Thomas Hastings (colonist)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Hastings was a prominent English
immigrant to New England
, one of the approximately 20,000 immigrants who came as part of the Great Migration. A Deacon of the church, among his many public offices he served on the Committee of Colony Assessments in 1640 and as Deputy for Watertown to the General Court of Massachusetts in 1673. He held property in nearby Dedham
between 1636 and 1639, although there is no evidence that he ever lived there.
, Suffolk
, on The Elizabeth on April 30, 1634. Although his home in England is unknown, the make-up of their ship's company
strongly suggests that he was from East Anglia
and perhaps from the counties of Suffolk or Norfolk.
The only major genealogy to treat the family, The Hastings Memorial (Boston, 1866), states that he was of noble birth by descent from the illustrious family that included the Earl of Huntingdon
line. He is not known to have claimed such a connection in his lifetime and there is no record to substantiate this supposed connection and much to argue against it. The surname is generally habitational
and may derive from the English
town of Hastings
, Sussex
.
After the death of his first wife in 1650, Hastings married Margaret Cheney of Roxbury and together they had eight children. Remarkably for the day and given such a large brood, they all survived their parents.
In 1671, their 19 year old first son, Thomas, Jr., was accused of fathering a child out of wedlock and the Hastings and Woodward families (who came to America together on the same ship 37 years before) became embroiled in a highly embarrassing paternity suit before the Middlesex County Court. Intimate relations outside of marriage were not simply frowned upon but potentially criminal. The social and political ramifications were foreboding too for Deacon Thomas, who was not only a leader in the church but serving as a selectman, town clerk and town meeting moderator during the controversy. While the younger Thomas denied the relationship and asserted another was the father, Susannah Woodward was quite forthright about their alleged liaisons and “for all of which miscarriages ... she craved forgiveness.” Although paternity could not be established, circumstantial evidence and hearsay led to an order that Thomas, Jr., pay for maintenance of the child and his father assumed the financial responsibility. Then, like today, his father’s standing in the community brought relative leniency.
The younger Thomas married Anna Hawkes a year later after moving 150 miles west to the Connecticut River Valley and settling in the village of Hatfield, Massachusetts
. He became a respected doctor which must have been a relief to his father who was to say later, “I have been at great charge to bring him up to be a Scholar and I hope he will live well by his arts and learning.” Dr. Thomas practiced medicine for some 40 years and served as town clerk for two decades. His was a frontier practice and as such, he treated many injuries sustained in skirmishes with the Indians and also wrote one of the best contemporary records of the devastating 1704 attack on nearby Deerfield
.
, where the American town meeting first took form, Thomas Hastings was repeatedly called to leadership positions inside and outside the church. At one time or another, he held virtually every office to include multiple stints as Selectman, Moderator and Town Clerk. His public service spanned five decades and he was last elected to public office (Selectman) in 1680. As a Freeman, he owned property and would have been a devoted Puritan
and believer of the Gospel as conveyed in the Geneva Bible
. Certainly one of the town's most influential citizens, later historians have called him one of the "old war-horses" of Watertown. Many of the surviving records from his time were written in his hand and often the government meetings were held in his home.
The descendants of Thomas & Margaret are numerous and many have risen to positions of great importance or notoriety. Although no marker remains, he almost certainly lies among his many descendants in Watertown's Old Burying Ground (Arlington St. Cemetery). Margaret Hastings survived him by about five years. The old property locations are well established, but no 17th century Hastings family structures remain.
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...
immigrant to 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...
, one of the approximately 20,000 immigrants who came as part of the Great Migration. A Deacon of the church, among his many public offices he served on the Committee of Colony Assessments in 1640 and as Deputy for Watertown to the General Court of Massachusetts in 1673. He held property in nearby Dedham
Dedham, Massachusetts
Dedham is a town in and the county seat of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 24,729 at the 2010 census. It is located on Boston's southwest border. On the northwest it is bordered by Needham, on the southwest by Westwood and on the southeast by...
between 1636 and 1639, although there is no evidence that he ever lived there.
Background and family
Hastings and his wife Susan left IpswichIpswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
, 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 The Elizabeth on April 30, 1634. Although his home in England is unknown, the make-up of their ship's company
Ship's Company
The Ship's Company refers to all officers, non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel aboard a naval vessel. The size of the ship's company is the number of people on board, excluding civilians and guests.-Command structure:...
strongly suggests that he was from East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
and perhaps from the counties of Suffolk or Norfolk.
The only major genealogy to treat the family, The Hastings Memorial (Boston, 1866), states that he was of noble birth by descent from the illustrious family that included the Earl of Huntingdon
Earl of Huntingdon
Earl of Huntingdon is a title which has been created several times in the Peerage of England. The title is associated with the ruling house of Scotland, and latterly with the Hastings family.-Early history:...
line. He is not known to have claimed such a connection in his lifetime and there is no record to substantiate this supposed connection and much to argue against it. The surname is generally habitational
Habitational name
A habitational name is a type of name. These names denote the starting inhabited location. Such locations can be any type of settlement, such as: homesteads, farms, enclosures, villages, hamlets, strongholds or cottages. The second element of a habitational name describes the type of settlement...
and may derive from the English
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...
town of Hastings
Hastings
Hastings is a town and borough in the county of East Sussex on the south coast of England. The town is located east of the county town of Lewes and south east of London, and has an estimated population of 86,900....
, Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
.
After the death of his first wife in 1650, Hastings married Margaret Cheney of Roxbury and together they had eight children. Remarkably for the day and given such a large brood, they all survived their parents.
In 1671, their 19 year old first son, Thomas, Jr., was accused of fathering a child out of wedlock and the Hastings and Woodward families (who came to America together on the same ship 37 years before) became embroiled in a highly embarrassing paternity suit before the Middlesex County Court. Intimate relations outside of marriage were not simply frowned upon but potentially criminal. The social and political ramifications were foreboding too for Deacon Thomas, who was not only a leader in the church but serving as a selectman, town clerk and town meeting moderator during the controversy. While the younger Thomas denied the relationship and asserted another was the father, Susannah Woodward was quite forthright about their alleged liaisons and “for all of which miscarriages ... she craved forgiveness.” Although paternity could not be established, circumstantial evidence and hearsay led to an order that Thomas, Jr., pay for maintenance of the child and his father assumed the financial responsibility. Then, like today, his father’s standing in the community brought relative leniency.
The younger Thomas married Anna Hawkes a year later after moving 150 miles west to the Connecticut River Valley and settling in the village of Hatfield, Massachusetts
Hatfield, Massachusetts
Hatfield is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 3,249 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area....
. He became a respected doctor which must have been a relief to his father who was to say later, “I have been at great charge to bring him up to be a Scholar and I hope he will live well by his arts and learning.” Dr. Thomas practiced medicine for some 40 years and served as town clerk for two decades. His was a frontier practice and as such, he treated many injuries sustained in skirmishes with the Indians and also wrote one of the best contemporary records of the devastating 1704 attack on nearby Deerfield
Deerfield, Massachusetts
Deerfield is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,750 as of the 2000 census. Deerfield is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area in Western Massachusetts, lying only north of the city of Springfield.Deerfield includes the...
.
Legacy
In Watertown, MassachusettsWatertown, Massachusetts
The Town of Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 31,915 at the 2010 census.- History :Archeological evidence suggests that Watertown was inhabited for thousands of years before the arrival of settlers from England...
, where the American town meeting first took form, Thomas Hastings was repeatedly called to leadership positions inside and outside the church. At one time or another, he held virtually every office to include multiple stints as Selectman, Moderator and Town Clerk. His public service spanned five decades and he was last elected to public office (Selectman) in 1680. As a Freeman, he owned property and would have been a devoted Puritan
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
and believer of the Gospel as conveyed in the Geneva Bible
Geneva Bible
The Geneva Bible is one of the most historically significant translations of the Bible into the English language, preceding the King James translation by 51 years. It was the primary Bible of the 16th century Protestant movement and was the Bible used by William Shakespeare, Oliver Cromwell, John...
. Certainly one of the town's most influential citizens, later historians have called him one of the "old war-horses" of Watertown. Many of the surviving records from his time were written in his hand and often the government meetings were held in his home.
The descendants of Thomas & Margaret are numerous and many have risen to positions of great importance or notoriety. Although no marker remains, he almost certainly lies among his many descendants in Watertown's Old Burying Ground (Arlington St. Cemetery). Margaret Hastings survived him by about five years. The old property locations are well established, but no 17th century Hastings family structures remain.
Some notable descendants
- Albert Francis JuddAlbert Francis JuddAlbert Francis Judd was a judge of the Kingdom of Hawaii who served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court through its transition into part of the United States.-Life:...
- Anne Morrow LindberghAnne Morrow LindberghAnne Morrow Lindbergh was an American author, aviator, and the spouse of fellow aviator Charles Lindbergh.She was an acclaimed author whose books and articles spanned the genres of poetry to non-fiction, touching upon topics as diverse as youth and age; love and marriage; peace, solitude and...
- Calvin PlimptonCalvin PlimptonCalvin Hastings Plimpton was an American physician and educator, who served as president of Amherst College and American University of Beirut...
- Carole LombardCarole LombardCarole Lombard was an American actress. She was particularly noted for her comedic roles in the screwball comedies of the 1930s...
- Daniel Ashley Dickinson (1839–1902) (an Associate Justice on the Minn. State Supreme Court)
- Daniel WillardDaniel WillardDaniel Willard was a railroad executive best known as the president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad from 1910 to 1941. He served on or headed several government railroad commissions in World War I and appeared on the cover of Time magazine in 1932 due to his part in negotiating wage cuts in the...
- Dorthea Dix Allen
- Eliakim Hastings MooreEliakim Hastings MooreEliakim Hastings Moore may refer to:* Eliakim H. Moore - U.S. Congressman from Ohio* E. H. Moore, Eliakim Hastings Moore, - American mathematician...
- E.H. Moore
- Frank Austen GoochFrank Austen GoochFrank Austen Gooch was a chemist and engineer. He was born to Joshua G. & Sarah Gates Gooch in Watertown, Massachusetts...
- Frederick H. BillingsFrederick H. BillingsFrederick Billings was an American lawyer and financier. From 1879 to 1881 he was President of the Northern Pacific Railway....
- F. Childe HassamChilde HassamFrederick Childe Hassam was a prolific American Impressionist painter, noted for his urban and coastal scenes. Along with Mary Cassatt and John Henry Twachtman, Hassam was instrumental in promulgating Impressionism to American collectors, dealers, and museums...
- Frederick Spaulding Coolidge
- George R. CarterGeorge R. CarterGeorge Robert Carter was the second Territorial Governor of Hawaii, serving from 1903 to 1907.He was born December 28, 1866 in Honolulu. His mother was Sybil Augusta Judd , daughter of Gerrit P...
- Gerrit P. JuddGerrit P. JuddGerrit Parmele Judd was an American physician and missionary to the Kingdom of Hawaii who later became a trusted advisor and cabinet minister to King Kamehameha III.- Life :...
- Herbert Baxter AdamsHerbert Baxter AdamsHerbert Baxter Adams was an American educator and historian.Adams was born to Nathaniel Dickinson Adams and Harriet Adams in Shutesbury, Massachusetts. On his mother's side, he was a descendant of Thomas Hastings who came from the East Anglia region of England to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in...
- James Chauncy Snow (1817–1884) (Mormon pioneer)
- Kimo Wilder McVayKimo Wilder McVayKimo Wilder McVay was a musician turned talent manager, who successfully promoted Hawaiian entertainment acts. McVay promoted and managed acts such as teenage heart throb Robin Luke, Don Ho, John Rowles, comic Andy Bumatai, Keolo and Kapono Beamer, ventroliquist Freddie Morris, magician John...
- Lansford HastingsLansford HastingsLansford Warren Hastings is best remembered as the developer of Hastings Cutoff, a shortcut across what is now the state of Utah, a factor in the Donner Party disaster of 1846.-Early life:...
- Lawrence Judd
- Lemuel H. ArnoldLemuel H. ArnoldLemuel Hastings Arnold was the 12th Governor of the State of Rhode Island, as well as a U.S. Congressman.He was born in St. Johnsbury, Vermont to Dr. Jonathan & Cynthia Arnold....
- L. Brooks LeavittL. Brooks LeavittL. Brooks Leavitt was an investment banker and antiquarian book collector who served as an overseer of Bowdoin College, to whose library he donated part of his collection of rare books and manuscripts...
- Marcus A. CoolidgeMarcus A. CoolidgeMarcus Allen Coolidge was a Democratic United States Senator representing Massachusetts from March 4, 1931 to January 3, 1937.Coolidge was born in Westminster, Massachusetts, son of Frederick Spaulding Coolidge...
- Robert Hastings, attorney, co-founder, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & WalkerPaul, Hastings, Janofsky & WalkerPaul Hastings LLP, formerly known as Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP, is a leading international law firm with 18 offices worldwide. Paul Hastings serves a diverse client base that includes many of the top financial institutions and Fortune 500 companies....
- Seth HastingsSeth HastingsSeth Hastings was a United States Representative from Massachusetts. Born in Cambridge to Seth & Hannah Hastings, he was a descendant of Thomas Hastings who came from the East Anglia region of England to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1634...
- Smith H. Hastings (1843–1905) (Union Col. and Medal of Honor winner)
- Solon S. Hastings (1806-aft. 1864) (Massachusetts legislator)
- Susanna Willard Johnson (1730–1810) (Indian captive and noted diarist)
- Theodore ParkerTheodore ParkerTheodore Parker was an American Transcendentalist and reforming minister of the Unitarian church...
- Thomas Hastings (architect)Thomas Hastings (architect)Thomas Hastings was an American architect.- Biography :He was born in New York City to Thomas Samuel Hastings, a Presbyterian minister, and Fanny de Groot. Hastings came from a colonial Yankee background, his ancestor Thomas Hastings having come from the East Anglia region of England to the...
- Thomas Hastings (composer)Thomas Hastings (composer)Thomas Hastings was an American composer, primarily an author of hymn tunes of which the best known is Toplady for the hymn Rock of Ages. He was born to Dr. Seth and Eunice Hastings in Washington, Connecticut...
- Thomas Nelson Hastings (1858–1907) (Member of NH State Senate and friend of Thomas Edison)
- Waitstill SharpWaitstill SharpWaitstill Hastings Sharp was a Harvard College graduate and Unitarian minister. He was the son of naturalist author and professor Dallas Lore Sharp and Grace Hastings and a descendant of Thomas Hastings who came from the East Anglia region of England to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1634...
- Wells Southworth Hastings (1878–1923) (Author)
- William Soden HastingsWilliam Soden HastingsWilliam Soden Hastings was a United States Representative from Massachusetts.-Life and career:Born in Mendon, Massachusetts, his father was Seth Hastings, also a U.S. Representative. On his father's side of the family, he was a descendant of Thomas Hastings who came from the East Anglia region of...
- William Russell (governor)William Russell (governor)William Eustis Russell was a U.S. political figure. He served as the 37th Governor of Massachusetts between 1891 and 1894, becoming the state's youngest ever elected Governor at age 34.-Family:...
- W. Reed HastingsReed HastingsWilmot Reed Hastings, Jr. is an entrepreneur and education philanthropist. He is the CEO of Netflix, and on the boards of Microsoft, Facebook, and numerous non-profit organizations.- Early life and education :...
External links
- Descendants of Thomas Hastings website
- Descendants of Thomas Hastings on Facebook
- http://books.google.com/books?id=RFdKAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=the+hastings+memorial&source=bl&ots=FWWYO4OGFV&sig=9dGvJ9ZuLw0kghaiWs5LW6ur2jA&hl=en&ei=JRfES-nvJJH-sgPI1eCQDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CAwQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=falseThe Hastings Memorial: A Genealogical Account of the Descendants of Thomas Hastings of Watertown, Massachusetts, 1634-1864 at Google books]
- Watertown Free Public Library