William Knight

Family/Spouse: Elizabeth. Elizabeth was born in 1580 in , , , England; died about 1624 in St Michael Wood Street, London, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Arrival: 1630, Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA

Elizabeth married Israel Stoughton on 27 Mar 1627 in Rotherhithe, Surrey, England. Israel (son of Thomas Stoughton, Reverend and Katherine Evelyn Montpesson) was born on 18 Feb 1603 in Coggeshall, Essex, England; died on 1 Jul 1644 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

William Stoughton was the Chief Justice presiding over the Salem Witch Trials.

The trial of 71 year old (good wife) Rebecca (Towne) Nurse began on June 30, 1692. By dint of her respectability, some testified on her behalf including her family members. However the young Ann Putnam and her siblings would break into fits and claim Nurse was tormenting them. In response to their outbursts Nurse stated, "I have got nobody to look to but God." Many of the other afflicted girls were hesitant to accuse Nurse.

In the end, the jury ruled Nurse not guilty. Due to public outcry and renewed fits and spasms by the girls, the Chief Justice Magistrate, William Stoughton, asked that the verdict be reconsidered. At issue was the statement of another prisoner "[she] was one of us" to which Nurse did not reply, probably because of her loss of hearing. The jury took this as a sign of guilt and changed their verdict, sentencing Nurse to death on July.

Life account

Stoughton graduated from Harvard College in 1650 with a degree in theology. He intended to become a religious minister and continued his studies in New College, Oxford, graduating with an M.A. in Theology in 1652. The Kingdom of England had by then been replaced by the Commonwealth of England.

Stoughton was a pious man who believed that the “Lord’s promises… have singled out New England… above any nation or people in the world.” [2]

Stoughton received a Master's degree in June 1653. The same year the Commonwealth was replaced by The Protectorate of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell.
Stoughton served as a curate in Sussex during the English Restoration of 1660. He was a Puritan at a time when this denomination was strongly connected to the recently deceased Cromwell. They fell out of favor with the Restoration of Charles II of England to the throne. Stoughton would not hold his position for long.

Having lost his position as a curate and having little chance to gain another, Stoughton returned to Massachusetts in 1662. He served in various positions in the colonial government, including as Joseph Dudley's deputy in 1686. By the early 1690s he was colonial chief magistrate, the first Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. In 1692 he acted as judge and prosecutor during the Salem Witch Trials, notoriously allowing spectral evidence and denying the accused defense counsel.

Stoughton was acting Governor of Massachusetts from 1694 to 1699, while still serving as Chief Justice, and again from 1700 to 1701. He was an adroit politician who managed the factions of the Colony's politics using the power of his governorship and judgeship and appointments to both his council and to lower courts

Honoraria
In 1726 the town of Stoughton, Massachusetts was named in his honor.

One of the Harvard College dormitories in Harvard Yard is named after Stoughton.


Sister
His sister, Rebecca Stoughton, was married to William Tailer. Their namesake son, William Tailer, would serve as acting Governor of Massachusetts from 1715 to 1716 and again in 1730. Their daughter Elizabeth married John Nelson (c. 1654 - 1734) who served as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.

William Stoughton was in charge of what have come to be known as the Salem Witch Trials, first as the Chief Justice of the Special Court of Oyer and Terminer in 1692, and then as the Chief Justice of the Superior Court of Judicature in 1693. Born in the Kingdom of England, Stoughton was the son of Israel Stoughton and Elizabeth Knight. Soon after the birth of William they moved to the Massachusetts Bay Colony where they had a large holding of land. His parents were among the founders of Dorchester, Massachusetts. His paternal grandparents were Thomas and Katherine Stoughton.

Stoughton graduated from Harvard College in 1650 with a degree in theology. He intended to become a religious minister and continued his studies in New College, Oxford, graduating with an Masters in Theology in June 1653, the same year the Commonwealth was replaced by the Protectorate of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell. Stoughton was serving as a curate in Sussex at the time of the English Restoration in 1660. He was a Puritan at a time when this denomination was strongly connected to the recently deceased Cromwell. Puritans fell out of favor with the Restoration of Charles II of England to the throne. Stoughton would not hold his position for long. Having lost his position as a curate and with little chance to gain another, Stoughton returned to Massachusetts in 1662. He served in various positions in the colonial government, including as Joseph Dudley's deputy in 1686. By the early 1690s he was colonial chief magistrate, the first Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. In 1692 he acted as both judge and prosecutor during the Salem Witch Trials, notoriously allowing spectral evidence and denying the accused defense counsel.

Stoughton was acting Governor of Massachusetts from 1694 to 1699, while still serving as Chief Justice, and again from 1700 to 1701. He was an adroit politician who managed the factions of the Colony's politics using the power of his governorship and judgeship and appointments both to his council and to lower courts.

In 1726 the town of Stoughton, Massachusetts was named in his honor.
One of the Harvard College dormitories in Harvard Yard is named after Stoughton.

His sister, Rebecca Stoughton, was married to William Tailer. Their son, also William Tailer, served as acting Governor of Massachusetts from 1715 to 1716 and again in 1730. Their daughter Elizabeth married John Nelson (1654- 1734) who served as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.

External links
Biography of William Stoughton (1631-1701) from the website about this history of the town named for him
A page noting his notable relations
official Massachusetts Governor biography
A narrative of the proceedings of sir Edmond Androsse and his complices by William Stoughton, et al. (1691)
"William Stoughton," pp. 194–208 of Biographical Sketches of Graduates of Harvard University, Vol. 1
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFD

Family/Spouse: Hannah Minot. Hannah (daughter of George Minot and Martha Stooke) was born in Feb 1637 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Hannah married James Minot on 9 Dec 1653 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. James (son of George Minot and Martha Stooke) was born on 31 Dec 1628 in Saffron, Walden, Essex, England; died on 30 Mar 1676 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: William Tailer. William was born about 1730 in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; died on 6 Sep 1813. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

James married Rebecca Jones on 9 Feb 1688 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Rebecca was born on 8 Mar 1663 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 17 Jul 1712 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Elizabeth married John Danforth on 21 Nov 1682 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. John was born on 8 Nov 1660 in Roxbury, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA; died on 26 May 1730. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mehitable married Thomas Captain Cooper on 6 Mar 1683 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. Thomas was born on 3 Dec 1657 in Candover, Hampshire, England; died on 6 Aug 1705 in Shoreditch, Middlesex, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mehitable married Peter Sargent on 19 Dec 1706 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. Peter was born in 1665; died in 1715 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mehitable married Simeon Stoddard on 12 May 1715 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. Simeon was born on 25 May 1647 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA; died on 15 Oct 1730 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Elizabeth married John Nelson in 1685 in , , Massachusetts, USA. John was born in 1654 in London, London, England; died on 14 Nov 1734 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]