Ezekiel Rogers 1590 (Date unknown) – January 23, 1660) was an English nonconformist clergyman, and

Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to rid the Church of England of what they considered to be Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should b ...

settler of

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

Life

He was a son of

Richard Rogers Richard George Rogers, Baron Rogers of Riverside (23 July 1933 – 18 December 2021) was a British-Italian architect noted for his modernist and constructivist designs in high-tech architecture. He was the founder at Rogers Stirk Harbour + ...

, who held the living of Wethersfield in

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, and younger brother of Daniel Rogers. He graduated M.A. from

Christ's College, Cambridge Christ's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 250 graduate students. The c ...

in 1604, and became chaplain in the family of Sir Francis Barrington in Essex. He was preferred by his patron to the living of

Rowley Rowley may refer to: Places Canada * Rowley, Alberta, a hamlet * Rowley Island, Nunavut United Kingdom * Rowley, County Durham, a hamlet - see Rowley railway station (England) * Rowley, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, a village and civil par ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

. :s:Rogers, Ezekiel (DNB00) In December 1638, after seventeen years of service, Rogers was discharged from his post as rector of Rowley, after he had refused to read ''

The Book of Sports The ''Declaration of Sports'' (also known as the ''Book of Sports'') was a declaration of James I of England issued just for Lancashire in 1617, nationally in 1618, and reissued by Charles I in 1633. It listed the sports and recreations that were ...

''. Believing the future of Puritanism was at stake, he left for the New World with the members of twenty families of his congregation. He arrived in New England in December 1638 with the families on the ship ''

John of London John of London (), mathematician, was described by Roger Bacon as one of two "perfect" mathematicians, together with Pierre de Maricourt. Bacon probably knew John in Paris in the 1260s. No works are certainly attributed to him, but he may be t ...

'', and wintered at

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one ...

. The first printing press brought to America came on board the ship with them, with the printer

Stephen Daye Stephen Daye (c.1594 – December 22, 1668) emigrated from England to the English colony of Massachusetts Bay and, likely with the help of his son Matthew, became the first printer in colonial America, under indenture to Elizabeth Glover, owner ...

Theophilus Eaton Theophilus Eaton ( January 7, 1658) was a New England Colonies, New England colonist, politician, merchant and financier, who took part in organizing and financing the Puritan migration, Great Puritan Migration to America. He was a founder ...

and John Davenport were then setting up their colony at

New Haven New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...

; they tried to enlist Rogers, but without success. Early in the spring of 1639 he and most of these twenty families settled in the town of

Rowley, Massachusetts Rowley is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,161 at the 2020 census. Part of the town comprises the census-designated place of Rowley. History The area was inhabited by the Agawam people under sachem ...

. Rowley was incorporated on September 4, 1639. Rogers was the pastor at Rowley until his death on 23 January 1661. He was three times married: first, to Sarah, widow of John Everard; secondly, Elizabeth Wilson, daughter of

John Wilson John Wilson may refer to: Academics * John Wilson (historian) (1799–1870), author of ''Our Israelitish Origin'' (1840), a founding text of British Israelism * John Wilson (agriculturalist) (1812–1888), British agriculturalist * John Matthias ...

of the

First Church in Boston First Church in Boston is a Unitarian Universalist Church (originally Congregationalist) founded in 1630 by John Winthrop's original Puritan settlement in Boston, Massachusetts. The current building, located on 66 Marlborough Street in the Ba ...

; thirdly, to Mary, widow of Thomas Barker. He left no children.

Works

Rogers published ''The Chief Grounds of the Christian Religion set down by way of catechising, gathered long since for the use of an honourable Family'', London, 1642. Several of his letters to

John Winthrop John Winthrop (January 12, 1588 – March 26, 1649) was an English Puritan lawyer and a leading figure in the founding of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the second major settlement in New England following Plymouth Colony. Winthrop led the fir ...

are published in the ''Massachusetts Historical Collection'' (4th ser. vii.)

References

*''The Essex Antiquarian'' v.11, 1907 by Edited by Sidney Perley. *''New England Historic and Genealogical Register'', vol. 5, pages 119-128 *

Notes

External links

First Congregational Church of Rowley, Massachusetts
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Ezekiel 1590 births 1661 deaths Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge American evangelicals American Christian clergy English emigrants to Massachusetts Bay Colony American religious writers 17th-century English Anglican priests Evangelical Anglicans English evangelicals English Caroline nonconforming clergy Clergy from colonial Massachusetts People from colonial Massachusetts 17th-century New England Puritan ministers People from Rowley, Massachusetts People from Rowley, East Riding of Yorkshire