Simon Bradstreet
| Simon Bradstreet | |
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Engraving based on a painting in the Massachusetts State House
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| 20th and 21st Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony | |
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In office 1679–1686 |
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| Preceded by | John Leverett |
| Succeeded by | Joseph Dudley (as President of the Council of New England) |
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In office May 24, 1689 – May 16, 1692 |
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| Preceded by | Sir Edmund Andros (as Governor of the Dominion of New England) |
| Succeeded by | Sir William Phips (as Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | baptized March 18, 1603 Lincolnshire, England |
| Died | March 27, 1697 (aged 93) Salem, Province of Massachusetts Bay |
| Spouse(s) | Anne Dudley Bradstreet |
| Religion | Puritanism |
| Signature |  |
Simon Bradstreet (baptized March 18, 1603/4 – March 27, 1697) was a colonial magistrate, businessman, diplomat, and the last governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Arriving in Massachusetts on the Winthrop Fleet in 1630, Bradstreet was almost constantly involved in the politics of the colony but became its governor only in 1679. He served on diplomatic missions and as agent to the crown in London, and also served as a commissioner to the New England Confederation. He was politically comparatively moderate, arguing minority positions in favor of freedom of speech and for accommodation of the demands of King Charles II following his restoration to the throne.
Bradstreet was married to Anne, the daughter of Massachusetts co-founder Thomas Dudley and New England's first published poet. He was a businessman, investing in land and shipping interests. Due to his advanced age (he died at 93) Cotton Mather referred to him as the "Nestor of New England". His descendants include the famous jurists Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. and David Souter.
Simon Bradstreet was baptized on March 18, 1603/4 in Horbling, Lincolnshire, the second of three sons of Simon and Margaret Bradstreet. His father was the rector of the parish church, and was descended from minor Irish nobility. With his father a vocal Nonconformist, the young Simon acquired his Puritan religious views early in life. At the age of 16, Bradstreet entered Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He studied there for two years, before entering the service of the Earl of Lincoln as an assistant to Thomas Dudley in 1622. There is some uncertainty about whether Bradstreet returned to Emmanuel College in 1623–1624. According to Venn, a Simon Bradstreet attended Emmanuel during this time, receiving an M.A. degree, but genealogist Robert Anderson is of the opinion that this was not the same individual. During one of Bradstreet's stints at Emmanuel he was recommended by John Preston as a tutor or governor to Lord Rich, son of the Earl of Warwick. Rich would have been 12 in 1623, and Preston was named Emmanuel's master in 1622.
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