Samuel Sewall
| Samuel Sewall | |
|---|---|
1729, by John Smibert
|
|
| Born |
March 28, 1652 Bishopstoke, Hampshire, England |
| Died | January 1, 1730 (aged 77) Boston, Province of Massachusetts Bay |
| Occupation | Judge |
| Known for | Salem witch trials |
| Spouse(s) | Hannah Hull Abigail (Melyen) Woodmansey Tilley Mary (Shrimpton) Gibbs |
| Signature | |
 |
|
Samuel Sewall (/ˈsuːəl/; March 28, 1652 – January 1, 1730) was a judge, businessman, and printer in the Province of Massachusetts Bay, best known for his involvement in the Salem witch trials, for which he later apologized, and his essay The Selling of Joseph (1700), which criticized slavery. He served for many years as the chief justice of the Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature, the province's high court.
Sewall was born in Bishopstoke, Hampshire, England, on March 28, 1652, the son of Henry and Jane () Sewall. His father, son of the mayor of Coventry, had come to the English North American Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635, where he married Sewall's mother, and returned to England in the 1640s.
Following the restoration of Charles II to the English throne, the Sewalls again crossed the Atlantic in 1661, settling in Newbury, Massachusetts. It is there the young Samuel "Sam" grew up along the Parker River and Plum Island Sound.
Like other local boys he attended school at the home of James Noyes, whose cousin, Reverend Thomas Parker, was the principal instructor. From Parker Sewall acquired a lifelong love of verse, which he wrote in both English and Latin. In 1667 Sewall entered Harvard College, where his classmates included Edward Taylor and Daniel Gookin, with whom he formed enduring friendships. Sewall received his first degree, a BA, in 1671, and his MA in 1674. In 1674 he began keeping a journal, which he maintained for most of his life; it is one of the major historical documents of the time. In 1679 he became a member of the Military Company of Massachusetts.
...
Wikipedia