Hello!
Maybe Betty or someone can help shed some light on a little mystery I
have never really followed up on regarding Rev. Samuel HUBBARD and
Joseph CLARKE. Austin pg. 107 says:
'1686, Dec. 19. He wrote to John Thornton, of Providence: "My old
brother who was before me, you and brother Joseph Clarke (only alive) in
that ordinance of baptism, I next and my wife in New England, although
we stept before you in other ordinances: Oh! let us strive still to be
first in the things of God," &c.'
This little snippet seems to come from one of the letters of Samuel
HUBBARD, but seems to be removed from all context. I find it very
difficult to read any meaning into it. Betty, do you know if this is
one of the letters in the Magazine of New England History article by
Huling you mention? Would it be possible to obtain a copy of that
article if I cannot locate it locally?
I am particularly interested in the reference to Joseph CLARKE, but am
not sure if the reference is to Joseph CLARKE the son-in-law of Samuel,
or to the father of that Joseph CLARKE. It would seem to me to refer to
the latter Joseph CLARKE (1618-1694) as Samuel and his wife were
baptized by Dr. John CLARKE (brother of Joseph) in Newport in 1648, if
the letter is indeed referring to baptisms (and the order in which they
occured?). The "only alive" reference is also interesting - not at all
sure what to make of it. Lastly, why the qualification "in New England"
after he and his wife? Were the others baptised in Old England? Joseph
and John CLARKE came from the village of Westhorpe in Suffolk County,
England, not very far from Mendelsham where HUBBARD was from - they may
have known each other prior to coming to New England, and the idea that
John and Joseph CLARKE were active in religious matters in old England
before coming to New is more grist for my CLARKE mill. Dr. John CLARKE
was very active in the religious activities in early Rhode Island,
founding (with many others, including his brother Joseph) the first
Baptist Church in Newport as early as 1644.
Any ideas or other contributions to the discussion?
"Elizabeth B. Larkin" wrote:
Dick.
Austin's Gen. Dictionary of RI has a good account of Samuel Hubbard
on pp.106-7. Most of the Hubbard information comes from copies from
his diary and letterbook now said to be lost. In the 1880's Ray
Greene Huling wrote an article "Extracts from the Letter Book of
Samuel Hubbard" in Magazine of New England History (Vol.1) beginning
on p. 172: The letter from Ruth Burdick to her father appears in the
article.
"Samuel Hubbard was one of the few Rhode Island pioneers who kept a
diary and letterbook The manuscripts which he left covered,it is
said, the period from 1541 to 1688, the last forty years of which
period Mr. Hubbard resided in Newport. , , , They were seen by by
Rev. John Comer in 1726 and were faithfully used by Dr. Isaac Backus
in 1777 when he prepared his history of the Baptists. They were
extant in 1830,but as early as 1852 had been lost. The present
writer [Huling] has a copy of a notebook into which Dr. Backus had
transcribed much of the journal and a few of the several hundred
letters which he saw in the original collection." In some accounts
the ancient Bible that he had was said to be a Hubbard Bible and in
others a Cocke Bible. Samuel Hubbard lived in that part of Newport
that is now Middletown. His farm was near the Whitehall which was
built later.
In the late 1970's when the headquarters of the Sabbatarian Church
were still in New Jersey, we were shown an ancient Bible that might
have been that belonging to Samuel Hubbard.
I have not seen the Sanford account of Samuel Hubbard but I would
expect that to be the most authentic.
Does anyone know where Ray Huling papers are? Betty
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