Joseph Jenckes
Encyclopedia
Joseph Jencks I
Joseph Jencks settled in Lynn, MassachusettsLynn, Massachusetts
Lynn is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 89,050 at the 2000 census. An old industrial center, Lynn is home to Lynn Beach and Lynn Heritage State Park and is about north of downtown Boston.-17th century:...
by 1643, arriving as a widower. On March 6, 1646, he was awarded the first patent in North America by the General Court of Massachusetts
Massachusetts General Court
The Massachusetts General Court is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from the Colonial Era, when this body also sat in judgment of judicial appeals cases...
, for making scythes. This basic scythe design remained in use for over 300 years. In 1654 he built the first fire engine in North America, commissioned by the city of Boston. The remains of the Jencks ironworks survives on the site of the Saugus Iron Works National Park
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
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Joseph Jencks II
(b. England 1632, d. Pawtucket, RIPawtucket, Rhode Island
Pawtucket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 71,148 at the 2010 census. It is the fourth largest city in the state.-History:...
1717) Arrived in Massachusetts in 1645, having remained in England until his father was settled. He was the earliest known settler of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, in 1671. He built and operated the first sawmill in the area, which was destroyed by fire during King Philip's War
King Philip's War
King Philip's War, sometimes called Metacom's War, Metacomet's War, or Metacom's Rebellion, was an armed conflict between Native American inhabitants of present-day southern New England and English colonists and their Native American allies in 1675–76. The war is named after the main leader of the...
. He was a Deputy to the Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
Assembly for a number of terms in the late 17th century, also Counselor of the Governor in 1681.
Joseph Jencks IIIJoseph Jenckes (governor)Joseph Jenckes was a deputy governor and governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. He was the son of Joseph and Esther Jenckes who lived in Lynn, Massachusetts before coming to Rhode Island. His father, the son of an earlier Joseph Jenckes, operated a sawmill in...
(b. Pawtucket, RI 1656, d. Providence, RIProvidence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
1740) From 1691 through 1732, he continuously held high offices of public trust
Public trust
The concept of the public trust relates back to the origins of democratic government and its seminal idea that within the public lies the true power and future of a society; therefore, whatever trust the public places in its officials must be respected....
in Rhode Island, culminating as Governor from 1727 to 1732.