Holbrook line: Roger Williams 1603-1683

 I hesitate to write this post.  What can I say about Roger Williams that has not already been said?  I have at least a half dozen books on my shelves about him, and that barely scratches the surface.  He was a great and imperfect man, and one of my favorite ancestors.  However, I started writing this blog in order to tell my family a few things about their ancestors, and I would be remiss if I didn't tell or remind them of this most famous (probably) of our ancestors who came to America.  

Williams was born about 1603, the son of James and Alice Pemberton Williams, in  London (the records for the parish church were destroyed in the 1666 fire, so we lack an exact date.)  His father was a "merchant tailor" and while not wealthy, was pretty close to being well-off.  "Merchant" generally means that he was able to import goods, and had employees.  He had at least two brothers, so didn't grow up alone but there were not so many children as to impoverish the family.  

Williams was a brilliant linguist, able to speak and read several languages, at one point tutoring the poet John Milton.  He apprenticed under Sir Edward Coke, the famous jurist, and attended Pembroke College at Cambridge University, earning his degree in 1627.  He took holy orders in the Church of England, but soon broke with the Church and became a Puritan.  

He married Mary Barnard, daughter of Richard Barnard, on December 15, 1629. As Archbishop Laud's strict regulations took effect, Roger had already been planning his move to the New World, and the couple left England soon after.  Their six children were all born in America.

Williams did not really fit into the mold of Puritanism in New England.  Boston chased him to a pastorate in Salem, then he went to Plymouth Colony, where he also preached, then he was back in Salem in an unofficial capacity, and finally he was exiled from Massachusetts entirely.  The story of his trek to a new home outside the jurisdiction is well known, including that he first settled on land that was later claimed to be part of Massachusetts Bay Colony, so he had to move again.

Prior to his exile, he had already begun doing missionary work with some of the native Americans, learning their language and providing a dictionary of sorts.  These same natives befriended him and helped the family and their supporters, who had arrived in Rhode Island about the same time as Williams, survive their first winter.  

It was in Rhode Island that Williams would exert his greatest influence.  He was the founder of "Providence Plantation" and was its leader, officially or unofficially, for many years.  He was a believer in religious freedom (except he had a hard time with Quakers), and founded a Baptist church before leaving that denomination and becoming a "Seeker" who didn't always attend church services.  His friendship with the local indigenous tribes was notable, although this did not prevent them from burning the Williams home (along with most of Providence) during King Philip's war in 1675-76.  

He died sometime before August 1, 1683 and was buried on the family farm.  He was 80 years old.  

Williams is known as the founder of religious freedom in America, as the governor of Rhode Island and Providence Plantation from 1654-1657, as one of the earliest Baptists, as a friend and missionary to native tribes, and as an author of several books.  I have great admiration for him, and also for Mary, who certainly had her work cut out for her in her marriage to this challenging man.  I like to think that their are traits in our family that can be traced back to him, especially his love for God and for the right to worship as one sees fit.  

For more information, there is a good wikipedia article about him, several good biographies, some novels, and numerous more scholarly articles.  This is just a quick survey to show our family a little of his greatness.

The line of descent is

Roger Williams-Mary Barnard

Mercy Williams-Samuel Winsor

Samuel Winsor-Mercy Harding

Joseph Winsor-Deborah Matthewson

Lillis Winsor-Nathan Paine

Deborah Paine-Enos Eddy

Joseph Eddy-Susan Lamphire

Susan Eddy-Hiram Stanard

Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick

Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook

Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen

Their descendants