Person:Nicholas Easton (5)

Nicholas Easton was an early colonial President and Governor of Rhode Island.^[2]

Nicholas Easton took the oath of allegiance prior to boarding the Mary & John at Southampton on 26 Mar 1634. He came with his sons Peter and John.^[2]

On 20 Nov 1637, "Mr. Eason" was one of three men disarmed as an adherent of Wheelright and Hutchinson, and, on 12 Mar 1637/38, was one of the men who had license to depart the colony.^[6]

In the 1640s, shortly after the founding of Newport, people became dissatisfied with leader William Coddington for his autocratic style. As a result, by 1650 a counter faction led by Nicholas Easton was formed. The Coddington/Easton divide would dominate Newport politics for much of the 17th century.^[7]

Easton, who had held numerous offices in Portsmouth and Newport, was elected president of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations in 1650, as the four towns of Rhode Island were then known.^[8]. During his term in office, Coddington initiated a split of the four towns. On 4 Nov 1651, "Mr. Nicholas Esson being formerly chosen President of the Province of Providence Plantations hath of late deserted his office and he, together with the two towns upon Rhode Island, viz. Portsmouth and Newport, have declined and fallen off from that established order of civil government and incorporation amongst us, by meens of a commission presented upon the said Island by Mr. William Coddington."^[9]. In 1654, after the four towns were reunited, Easton was again elected President.^[10].

From 1672 to 1674, Easton served as colonial Governor of the colony of Rhode Island.^[11]

For more information, see the EN Wikipedia article Nicholas Easton.

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} Nicholas Easton, in Anderson, Robert Charles. The Great Migration Directory. (Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, Jun 2015)
   102.

   "Easton, Nicholas: [Origin] Romsey, Hampshire; [emigration] 1634 on Mary & John; [resided] Ipswich, Newbury, Portsmouth, Newport [GM 2:2:396-403; NEHGR 162:245-54, 163:51-65]."

2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8} Nicholas Easton, in Anderson, Robert Charles; George F. Sanborn; and Melinde Lutz Sanborn. The Great Migration: Immigrants to New England, 1634-1635. (Boston, Massachusetts: NEHGS, 1999-2011)
   2:396-403.

   Origin: Romsey, Hampshire Migration: 1634 on the Mary and John First Residence: Ipswich
   Birth: About 1593 (based on age at death), son of John and Elizabeth Easton. [NEHGR 154:164]
   Death: Newport 15 Aug 1675, aged 83 [RIVR 7:99]

3. ↑ Nicholas Easton, in Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} 3. Nicholas¹ Easton, in Fiske, Jane Fletcher. The English Background of Nicholas Easton of Newport, Rhode Island. New England Historical and Genealogical Register. (New England Historic Genealogical Society, Apr 2000)
   154:169.

   "3. Nicholas¹ Easton (John^A, Thomas^B) was born probably in 1592 at Lymington, Hampshire, and he died at Newport, Rhode Island, 15 August 1675, aged 83, 'one of the first planters,' and was buried in the Coddington Burial Ground."

5. ↑ Nicholas Easton, in Find A Grave.

   There a number of errors in the accompanying text; e.g., place of birth and number of children.

6. ↑ Great Migration, supra, citing MBCR 1:212, 1:223
7. ↑ Newport, Rhode Island (Colonial history), in Wikipedia
8. ↑ Great Migration, supra, citing RICR 1:220; Wikipedia entry on Nicholas Easton, supra
9. ↑ Great Migration, citing RICR 1:233
10. ↑ Great Migration, supra, citing RICR 1:273; Wikipedia entry on Nicholas Easton, supra
11. ↑ Great Migration, supra, citing RICT 3:13, 15, 19, 33

Founders of Newport, Rhode Island

Newport was founded in 1639. Its eight founders and first officers left Portsmouth, Rhode Island after a political fallout with Anne Hutchinson and her followers. As part of the agreement, William Coddington and his followers took control of the southern side of the island. They were soon joined by Nicholas Easton, who had recently been expelled from Massachusetts for holding heretical beliefs. The settlement soon grew to be the largest of the four original towns of Rhode Island. Many of the first colonists in Newport quickly became Baptists, and in 1640 the second Baptist congregation in Rhode Island was formed under the leadership of John Clarke. Portsmouth and Newport later united with Providence and Warwick in 1654 as the colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. Original Founders: Nicholas Easton - William Coddington - John Clarke - John Coggeshall - William Brenton - Jeremy Clark - Thomas Hazard - Henry Bull Current Location: Newport County, Rhode Island   Parent Towns: Portsmouth   Daughter Towns: