John Fenwick (1618–1683) was the leader of a group of

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

s who emigrated in 1675 from

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Salem, New Jersey Salem is a city in Salem County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the city's population was 5,146,

where they established Fenwick's Colony, the first

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

settlement in

West Jersey West Jersey and East Jersey were two distinct parts of the Province of New Jersey. The political division existed for 28 years, between 1674 and 1702. Determination of an exact location for a border between West Jersey and East Jersey was often ...

.Clement, John (1875). ''A sketch of the life and character of John Fenwick''. Published by Friends Historical Association. Philadelphia: Henry S. VolkmarShourds, Thomas (1876). "John Fenwick." ''History and genealogy of Fenwick's Colony, New Jersey''. Bridgeton, New Jersey, pp. 3-17

Personal life in England

John Fenwick, the second son of Sir William Fenwick, was born at Stanton Manor,

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

, England to an ancient family of wealth and influence. In 1648, John Fenwick married Elizabeth Covert, who gave birth to three daughters: Elizabeth, Anne and Priscilla. In 1665, John and Elizabeth Fenwick joined the

Religious 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 ...

, or Quakers. After Elizabeth's death, John Fenwick married Mary Burdet, his second wife and daughter of Sir Walter Burdet. They had no children.

Fenwick's Colony

Prior to 1674, West Jersey had been partitioned by English colonists into five territories, each called a ''Tenth''. The five Tenths, stretching from

Assunpink Creek Assunpink Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in western New Jersey in the United States.Gertler, Edward. ''Garden S ...

southward to an area inclusive of the

Cohansey River The Cohansey River, also called Cohansey Creek, is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 river in South Jersey.. The river drains approximately of rural agricul ...

, fronted the east bank of the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...

. John Fenwick acquired

title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify either generation, an official position, or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may be inserted between the f ...

to the ''Fifth Tenth,'' which occupied much of the present-day counties of Salem and

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

.''West Jersey Proprietors'' (1964). Burlington, New Jersey: Revell Press In the third quarter of 1675, John Fenwick and the other

emigrant Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

s departed London aboard the ''Griffin'', Robert Griffith in command. The ''Griffin'' reached its destination prior to October 8, 1675; that day John Fenwick recorded a land deed with the local Native Americans (

Lenape people The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory includ ...

).Shourds (1876), p. 10. Shourds wrote that the date of arrival at their destination was September 24, 1675. Fenwick gave his new home the name of ''New Salem'', meaning ''peace''.

References

External links

Chronology of Fenwick's Colony
Courtesy of

New Jersey Historical Society The New Jersey Historical Society is a historical society and museum located in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, United States. The Historical Society is housed in the former headquarters of the Essex Club. It has two floors of exhibition space ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fenwick, John 1618 births 1683 deaths English Quakers Converts to Quakerism People of colonial New Jersey People from Northumberland English emigrants People from Salem, New Jersey

Personal life in England

Fenwick's Colony

References

Further reading

External links