September 18, 2012 - Anne Hutchinson Arrives in the New World

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n Ancouple of days ago, we celebrated a Puritan woman–and today we celebrate another!
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nLikenSunday’s Bradstreet, Anne Hutchinson was born (in 1591) in Englandnand became well educated (“for a woman”), and also likenBradstreet, she moved to the Massachusetts Bay Colony and Boston.n(She arrived in North America on this date in 1634.) Like Bradstreet,nHutchinson had a lot of kids—she had 11 children!

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However,nHutchinson didn’t totally fit in with the other Puritans. She and hernhusband had different Puritan-Christian beliefs than thenPuritan-Christians ministers who gave sermons at church. And shenshared her opinions: a group of women came to her house each week tonhear her ideas. The weekly meetings became so popular, Hutchinsonnoffered meetings for men, too. n

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Thenministers who disagreed with Hutchinson’s religious ideas complained,nand soon the Hutchinsons faced a trial over their religious ideas.nThey were convicted of wrongdoing and banished from the colony.

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nThisnwasn’t as shocking back then as it would be today. Throughout historynand all over the world, there was commonly a religion ofnpower—different religions in different places, of course, and atndifferent times. The religion of the king or state was oftennestablished, and the populace was expected to follow. People whonbelieved any other way (and were bold enough to say so) sometimesnfaced imprisonment, banishment, or death.

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nThenHutchinson family was welcomed by Roger Williams in what was tonbecome the colony of Rhode Island. Although Hutchinson’s life endednbadly (she and all but one of the 16 members of her household werenkilled during an attack by native Siwanoy Indians), Anne Huchinson isnan important part of the development of religious freedom in thenNorth American colonies, and she is now honored by the state ofnMassachusetts as a “courageous exponent of civil liberty andnreligious toleration.”

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nAlsonon this date:

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