I have told you something about the arrival of our ancestors to New England in the 1600s. The Shaw and Knowlton families worshipped as Pilgrims and Puritans when they arrived in Plymouth as well as other towns in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. These colonists abided by strict rules.
They did not celebrate the holidays as we do. There were no celebrations of Christmas or Easter. Our ancestors were free thinkers and left the restrictive theocracy of the religious sects and traveled to Rhode Island where Roger Williams promised religious freedom. They rose to lead Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian churches and Quaker meetings. The Bassett family came to America and found themselves entangled in the Salem Witch Trials. Obadiah Holmes was whipped in public for expressing his religious beliefs. Chaddus Brown was the first Baptist minister in America. We have a proud history here. Click on the photo for a short history of Christmas in Massachusetts in the 1600s. |
Bonnie EastonHi! I am a Jones cousin, daughter of Evelyn Jones Easton. Since retiring as a reference librarian after 20 years, I have become a genealogy addict. Our ancestors want to tell us their stories.
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