Elder John Crandall (15 February 1618 – 29 November 1676) was a Baptist minister, born in

Westerleigh Westerleigh is a clustered village in the civil parish of Westerleigh and Coalpit Heath (which includes Henfield) in the South Gloucestershire district, in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, England, it contains sources of the Frome a ...

, Gloucestershire, England and was one of the founding settlers of

Westerly, Rhode Island Westerly is a New England town, town on the Coast, southwestern coastline of Washington County, Rhode Island, Washington County, Rhode Island, United States, first settled by English colonists in 1661, and incorporated as a List of municipalitie ...

Biography

English roots

Crandall was born in 1618 (baptized February 15, 1617/8) in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

to James Crandall, a yeoman of Kendleshire in that parish, and his first wife Eleanor. The name was probably taken from Crundelend in

Abberley Abberley is a village and civil parish in north west Worcestershire, England. It is situated on the northern slopes of Abberley Hill, which is tall, between the River Severn and River Teme. The civil parish had a population of 788 in the 20 ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

, where people bearing the name were concentrated in the 16th century. Crandall's great-grandfather Nicholas Crundall (died 1589) of

Tewkesbury Tewkesbury ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the north of Gloucestershire, England. The town grew following the construction of Tewkesbury Abbey in the twelfth century and played a significant role in the Wars of the Roses. It stands at ...

came to south Gloucestershire in 1572 as the vicar of the parish of Winterbourne. Nothing else is known of John Crandall's life in England prior to his emigration to America, except that his relatives started spelling the name "Crandall" around 1610.

In America

The first documentation for Crandall in America is in 1643 when he appears as a grand jury member in Newport. He became a prominent member of the

First Baptist Church in Newport The United Baptist Church, John Clarke Memorial (previously known as the First Baptist Church in Newport, Second Baptist Church in Newport and the Second Baptist Church in America) is a historic Baptist church in Newport, Rhode Island, USA that was ...

, and subsequently the first elder of the denomination at

. He went to

Lynn, Massachusetts Lynn is the eighth-largest List of municipalities in Massachusetts, municipality in Massachusetts, United States, and the largest city in Essex County, Massachusetts, Essex County. Situated on the Atlantic Ocean, north of the Boston city line ...

with John Clarke and

Obadiah Holmes Obadiah Holmes (1610 – 15 October 1682) was an early Rhode Island settler, and a Baptist minister who was whipped in the Massachusetts Bay Colony for his religious beliefs and activism. He became the pastor of the Baptist Church in Newport, ...

to hold services for the Baptists; he was arrested there on July 21, 1651 and sent to prison in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. Ten days later, he was convicted of breaking the law by holding services and fined five pounds, in default of which he was to be publicly whipped. He was released upon his promise to appear at the next term of court. In 1655, he was a

freeman Freeman, free men, Freeman's or Freemans may refer to: Places United States * Freeman, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Freeman, Illinois, an unincorporated community * Freeman, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Freeman, South Dako ...

of Rhode Island; he was a commissioner in 1658-59 and 1662–63. He signed a letter with eight others to the court of commissioners of Rhode Island dated August 27, 1661 in relation to a tract of land at Westerly where they desired to settle. He and Joseph Torrey were appointed commissioners on May 14, 1669 to treat with

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

concerning the jurisdiction of disputed territory, and the colony of Rhode Island gave him 35 shillings to pay his expenses to Connecticut. On November 18, 1669, he received a letter from the governor and assistants of Connecticut complaining that he and others had appropriated a large tract of land belonging to

Stonington, Connecticut Stonington is a town located on Long Island Sound in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The municipal limits of the town include the borough of Stonington (borough), Connecticut, Stonington, the villages of Pawcatuck, Connecticut, Pa ...

. He and

Tobias Saunders Tobias Saunders (c. 1620 – 1695) was a Deputy to the Rhode Island General Assembly (1669, 1671, 1672, 1680, 1681, 1683, and 1690), a Conservator of the Peace (1669, 1678, and 1695) and a founding settler of Westerly, Rhode Island. Uncertain orig ...

answered the complaint on behalf of the Westerly people. He was conservator of the peace at Westerly in 1670, and deputy to the general assembly again in 1670-71. The Connecticut authorities arrested him on May 2, 1671, but the Rhode Island government advised him not to give bond and promised to pay his expenses and defend him. He had at least seven children by his first wife. His second wife was Hannah Gaylord (born 1647), daughter of William and Ann (Porter) Gaylord of

Windsor, Connecticut Windsor is a New England town, town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, and was the first English settlement in the state. It lies on the northern border of Connecticut's capital, Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. The town is part of ...

. She died in 1678. He died at Newport, where he had moved in 1676 because of

King Philip's War King Philip's War (sometimes called the First Indian War, Metacom's War, Metacomet's War, Pometacomet's Rebellion, or Metacom's Rebellion) was an armed conflict in 1675–1678 between a group of indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodland ...

.John Cortland Crandall, ''Elder John Crandall and His Descendants'' (New Woodstock, N.Y.: The Author, 1949). passim.

Descendants

Crandall's children were: John, James, Jane who married James Babcock, Sarah who married Josiah Witter, Peter whose wife's name was Mary, Joseph who married Deborah Burdick, Samuel who married Sarah Colby (or Celbey), Jeremiah, and Eber.J.H. Beers & Company, ''Representative Men and Old Families of Rhode Island: Genealogical Records and Historical Sketches of Prominent and Representative Citizens and of Many of the Old Families'' Rhode Island, 1908 He is the ancestor of a number of prominent Americans, including

Charles Henry Crandall Charles Henry Crandall (June 19, 1858 – March 23, 1923) was an American author and poet. He was a noted farmer and had become active in real estate having amassed in Stamford, Connecticut, by 1910. Crandall was a council member of the Stamford ...

James Otis Crandall James Otis Crandall (October 8, 1887 – August 17, 1951) was an American right-handed pitcher and second baseman. He was the first player to be consistently used as a relief pitcher. Consequently, he was given the nickname Doc by Damon Runyon ...

Jesse Armour Crandall Jesse Armour Crandall (October 20, 1834 – August 3, 1920) was an American inventor and toy-maker. He took out over 150 patents on toys in his 75 years of inventing. Crandall's father, Benjamin Potter Crandall, was also a toy-maker as well as thr ...

Lucien Stephen Crandall Lucien Stephen Crandall (May 4, 1844 – February 4, 1919) was an American inventor of typewriters, adding machines and electrical devices. Crandall gave his name to several typewriters, and he was also involved in the development of various mach ...

, Orson Leon Crandall,

Prudence Crandall Prudence Crandall (September 3, 1803 – January 27, 1890) was an American schoolteacher and activist. She ran the Canterbury Female Boarding School in Canterbury, Connecticut, which became the first school for black girls ("young Ladies and li ...

Reed Crandall Reed Leonard Crandall (February 22, 1917 – September 13, 1982) Reed Crandall
at ...

Robert Crandall Robert Lloyd "Bob" Crandall (born December 6, 1935, in Westerly, Rhode Island) is an American businessman who is the former president and chairman of American Airlines. Called an industry legend by airline industry observers, Crandall has been the ...

, Caleb Rawn Crandall, Nettie Virginia Crandall Bunt, Stephanie Bunt, and

Roland Crandall Roland Dimon "Doc" Crandall (August 29, 1892 - August 14, 1972) was an American animator. He is best known for his work at Fleischer Studio, especially on the Betty Boop film ''Snow-White (1933 film), Snow-White'' and as lead animator with Seymour ...

. Others include

Lucille Ball Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedian, producer, and studio executive. She was recognized by ''Time (magazine), Time'' in 2020 as one of the most influential women of the 20th century for h ...

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...

, Deborah Saxe,

Julia Child Julia Carolyn Child (Birth name#Maiden and married names, née McWilliams; August 15, 1912 – August 13, 2004) was an American chef, author, and television personality. She is recognized for having brought French cuisine to the American pu ...

, Bryan Ripley Crandall,

Ruth Benedict Ruth Fulton Benedict (June 5, 1887 – September 17, 1948) was an American anthropologist and folklorist. She was born in New York City, attended Vassar College, and graduated in 1909. After studying anthropology at the New School of Social ...

Garrison Keillor Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (; born August 7, 1942) is an American author, singer, humorist, voice actor, and radio personality. He created the Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) show ''A Prairie Home Companion'' (called ''Garrison Keillor's Radio ...

, and

Frances Folsom Cleveland Frances Clara Cleveland Preston (, christened Frank Clara; July 21, 1864 – October 29, 1947) was the first lady of the United States from 1886 to 1889 and again from 1893 until 1897, as the wife of President Grover Cleveland. She was the ...

, wife of President

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...

. *

List of early settlers of Rhode Island This is a collection of lists of early settlers (before 1700) in the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. Most of the lists are of the earliest inhabitants of a particular town or area. Native American tribes and leaders The ...

Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was an English colony on the eastern coast of America, founded in 1636 by Puritan minister Roger Williams after his exile from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. It became a haven for religious d ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crandall, John People from Westerleigh People from colonial Rhode Island People from Westerly, Rhode Island 1676 deaths 1618 births English emigrants