Ichabod Wiswall
Encyclopedia
Reverend Ichabod Wiswall (1637–1700) was the third pastor of the church in Duxbury, Plymouth Colony
, British America
. Though he is thought to have given the first known funeral sermon in British America at the burial of Capt. Jonathan Alden in 1697, American funeral sermons predate this event by several decades.
(1601–1683) and Elizabeth Berbage. The third of ten children, he was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts
, on 3 June 1637.
Wiswall matriculated into Harvard University
in 1654, at 17 years of age. During his time of study at Harvard, the course of study was changed from three years to four years. Wiswall left Harvard in 1657, after only three years, thereby forfeiting the honor of being able to claim himself as an alumnus of that institution. Beginning on 7 March 1656, Wiswall served for at least three years as a teacher in the public school at Dorchester.
He married Priscilla Pabodie (1653–1724). Priscilla was the daughter of Elizabeth Pabodie
, and the grand-daughter of Mayflower
passengers John Alden
and Priscilla Alden
.
Wiswall later studied for the ministry, and was ordained as minister of the church in Duxbury in 1676. From 1676 until his death in 1700, Wiswall served as the third minister of the church in Duxbury, Massachusetts.
In 1689, Wiswall went to London
to petition for a new royal charter
for the Plymouth Colony. There he encountered Reverend Increase Mather
, a fellow resident of Dorchester, but one who favored a charter which united the Massachusetts Bay and Plymouth colonies. The result of their combined and opposing efforts was the 1692 charter, which established the Province of Massachusetts Bay
(now the Commonwealth of Massachusetts), merging the two colonies.
In 1697, Wiswall officiated at the burial of Capt. Jonathan Alden, son of famous Pilgrims John and Priscilla Alden. This ceremony was conducted at in Duxbury, Massachusetts. While Duxbury records claim that Wiswall's sermon at this event was the first known funeral sermon in British America, other funeral sermons (including James Fitch's sermon on the death of Anne Mason (Norwich, CT, 1672)) predate Wiswall's sermon by a quarter century. Wiswall himself would be buried in the same cemetery, three years later; he died on 23 July 1700. Wiswall's tombstone is located close to that of Myles Standish
, in what is now known as the Myles Standish Burial Ground
in Duxbury, Massachusetts.
Plymouth Colony
Plymouth Colony was an English colonial venture in North America from 1620 to 1691. The first settlement of the Plymouth Colony was at New Plymouth, a location previously surveyed and named by Captain John Smith. The settlement, which served as the capital of the colony, is today the modern town...
, British America
British America
For American people of British descent, see British American.British America is the anachronistic term used to refer to the territories under the control of the Crown or Parliament in present day North America , Central America, the Caribbean, and Guyana...
. Though he is thought to have given the first known funeral sermon in British America at the burial of Capt. Jonathan Alden in 1697, American funeral sermons predate this event by several decades.
Biography
Wiswall was the son of Thomas WiswallThomas Wiswall
Thomas Wiswall was an early settler of British America, a prominent early citizen of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and a key figure in the founding of Cambridge Village, now known as the city of Newton, Massachusetts.-Early life:...
(1601–1683) and Elizabeth Berbage. The third of ten children, he was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts
Dorchester, Massachusetts
Dorchester is a dissolved municipality and current neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is named after the town of Dorchester in the English county of Dorset, from which Puritans emigrated and is today endearingly nicknamed "Dot" by its residents. Dorchester, including a large...
, on 3 June 1637.
Wiswall matriculated into Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1654, at 17 years of age. During his time of study at Harvard, the course of study was changed from three years to four years. Wiswall left Harvard in 1657, after only three years, thereby forfeiting the honor of being able to claim himself as an alumnus of that institution. Beginning on 7 March 1656, Wiswall served for at least three years as a teacher in the public school at Dorchester.
He married Priscilla Pabodie (1653–1724). Priscilla was the daughter of Elizabeth Pabodie
Elizabeth Pabodie
Elizabeth Pabodie , also known as Elizabeth Alden Pabodie or Elizabeth Peabody, was allegedly the first white woman born in New England....
, and the grand-daughter of Mayflower
Mayflower
The Mayflower was the ship that transported the English Separatists, better known as the Pilgrims, from a site near the Mayflower Steps in Plymouth, England, to Plymouth, Massachusetts, , in 1620...
passengers John Alden
John Alden
John Alden is said to be the first person from the Mayflower to set foot on Plymouth Rock in 1620. He was a ship-carpenter by trade and a cooper for Mayflower, which was usually docked at Southampton. He was also one of the founders of Plymouth Colony and the seventh signer of the Mayflower Compact...
and Priscilla Alden
Priscilla Alden
Priscilla Alden , , noted member of Massachusetts's Plymouth Colony of Pilgrims, was the wife of fellow colonist John Alden . They married in 1623 in Plymouth.-Biography:...
.
Wiswall later studied for the ministry, and was ordained as minister of the church in Duxbury in 1676. From 1676 until his death in 1700, Wiswall served as the third minister of the church in Duxbury, Massachusetts.
In 1689, Wiswall went to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to petition for a new royal charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
for the Plymouth Colony. There he encountered Reverend Increase Mather
Increase Mather
Increase Mather was a major figure in the early history of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and Province of Massachusetts Bay . He was a Puritan minister who was involved with the government of the colony, the administration of Harvard College, and most notoriously, the Salem witch trials...
, a fellow resident of Dorchester, but one who favored a charter which united the Massachusetts Bay and Plymouth colonies. The result of their combined and opposing efforts was the 1692 charter, which established the Province of Massachusetts Bay
Province of Massachusetts Bay
The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a crown colony in North America. It was chartered on October 7, 1691 by William and Mary, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of England and Scotland...
(now the Commonwealth of Massachusetts), merging the two colonies.
In 1697, Wiswall officiated at the burial of Capt. Jonathan Alden, son of famous Pilgrims John and Priscilla Alden. This ceremony was conducted at in Duxbury, Massachusetts. While Duxbury records claim that Wiswall's sermon at this event was the first known funeral sermon in British America, other funeral sermons (including James Fitch's sermon on the death of Anne Mason (Norwich, CT, 1672)) predate Wiswall's sermon by a quarter century. Wiswall himself would be buried in the same cemetery, three years later; he died on 23 July 1700. Wiswall's tombstone is located close to that of Myles Standish
Myles Standish
Myles Standish was an English military officer hired by the Pilgrims as military advisor for Plymouth Colony. One of the Mayflower passengers, Standish played a leading role in the administration and defense of Plymouth Colony from its inception...
, in what is now known as the Myles Standish Burial Ground
Myles Standish Burial Ground
The Myles Standish Burial Ground in Duxbury, Massachusetts is, according to the American Cemetery Association, the oldest maintained cemetery in the United States....
in Duxbury, Massachusetts.
Notable relatives
- Wiswall's father, Thomas WiswallThomas WiswallThomas Wiswall was an early settler of British America, a prominent early citizen of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and a key figure in the founding of Cambridge Village, now known as the city of Newton, Massachusetts.-Early life:...
(1601–1683), was a prominent early citizen of the Massachusetts Bay ColonyMassachusetts Bay ColonyThe Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...
and settler of Cambridge VillageNewton, MassachusettsNewton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States bordered to the east by Boston. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Newton was 85,146, making it the eleventh largest city in the state.-Villages:...
, Massachusetts. - Wiswall's brother, Captain Noah Wiswall (1638–1690), was killed in battle at Wheelwright Pond at Lee, New HampshireLee, New HampshireLee is a town in Strafford County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 4,330 at the 2010 census. The town is a rural farm and bedroom community, being close to the University of New Hampshire.-History:...
, during events leading up to the Battle of QuebecBattle of Quebec (1690)The Battle of Quebec was fought in October 1690 between the colonies of New France and Massachusetts Bay, then ruled by the kingdoms of France and England, respectively. It was the first time Quebec's defences were tested....
during King William's WarKing William's WarThe first of the French and Indian Wars, King William's War was the name used in the English colonies in America to refer to the North American theater of the Nine Years' War...
on July 6, 1690. - Noah Wiswall (1699–1786), grandson of Noah Wiswall (1638–1690). In 1776, at 76 years of age, he marched 28 miles from Newton to Lexington, where he was wounded at the Battle of Lexington.
- Jeremiah Wiswall (1725–1809), Captain, East Newton Company of MinutemenMinutemenMinutemen were members of teams of select men from the American colonial partisan militia during the American Revolutionary War. They provided a highly mobile, rapidly deployed force that allowed the colonies to respond immediately to war threats, hence the name.The minutemen were among the first...
, ConcordBattles of Lexington and ConcordThe Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. They were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord, Lincoln, Menotomy , and Cambridge, near Boston...
and DorchesterFortification of Dorchester HeightsThe Fortification of Dorchester Heights was a decisive action early in the American Revolutionary War that precipitated the end of the siege of Boston and the withdrawal of British troops from that city....
, American Revolutionary WarAmerican Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
. He was the son of Noah (1699–1786), and was his commander on the battlefield.