Walter Palmer (Puritan)
Encyclopedia
Walter Palmer was an early Separatist Puritan
settler in the Massachusetts Bay Colony
who helped found Charlestown
and Rehoboth, Massachusetts
and New London, Connecticut
.
, in 1585. He married in England and fathered five children.
, to Salem, Massachusetts
, arriving that June. The next year, he was indicted on manslaughter charges for allegedly beating a man to death, but was acquitted in November 1630. His close friend, William Chesebrough
, stood as a witnesses in the trial.
Palmer and Chesebrough took the Oath of a Freeman
on May 18, 1631. In 1633, Palmer married a second time, to Rebecca Short. They eventually had seven children together. In 1635 Palmer was elected a selectman of Charlestown and the next year became constable
.
). Palmer was among the first selectmen
. When the settlement assigned itself to Plymouth Colony
, the deputy elected to represent Rehoboth at the Plymouth court refused to serve because he preferred attachment to the Massachusetts Bay Colony
. Palmer was then appointed in his place.
. Chesebrough obtained a 2300 acres (9 km²) land grant in present-day New London, Connecticut
; Palmer and his son-in-law Thomas Miner
followed him and purchased land on the east bank of Wequetequoc Cove, across from Chesebrough, in present-day Mystic, Connecticut
.
In August 1652, Miner built his father-in-law and himself a house on their land; the next year, both their families joined them, and other settlers soon followed. The group struggled for years for self rule. During that time, Palmer served as constable and again as a selectman. It took until 1661 to build a church meetinghouse due to resistance from the General Court of Connecticut
, which preferred the colonists travel across the river to New London. Palmer died two months after the meetinghouse was first used.
The 300-year Stonington Chronology describes Palmer as the
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
settler in the Massachusetts Bay Colony
Massachusetts Bay Colony
The Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...
who helped found Charlestown
Charlestown, Massachusetts
Charlestown is a neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and is located on a peninsula north of downtown Boston. Charlestown was originally a separate town and the first capital of the Massachusetts Bay Colony; it became a city in 1847 and was annexed by Boston on January 5, 1874...
and Rehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,172 at the 2000 census.-History:It was incorporated in 1643 making it one of the earliest Massachusetts towns to be incorporated. The Rehoboth Carpenter Family is among the founding families...
and New London, Connecticut
New London, Connecticut
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....
.
Early life
Palmer was likely born in Yetminster, Dorset, EnglandYetminster
Yetminster is a village in the English county of Dorset. It lies within the West Dorset administrative district of the county, about five miles south-west of the town of Sherborne. It is sited on the River Wriggle, a tributary of the River Yeo, and is built almost entirely of honey-coloured...
, in 1585. He married in England and fathered five children.
Emigration
On April 5, 1629, Palmer sailed on the Four Sisters from Gravesend, EnglandGravesend, Kent
Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, on the south bank of the Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. It is the administrative town of the Borough of Gravesham and, because of its geographical position, has always had an important role to play in the history and communications of this part of...
, to Salem, Massachusetts
Salem, Massachusetts
Salem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence are the county seats of Essex County...
, arriving that June. The next year, he was indicted on manslaughter charges for allegedly beating a man to death, but was acquitted in November 1630. His close friend, William Chesebrough
William Chesebrough
William Chesebrough was a farmer and trader in the colonies of Massachusetts and Connecticut. He was one of the four co-founders of Stonington, Connecticut, along with Thomas Stanton, Thomas Miner, and Walter Palmer....
, stood as a witnesses in the trial.
Palmer and Chesebrough took the Oath of a Freeman
Oath of a Freeman
Oath of a Freeman was a loyalty oath drawn up by the Pilgrims during the early 17th century. A freeman was an established member of a colony who was not under legal restraint. The Oath was a vow to defend the Commonwealth and not to conspire to overthrow the government.The oath was first written in...
on May 18, 1631. In 1633, Palmer married a second time, to Rebecca Short. They eventually had seven children together. In 1635 Palmer was elected a selectman of Charlestown and the next year became constable
Constable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:...
.
Founding Rehoboth
On August 24, 1643, Palmer and Chesebrough left Charlestown and started a new settlement called Seacuncke (later renamed RehobothRehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,172 at the 2000 census.-History:It was incorporated in 1643 making it one of the earliest Massachusetts towns to be incorporated. The Rehoboth Carpenter Family is among the founding families...
). Palmer was among the first selectmen
Board of selectmen
The board of selectmen is commonly the executive arm of the government of New England towns in the United States. The board typically consists of three or five members, with or without staggered terms.-History:...
. When the settlement assigned itself to Plymouth Colony
Plymouth Colony
Plymouth Colony was an English colonial venture in North America from 1620 to 1691. The first settlement of the Plymouth Colony was at New Plymouth, a location previously surveyed and named by Captain John Smith. The settlement, which served as the capital of the colony, is today the modern town...
, the deputy elected to represent Rehoboth at the Plymouth court refused to serve because he preferred attachment to the Massachusetts Bay Colony
Massachusetts Bay Colony
The Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...
. Palmer was then appointed in his place.
Founding Stonington
Palmer and Chesebrough were also dissatisfied with the Plymouth alignment, and sometime prior to 1653 John Winthrop, Jr. persuaded Chesebrough to relocate to southern ConnecticutConnecticut Colony
The Connecticut Colony or Colony of Connecticut was an English colony located in British America that became the U.S. state of Connecticut. Originally known as the River Colony, it was organized on March 3, 1636 as a haven for Puritan noblemen. After early struggles with the Dutch, the English...
. Chesebrough obtained a 2300 acres (9 km²) land grant in present-day New London, Connecticut
New London, Connecticut
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....
; Palmer and his son-in-law Thomas Miner
Thomas Miner
Thomas Miner or Minor was a founder of New London and Stonington, Connecticut, USA, and an early New England diarist.-Early life and marriage:...
followed him and purchased land on the east bank of Wequetequoc Cove, across from Chesebrough, in present-day Mystic, Connecticut
Mystic, Connecticut
Mystic is a village and census-designated place in New London County, Connecticut, in the United States. The population was 4,001 at the 2000 census. A historic locality, Mystic has no independent government because it is not a legally recognized municipality in the state of Connecticut...
.
In August 1652, Miner built his father-in-law and himself a house on their land; the next year, both their families joined them, and other settlers soon followed. The group struggled for years for self rule. During that time, Palmer served as constable and again as a selectman. It took until 1661 to build a church meetinghouse due to resistance from the General Court of Connecticut
Connecticut General Assembly
The Connecticut General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is a bicameral body composed of the 151-member House of Representatives and the 36-member Senate. It meets in the state capital, Hartford. There are no term limits for either chamber.During...
, which preferred the colonists travel across the river to New London. Palmer died two months after the meetinghouse was first used.
The 300-year Stonington Chronology describes Palmer as the
"...patriarch of the early Stonington settlers...(who) had been prominent in the establishment of Boston, Charlestown and Rehoboth, ...a vigorous giant, 6 feet 5 inches tall. When he settled at Southertown (Stonington) he was sixty-eight years old, older than most of the other settlers."
Notable Descendants
- Thomas T. MinorThomas T. MinorThomas T. Minor, was a physician, businessman, civic and political leader and the only person to have been elected as mayor of Seattle, Washington and Port Townsend, Washington and founder of the Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern Railway....
- William Adams Palmer, Governor of and Senator from Vermont
- Thomas Witherell Palmer, U.S. Senator from Michigan
- Nathaniel Brown Palmer, explorer after whom Palmer LandPalmer LandPalmer Land is that portion of the Antarctic Peninsula which lies south of a line joining Cape Jeremy and Cape Agassiz. This application of Palmer Land is consistent with the 1964 agreement between US-ACAN and UK-APC, in which the name Antarctic Peninsula was approved for the major peninsula of...
, part of the Antarctic Peninsula, is named - Nathaniel Gregory Palmer, noted author
- Ulysses Simpson Grant, 18th President of the United States
External links
- Walter Palmer Society
- Stonington Historical Society - In Search of the First Settlers
- Original Stonington settlements c. 1651 - map