Thomas Minor (April 23, 1608 – October 23, 1690) was a founder of New LondonWheeler, Richard A. "The First Organized Church in New London: An Historical Study". New London County Historical Society. Read before the New London County Historical Society, at its Annual Meeting, November 26, 1877. . Accessed July 14, 2007. and Stonington, Connecticut, United States, and an early colonial New England diarist.
Early life and marriage Minor was born in Chew Magna, in Somerset, England, on April 23, 1608, to Clement Miner (born February 23, 1585; died March 31, 1640). In 1629, he emigrated to Salem, Massachusetts, aboard the Lyon's Whelp."Thomas Miner and his Descendants". . Accessed July 31, 2007. Note that some accounts have him arriving on the ship Arabella during the Great Migration, arriving in Salem Harbor on June 14, 1630. In the introduction of The Diary of Thomas Minor, Stonington, Connecticut 1653-1684, it states the name of the ship was the Arabella. It landed in Salem, Massachusetts on June 14, 1630. He quickly moved to Watertown,"The Miner Branch of the Hubbards". . Accessed July 14, 2007. and then on to Charlestown, after typhus fever broke out in Salem.
In Charlestown, Minor met Grace Palmer, whom he married in 1634. She was the daughter of Walter Palmer."Biography of Walter Palmer". Walter Palmer Society. http://www.walterpalmer.com/Walter_Palmer_Bio.htm. Accessed July 31, 2007. The couple eventually had seven sons and three daughters:
John Minor (1635–1719) Clement Minor (1639–1700) Thomas Miner (1640–1662) Ephraim Miner (1642–1724) Joseph Miner (1644–1712) Manassah Minor (1647–1728) Ann Minor (1648-?) Marie Minor (1651–1660) Samuel Minor (1652–1682) Hannah Minor (1655–1721)
In 1636, the Minors moved to Hingham.
Settling Stonington After several years in Hingham, the family moved south to the Wequetequock area of present-day Stonington, Connecticut, where Minor and his son Ephraim helped found the Road Church."The History Of Road Church". www.roadchurch.org. . Accessed July 14, 2007.
In about 1653, Minor bought land west of Stonington, across Quiambaug Cove near present-day Mystic,From Cary Latham and built a house for his family. Around this time he began one of the few diaries to survive 17th-century New England. It covers the years 1653 to 1684 and was published in book form in 1899.
Minor was active in public affairs in both New London and Stonington. He was commissioned as the captain of the Stonington militia company in 1665.Soldiers in King Philips War. George Madison Bodge. 1896. pg. 468. Both he and his sons served during King Philip's War. His son, Lieutenant Thomas Minor, appears on the list of Connecticut men who volunteered for service in King Philip's War who were the original proprietors of Voluntown, Connecticut.Soldiers in King Philips War. George Madison Bodge. 1896. pg. 443.
Genealogy Between 1683 and 1684, Minor contracted with an individual in England to investigate his genealogical line and determine how his surname was historically spelled (Minor versus Miner). The response he received is a classic example of fraudulent genealogy."An Herauldical Essay Upon the Surname of Miner". In possession of the Connecticut Historical Society. Hartford, Connecticut. The pedigree and family coat of arms sent back to Minor were proven to be mostly falsified in a 1984 study published by the New England Historic Genealogical Society.Miner, John A. and Miner, Robert F. "The Curious Pedigree of Lt. Thomas Minor". New England Historical and Genealogical Register. New England Historic Genealogical Society. July 1984, pg 182-185. See online version at . Accessed July 14, 2007.
Death Minor and his wife died three months apart in 1690 and are buried together in Stonington's Wequetequock Cemetery. The founders monument in Stonington has one side dedicated to him.
Notable descendants The Thomas Minor Society, founded in 1979, organizes gatherings of descendants, publishes a newsletter, and maintains cemeteries that have early members of the Minor/Miner family. It also publishes related books and materials, including his diaries.
Notable descendants include: Alec Baldwin Ulysses S. Grant Ned Lamont Alonzo Ames Miner Roy Waldo Miner Dorothy Miner (historian) Dwight C. Miner Dorothy Miner (attorney) Thomas T. Minor William Chester Minor William T. Minor John D. RockefellerAncestors of American Presidents: First Definitive Edition by Gary Boyd Roberts and Julie Helen Otto. 1995. John Treadwell Peggy Whitson
References
External links Stonington Historical Society – In Search of the First Settlers Original Stonington settlements c. 1651 – map