Johnathan Brewster

  Noted events in his life were:

• Background Information. ⁶¹³
Jonathan Brewster followed the rest of his family in Nov 1621 on the ship the Fortune. He married Lucretia Oldham of Darby, 10 Apr 1621. Lucretia may have been the sister of John Oldham, who arrived at Plymouth about 1623, and who Jonathan Brewster called "brother." Jonathan Brewster died in Connecticut, 7 Aug 1659, and was buried in the Brewster Cemetery at Brewster's Neck, Preston. Lucretia Oldham died, 4 Mar 1679.

Jonathan & his family moved to Duxbury, where he was the deputy to the General Court of Plymouth Colony in 1639 & 1641-44. He next moved to New London Connecticut around 1649, settling on a farm that was in both New London and Norwich. He was again the Deputy of the General Court, this time of Connecticut in 1650, & 1655-1658.

Jonathan engaged in the coasting trade, and was master and probably owner of a small vessel plying from Plymouth along the coast of Virginia. He became familar with Pequot Harbor, and traded with the Native Americas.

He established a trading-house, at a point of the east side of the river opposite the principal settlement which was named Brewster's Neck. He made a large farm there also. The deed of the land was given to him by Uncas, and read:
"April 25, 1650, I, Unquas, Sachem of Mauhekon, doe give freely unto Joanthan Brewster of Pequeet, a tract of land, being a plaine of arable land, bounded on the south side with a great Coave called Poccatannocke, on the north with the old Poccatuck path that goes to Trading Coave, &c. For, and in considertion thereof, the said J.B. binds himself and his heirs to keep a house for trading goods with the Indians." It was signed by Sachem and witnessed by William Baker and John Fossiker.

In 1637, Jonathan Brewster was a military commissioner in the Pequot War, a memeber of the Duxbury Committee to raise forces in the Narragansett Alarm in 1642 and a member of Captain Myles Standish's Duxbury Company in the military enrollment of 1643.

The descendants of Jonathan and Lucretia erected a plain granite shaft about eight feet high in the Brewster Cemetery in 1855. A part of the inscriptio of the momunment referring to Jonathan Brewster says: "History speaks of his acts," and to Lucretia there is the following: "A noble speciment of enlightened, heroic Christian gentlewoman."

Children of Jonathan Brewster and Lucretia Oldham:

• William, b. 9 Mar 1625, Plymouth; m. 15 Oct 1651, Mary Peame or Leime of London, likely d. in England

• Mary, b. 16 Apr 1627, Plymouth; m. 10 Nov 1645, John Turner of Scitutate;

• Jonathan, b. 17 Jul 1629, Plymouth, likely settled in England

• Ruth, b. 3 Oct 1631, Jone's River; d. 1 may 1677, New London, Connecticut; m. first, 14 Mar 1651, John Pickett; second 2 Jul 1668, Charles Hill, of London, son of George Hill of Barley, Debyshire.

• Benjamin, b. 17 Nov 1633

• Elizabeth, b. 1 May 1637; d. 1708; n, first, 7 Sep 1653, Peter Bradley of New London, second, Christopher Christophers

• Grace, b. 1 Nov 1639; d. 22 Apr 1684, New London; m. 4 Aug 1659, Daniel Wetherell, son of Rev. William Wetherell and Mary Fisher

• Hannah, b. 3 Nov 1641; m. 23 Dec 1664, Samuel Starr, of New London, son of Dr. Thomasa and Rachel Starr
~The Brewster genealogy, 1566-1907, pgs. 11-20

• Burial: From Find a Grave.

• Web Reference: Jonathan Brester from Wikipedia.

Johnathan married Lucretia Oldham, daughter of Willaim Oldham and Philippa Sowter, on 10 Apr 1624 in Plymouth Colony, Massachusetts ^446,633.^,613 (Lucretia Oldham was born in Derby, Derbyshire, England ⁶³³, christened on 14 Jan 1601 in Derby, Derbyshire, England,^446,634 died on 4 Mar 1679 in Preston, Connecticut ^633,613 and was buried in 1679 in Brewster Cemetery, Brewster's Neck, Preston, Connecticut ⁶¹³.)