Captain John Scott

John Scott
1667 map Eastern New Hampshire credited to John Scott, signed J.S. Americanus
Born	1634?
Died	1696
Rank	Major
Battles/wars	Anglo-Dutch Wars

Captain John Scott of Long Island (c.1634?–1696) was a royal advisor, military leader, spy, cartographer, attorney, land speculator, and early settler and leader of Long Island. He lobbied to make Long Island the 14th English colony in North America with himself as governor and, when not appointed by the crown, was elected President of Long Island by that region's leaders. He was often in financial and legal trouble through land speculation and other enterprises and has been called a swindler and scoundrel. He was the principal accuser in the plot leading to the imprisonment of Samuel Pepys in 1679.

He traveled extensively in the Caribbean, authoring a History and Description of the River of Amazones and playing a key role in determining the boundary between Venezuela and Guyana.

While a boy in 1641, John Scott was exiled New England on charges of treason. While the exact charge is unknown, it is likely related to the volatile climate of the years leading to the English Civil War. According to the most complete biography of Scott, he was sold to the Southwick family, for whom he toiled until, ruined and defamed for their anti-Puritan beliefs, they further sold him to a purported child trafficker, Emmanuel Downing. Scott was held in indentured servitude until reaching the age of majority. The majority of this time was spent in Salem, Massachusetts, a time that came to a sudden end after some allege without citation, Scott killed a young girl in a shotgun accident. He was sent to work for a captain in Southold, New York. During these years, Scott spent much of his time befriending and trading with the local Native Americans and managed to learn their languages. Shortly before or after the end of his servitude, Scott and his employer were arrested for plundering a Dutch vessel in the port of New Haven, Connecticut, a charge that was later dropped.

In 1657, no longer in servitude, Scott moved to North Sea, New York and then Southampton, New York, where he was elected a freeman, a mark of a reputable property owner. Scott became an attorney throughout The Hamptons. During this time, he married Deborah Raynor and was granted land adjoining his father-in-law's property in Southampton.