Thomas Prince

Thomas Prince
Portrait by Joseph Badger ca.1750 (courtesy American Antiquarian Society)
Born	May 15, 1687 Sandwich, Massachusetts
Died	August 22, 1758 Boston, Massachusetts
Occupation	Clergyman
Nationality	United States
Alma mater	Harvard University
Genre	Historical non-fiction
Notable works	A Chronological History of New England, in the Form of Annals
Partner	Deborah Denny
Children	Sarah Prince
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Thomas Prince (May 15, 1687 – August 22, 1758) was an American clergyman, scholar and historian noted for his historical text A Chronological History of New England, in the Form of Annals. Called 'an American pioneer in scientific historical writing', Prince influenced historians such as Jeremy Belknap and Thomas Hutchinson, and his Annals was still being used as a reference text as late as 1791.

He was the fourth child of Samuel Prince Esq. and Mercy Hinkley, and entered Harvard University in 1703, graduating in 1707 with a B.A. While at Harvard his interest in books was sparked after he "chanced in my leisure Hours to read Mr. Chamberlain's Account of the Cottonian Library: Which excited in me a Zeal of laying hold on every Book, Pamphlet, and Paper, both in Print and Manuscript which are either written by persons who lived here, or that have any Tendency to enlighten our History" and began the formation of his "New England Library". After graduation he began teaching at Sandwich while working on his M.A, which was granted in absentia in 1710 a year after he had begun travelling. He spent 2 years travelling to places such as the West Indies and Madeira before travelling to England in 1711 and preaching in Coombes. While in England he gathered texts on the subject of early American history, hoping to write a book on the topic, but looking after the church and local citizens did not leave him enough time to do so. He returned to Boston in 1717, homesick, and traveled with Deborah and her brother Samuel Denny, members of the congregation at Coombes. He married Deborah on October 30, 1719; they had four daughters and a son. He was ordained as a minister on October 1, 1718 by Dr. Joseph Sewell, and became the pastor for Old South Church, a position he retained until his death.

In 1728 Prince began work on a A Chronological History of New England, in the Form of Annals, a history of New England beginning with the 6th day of creation. He became interested in such a project after, during his travels, he found 'the want of a regular history of this country everywhere complained of' and in an effort to preserve the contents of various texts, some of which by then had already been destroyed. This was such a momentous project that it took him until 1736 to finish the first volume, which covered events up to September 7, 1630 and had to be cut short after the publisher informed him that the book was becoming too large to be effectively published. The volume had poor sales, which is attributed to the lack of need for a text of such detail at that time and the lack of interest in a text 'written for a higher purpose than to amuse its reader'. Despite the lack of interest in the text Prince continued to work as a second volume, releasing it in three parts going up to 1633, each costing sixpence. Due to lack of further interest in the text this format was discontinued. Prince's work is noted for its accuracy, with Prince saying that “I cite my vouchers to every passage, and I have done my utmost, first to find out the truth, and then to relate it in the clearest order. I have laboured after accuracy; and yet I dare not say that I am without mistake; nor do I desire the reader to conceal any he may possibly find.”