John Leverett the Younger
Encyclopedia
John Leverett was an early American lawyer
, politician, educator, and President of Harvard University
.
John Leverett was the son of Hudson Leverett, an attorney, and Sarah (Payton) Leverett, (and grandson of John Leverett
the Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony
). He was educated at Harvard College
(A.B.
, 1680; A.M.
), 1683.
For twelve years Leverett was a resident fellow at Harvard. He was appointed in 1685 at the same time as William Brattle. Leverett and Brattle managed Harvard College
while Harvard's President Increase Mather
was in England
for four years (1688–1692)
Leverett married on November 25, 1697 the daughter of former Harvard College president John Rogers
, Margaret Rogers Berry. They had nine children, six died in infancy. Margaret died on June 7, 1720. Leverett married secondly Sarah Crisp Harris. Sarah died on April 4, 1744.
John served in New England
as a justice of the peace (1699), a judge in the Court of Admiralty (1705), a justice of the Superior Court (1702–1708), judge of Probate Court for Middlesex County
in Cambridge
(1702–1708), legislator(1696–1702) and Speaker of the Colonial Massachusetts House of Representatives (1700–1702) , and provincial concillor for eastern Maine
(1706–1708).
Leverett acted as an Indian commissioner from Massachusetts during Queen Anne's War
(1701–1713). He was unable to persuade the Iroquois to enter the war on the side of the British at a conference in 1704. Leverett raised and commanded a company of volunteers (as a lieutenant in the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company) in the failed assaults
on French Port Royal, Acadia
in 1707.
John served for sixteen years as President of Harvard from January 14, 1708 till his death in 1724. In 1709, Leverett served as an emissary from Massachusetts Governor Joseph Dudley
to New York's Governor John Lovelace in negotiations for the establishment of military cooperation between Colonial Massachusetts and Colonial New York on the frontier and for an aborted invasion of Canada.
In 1719 Leverett helped to form the Lincolnshire Company which attempted to develop land in the Muscongus Patent in Maine
. Leverett had inherited a share of this Patent from his grandfather John Leverett
. Nothing was accomplished and grant was later taken over by Samuel Waldo, a Boston merchant.
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, politician, educator, and President of 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...
.
John Leverett was the son of Hudson Leverett, an attorney, and Sarah (Payton) Leverett, (and grandson of John Leverett
John Leverett
John Leverett was an English colonial magistrate, merchant, soldier and governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Born in England, he came to Massachusetts as a teenager. He was a leading merchant in the colony, and served in its military...
the Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony
Massachusetts Bay Colony
The 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...
). He was educated at Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
(A.B.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
, 1680; A.M.
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
), 1683.
For twelve years Leverett was a resident fellow at Harvard. He was appointed in 1685 at the same time as William Brattle. Leverett and Brattle managed Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
while Harvard's President 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...
was in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
for four years (1688–1692)
Leverett married on November 25, 1697 the daughter of former Harvard College president John Rogers
John Rogers (Harvard)
John Rogers was an English academic in early Colonial America. Eldest son of minister Nathaniel Rogers, he was born in Coggeshall, a small town in Essex, and immigrated to New England with his family in 1636. In 1649, at age 19, in the recent settlement of Cambridge , he earned a B.A...
, Margaret Rogers Berry. They had nine children, six died in infancy. Margaret died on June 7, 1720. Leverett married secondly Sarah Crisp Harris. Sarah died on April 4, 1744.
John served in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
as a justice of the peace (1699), a judge in the Court of Admiralty (1705), a justice of the Superior Court (1702–1708), judge of Probate Court for Middlesex County
Middlesex County, Massachusetts
-National protected areas:* Assabet River National Wildlife Refuge* Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge* Longfellow National Historic Site* Lowell National Historical Park* Minute Man National Historical Park* Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge...
in Cambridge
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
(1702–1708), legislator(1696–1702) and Speaker of the Colonial Massachusetts House of Representatives (1700–1702) , and provincial concillor for eastern Maine
District of Maine
The District of Maine was a legal designation for what is now the U.S. state of Maine from American independence until the Missouri Compromise on March 4, 1820, after which it gained its independence from Massachusetts and became the 23rd state in the Union...
(1706–1708).
Leverett acted as an Indian commissioner from Massachusetts during Queen Anne's War
Queen Anne's War
Queen Anne's War , as the North American theater of the War of the Spanish Succession was known in the British colonies, was the second in a series of French and Indian Wars fought between France and England, later Great Britain, in North America for control of the continent. The War of the...
(1701–1713). He was unable to persuade the Iroquois to enter the war on the side of the British at a conference in 1704. Leverett raised and commanded a company of volunteers (as a lieutenant in the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company) in the failed assaults
Siege of Port Royal (1707)
The Siege of Port Royal in 1707 was two separate attempts by English colonists from New England to conquer Acadia by capturing its capital Port Royal during Queen Anne's War. Both attempts were made by colonial militia, and were led by men inexperienced in siege warfare...
on French Port Royal, Acadia
Port Royal, Nova Scotia
Port Royal was the capital of Acadia from 1605 to 1710 and is now a town called Annapolis Royal in the western part of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Initially Port Royal was located on the north shore of the Annapolis Basin, Nova Scotia, at the site of the present reconstruction of the...
in 1707.
John served for sixteen years as President of Harvard from January 14, 1708 till his death in 1724. In 1709, Leverett served as an emissary from Massachusetts Governor Joseph Dudley
Joseph Dudley
Joseph Dudley was an English colonial administrator. A native of Roxbury, Massachusetts and son of one of its founders, he had a leading role in the administration of the unpopular Dominion of New England , and served briefly on the council of the Province of New York, where he oversaw the trial...
to New York's Governor John Lovelace in negotiations for the establishment of military cooperation between Colonial Massachusetts and Colonial New York on the frontier and for an aborted invasion of Canada.
In 1719 Leverett helped to form the Lincolnshire Company which attempted to develop land in the Muscongus Patent in Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
. Leverett had inherited a share of this Patent from his grandfather John Leverett
John Leverett
John Leverett was an English colonial magistrate, merchant, soldier and governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Born in England, he came to Massachusetts as a teenager. He was a leading merchant in the colony, and served in its military...
. Nothing was accomplished and grant was later taken over by Samuel Waldo, a Boston merchant.
External links
- Harvard University biography of John Leverett
- Inventory of John Leverett's Papers at Harvard University which includes the above biographical information.