Nathaniel Morton
Encyclopedia
Capt. Nathaniel Morton (1616 christened – 29 June 1685) was a Separatist settler of Plymouth Colony
in Massachusetts
, where he served for most of his life as Plymouth's secretary under his uncle, Governor William Bradford. Morton wrote an account of the settlement of the Colony, the first historical text published in the United States, and was first to publish a list of signers of the Mayflower Compact
as well as an account of the first Thanksgiving
.
(1585–1624) and his wife Juliana Carpenter (1584–1665). George Morton was one of the organizers of the Plymouth settlement, and widely considered the principal editor of Mourt's Relation
, an early account of the settlement designed to drum up interest in England. Morton's son Nathaniel was born in Leiden, Holland, during the time the Separatists lived there between their flight from England and their eventual migration to Plymouth Colony.
The Morton family sailed for Plymouth on the ship Ann in 1623. After his father's untimely death, Nathaniel was taken into the household of his uncle William Bradford, then governor of Plymouth.
Morton married Lydia Cooper (1615-23 Sep 1673) on 25 Dec 1635. They had nine children: Remember, Mercy, Hannah, Eleazer, Lydia, Nathaniel, a stillborn daughter, Elizabeth and Joanna. After the death of Lydia, Nathaniel married Anne Pritchard (ca. 1624-26 Dec 1691). Remember Morton, daughter of Nathaniel Morton, married Abraham Jackson of Plymouth, another initial proprietor of the colony. Their descendant Lydia Jackson became the second wife of philosopher, poet and Transcendentalist
Ralph Waldo Emerson
.
, when it was likely appropriated by an English soldier. It later turned up in the library of the Bishop of London
in 1855, and was returned to Massachusetts.
Morton also wrote First Beginnings and After Progress of the Church of Christ at Plymouth, in New England.
Annually since 1961, The Wall Street Journal publishes an excerpt from Morton's history of Plymouth Colony as an op-ed the Wednesday before Thanksgiving Day.
Morton was also the first to record the list of signers of the Mayflower Compact
in his work of 1669. The document itself was lost.
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...
in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, where he served for most of his life as Plymouth's secretary under his uncle, Governor William Bradford. Morton wrote an account of the settlement of the Colony, the first historical text published in the United States, and was first to publish a list of signers of the Mayflower Compact
Mayflower Compact
The Mayflower Compact was the first governing document of Plymouth Colony. It was written by the colonists, later together known to history as the Pilgrims, who crossed the Atlantic aboard the Mayflower...
as well as an account of the first Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the...
.
Biography
Nathaniel Morton the eldest son of George MortonGeorge Morton (pilgrim father)
George Morton or George Mourt was an English Puritan Separatist. He was the publisher of, and perhaps helped write, the first account in Great Britain of the founding of Plymouth Colony, called Mourt's Relation.-Biography:...
(1585–1624) and his wife Juliana Carpenter (1584–1665). George Morton was one of the organizers of the Plymouth settlement, and widely considered the principal editor of Mourt's Relation
Mourt's Relation
The book Mourt's Relation was written primarily by Edward Winslow, although William Bradford appears to have written most of the first section...
, an early account of the settlement designed to drum up interest in England. Morton's son Nathaniel was born in Leiden, Holland, during the time the Separatists lived there between their flight from England and their eventual migration to Plymouth Colony.
The Morton family sailed for Plymouth on the ship Ann in 1623. After his father's untimely death, Nathaniel was taken into the household of his uncle William Bradford, then governor of Plymouth.
Morton married Lydia Cooper (1615-23 Sep 1673) on 25 Dec 1635. They had nine children: Remember, Mercy, Hannah, Eleazer, Lydia, Nathaniel, a stillborn daughter, Elizabeth and Joanna. After the death of Lydia, Nathaniel married Anne Pritchard (ca. 1624-26 Dec 1691). Remember Morton, daughter of Nathaniel Morton, married Abraham Jackson of Plymouth, another initial proprietor of the colony. Their descendant Lydia Jackson became the second wife of philosopher, poet and Transcendentalist
Transcendentalism
Transcendentalism is a philosophical movement that developed in the 1830s and 1840s in the New England region of the United States as a protest against the general state of culture and society, and in particular, the state of intellectualism at Harvard University and the doctrine of the Unitarian...
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century...
.
Colonial Secretary and Historian
From December 1645 until his death, Morton was annually elected Secretary of Plymouth Colony, and most of the colony records are in his handwriting. His careful maintenance of the records enabled him in compile New England's Memorial, considered the first comprehensive history of the colony, published at Cambridge in 1669 – and widely considered the first book of history published in the United States. Much of Memorial was based on the history of the colony written by Morton's uncle, Gov. Bradford, a manuscript which was lost for many years following the American Revolutionary WarAmerican Revolutionary War
The 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...
, when it was likely appropriated by an English soldier. It later turned up in the library of the Bishop of London
Bishop of London
The Bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers 458 km² of 17 boroughs of Greater London north of the River Thames and a small part of the County of Surrey...
in 1855, and was returned to Massachusetts.
Morton also wrote First Beginnings and After Progress of the Church of Christ at Plymouth, in New England.
Annually since 1961, The Wall Street Journal publishes an excerpt from Morton's history of Plymouth Colony as an op-ed the Wednesday before Thanksgiving Day.
Morton was also the first to record the list of signers of the Mayflower Compact
Mayflower Compact
The Mayflower Compact was the first governing document of Plymouth Colony. It was written by the colonists, later together known to history as the Pilgrims, who crossed the Atlantic aboard the Mayflower...
in his work of 1669. The document itself was lost.
Further reading
- Nathaniel Morton, New England's Memorial (5th ed.), Boston, 1826. At Google Books.