_mater = |
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|residence= |
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|party = |
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|alma_mater= |
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|profession = |
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|signature = Signature of Thomas Willett.png |
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'''Thomas Willett''' ( |
'''Thomas Willett''' ({{circa|1607}}{{snd}}August 29, 1674) was a [[Plymouth Colony]] fur trader, [[merchant]], land purchaser and developer, [[Captain (land)|Captain]] of the Plymouth Colony militia, [[Magistrate]] of the colony, and was the 1st and 3rd [[Mayor of New York City|Mayor of New York]], prior to the consolidation of the five boroughs into the [[New York City|City of New York]] in 1898. |
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== |
==Career== |
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===Plymouth Colony Fur Trade=== |
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The fourth son of English clergyman [[Andrew Willet]], he was born in August 1605, in the rectory-house of [[Barley, Hertfordshire]], and was baptised on the 29th of the same month. He was educated at [[The King's School, Ely]]. His father dying when he was only sixteen years of age, he appears to have continued to reside with his widowed mother and maternal grandmother till he came of age.{{cn|date=July 2017}} Shortly after he went to [[Leyden]], and then in 1629 to the new [[Plymouth Colony]] where he gained the trust of Governor [[William Bradford (Plymouth governor)|William Bradford]]. |
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The early years of the [[Plymouth Colony]] were marked by severe economic crises and challenges.<ref>Bradford.</ref> Incremental progress was made as the colonists learned the Native Americans' method of raising corn and beans, cattle were imported from England and multiplied, and some trade in [[wampum]] and other goods was established. However, the major contribution to placing the colony on a firm financial basis and finally paying its debt to its financial "Adventurers" in London was made by exporting furs, primarily of beaver to be used in making hats.<ref>Bunker.</ref> |
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Willett was placed in charge of the Plymouth Colony's trading post with the Native Americans at Castine in what is now Maine, and there developed the skills in trade and native language which would serve him well. The French forced Plymouth to abandon their operations at Castine in 1635.<ref>Nathaniel Philbrick. (2006) ''Mayflower''. New York: Penguin. p. 168.</ref> |
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The first record of Willett's long career is probably that of [[William Bradford (governor)|William Bradford]] regarding the establishment of a second main trading post for the Plymouth Colony on the Penobscot River in what is now Maine in 1629. The Plymouth Colony was reluctantly joining in this effort, initiated by [[Isaac Allerton]], in order to protect their established trading post on the Kennebunk River. Willett is thought to be the "honest young man" recently arrived with the second and last major group from [[John Robinson (pastor)|John Robinson's]] [[Leiden|Leyden]] congregation<ref>Bradford (for year 1629), pp. 213–215.</ref> who was given the task of monitoring the activities of Edward Ashley, the man placed in charge of the trading post by Allerton. This "young man being discreet, and one (Willett) whom they could trust, they so instructed as kept Ashley ... within bounds".<ref>Bradford (for year 1629), pp. 219–220.</ref> It is definitely known that Willett, among others, was deposed and Ashley and the depositions were transported to England for trial<ref>[https://www.jstor.org/stable/25080004?refreqid=excelsior%3A8ca5d524f7738c2efdbb579cc7e192b0&seq=80#metadata_info_tab_contents ''State Papers, Colonial''], '''VI''': 40, Public Record Office, London; as transcribed in ''Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society'' Third. Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society. '''45''' (February 1912): 493–498.</ref> in July 1631 after Ashley was arrested and accused of trading arms and ammunition with Native Americans.<ref>Bradford (for year 1630), pp. 232–233, in his account for the year 1630.</ref> |
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Willett married Mary, daughter of John Brown(e), Sr., a leading citizen of the Plymouth Colony. He moved with the Brown(e) family from Plymouth westward to the eastern shores of Narragansett Bay to Wannamoisett, near present-day Barrington, Rhode Island, and became a major merchant, trading with [[New Amsterdam]].<ref>Nathaniel Philbrick. (2006) ''Mayflower''. New York: Penguin. p. 185.</ref> He was elected one of the assistant governors of the Plymouth colony, and acted as arbitrator in disputes between the English and Dutch colonies. He eventually became the Plymouth Colony's chief military officer.<ref>Nathaniel Philbrick. (2006) ''Mayflower''. New York: Penguin. p. 200.</ref> |
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In 1631, the trading post was robbed of just about anything of value by the French while the "master of the house" was away meeting a supply ship.<ref>Bradford (for year 1631), p. 246.</ref> Willett was in charge of the trading post when the French again robbed it in 1635 and evicted the English; a subsequent effort to recapture it using a ship commanded by a Captain Girling was futile, and the colony gave up the Penobscot post permanently.<ref>Bradford (for year 1635), pp. 275–279.</ref> An account of the expulsion of the English from Penobscot and the subsequent attempt to regain it from the French point of view exists in a letter from Sieur D'Aulney to Governor [[John Endecott]] of Massachusetts.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/s3collections07massuoft/page/92/mode/1up?view=theater "Sieur D'Aulney's Letter to Mr. Endecott, Governor". ''Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society'' Third. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown. '''VII''': 92–95. 1838.]</ref> Willett's early and continuing experiences in the fur trade provided valuable skills in native languages and frontier trade for use in his later career.<ref>Philbrick, p. 168.</ref> |
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Accompanying the English commander [[Richard Nicolls]], he contributed to the peaceable surrender of New Amsterdam to the English on September 7, 1664. |
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Willett remained active in the colony's remaining fur trading efforts, including being appointed to a committee in 1637 to advise the governor concerning the decline in the trade,<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n83/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''I''' (June 7, 1637): 62.]</ref> and in 1649 and again in 1656, with others, taking over the remaining trading post on the Kennebunk River.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/144/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''II''' (June 8, 1649): 144–145] and [https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/n108/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''III''' (March 5, 1655/6): 95].</ref> He probably spent little time at the Kennebunk River trading post given his other activities, but Winthrop<ref>[https://archive.org/details/winthropsjournal00wint/page/322/mode/1up?q=willett Winthrop, pp. 322–323.]</ref> recorded one incident where a potential theft or worse by some Native Americans was thwarted by Willett in 1639. |
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When the colony received the name of New York, Willett was appointed the first mayor (12 June 1665) and a commissioner of admiralty on August 23,<ref>Edwin Burrows and Mike Wallace. (1999) ''[[Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898]]''. New York: Oxford. p. 78.</ref> with the approval of English and Dutch alike. The next year he was elected alderman, and became mayor a second time in 1667. |
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===Landowner in Plymouth=== |
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Shortly after he withdrew to Swansea, and here, after having lost his first wife, he married Joanna Boyse, the widow of clergyman, Reverend Peter Prudden. He was a member of the New York governor's executive council from 1665 to 1672 under [[Richard Lovelace]]. He retired in 1673, and died in 1674, at the age of sixty-nine. He was buried in the [[Little Neck Cemetery]] at Bullock's Cove, Riverside area of East Providence, Rhode Island. In his religious views, Willett was an [[Independent (religion)|independent]].{{cn|date=July 2017}} |
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Willett was "Admitted to the freedom of this society" (i.e., recognized as a full citizen, or "freeman") in [[Calendar (New Style) Act 1750|1633/4]]<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n42/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''I''' (January 1, 1633/4): 21.]</ref> and married Mary Browne on July 6, 1636.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n64/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''I''' (July 6, 1636): 43.]</ref> He received several grants of land from the colony in [[Calendar (New Style) Act 1750|1638/9]] and 1640<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n132/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''I''' (February 4, 1638/9): 111–112]; [https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n175/mode/1up '''I''' (June 1, 1640): 154]; and [https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n187/mode/1up '''I''' (November 4, 1640): 166.]</ref> plus six acres in 1640 for a houselot.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n180/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''I''' (August 3, 1640): 159.]</ref> As the years passed, he assumed more and more responsibility in the colony including becoming the co-captain of the colony's military company (with [[Myles Standish]]) in [[Calendar (New Style) Act 1750|1647/8]];<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/121/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''II''' (March 7, 1647/8): 121.]</ref> he remained in this post after Standish retired and for almost all of the remainder of his life. His initial appointment as Assistant to the Governor was in 1651;<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/166/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''II''' (June 5, 1651): 166.]</ref> and he was reappointed to that post many times in the following years.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/249/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''III''': 249] and [https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/216/mode/1up '''IV''': 216].</ref> |
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===Merchant and Land Development=== |
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Willett's initial beginning as a merchant in addition to the continuing involvement in the fur trade may have come in 1641/2 when he furnished a sixteenth portion of the construction cost to build a 40–50 ton [[Barque|bark]]<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/31/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''II''' (January 23, 1641/2): 31.]</ref> (ship). In time he became the major merchant in the lucrative trade with the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam<ref>Philbrick, pp. 199–200.</ref> (later New York) where his early knowledge of the Dutch language and customs was of great advantage. His later merchant activities included at least some trade with Virginia and across the Atlantic.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/historyofstateof01brod_0/page/n552/mode/1up?q=willett Brodhead, John Romeyn (1853). ''History of the state of New York.'' New York: Harper & Brothers. '''I''': 525 (footnote).]</ref> |
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Willett's abilities in the native languages led to his becoming a trusted translator and to establishing friendships among the Native Americans, particularly with the principal leaders of the [[Pokanoket]]s,<ref>Philbrick, p. 197.</ref> who were led successively by [[Massasoit]], and his sons [[Wamsutta]] (or Alexander) and [[Metacom]] (known as Prince Phillip). (The Pokanokets today are usually referred to as members of a larger group of Native Americans, the [[Wampanoag]].) The colony's desire for more land to accommodate its growing population and the desire for more economic activity, combined with the Pokanokets' desire for English goods, led to a series of land purchases from them, notably in the western part of the colony. Willett's father-in-law, John Browne, was among the founders of Taunton<ref>[https://archive.org/details/historicalmemoir01bayl/page/289/mode/1up Baylies, '''I''': 289.]</ref> in 1640, and Browne's and Willett's involvement continued in further purchases along and near the eastern coast and northern reaches of [[Narragansett Bay]]. Willett had moved to this western area of the colony and became involved in the affairs of [[Rehoboth, Massachusetts|Rehoboth]] by the early 1650s, serving in numerous capacities,<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/3/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''III''' and '''IV'''.]</ref> particularly after the death of Browne in 1662. Willett was authorized to purchase further land from the Native Americans in 1662<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/18/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''IV''' (June 3, 1662): 18.]</ref> and again in 1668 and 1669;<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/175/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''IV''' (March 5, 1667/8): 175] and [https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo05newp/page/24/mode/1up '''V''' (July 5, 1669): 24.]</ref> these purchases led enlargement of Rehoboth and Swansey ([[Swansea, Massachusetts|Swansea]], originally Wannamoisett<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/175/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''IV''' (March 5, 1667/8): 175]</ref>). An example of a deed between the Native Americans and a group of purchasers involving Browne and Willett can be found in a history of the town of Swansea.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/historyofswansea00wrig/page/41/mode/1up Wright, pp. 41-2.]</ref> An extensive history of the early land purchases in Pokanoket area, including those involving Willett, has been compiled by Bicknell<ref>[https://archive.org/details/sowamswithancien00bick/page/n8/mode/1up Bicknell]</ref> including a map showing historical names.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/sowamswithancien00bick/page/n162/mode/1up Pokanoket area, Bicknell, p. 124.]</ref> |
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Willett became a part owner with other prominent men, including his father-in-law and a son-in-law, John Saffin, of a large development consortium, the [[Atherton Trading Company|Atherton Company]], leading to interests in properties in a number of the early New England towns.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/profitsinwildern00mart/mode/2up?q=willett Martin, pp. 70 and 80.] (restricted access available online)</ref> Willett was appointed with others to settle a dispute between the colonies of Plymouth and Rhode Island over ownership of [[Hog Island (Rhode Island)|Hog Island]] in Narragansett Bay in 1658/9.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/n170/mode/1up?q=hog Shurleff (March 1, 1658/9): '''III''': 157.]</ref> |
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Willett's trade with [[New Nederland]] led to further involvement with that colony. In 1650 he was entrusted, along with the English secretary to [[Peter Stuyvesant]], to represent New Nederland in settling its border with the English colony of [[Connecticut Colony|Connecticut]]<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/162/mode/1up Burgess, p. 162.]</ref> (this link shows the 1650 boundary established, along with those of later surveys,<ref>[[:File:Ctcolony.png|Connecticut historical survey map]]</ref> see also [[New Haven Colony]]). |
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===English Acquisition of New Amsterdam from the Dutch=== |
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Accompanying the English commander [[Richard Nicolls]], Willett contributed to the peaceable surrender of [[New Amsterdam]] to the English on September 7, 1664. Willett had informed the Dutch that an expedition by the English was pending, and he was a member of the English party that entered New Amsterdam under a flag of truce on September 2 to attempt to persuade Governor Stuyvesant and the Dutch to surrender peacefully.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/163/mode/1up Burgess, p. 163.]</ref> This eventually happened. |
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Largely because of his knowledge of the native languages, Willett very soon thereafter accompanied a successful negotiating party north to the [[Iroquois]] to secure for the English the excellent relations that the Iroquois had maintained with the Dutch. Colonel Richard Nicholls, who was given command of the transfer from Dutch to English governance, sent a request to [[Thomas Prence]], then governor of the Plymouth Colony, that Willett be relieved of his duties to that colony so that he could assist in the transfer. His letter stated that "Mr. Willett was more acquainted with the manners and customs of the Dutch than any English man in the country, and that his conversation was very acceptable to them". This request was granted and Willett resigned his official duties with Plymouth.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/163/mode/1up Burgess, p. 163.]</ref> |
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When the colony was reorganized with the name of New York, Willett was appointed the first mayor of the town (June 1665) with the approval of the English and Dutch alike; he had apparently maintained a residence in New Amsterdam for some years<ref>Burrows and Wallace, p. 78.</ref> in addition to his long-establish trading relationships. The next year he was elected alderman, and became mayor again for another year in mid-1667. He was a member of the New York governor's executive council at times from 1665 to 1672 under [[Francis Lovelace]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=Jj8OAAAAIAAJ&q=willett&pg=PA665 Brodhead, John Romeyn (1871). ''History of the state of New York.'' New York: Harper & Brothers. '''II''': 144.]</ref> |
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===Return to Plymouth and legacy=== |
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One of the greatest services Willett provided to the colony for many years, along with his father-in-law John Browne, was maintenance of good relations<ref>Philbrick, pp. 197, 213–214, and 315–316.</ref> with the Pokanokets whose main village was near Rehoboth, close to Mt. Hope. The relations with the colony soured with Willett's absences to New York and for his other merchant activities, and even more so after his death. The military affairs of the colony were increasingly assumed by [[Josiah Winslow]], who pursued a much more aggressive approach. Alexander, Massasoit's eldest son who had become the leader of the Pokanokets, died while in the custody of Winslow in 1662.<ref>Philbrick, pp. 200–206.</ref> Philip, the next eldest son, then became the Pokanoket's leader; relations eventually deteriorated to the point of open warfare between the English colonies and most of the New England tribes in 1675. This became known as [[King Philip's War]]. |
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After his first term as New York mayor, Willett apparently spent time in Rehoboth in early 1667 where he was appointed Captain of the town's militia<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/145/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''IV''' (April 2, 1667): 145.]</ref> and was the principal in the establishment of the Township of Swansea.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/historyofswansea00wrig/page/47/mode/1up Wright, pp. 47–51.]</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/169/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''IV''' (October 30, 1667), p. 169.]</ref> Swansea was originally part of Rehoboth; they divided after a Baptist congregation originally led by [[Obadiah Holmes]], and subsequently by [[John Myles (minister)|John Myles]], arose and had differences with the existing congregation of the town.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/historyofswansea00wrig/page/3/mode/1up Wright, p. 3.]</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=3qHVAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA30 Jones, John (August 1880). "John Myles and his Times". ''Baptist Quarterly Review''. New York: The Boston Review Association. '''X''' (January 1888): 43-6.]</ref> Among other things, the members of the Baptist congregation were heavily fined for setting up their own congregation and not attending services at the established church.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/162/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''IV''' (July 2, 1667): 162.]</ref> After Swansea was officially recognized, a small group led by Willett was given control over who was allowed to set up residence in the new town.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/historyofswansea00wrig/page/47/mode/1up Wright, pp. 47-9.]</ref> Although Willett's brother-in-law, James Browne, was probably the most prominent lay member of the Baptist congregation,<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/162/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''IV''' (July 2, 1667): 162.]</ref> and Willett was deeply involved in establishing it as a separate and recognized congregation, Willett actually may not have been a member of the congregation. Such limited religious tolerance evidently was not extended to Quakers; Willett reportedly was among a group of magistrates condoning a severe whipping of two Quakers in 1658.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandjudged00bishuoft/page/140/mode/1up Bishop, George (1703). ''New England Judged.'' London: T. Sowle. '''I''', 136.]</ref> |
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After having lost his first wife, Willett married Joanna Boyse in September 1671.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/peterpruddenstor00prud/page/56/mode/1up Prudden, Lillian Eliza (1901). ''Peter Prudden: a story of his life and New Haven and Milford, Conn.'' New Haven, Conn.: Tuttle, Morehouse and Taylor. p. 56.]</ref> |
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Willett was a given a "halbert" ([[halberd]]) in December 1673<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo05newp/page/136/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''V''' (December 17, 1673): 136.]</ref> when an expedition against the Dutch in New Orange was contemplated. The Dutch had briefly conquered New York and changed the name to New Orange (the name reverted to New York after the Dutch signed a peace treaty in February 1674).<ref>Burrows and Wallace, pp. 82–83.</ref> This is the last record of Willett's activity in the colony. |
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Willett left a large estate as evidenced by the inventory compiled for probate.<ref>[http://www.histarch.illinois.edu/plymouth/P231.htm THE INVENTORY OF THOMAS WILLETT.] ''The Plymouth Colony Archive Project''.</ref> When the Dutch recaptured New York in 1673, Willet's holdings along with those of the other English landowners there were confiscated; he died shortly thereafter and these holdings were never restored.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/164/mode/1up Burgess, p. 164.]</ref> Even with these losses, Willett died one of the wealthiest men in the colony as can be seen from the lengthy inventory. Although no record appears to exist indicating that Willett participated in the slave trade, the inventory of his estate indicates ownership of eight negro slaves when he died. The Plymouth court later decided to grant freedom after two years additional service to one of Willett's slaves who had been taken prisoner during King Philip's war and later returned to Willett's heirs.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo05newp/page/216/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''V''' (November 1, 1676): 216.]</ref> Willett's will left the bulk of his estate to be divided among his sons (including Samuel Hooker, married to his daughter, Mary), along with more minor bequests to his unmarried daughters, grandchildren, an old servant, schools, churches, and the pastor, John Myles.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/159/mode/1up Burgess, p. 159.]</ref> Willett's will was made in April 1671, prior to his second marriage. |
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==Family== |
==Family== |
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Willett was connected by marriage to the family of John Brown(e), shipbuilder, perennial political office holder, founder of several towns, and one of the wealthiest men in the Plymouth Colony. Although Brown(e)'s origins are uncertain and subject to present debate, he evidently was very well connected in England, as near the end of his life he returned there for several years as executor of the estate of Sir [[Henry Vane the Elder]]; the Sir Henry Vanes, elder and younger, played major roles in England at the time of the [[English Civil War]]. The Brown(e) family also had ties to earliest Plymouth through the marriage of John Brown(e)'s son, James, to Lydia Howland, daughter of [[John Howland]], one of the Mayflower passengers; Howland collaborated in Willett's early fur-trading efforts.<ref>Nathaniel Philbrick. (2006) [[Mayflower]]. New York: Penguin.</ref> |
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Willett's son, [[Thomas Willett (son)|Thomas Willett]], was a major in the militia of [[Queens County, New York|Queens County]] and a councillor under Governors [[Sir Edmund Andros]] and [[Henry Sloughter]]. Mary Willett, eldest daughter of Capt. Thomas Willett and his wife Mary, married in 1658 Rev. [[Samuel Hooker]], son of Rev. [[Thomas Hooker]], Puritan divine and founder of [[Hartford, Connecticut]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=r17mNhtcPRwC&pg=PA231 The Descendants of Rev. Thomas Hooker, 1586–1908, Edward Hooker, Margaret Huntington Hooker, Rochester, N.Y., 1909]</ref> |
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===Ancestry and Transport=== |
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Some have claimed that his great-grandson was [[Marinus Willett]], who also served as Mayor of [[New York City|New York]], from 1807-1808. This claim has been refuted by E. Haviland Hillman in an article published in The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, Volume 47 at 119, published in April 1916.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=jNcUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA119 E. Haviland Hillman, "Ancestry of Colonel Marius Willett" ''The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record'', Volume 47 at 119 (April 1916)]</ref> |
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[[File:Coat of Arms of Thomas Willett.svg|175px|thumb|left|Coat of Arms of Thomas Willett]] |
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The origins of Thomas Willett are not known for certain and are subject to some debate. The most commonly encountered description of his early life from the ''[[Dictionary of National Biography]]''<ref>[https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofnati61stepuoft/page/292/mode/1up Stephen, Leslie, Sir (1900–5). "Willett, Thomas". ''Dictionary of National Biography''. New York: Macmillan. '''LXI''': 292.]</ref> describes him as the fourth son of the English clergyman [[Andrew Willet]]. The germ of this description may have come from the pedigree of Willett's descendants published in 1848,<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhisto11unkngoog/page/n390/mode/1up?view=theater "The Willet Family".] |
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''New England Historical and Genealogical Register''. Boston: Samuel G. Drake. '''II''' (October 1848): |
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376. 1848.</ref> which offered the theory that this Thomas may have descended from Andrew Willet because the Willett name is rare. A differing opinion exists in Dexter's compilation of the Leyden congregation in the appendix of his work, ''England and Holland of the Pilgrims''.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/englandhollandof00dextuoft/page/639/mode/1up Dexter, p. 639.]</ref> This indicates that Willett was the son of Thomas and Alice Willet of the Leyden congregation. The respective merits of these opinions are discussed by Burgess.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/158/mode/1up Burgess, pp. 158–159.]</ref> |
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There is general agreement that Willett came over to the Plymouth Colony with the second wave of the Leyden congregation in 1629. There is disagreement however over whether or not he went back to England shortly thereafter for the trial of Edward Ashley who was accused of trading weapons and ammunition to Native Americans. The evidence that this might have been the case is based upon a listing of passengers on the ship Lyon which sailed from London on June 22, 1632, with William Pierce as Master as given by Charles Edward Banks in his ''Planters of the Commonwealth''.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/plantersofcommon00bank/page/99/mode/1up Banks, Charles Edward (1930). ''Planters of the Commonwealth''. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. pp. 99–100.]</ref> This list includes Thomas Willett along with the family of his future father-in-law, John Browne, including Willett's future wife, Mary. However, an examination of the original source material by [[Samuel Gardner Drake]], published in 1860,<ref>[https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=hvd.hn4ns5&view=1up&seq=68 Drake, Samuel Gardner (1860). ''Result of some researches among the British archives for information relative to the founders of New England''. Boston: Office of the New Eng. Hist. and Gen. Register. p. 12.]</ref> indicates that the original record for the ship sailing to England on that date listed only a few names of the passengers, including only a "Tobie" Willet and a "Jo:" Browne (but no other Brownes). This and the indication<ref>[https://www.jstor.org/stable/25080004?refreqid=excelsior%3A8ca5d524f7738c2efdbb579cc7e192b0&seq=80#metadata_info_tab_contents ''State Papers, Colonial''], '''VI''': 40, Public Record Office, London; as transcribed in ''Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society'' Third. Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society. '''45''' (February 1912): 493–498.</ref> that only the depositions of Willett and others accompanied Ashley back to England for his trial are contrary to Banks' passenger list. |
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===Family in the Plymouth Colony and Descendants=== |
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Willett's parents and siblings were evidently left behind when he emigrated to Plymouth in 1629. His family life thereafter centered around that of his wife's family. Willett married Mary, daughter of John Browne (Sr.),<ref>[https://archive.org/details/johnbrownegentle00brow/page/n4/mode/1up Brown, George Tilden (1919). ''John Browne, Gentleman of Plymouth.'' Providence: Remington Press.]</ref> a leading citizen of the Plymouth Colony, and Browne's wife, Dorothy, in 1636. He moved with the Brown(e) family from Plymouth westward, originally to the Taunton area by the 1650s, and later to the eastern shores of [[Narragansett Bay]] to Wannamoisett, near present-day Barrington, Rhode Island. Willett had substantial business dealings with Browne (Sr.) and later increasingly, especially between 1656 and 1660 when Browne (Sr.) is believed to have been in England,<ref>[https://archive.org/details/johnbrownegentle00brow/page/19/mode/1up Brown, p. 19.]</ref> with Browne's two sons, John (Jr.) and James. Another family connection was with Willett's early co-worker in the fur trade, [[John Howland]]. Howland's daughter, Lydia, married James Browne and Howland's widow, [[Elizabeth Tilley|Elizabeth]], was living with James and Lydia Broowne's family when she died. Both John Browne (Sr.) and John Browne (Jr.) died in 1662, the son ten days before the father. |
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The children of Thomas and Mary Willet, as compiled from several sources, were:<ref>[https://www.colonialsociety.org/node/58#paper-p358 Saffin, John. ''Personal Manuscript.'' (As reported by Abner C. Goodell Jr.), Colonial Society of Massachusetts '''I''': Transactions (1892–1894), (April 1894), (58): 358–360.]</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhisto11unkngoog/page/n390/mode/1up?view=theater "The Willet Family".] ''New England Historical and Genealogical Register''. Boston: Samuel G. Drake. '''II''' (October 1848): 376. 1848.</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/details/johnbrownegentle00brow/page/27/mode/1up Brown, pp. 27–28.]</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/details/genealogicaldict00aust/page/428/mode/1up Austin, p. 428]</ref> |
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*Mary, b. November 10, 1637, d. June 24, 1712, married Rev. Samuel Hooker (son of [[Thomas Hooker|Rev. Thomas Hooker]]) in 1658, remarried Rev. Thomas Buckingham in 1703. |
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*Martha, b. August 6, 1639, d. 1678, married [[John Saffin]] in 1658. |
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*John, b. August 21, 1641, d. February 2, 1663/4,<ref>''New England Historical & Genealogical Register''. '''89''' (April 1935): 151.</ref> married Abigail Collins in 1663. |
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*Sarah, b. May 4, 1643, d. June 13, 1665, married Rev. John Eliot (son of [[John Eliot (missionary)|Rev. John Eliot]]). |
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*Rebecca, b. December 2, 1644, d. April 2, 1652. |
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*Thomas, b. October 1, 1646, d. before 1671(?). |
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*Hester, b. July 6, 1648, d. July 26, 1737, married Rev. Josiah Flint. |
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*James, b. November 24, 1649, married Elizabeth Hunt (daughter of Peter Hunt) in 1673, remarried Grace Frinck in 1677. |
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*Hezekiah, b. June 20, 1651, d. July 26, 1651. |
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*Hezekiah, b. November 16, 1653, d. July 1, 1676, married Ann (or Hannah) Browne (daughter of John Brown (Jr.)) in 1675. |
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*David, b. November 1, 1654, d. before 1671(?). |
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*Andrew, b. October 5, 1656, d. April 6, 1712, married Ann Coddington in 1682 (daughter of [[William Coddington|William]] and Ann Coddington). |
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*Samuel, b. October 27, 1658. |
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(?) Sons John, Thomas, and David are not mentioned in Willett's will which calls James the "eldest son".<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/159/mode/1up Burgess, p. 159 (Will of Thomas Willett).]</ref> |
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There is disagreement over Thomas Willett's date and place of birth. The ''Dictionary of National Biography''<ref>[https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofnati61stepuoft/page/292/mode/1up Stephen, Leslie, Sir (1900–5). "Willett, Thomas". ''Dictionary of National Biography''. New York: Macmillan. '''LXI''': 292.]</ref> states that he was born in England in 1605. Willett's will, dated April 26, 1671, says he was then "being going in the sixty-fourth year of my age"<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/159/mode/1up Burgess, p. 159 (Will of Thomas Willett).]</ref> (i.e., he was 63 years old, born between April 27, 1607, and April 27, 1608, prior to the migration to the Netherlands later in 1608<ref>Bradford (for year 1608), pp. 11–15.</ref><ref>Bunker, pp. 188–201.</ref> which included those who later became the Leyden congregation). His original gravestone also stated that he died "in the 64th year of his age" in 1674<ref>[https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8890542/thomas-willett Find a Grave Memorial: Thomas Willett Sr.]</ref> (i.e., he was born in 1610 or 1611)<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/158/mode/1up Burgess, p. 159.]</ref> and this is in agreement with the range given in Dexter's listing for the Willet family in Holland.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/englandhollandof00dextuoft/page/639/mode/1up Dexter, p. 639.]</ref> The respective merits of these opinions are discussed by Burgess.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/158/mode/1up Burgess, pp. 158–159.]</ref> Willet died August 4, 1674, and was buried in the [[Little Neck Cemetery]] at Bullock's Cove, Riverside area of East Providence, Rhode Island.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/johnbrownegentle00brow/page/26/mode/1up Brown, p. 26.]</ref> |
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Mary Willett, the first wife of Thomas, died on January 8, 1669, at about 55 years old<ref>[https://archive.org/details/johnbrownegentle00brow/page/26/mode/1up Brown, p. 26.]</ref> making her birthdate about 1614, almost certainly in England. Her grave is next to that of Thomas Willett. Little mention is found of her in the records; what is there includes her marriage to Thomas on July 6, 1636,<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n64/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''I''' (July 6, 1636): 43.]</ref> and she is also mentioned in connection with her father's will which was hastily written while he was ill in the short period between his son's death and his own. The will of John Browne (Sr.) made scant reference to his daughter, Mary, no significant bequest to her, and none at all to her offspring. Browne's objective may have been to leave his property to the relatively more needy members of his family rather than to those of Mary's branch, as she was married to one of the wealthiest men in the colony. However this might have been, Browne's intent could have been better expressed and the result was an unusual mention in the colony's records regarding Mary Willett's good relationship with her father.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/johnbrownegentle00brow/page/22/mode/1up Brown, p. 22.]</ref> |
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Joanna Prudden, widow of Rev. [[Peter Prudden]] and second wife of Thomas Willett, married Willett in Milford, Connecticut, on September 20, 1671.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/peterpruddenstor00prud/page/56/mode/1up?q=willett Prudden, Lillian Eliza (1901). ''Peter Prudden: a story of his life and New Haven and Milford, Conn.'' New Haven, Conn.: Tuttle, Morehouse and Taylor. p. 56.]</ref> After Willett's death in 1674, she soon returned to Milford and remarried again, this time to Rev. John Bishop.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/peterpruddenstor00prud/page/58/mode/1up?q=willett Prudden, Lillian Eliza (1901). ''Peter Prudden: a story of his life and New Haven and Milford, Conn.'' New Haven, Conn.: Tuttle, Morehouse and Taylor. p. 58.]</ref> She was born in Halifax, Yorkshire, England, in 1616 and died on November 8, 1681, in Stamford, Connecticut. |
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Mary Willett, eldest daughter of Capt. Thomas Willett and his wife Mary, married in 1658 Rev. Samuel Hooker, son of Rev. [[Thomas Hooker]], Puritan divine and founder of [[Hartford, Connecticut]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=r17mNhtcPRwC&q=willet&pg=PA231 Hooker, Edward, and Margaret Huntington Hooker (ed.) (1908). ''The Descendants of Rev. Thomas Hooker, 1586–1908.'' Rochester, N.Y.: Margaret Huntington Hooker. pp. 10–12, 18–19, and 22–23.]</ref> |
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There is some thought that Willett's son, Thomas Willett (Jr.), was the major in the militia of [[Queens County, New York|Queens County]] who was a councilor under Governors [[Sir Edmund Andros]] and [[Henry Sloughter]].<ref>[https://archive.org/details/hudsonmohawkgene00reyn/page/254/mode/1up Reynolds, Cuyler (ed.) (1911). ''Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs''. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company. '''I''': 254–255.]</ref><ref>Burrows and Wallace, p. 101.</ref> According to Hillman<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=jNcUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA120 Hillman, E. Haviland. "Ancestry of Colonel Marius Willett". ''The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record''. '''XLVII''' (April 1916): 120.]</ref> it is probable that this Major Thomas Willett was actually a member of another Willett family which had settled on Long Island. They were possibly cousins<ref>[http://longislandgenealogy.com/Surname_Pages/willets.htm The Willets family of Long Island]</ref><ref>[https://homepages.rootsweb.com/~marshall/esmd211.htm Willett Family of Long Island]</ref> of the Thomas Willett who is the subject of this article. |
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Hezekiah Willett was killed during King Philip's War in spite of the special consideration which was supposed to be extended to the Browne/Willett family by Philip's followers. This was a source of great sorrow to Philip as reported by the servant captured when Hezekiah was killed<ref>Philbrick, pp. 315–316.</ref> (this probably was the slave later ordered freed by the colony's court<ref>[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo05newp/page/216/mode/1up Shurtleff, '''V''' (November 1, 1676): 216.]</ref>). This incident also exasperated the Plymouth colonists; special punishments were eventually meted out to Hezekiah's killers.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/johnbrownegentle00brow/page/27/mode/1up Brown, pp. 27–28.]</ref> |
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Andrew Willett spent most of his adult life near what is now Kingston, Rhode Island.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/genealogicaldict00aust/page/428/mode/1up Austin, p. 428.]</ref> He married Ann Coddington, daughter of William Coddington, a governor of Rhode Island. Thomas Willett's interests in the Atherton Company led to ownership of land in this area of Rhode Island, then known as the "Boston Neck", along with other company shareholders who over time banded together as merchants,<ref>Martin, pp. 68–70, 80–81.</ref> which included Thomas Willett's son, Andrew.<ref>Austin, p. 428.</ref> Some confusion exists in the records distinguishing between the Boston Neck area of Rhode Island and Boston, Massachusetts. |
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Some have claimed that one of Willett's great-grandsons was [[Marinus Willett]], who also served as Mayor of New York from 1807 to 1808,<ref>[https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofnati61stepuoft/page/292/mode/1up Stephen, Leslie, Sir (1900–5). "Willett, Thomas". ''Dictionary of National Biography''. New York: Macmillan. '''LXI''': 292.]</ref> assuming that Willett's son, Samuel, settled on Long Island where he became Sheriff of Queens County and Marinus' grandfather. This claim has been refuted by E. Haviland Hillman in an article published in ''The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record'', Volume 47 at 119, published in April 1916.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=jNcUAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA119 Hillman, E. Haviland. "Ancestry of Colonel Marius Willett". ''The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record''. '''XLVII''' (April 1916): 119–123.]</ref> |
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The descendants of Thomas Willett were numerous. The 'Dorothy Q.' of the poem of [[Oliver Wendell Holmes |
The descendants of Thomas Willett were numerous. The 'Dorothy Q.' of the poem of [[Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.|Oliver Wendell Holmes]] was Thomas Willett's great-granddaughter, and the great-grandmother of Holmes.<ref>[https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofnati61stepuoft/page/292/mode/1up Stephen, Leslie, Sir (1900–5). "Willett, Thomas". ''Dictionary of National Biography''. New York: Macmillan. '''LXI''': 292.]</ref> Another of Thomas Willett's descendants is American musician Parthenon Willett Miller Huxley. {{citation needed|date=July 2017}} |
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The [[Fire Department of New York]] operated a [[fireboat]] named [[Thomas Willett (fireboat)|''Thomas Willett'']] from 1908 to 1959.<ref name=Marine1FdnyHistory> |
The [[Fire Department of New York]] operated a [[fireboat]] named [[Thomas Willett (fireboat)|''Thomas Willett'']] from 1908 to 1959.<ref name=Marine1FdnyHistory> |
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| url = http://marine1fdny.com/fireboat_history_new.php |
| url = http://marine1fdny.com/fireboat_history_new.php |
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| title = Fireboats Through The Years |
| title = Fireboats Through The Years |
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| publisher = |
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| author = Clarence E. Meek |
| author = Clarence E. Meek |
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| date = July 1954 |
| date = July 1954 |
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| access-date = 2020-01-25 |
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| location = |
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| archivedate = |
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| accessdate = 2015-06-28 |
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==References== |
==References== |
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*Austin, John Osborne (1887). [https://archive.org/details/genealogicaldict00aust/page/n8/mode/1up ''Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island; Comprising Three Generations of Settlers.''] Albany, N.Y.: Joel Munsells Sons. |
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*[http://www.scribd.com/doc/300853/Willett-Family-History Willett Family History] |
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*Brown, George Tilden (1919). [https://archive.org/details/johnbrownegentle00brow/page/n4/mode/1up ''John Browne, Gentleman of Plymouth.''] Providence: Remington Press. |
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'''Attribution''' |
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*Baylies, Francis (1866), Drake, Samuel Gardner (ed.). [https://archive.org/details/historicalmemoir01bayl/page/n6/mode/1up ''An historical memoir of the colony of New Plymouth.''] Boston: Wiggin & Lunt. |
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*{{DNB|wstitle=Willet, Thomas}} |
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*Bicknell, Thomas Williams (1908). [https://archive.org/details/sowamswithancien00bick/page/n8/mode/1up ''Sowams; with ancient records of Sowams and parts adjacent – illustrated''.] New Haven, Conn.: Associated publishers of American records. |
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*Bradford, William (1952), Morison, Samuel Eliot (ed.). ''Of Plymouth Plantation: Sixteen Twenty to Sixteen Forty-Seven.'' New York: Alfred A. Knopf (2002 printing). |
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*Burgess, George Canning (1907). [https://archive.org/details/newenglandhistor1907wate/page/157/mode/1up "Thomas Willett of Leyden and Plymouth, First Mayor of New York."] ''New England Historical and Genealogical Register'', '''LXI''': 157–164. |
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*Burrows, Edwin and Wallace, Mike (1999). ''Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898.'' New York: Oxford. |
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*Bunker, Nick (2010). ''Making Haste from Babylon: The Mayflower Pilgrims and their World.'' New York: Vintage Books. {{ISBN|978-0-307-38626-7}}. |
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*Dexter, Henry Martyn and Dexter, Morton (1905). [https://archive.org/details/englandhollandof00dextuoft/page/n10/mode/1up ''The England and Holland of the Pilgrims.''] Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin and company. |
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*Martin, John Frederick (1991). [https://archive.org/details/profitsinwildern00mart ''Profits in the Wilderness: Entrepreneurship and the Founding of New England Towns in the Seventeenth Century.''] Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press. {{ISBN|978-0-8078-2001-8}} |
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*Philbrick, Nathaniel (2006). ''Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War.'' New York: Penguin. {{ISBN|0-670-03760-5}}. |
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*Shurtleff, Nathaniel Bradstreet (ed.) (1855–6). ''Records of the colony of New Plymouth in New England : printed by order of the legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts''. Boston: William White.[https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0102newp/page/n5/mode/2up Volumes I and II]; [https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo0304newp/page/n5/mode/2up Volumes III and IV]; [https://archive.org/details/recordsofcolonyo05newp/page/n5/mode/2up Volume V]. (Note: Volumes I–IV as reprinted by AMS Press, Inc., New York, 1968.) |
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*Winthrop, John (1908), Hosmer, James Kendall (ed.). [https://archive.org/details/winthropsjournal00wint/page/n11/mode/2up?q=willett ''History of New England: 1630–1649.''] I. New York : Charles Scribner's Sons. |
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*Wright, Otis Olney (ed.) (1917). [https://archive.org/details/historyofswansea00wrig/page/n3/mode/2up ''History of Swansea, Massachusetts, 1667–1917.''] Published by the Town of Swansea. |
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Latest revision as of 11:26, 2 September 2024
Thomas Willett | |
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1st and 3rd Mayor of New York City | |
In office June 1665 – June 1666 | |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Thomas Delavall |
In office June 1667 – June 1668 | |
Preceded by | Thomas Delavall |
Succeeded by | Cornelius Van Steenwyk |
Personal details | |
Born | about 1607 England or Holland |
Died | Swansea, Plymouth Colony (now approximately Riverside, Rhode Island) | August 29, 1674
Signature | ![]() |
Thomas Willett (c. 1607 – August 29, 1674) was a Plymouth Colony fur trader, merchant, land purchaser and developer, Captain of the Plymouth Colony militia, Magistrate of the colony, and was the 1st and 3rd Mayor of New York, prior to the consolidation of the five boroughs into the City of New York in 1898.
Career
[edit]Plymouth Colony Fur Trade
[edit]The early years of the Plymouth Colony were marked by severe economic crises and challenges.[1] Incremental progress was made as the colonists learned the Native Americans' method of raising corn and beans, cattle were imported from England and multiplied, and some trade in wampum and other goods was established. However, the major contribution to placing the colony on a firm financial basis and finally paying its debt to its financial "Adventurers" in London was made by exporting furs, primarily of beaver to be used in making hats.[2]
The first record of Willett's long career is probably that of William Bradford regarding the establishment of a second main trading post for the Plymouth Colony on the Penobscot River in what is now Maine in 1629. The Plymouth Colony was reluctantly joining in this effort, initiated by Isaac Allerton, in order to protect their established trading post on the Kennebunk River. Willett is thought to be the "honest young man" recently arrived with the second and last major group from John Robinson's Leyden congregation[3] who was given the task of monitoring the activities of Edward Ashley, the man placed in charge of the trading post by Allerton. This "young man being discreet, and one (Willett) whom they could trust, they so instructed as kept Ashley ... within bounds".[4] It is definitely known that Willett, among others, was deposed and Ashley and the depositions were transported to England for trial[5] in July 1631 after Ashley was arrested and accused of trading arms and ammunition with Native Americans.[6]
In 1631, the trading post was robbed of just about anything of value by the French while the "master of the house" was away meeting a supply ship.[7] Willett was in charge of the trading post when the French again robbed it in 1635 and evicted the English; a subsequent effort to recapture it using a ship commanded by a Captain Girling was futile, and the colony gave up the Penobscot post permanently.[8] An account of the expulsion of the English from Penobscot and the subsequent attempt to regain it from the French point of view exists in a letter from Sieur D'Aulney to Governor John Endecott of Massachusetts.[9] Willett's early and continuing experiences in the fur trade provided valuable skills in native languages and frontier trade for use in his later career.[10]
Willett remained active in the colony's remaining fur trading efforts, including being appointed to a committee in 1637 to advise the governor concerning the decline in the trade,[11] and in 1649 and again in 1656, with others, taking over the remaining trading post on the Kennebunk River.[12] He probably spent little time at the Kennebunk River trading post given his other activities, but Winthrop[13] recorded one incident where a potential theft or worse by some Native Americans was thwarted by Willett in 1639.
Landowner in Plymouth
[edit]Willett was "Admitted to the freedom of this society" (i.e., recognized as a full citizen, or "freeman") in 1633/4[14] and married Mary Browne on July 6, 1636.[15] He received several grants of land from the colony in 1638/9 and 1640[16] plus six acres in 1640 for a houselot.[17] As the years passed, he assumed more and more responsibility in the colony including becoming the co-captain of the colony's military company (with Myles Standish) in 1647/8;[18] he remained in this post after Standish retired and for almost all of the remainder of his life. His initial appointment as Assistant to the Governor was in 1651;[19] and he was reappointed to that post many times in the following years.[20]
Merchant and Land Development
[edit]Willett's initial beginning as a merchant in addition to the continuing involvement in the fur trade may have come in 1641/2 when he furnished a sixteenth portion of the construction cost to build a 40–50 ton bark[21] (ship). In time he became the major merchant in the lucrative trade with the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam[22] (later New York) where his early knowledge of the Dutch language and customs was of great advantage. His later merchant activities included at least some trade with Virginia and across the Atlantic.[23]
Willett's abilities in the native languages led to his becoming a trusted translator and to establishing friendships among the Native Americans, particularly with the principal leaders of the Pokanokets,[24] who were led successively by Massasoit, and his sons Wamsutta (or Alexander) and Metacom (known as Prince Phillip). (The Pokanokets today are usually referred to as members of a larger group of Native Americans, the Wampanoag.) The colony's desire for more land to accommodate its growing population and the desire for more economic activity, combined with the Pokanokets' desire for English goods, led to a series of land purchases from them, notably in the western part of the colony. Willett's father-in-law, John Browne, was among the founders of Taunton[25] in 1640, and Browne's and Willett's involvement continued in further purchases along and near the eastern coast and northern reaches of Narragansett Bay. Willett had moved to this western area of the colony and became involved in the affairs of Rehoboth by the early 1650s, serving in numerous capacities,[26] particularly after the death of Browne in 1662. Willett was authorized to purchase further land from the Native Americans in 1662[27] and again in 1668 and 1669;[28] these purchases led enlargement of Rehoboth and Swansey (Swansea, originally Wannamoisett[29]). An example of a deed between the Native Americans and a group of purchasers involving Browne and Willett can be found in a history of the town of Swansea.[30] An extensive history of the early land purchases in Pokanoket area, including those involving Willett, has been compiled by Bicknell[31] including a map showing historical names.[32]
Willett became a part owner with other prominent men, including his father-in-law and a son-in-law, John Saffin, of a large development consortium, the Atherton Company, leading to interests in properties in a number of the early New England towns.[33] Willett was appointed with others to settle a dispute between the colonies of Plymouth and Rhode Island over ownership of Hog Island in Narragansett Bay in 1658/9.[34]
Willett's trade with New Nederland led to further involvement with that colony. In 1650 he was entrusted, along with the English secretary to Peter Stuyvesant, to represent New Nederland in settling its border with the English colony of Connecticut[35] (this link shows the 1650 boundary established, along with those of later surveys,[36] see also New Haven Colony).
English Acquisition of New Amsterdam from the Dutch
[edit]Accompanying the English commander Richard Nicolls, Willett contributed to the peaceable surrender of New Amsterdam to the English on September 7, 1664. Willett had informed the Dutch that an expedition by the English was pending, and he was a member of the English party that entered New Amsterdam under a flag of truce on September 2 to attempt to persuade Governor Stuyvesant and the Dutch to surrender peacefully.[37] This eventually happened.
Largely because of his knowledge of the native languages, Willett very soon thereafter accompanied a successful negotiating party north to the Iroquois to secure for the English the excellent relations that the Iroquois had maintained with the Dutch. Colonel Richard Nicholls, who was given command of the transfer from Dutch to English governance, sent a request to Thomas Prence, then governor of the Plymouth Colony, that Willett be relieved of his duties to that colony so that he could assist in the transfer. His letter stated that "Mr. Willett was more acquainted with the manners and customs of the Dutch than any English man in the country, and that his conversation was very acceptable to them". This request was granted and Willett resigned his official duties with Plymouth.[38]
When the colony was reorganized with the name of New York, Willett was appointed the first mayor of the town (June 1665) with the approval of the English and Dutch alike; he had apparently maintained a residence in New Amsterdam for some years[39] in addition to his long-establish trading relationships. The next year he was elected alderman, and became mayor again for another year in mid-1667. He was a member of the New York governor's executive council at times from 1665 to 1672 under Francis Lovelace.[40]
Return to Plymouth and legacy
[edit]One of the greatest services Willett provided to the colony for many years, along with his father-in-law John Browne, was maintenance of good relations[41] with the Pokanokets whose main village was near Rehoboth, close to Mt. Hope. The relations with the colony soured with Willett's absences to New York and for his other merchant activities, and even more so after his death. The military affairs of the colony were increasingly assumed by Josiah Winslow, who pursued a much more aggressive approach. Alexander, Massasoit's eldest son who had become the leader of the Pokanokets, died while in the custody of Winslow in 1662.[42] Philip, the next eldest son, then became the Pokanoket's leader; relations eventually deteriorated to the point of open warfare between the English colonies and most of the New England tribes in 1675. This became known as King Philip's War.
After his first term as New York mayor, Willett apparently spent time in Rehoboth in early 1667 where he was appointed Captain of the town's militia[43] and was the principal in the establishment of the Township of Swansea.[44][45] Swansea was originally part of Rehoboth; they divided after a Baptist congregation originally led by Obadiah Holmes, and subsequently by John Myles, arose and had differences with the existing congregation of the town.[46][47] Among other things, the members of the Baptist congregation were heavily fined for setting up their own congregation and not attending services at the established church.[48] After Swansea was officially recognized, a small group led by Willett was given control over who was allowed to set up residence in the new town.[49] Although Willett's brother-in-law, James Browne, was probably the most prominent lay member of the Baptist congregation,[50] and Willett was deeply involved in establishing it as a separate and recognized congregation, Willett actually may not have been a member of the congregation. Such limited religious tolerance evidently was not extended to Quakers; Willett reportedly was among a group of magistrates condoning a severe whipping of two Quakers in 1658.[51]
After having lost his first wife, Willett married Joanna Boyse in September 1671.[52]
Willett was a given a "halbert" (halberd) in December 1673[53] when an expedition against the Dutch in New Orange was contemplated. The Dutch had briefly conquered New York and changed the name to New Orange (the name reverted to New York after the Dutch signed a peace treaty in February 1674).[54] This is the last record of Willett's activity in the colony.
Willett left a large estate as evidenced by the inventory compiled for probate.[55] When the Dutch recaptured New York in 1673, Willet's holdings along with those of the other English landowners there were confiscated; he died shortly thereafter and these holdings were never restored.[56] Even with these losses, Willett died one of the wealthiest men in the colony as can be seen from the lengthy inventory. Although no record appears to exist indicating that Willett participated in the slave trade, the inventory of his estate indicates ownership of eight negro slaves when he died. The Plymouth court later decided to grant freedom after two years additional service to one of Willett's slaves who had been taken prisoner during King Philip's war and later returned to Willett's heirs.[57] Willett's will left the bulk of his estate to be divided among his sons (including Samuel Hooker, married to his daughter, Mary), along with more minor bequests to his unmarried daughters, grandchildren, an old servant, schools, churches, and the pastor, John Myles.[58] Willett's will was made in April 1671, prior to his second marriage.
Family
[edit]Ancestry and Transport
[edit]![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Coat_of_Arms_of_Thomas_Willett.svg/175px-Coat_of_Arms_of_Thomas_Willett.svg.png)
The origins of Thomas Willett are not known for certain and are subject to some debate. The most commonly encountered description of his early life from the Dictionary of National Biography[59] describes him as the fourth son of the English clergyman Andrew Willet. The germ of this description may have come from the pedigree of Willett's descendants published in 1848,[60] which offered the theory that this Thomas may have descended from Andrew Willet because the Willett name is rare. A differing opinion exists in Dexter's compilation of the Leyden congregation in the appendix of his work, England and Holland of the Pilgrims.[61] This indicates that Willett was the son of Thomas and Alice Willet of the Leyden congregation. The respective merits of these opinions are discussed by Burgess.[62]
There is general agreement that Willett came over to the Plymouth Colony with the second wave of the Leyden congregation in 1629. There is disagreement however over whether or not he went back to England shortly thereafter for the trial of Edward Ashley who was accused of trading weapons and ammunition to Native Americans. The evidence that this might have been the case is based upon a listing of passengers on the ship Lyon which sailed from London on June 22, 1632, with William Pierce as Master as given by Charles Edward Banks in his Planters of the Commonwealth.[63] This list includes Thomas Willett along with the family of his future father-in-law, John Browne, including Willett's future wife, Mary. However, an examination of the original source material by Samuel Gardner Drake, published in 1860,[64] indicates that the original record for the ship sailing to England on that date listed only a few names of the passengers, including only a "Tobie" Willet and a "Jo:" Browne (but no other Brownes). This and the indication[65] that only the depositions of Willett and others accompanied Ashley back to England for his trial are contrary to Banks' passenger list.
Family in the Plymouth Colony and Descendants
[edit]Willett's parents and siblings were evidently left behind when he emigrated to Plymouth in 1629. His family life thereafter centered around that of his wife's family. Willett married Mary, daughter of John Browne (Sr.),[66] a leading citizen of the Plymouth Colony, and Browne's wife, Dorothy, in 1636. He moved with the Brown(e) family from Plymouth westward, originally to the Taunton area by the 1650s, and later to the eastern shores of Narragansett Bay to Wannamoisett, near present-day Barrington, Rhode Island. Willett had substantial business dealings with Browne (Sr.) and later increasingly, especially between 1656 and 1660 when Browne (Sr.) is believed to have been in England,[67] with Browne's two sons, John (Jr.) and James. Another family connection was with Willett's early co-worker in the fur trade, John Howland. Howland's daughter, Lydia, married James Browne and Howland's widow, Elizabeth, was living with James and Lydia Broowne's family when she died. Both John Browne (Sr.) and John Browne (Jr.) died in 1662, the son ten days before the father.
The children of Thomas and Mary Willet, as compiled from several sources, were:[68][69][70][71]
- Mary, b. November 10, 1637, d. June 24, 1712, married Rev. Samuel Hooker (son of Rev. Thomas Hooker) in 1658, remarried Rev. Thomas Buckingham in 1703.
- Martha, b. August 6, 1639, d. 1678, married John Saffin in 1658.
- John, b. August 21, 1641, d. February 2, 1663/4,[72] married Abigail Collins in 1663.
- Sarah, b. May 4, 1643, d. June 13, 1665, married Rev. John Eliot (son of Rev. John Eliot).
- Rebecca, b. December 2, 1644, d. April 2, 1652.
- Thomas, b. October 1, 1646, d. before 1671(?).
- Hester, b. July 6, 1648, d. July 26, 1737, married Rev. Josiah Flint.
- James, b. November 24, 1649, married Elizabeth Hunt (daughter of Peter Hunt) in 1673, remarried Grace Frinck in 1677.
- Hezekiah, b. June 20, 1651, d. July 26, 1651.
- Hezekiah, b. November 16, 1653, d. July 1, 1676, married Ann (or Hannah) Browne (daughter of John Brown (Jr.)) in 1675.
- David, b. November 1, 1654, d. before 1671(?).
- Andrew, b. October 5, 1656, d. April 6, 1712, married Ann Coddington in 1682 (daughter of William and Ann Coddington).
- Samuel, b. October 27, 1658.
(?) Sons John, Thomas, and David are not mentioned in Willett's will which calls James the "eldest son".[73]
There is disagreement over Thomas Willett's date and place of birth. The Dictionary of National Biography[74] states that he was born in England in 1605. Willett's will, dated April 26, 1671, says he was then "being going in the sixty-fourth year of my age"[75] (i.e., he was 63 years old, born between April 27, 1607, and April 27, 1608, prior to the migration to the Netherlands later in 1608[76][77] which included those who later became the Leyden congregation). His original gravestone also stated that he died "in the 64th year of his age" in 1674[78] (i.e., he was born in 1610 or 1611)[79] and this is in agreement with the range given in Dexter's listing for the Willet family in Holland.[80] The respective merits of these opinions are discussed by Burgess.[81] Willet died August 4, 1674, and was buried in the Little Neck Cemetery at Bullock's Cove, Riverside area of East Providence, Rhode Island.[82]
Mary Willett, the first wife of Thomas, died on January 8, 1669, at about 55 years old[83] making her birthdate about 1614, almost certainly in England. Her grave is next to that of Thomas Willett. Little mention is found of her in the records; what is there includes her marriage to Thomas on July 6, 1636,[84] and she is also mentioned in connection with her father's will which was hastily written while he was ill in the short period between his son's death and his own. The will of John Browne (Sr.) made scant reference to his daughter, Mary, no significant bequest to her, and none at all to her offspring. Browne's objective may have been to leave his property to the relatively more needy members of his family rather than to those of Mary's branch, as she was married to one of the wealthiest men in the colony. However this might have been, Browne's intent could have been better expressed and the result was an unusual mention in the colony's records regarding Mary Willett's good relationship with her father.[85]
Joanna Prudden, widow of Rev. Peter Prudden and second wife of Thomas Willett, married Willett in Milford, Connecticut, on September 20, 1671.[86] After Willett's death in 1674, she soon returned to Milford and remarried again, this time to Rev. John Bishop.[87] She was born in Halifax, Yorkshire, England, in 1616 and died on November 8, 1681, in Stamford, Connecticut.
Mary Willett, eldest daughter of Capt. Thomas Willett and his wife Mary, married in 1658 Rev. Samuel Hooker, son of Rev. Thomas Hooker, Puritan divine and founder of Hartford, Connecticut.[88]
There is some thought that Willett's son, Thomas Willett (Jr.), was the major in the militia of Queens County who was a councilor under Governors Sir Edmund Andros and Henry Sloughter.[89][90] According to Hillman[91] it is probable that this Major Thomas Willett was actually a member of another Willett family which had settled on Long Island. They were possibly cousins[92][93] of the Thomas Willett who is the subject of this article.
Hezekiah Willett was killed during King Philip's War in spite of the special consideration which was supposed to be extended to the Browne/Willett family by Philip's followers. This was a source of great sorrow to Philip as reported by the servant captured when Hezekiah was killed[94] (this probably was the slave later ordered freed by the colony's court[95]). This incident also exasperated the Plymouth colonists; special punishments were eventually meted out to Hezekiah's killers.[96]
Andrew Willett spent most of his adult life near what is now Kingston, Rhode Island.[97] He married Ann Coddington, daughter of William Coddington, a governor of Rhode Island. Thomas Willett's interests in the Atherton Company led to ownership of land in this area of Rhode Island, then known as the "Boston Neck", along with other company shareholders who over time banded together as merchants,[98] which included Thomas Willett's son, Andrew.[99] Some confusion exists in the records distinguishing between the Boston Neck area of Rhode Island and Boston, Massachusetts.
Some have claimed that one of Willett's great-grandsons was Marinus Willett, who also served as Mayor of New York from 1807 to 1808,[100] assuming that Willett's son, Samuel, settled on Long Island where he became Sheriff of Queens County and Marinus' grandfather. This claim has been refuted by E. Haviland Hillman in an article published in The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, Volume 47 at 119, published in April 1916.[101]
The descendants of Thomas Willett were numerous. The 'Dorothy Q.' of the poem of Oliver Wendell Holmes was Thomas Willett's great-granddaughter, and the great-grandmother of Holmes.[102] Another of Thomas Willett's descendants is American musician Parthenon Willett Miller Huxley. [citation needed]
The Fire Department of New York operated a fireboat named Thomas Willett from 1908 to 1959.[103]
Notes
[edit]- ^ Bradford.
- ^ Bunker.
- ^ Bradford (for year 1629), pp. 213–215.
- ^ Bradford (for year 1629), pp. 219–220.
- ^ State Papers, Colonial, VI: 40, Public Record Office, London; as transcribed in Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society Third. Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society. 45 (February 1912): 493–498.
- ^ Bradford (for year 1630), pp. 232–233, in his account for the year 1630.
- ^ Bradford (for year 1631), p. 246.
- ^ Bradford (for year 1635), pp. 275–279.
- ^ "Sieur D'Aulney's Letter to Mr. Endecott, Governor". Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society Third. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown. VII: 92–95. 1838.
- ^ Philbrick, p. 168.
- ^ Shurtleff, I (June 7, 1637): 62.
- ^ Shurtleff, II (June 8, 1649): 144–145 and Shurtleff, III (March 5, 1655/6): 95.
- ^ Winthrop, pp. 322–323.
- ^ Shurtleff, I (January 1, 1633/4): 21.
- ^ Shurtleff, I (July 6, 1636): 43.
- ^ Shurtleff, I (February 4, 1638/9): 111–112; I (June 1, 1640): 154; and I (November 4, 1640): 166.
- ^ Shurtleff, I (August 3, 1640): 159.
- ^ Shurtleff, II (March 7, 1647/8): 121.
- ^ Shurtleff, II (June 5, 1651): 166.
- ^ Shurtleff, III: 249 and IV: 216.
- ^ Shurtleff, II (January 23, 1641/2): 31.
- ^ Philbrick, pp. 199–200.
- ^ Brodhead, John Romeyn (1853). History of the state of New York. New York: Harper & Brothers. I: 525 (footnote).
- ^ Philbrick, p. 197.
- ^ Baylies, I: 289.
- ^ Shurtleff, III and IV.
- ^ Shurtleff, IV (June 3, 1662): 18.
- ^ Shurtleff, IV (March 5, 1667/8): 175 and V (July 5, 1669): 24.
- ^ Shurtleff, IV (March 5, 1667/8): 175
- ^ Wright, pp. 41-2.
- ^ Bicknell
- ^ Pokanoket area, Bicknell, p. 124.
- ^ Martin, pp. 70 and 80. (restricted access available online)
- ^ Shurleff (March 1, 1658/9): III: 157.
- ^ Burgess, p. 162.
- ^ Connecticut historical survey map
- ^ Burgess, p. 163.
- ^ Burgess, p. 163.
- ^ Burrows and Wallace, p. 78.
- ^ Brodhead, John Romeyn (1871). History of the state of New York. New York: Harper & Brothers. II: 144.
- ^ Philbrick, pp. 197, 213–214, and 315–316.
- ^ Philbrick, pp. 200–206.
- ^ Shurtleff, IV (April 2, 1667): 145.
- ^ Wright, pp. 47–51.
- ^ Shurtleff, IV (October 30, 1667), p. 169.
- ^ Wright, p. 3.
- ^ Jones, John (August 1880). "John Myles and his Times". Baptist Quarterly Review. New York: The Boston Review Association. X (January 1888): 43-6.
- ^ Shurtleff, IV (July 2, 1667): 162.
- ^ Wright, pp. 47-9.
- ^ Shurtleff, IV (July 2, 1667): 162.
- ^ Bishop, George (1703). New England Judged. London: T. Sowle. I, 136.
- ^ Prudden, Lillian Eliza (1901). Peter Prudden: a story of his life and New Haven and Milford, Conn. New Haven, Conn.: Tuttle, Morehouse and Taylor. p. 56.
- ^ Shurtleff, V (December 17, 1673): 136.
- ^ Burrows and Wallace, pp. 82–83.
- ^ THE INVENTORY OF THOMAS WILLETT. The Plymouth Colony Archive Project.
- ^ Burgess, p. 164.
- ^ Shurtleff, V (November 1, 1676): 216.
- ^ Burgess, p. 159.
- ^ Stephen, Leslie, Sir (1900–5). "Willett, Thomas". Dictionary of National Biography. New York: Macmillan. LXI: 292.
- ^ "The Willet Family". New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston: Samuel G. Drake. II (October 1848): 376. 1848.
- ^ Dexter, p. 639.
- ^ Burgess, pp. 158–159.
- ^ Banks, Charles Edward (1930). Planters of the Commonwealth. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. pp. 99–100.
- ^ Drake, Samuel Gardner (1860). Result of some researches among the British archives for information relative to the founders of New England. Boston: Office of the New Eng. Hist. and Gen. Register. p. 12.
- ^ State Papers, Colonial, VI: 40, Public Record Office, London; as transcribed in Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society Third. Boston: Massachusetts Historical Society. 45 (February 1912): 493–498.
- ^ Brown, George Tilden (1919). John Browne, Gentleman of Plymouth. Providence: Remington Press.
- ^ Brown, p. 19.
- ^ Saffin, John. Personal Manuscript. (As reported by Abner C. Goodell Jr.), Colonial Society of Massachusetts I: Transactions (1892–1894), (April 1894), (58): 358–360.
- ^ "The Willet Family". New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston: Samuel G. Drake. II (October 1848): 376. 1848.
- ^ Brown, pp. 27–28.
- ^ Austin, p. 428
- ^ New England Historical & Genealogical Register. 89 (April 1935): 151.
- ^ Burgess, p. 159 (Will of Thomas Willett).
- ^ Stephen, Leslie, Sir (1900–5). "Willett, Thomas". Dictionary of National Biography. New York: Macmillan. LXI: 292.
- ^ Burgess, p. 159 (Will of Thomas Willett).
- ^ Bradford (for year 1608), pp. 11–15.
- ^ Bunker, pp. 188–201.
- ^ Find a Grave Memorial: Thomas Willett Sr.
- ^ Burgess, p. 159.
- ^ Dexter, p. 639.
- ^ Burgess, pp. 158–159.
- ^ Brown, p. 26.
- ^ Brown, p. 26.
- ^ Shurtleff, I (July 6, 1636): 43.
- ^ Brown, p. 22.
- ^ Prudden, Lillian Eliza (1901). Peter Prudden: a story of his life and New Haven and Milford, Conn. New Haven, Conn.: Tuttle, Morehouse and Taylor. p. 56.
- ^ Prudden, Lillian Eliza (1901). Peter Prudden: a story of his life and New Haven and Milford, Conn. New Haven, Conn.: Tuttle, Morehouse and Taylor. p. 58.
- ^ Hooker, Edward, and Margaret Huntington Hooker (ed.) (1908). The Descendants of Rev. Thomas Hooker, 1586–1908. Rochester, N.Y.: Margaret Huntington Hooker. pp. 10–12, 18–19, and 22–23.
- ^ Reynolds, Cuyler (ed.) (1911). Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company. I: 254–255.
- ^ Burrows and Wallace, p. 101.
- ^ Hillman, E. Haviland. "Ancestry of Colonel Marius Willett". The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record. XLVII (April 1916): 120.
- ^ The Willets family of Long Island
- ^ Willett Family of Long Island
- ^ Philbrick, pp. 315–316.
- ^ Shurtleff, V (November 1, 1676): 216.
- ^ Brown, pp. 27–28.
- ^ Austin, p. 428.
- ^ Martin, pp. 68–70, 80–81.
- ^ Austin, p. 428.
- ^ Stephen, Leslie, Sir (1900–5). "Willett, Thomas". Dictionary of National Biography. New York: Macmillan. LXI: 292.
- ^ Hillman, E. Haviland. "Ancestry of Colonel Marius Willett". The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record. XLVII (April 1916): 119–123.
- ^ Stephen, Leslie, Sir (1900–5). "Willett, Thomas". Dictionary of National Biography. New York: Macmillan. LXI: 292.
- ^ Clarence E. Meek (July 1954). "Fireboats Through The Years". Retrieved January 25, 2020.
References
[edit]- Austin, John Osborne (1887). Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island; Comprising Three Generations of Settlers. Albany, N.Y.: Joel Munsells Sons.
- Brown, George Tilden (1919). John Browne, Gentleman of Plymouth. Providence: Remington Press.
- Baylies, Francis (1866), Drake, Samuel Gardner (ed.). An historical memoir of the colony of New Plymouth. Boston: Wiggin & Lunt.
- Bicknell, Thomas Williams (1908). Sowams; with ancient records of Sowams and parts adjacent – illustrated. New Haven, Conn.: Associated publishers of American records.
- Bradford, William (1952), Morison, Samuel Eliot (ed.). Of Plymouth Plantation: Sixteen Twenty to Sixteen Forty-Seven. New York: Alfred A. Knopf (2002 printing).
- Burgess, George Canning (1907). "Thomas Willett of Leyden and Plymouth, First Mayor of New York." New England Historical and Genealogical Register, LXI: 157–164.
- Burrows, Edwin and Wallace, Mike (1999). Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898. New York: Oxford.
- Bunker, Nick (2010). Making Haste from Babylon: The Mayflower Pilgrims and their World. New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 978-0-307-38626-7.
- Dexter, Henry Martyn and Dexter, Morton (1905). The England and Holland of the Pilgrims. Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin and company.
- Martin, John Frederick (1991). Profits in the Wilderness: Entrepreneurship and the Founding of New England Towns in the Seventeenth Century. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 978-0-8078-2001-8
- Philbrick, Nathaniel (2006). Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War. New York: Penguin. ISBN 0-670-03760-5.
- Shurtleff, Nathaniel Bradstreet (ed.) (1855–6). Records of the colony of New Plymouth in New England : printed by order of the legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Boston: William White.Volumes I and II; Volumes III and IV; Volume V. (Note: Volumes I–IV as reprinted by AMS Press, Inc., New York, 1968.)
- Winthrop, John (1908), Hosmer, James Kendall (ed.). History of New England: 1630–1649. I. New York : Charles Scribner's Sons.
- Wright, Otis Olney (ed.) (1917). History of Swansea, Massachusetts, 1667–1917. Published by the Town of Swansea.
- 1607 births
- 1674 deaths
- 17th-century American politicians
- American slave owners
- Burials in Rhode Island
- English emigrants
- Mayors of New York City
- People educated at King's Ely
- People from Swansea, Massachusetts
- People from North Hertfordshire District
- People from colonial Massachusetts
- People from colonial New York