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Jeremy Clarke (also known as Jeremiah Clarke) (1605–1652) was an early colonial settler and President of the
Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until ...
. Born into a prominent family in England, he was a merchant who came to
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
with his wife,
Frances Latham Frances Latham (16101677), was a colonial American woman who settled in Rhode Island, and is known as "the Mother of Governors." Having been widowed twice, she had three husbands, and became the ancestor of at least ten governors and three depu ...
, and four stepchildren, settling first at
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...
in 1638, but the following year joining
William Coddington William Coddington (c. 1601 – 1 November 1678) was an early magistrate of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and later of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. He served as the judge of Portsmouth and Newport, governor of Portsmouth ...
and others in establishing the town of Newport. Here he held a variety of civic positions until 1648 when Coddington's election as President of the
colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the ''metropole, metropolit ...
was disputed, and Clarke was chosen to serve in that office instead. He was the father of Walter Clarke, another colonial governor of Rhode Island, and also had family connections with several other future governors of the colony.


Immigration to New England

Born in central
Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
in southeastern England, Jeremy Clarke was the son of William Clarke and Mary Weston. His maternal grandfather was Sir Jerome Weston, Baron of the Exchequer, and his uncle was
Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland Richard Weston, 1st Earl of Portland, KG (1 March 157713 March 1634/1635), was Chancellor of the Exchequer and later Lord Treasurer of England under James I and Charles I, being one of the most influential figures in the early years of Charles ...
,
Lord High Treasurer The post of Lord High Treasurer or Lord Treasurer was an English government position and has been a British government position since the Acts of Union of 1707. A holder of the post would be the third-highest-ranked Great Officer of State in ...
of England. Clarke was a merchant in London before sailing to
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
. While in England he married Frances (Latham) Dungan, the widow of William Dungan, and the daughter of Lewis Latham, and she and her four Dungan children accompanied Clarke to the American colonies. They first settled on
Aquidneck Island Aquidneck Island, also known as Rhode Island, is an island in Narragansett Bay in the state of Rhode Island. The total land area is , which makes it the largest island in the bay. The 2020 United States Census reported its population as 60,109. T ...
(later Rhode Island), and Clarke was listed as an inhabitant there in 1638. In April 1639, while living in
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...
he was one of nine men who signed a compact, agreeing to establish a government just prior to settling in Newport. In Newport he held a variety of positions from 1639 to 1649, including treasurer, constable, and assistant. In March 1640 he had 116 acres of land laid out for him in Newport, and the same year he was one of three appointed to lay out remaining lands in Newport. In 1642 he was chosen lieutenant of the military in Newport and in 1644 he became captain.


Colonial Presidency

In 1648 Clarke was Newport's assistant to the governor, but became President Regent, or acting governor, of the entire colony (four towns) when accusations were made against
William Coddington William Coddington (c. 1601 – 1 November 1678) was an early magistrate of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and later of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. He served as the judge of Portsmouth and Newport, governor of Portsmouth ...
, who had been elected to that position that May. Coddington did not particularly care for the patent that
Roger Williams Roger Williams (21 September 1603between 27 January and 15 March 1683) was an English-born New England Puritan minister, theologian, and author who founded Providence Plantations, which became the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantation ...
had obtained from the crown in 1644; he much preferred autonomy for the two Rhode Island towns of Portsmouth and Newport, or even their union with the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Also, Coddington was a Royalist, supporting the King, Charles I, while most of the Rhode Island settlers supported the Puritan Party in England. For these, and probably other reasons not made clear in the court records of the day, Coddington was suspended from the office of President to which he had been elected, and Jeremy Clarke became the governor in his place. One of the most important events of Clarke's administration was the granting of a charter to the town of Providence on 14 March 1649. Though first settled in 1636, this was the first recognition of organized government in what was called Providence Plantations in the Narragansett Bay in New England. This charter of civil incorporation gave the free inhabitants of the town full power and authority to govern and rule themselves. Civil records do not show Clarke serving in any official capacity beyond his presidency. While the
Society of Friends Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abili ...
(Quakers) had not become established until after his death, his son Walter became a Quaker, and the Friends' records indicate that Jeremy Clarke was buried "by the street by the waterside in Newport" in the "11th month, 1651," which is January 1652 in the current calendar. While the location of his burial is no longer known, he has a governor's grave medallion next to the marker for his son Walter Clarke in the
Clifton Burying Ground The Clifton Burying Ground is an early colonial cemetery located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It is a Quaker cemetery, and has the graves of four Rhode Island colonial governors. Description The Clifton Burying Ground is located ...
in Newport, where a number of prominent Quakers are buried. His widow later married William Vaughan, dying early in September 1677 "in the 67th year of her age. She is buried in the Common Burying Ground in Newport, with the inscription on her marker reading, "Here lyeth ye body of Mrs. Frances Vaughan, Alius Clarke, ye mother of ye only children of Capt'n Jeremiah Clarke."


Family

Clarke and his wife
Frances Frances is a French and English given name of Latin origin. In Latin the meaning of the name Frances is 'from France' or 'free one.' The male version of the name in English is Francis. The original Franciscus, meaning "Frenchman", comes from the ...
had seven children together, the oldest of whom was Walter Clarke, a future colonial governor of Rhode Island. Their oldest daughter, Mary, married John Cranston, another future governor of the colony, and their son Weston married Mary Easton who was a granddaughter of two other governors,
John Coggeshall John Coggeshall Sr. (2 December 1599 – 27 November 1647) was one of the founders of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations and the first President of all four towns in the Colony. He was a successful silk merchant in Essex, Eng ...
and
Nicholas Easton Nicholas Easton (1593–1675) was an early colonial President and Governor of Rhode Island. Born in Hampshire, England, he lived in the towns of Lymington and Romsey before immigrating to New England with his two sons in 1634. Once in the Ne ...
. Their youngest child, Sarah, married the future colonial governor
Caleb Carr Caleb Carr (born August 2, 1955) is an American military historian and author. Carr is the second of three sons born to Lucien Carr and Francesca Von Hartz. He authored ''The Alienist'', ''The Angel of Darkness'', ''The Lessons of Terror'', ''K ...
as her second husband.


See also

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List of colonial governors of Rhode Island This is a list of the judges, presidents, and governors of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations from 1638 to 1776. Governor of Providence *Roger Williams June 1636 - September 1644 Judges of Portsmouth *William Coddington 7 ...
*
List of early settlers of Rhode Island This is a collection of lists of early settlers (before 1700) in the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. Most of the lists are of the earliest inhabitants of a particular town or area. Indian tribes and leaders The following ...
*
Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until ...


References


Bibliography

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External links

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Chronological list of Rhode Island leaders
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, Jeremy 1605 births 1652 deaths 17th-century Quakers Colonial governors of Rhode Island Converts to Quakerism English emigrants Politicians from Newport, Rhode Island People of colonial Rhode Island Burials in Rhode Island Clarke family (Rhode Island) Burials at Clifton Burying Ground People from East Farleigh