Humphrey Atherton

Humphrey Atherton
Tomb of Major-General Humphrey Atherton at Dorchester North Burying Ground, Boston, Mass. August 8, 2010
Bornc. 1607
Possibly Lancashire, England
DiedSeptember 16, 1661
Boston, Massachusetts
Service / branchMilitia
RankMajor-General
CommandsAncient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts (militia) Suffolk Regiment (militia)

Major-General Humphrey Atherton (c. 1607 – September 16, 1661),[1] an early settler of Dorchester, Massachusetts, held the highest military rank in colonial New England.[2][3] He first appeared in the records of Dorchester on March 18, 1637 and made freeman May 2, 1638.[3] He became a representative in the General Court in 1638 and 1639–41. In 1653, he was Speaker of the House, representing Springfield, Massachusetts. He was chosen assistant governor,[2] a member of the lower house of the General Court who also served as magistrate in the judiciary of colonial government,[4] in 1654, and remained as such until his death."[5] He was a member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts and held the ranks of lieutenant and captain for several years before rising to the rank of major-general. He also organized the first militia in Massachusetts.[2][3][6][7]

It is unclear where and when Atherton was born. It is presumed he came from Lancashire, England.[8] He was active in the governance of the colony, taking part in the acquisition of Native American lands,[3] the persecution of Quakers,[9] and the apprehension and convictions of heretics.[10] His accidental death was seen by the Quakers as a punishment from God for his persecution of them,[11] an idea repeated in a play by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. He was one of the most successful land speculators in the New England colonies.[12] He and his wife, Mary, had a number of children and several New England families have traced their ancestry to them. He is interred at Dorchester North Burying Ground, one of the oldest cemeteries in New England.[13]

  1. ^ Farmer, John (1829). "A Genealogical Register of the First Settlers of New-England;".
  2. ^ a b c Adams, William Frederick, William Richard Cutter. Genealogical and personal memoirs relating to the families of the state of Massachusetts, Volume 4. Lewis Historical Publishing Company. 1910. pp. 2646–2647
  3. ^ a b c d Pope, Charles Henry. The History of the Dorchester Pope Family, 1634–1888. Published by the author, 1888. p. 322
  4. ^ Drake, Samuel Adams. The History of Middlesex County Massachusetts. Estes and Lauriat. 1880. p. 555
  5. ^ Hall, Charles Samuel. Hall Ancestry. G.P. Putnam and Sons. 1896. p. 74
  6. ^ Moore, Jacob Bailey, ed. (1823). Collections, Topographical, Historical, and Biographical Relating ..., Volume 2.
  7. ^ "Baylor University: American Periodicals Series II Collections Historical and Miscellaneous and Monthly Literary Journal (1823-1824)". p. 143.
  8. ^ Woodward, Harlow Elliot. Epitaphs from the Old Burying Ground in Dorchester. Boston Highlands. 1869. p .6
  9. ^ Hazard, Caroline. The Narragansett Friends' meeting in the XVIII century: with a chapter on Quaker beginnings in Rhode Island.Houghton, Mifflin. 1899. Pg. 51
  10. ^ Martin, George Castor. Founder of the Atherton Family of New England. National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Volume 1, Issue 4. January, 1913
  11. ^ Bishop, George. New-England judged, by the spirit of the Lord. T. Sowle. 1703 pp. 306
  12. ^ Martin, John Frederick. Profits in the Wilderness: entrepreneurship and the founding of New England towns in the seventeenth century. UNC Press Books. 1991 p. 306
  13. ^ Walker, G.H. Guide to metropolitan Boston. 1899. p. 66