Samuel Luther (1636 – 20 December 1716) was a prominent early figure in the

Massachusetts Colony The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in New England which became one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III and Mary II, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of Engla ...

. He served as the minister of the First Baptist Church of

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from 1685 until his death. He also served as a

militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

captain. Through his wife Mary Abell, daughter of

Robert Abell Robert Abell was born in about 1605 in Stapenhill, Derbyshire, England. He emigrated to New England in 1630 as part of the first wave of the Great Migration, and was among the early settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, settling first in Weym ...

, his descendants have richly documented English ancestry, including extensive ties to

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and

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

. Samuel Luther perhaps survived a raid by a group of

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at age nine while accompanying his father on a trading voyage to

Delaware Bay Delaware Bay is the estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the northeast seaboard of the United States, lying between the states of Delaware and New Jersey. It is approximately in area, the bay's freshwater mixes for many miles with the saltw ...

, and was held captive for a period. His father, Captain John Luther, was killed in the raid. Some

chronicle A chronicle (, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events ...

rs question the likelihood of a nine-year-old boy participating in such a risky trading endeavor, proposing that an older brother may have been the captive Luther. However, no older son of Captain Luther is acknowledged by

genealogical Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kin ...

authorities. In any event, the general circumstances of the incident are corroborated by several

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s. His fourth great-grandparents were Hans Luther and Margaretha Lindemann.

References

* Winthrop's Journal Vol. II, pp. 203, 237 * "Medieval English Ancestors of Robert Abell" by Carl Boyer III (2001) * Luther, Leslie L. and George A. Luther. ''The Luther Genealogy: A History of the Descendants of Captain John Luther Who Arrived in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, 1630-1635''. Lakeland, FL: G. A. Luther, 2001. {{DEFAULTSORT:Luther, Samuel People from colonial Massachusetts

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

1636 births 1716 deaths