Nathaniel Rogers (minister)
Encyclopedia
Nathaniel Rogers was an English clergyman and early New England
pastor. According to the Dictionary of National Biography
article on Rogers (published 1897), his descendants in America were at that time more numerous than those of any other early English emigrant family.
, Essex
, in 1598. He was educated at Dedham
grammar school and Emmanuel College, Cambridge
, which he entered as a sizar
on 9 May 1614, graduating B.A. in 1617 and M.A. in 1621. For two years he was domestic chaplain to some person of rank, and then went as curate to John Barkham
at Bocking
, Essex. There Rogers, whose chief friends were Thomas Hooker
, then lecturer at Chelmsford
, and other Essex puritans, adopted decidedly puritan views. His rector finally dismissed him for performing the burial office over an eminent person without a surplice
. Giles Firmin
calls Rogers "a man so able and judicious in soul-work that I would have trusted my own soul with him", and describes his preaching in his father's pulpit at Dedham.
On leaving Bocking he was for five years rector of Assington
, Suffolk
. On 1 June 1636 he sailed with his wife and family for New England, where they arrived in November. Rogers was ordained pastor of Ipswich, Massachusetts
, on 20 February 1638, when he succeeded Nathaniel Ward
as co-pastor with John Norton
. On 6 September he took the oath of freedom at Ipswich, and was soon appointed a member of the synod, and one of a body deputed to reconcile a difference between the legalists and the antinomians. He died at Ipswich on 3 July 1655, aged 57.
in his Magnalia.
, Essex, whom he married in 1626, Rogers had issue:
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...
pastor. According to the Dictionary of National Biography
Dictionary of National Biography
The Dictionary of National Biography is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published from 1885...
article on Rogers (published 1897), his descendants in America were at that time more numerous than those of any other early English emigrant family.
Life
He was the second son of John Rogers, by his first wife, and was born at HaverhillHaverhill
Haverhill is the name of a number of different places in the world:*Haverhill, Suffolk, England*Haverhill, Florida, USA*Haverhill, Iowa, USA*Haverhill, Massachusetts, USA**Haverhill , also serving the MBTA***Haverhill Line of the MBTA...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, in 1598. He was educated at Dedham
Dedham, Essex
Dedham is a village within the borough of Colchester in northeast Essex, England, situated on the River Stour and on the border of Essex and Suffolk...
grammar school and Emmanuel College, Cambridge
Emmanuel College, Cambridge
Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay on the site of a Dominican friary...
, which he entered as a sizar
Sizar
At Trinity College, Dublin and the University of Cambridge, a sizar is a student who receives some form of assistance such as meals, lower fees or lodging during his or her period of study, in some cases in return for doing a defined job....
on 9 May 1614, graduating B.A. in 1617 and M.A. in 1621. For two years he was domestic chaplain to some person of rank, and then went as curate to John Barkham
John Barkham
John Barkham, D.D. was an English clergyman, antiquary and historian. Highly reputed in his time as an authority, he published relatively little...
at Bocking
Bocking
Bocking can refer to:*Bocking, a village near Braintree, Essex*Bocking 14, a cultivated strain of the plant Comfrey*Powerbocking, the use of powered stilts patented by Alexander Böck...
, Essex. There Rogers, whose chief friends were Thomas Hooker
Thomas Hooker
Thomas Hooker was a prominent Puritan colonial leader, who founded the Colony of Connecticut after dissenting with Puritan leaders in Massachusetts...
, then lecturer at Chelmsford
Chelmsford
Chelmsford is the county town of Essex, England and the principal settlement of the borough of Chelmsford. It is located in the London commuter belt, approximately northeast of Charing Cross, London, and approximately the same distance from the once provincial Roman capital at Colchester...
, and other Essex puritans, adopted decidedly puritan views. His rector finally dismissed him for performing the burial office over an eminent person without a surplice
Surplice
A surplice is a liturgical vestment of the Western Christian Church...
. Giles Firmin
Giles Firmin
Giles Firmin was an English minister and physician, deacon in the first church in Massachusetts of John Cotton, and ejected minister in 1662.-Life:...
calls Rogers "a man so able and judicious in soul-work that I would have trusted my own soul with him", and describes his preaching in his father's pulpit at Dedham.
On leaving Bocking he was for five years rector of Assington
Assington
Assington is a village and civil parish in the Babergh district of Suffolk, England. Located near Sudbury, in 2005 it had a population of 380....
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
. On 1 June 1636 he sailed with his wife and family for New England, where they arrived in November. Rogers was ordained pastor of Ipswich, Massachusetts
Ipswich, Massachusetts
Ipswich is a coastal town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 12,987 at the 2000 census. Home to Willowdale State Forest and Sandy Point State Reservation, Ipswich includes the southern part of Plum Island...
, on 20 February 1638, when he succeeded Nathaniel Ward
Nathaniel Ward
Nathaniel Ward was a Puritan clergyman and pamphleteer in England and Massachusetts. He wrote the first constitution in North America in 1641....
as co-pastor with John Norton
John Norton (Puritan divine)
John Norton was a Puritan divine, and one of the first authors in the United States of America.-Career:...
. On 6 September he took the oath of freedom at Ipswich, and was soon appointed a member of the synod, and one of a body deputed to reconcile a difference between the legalists and the antinomians. He died at Ipswich on 3 July 1655, aged 57.
Works
Rogers published nothing but a letter in Latin to the House of Commons, dated 17 December 1643, urging church reform; it was printed at Oxford in 1644. It contained a few lines of censure on the aspersions of the king in a number of Mercurius Britannicus, to which the newspaper replied abusively on 12 August 1644. He also left in manuscript a treatise in Latin in favour of congregational church government, a portion of which is printed by Cotton MatherCotton Mather
Cotton Mather, FRS was a socially and politically influential New England Puritan minister, prolific author and pamphleteer; he is often remembered for his role in the Salem witch trials...
in his Magnalia.
Family
By his wife Margaret (d. 23 January 1656), daughter of Robert Crane of CoggeshallCoggeshall
Coggeshall is a small market town of 3,919 residents in Essex, England, situated between Colchester and Braintree on the Roman road of Stane Street , and intersected by the River Blackwater. It is known for its almost 300 listed buildings and formerly extensive antique trade...
, Essex, whom he married in 1626, Rogers had issue:
- Mary, baptised at Coggeshall on 8 February 1628, married to William HubbardWilliam HubbardFor the 19th and early 20th century Toronto city councillor see William Peyton HubbardWilliam Hubbard was an American clergyman and historian, born in England...
; - JohnJohn 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...
baptised at Coggeshall, Essex, on 23 January 1630, who became President of Harvard ; - and four sons (Nathaniel, Samuel, Timothy, and Ezekiel) born in Ipswich, Massachusetts. The youngest was left heir by his uncle Ezekiel RogersEzekiel RogersEzekiel Rogers was an English nonconformist clergyman, and Puritan settler of Massachusetts.-Life:He was a son of Richard Rogers, who held the living of Wethersfield in Essex, and younger brother of Daniel Rogers. He graduated M.A. from Christ's College, Cambridge in 1604, and became chaplain in...
.