Lloyd wrote:
<< Well, if we can't document William of Providence's role in the early
history of the Baptist church perhaps we can make him a founding father of
the property rights crowd? It sounds like his numerous land disputes would
make him a natural for the "steal your neighbors land, steal land from the
government, etc." folks. >>
The real culprits in that regard were William's father-in-law, William
Arnold, and their neighbor William Harris. Although Carpenter often sided
with them, there's no indication that he was an instigator.
In 1683, as the last survivor of Providence's thirteen original
proprietors, Carpenter quit claimed 10 of 13 shares of jointly owned Pawtuxet lands
to the beneficiaries and purchasers to whom these fractional interests had
devolved. It's not that this was an extraordinarily generous act. It was
simply a formal acknowledgment that his right was limited to a 3/13-interest
in these undivided lands (his own share and two others he had purchased
from other proprietors), thereby removing any possible encumbrances to the
other 10 shares. But one wonders if, under similar circumstances, Arnold or
Harris would have been as accommodating.
Gene Z.
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