Samuel Chapin (baptized October 8, 1598 – November 11, 1675) was a prominent early settler of

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. He served the town as selectman,

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

and

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

(in the

Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around the Massachusetts Bay, the northernmost of the several colonies later reorganized as the ...

there was little separation between the church and government). Chapin is best known today as the subject of the

Augustus Saint-Gaudens Augustus Saint-Gaudens (; March 1, 1848 – August 3, 1907) was an American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts generation who embodied the ideals of the American Renaissance. From a French-Irish family, Saint-Gaudens was raised in New York City, he trave ...

sculpture entitled ''Deacon Samuel Chapin'' (also known as ''

The Puritan ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'').

Life

Chapin was born in

Paignton Paignton ( ) is a seaside town on the coast of Tor Bay in Devon, England. Together with Torquay and Brixham it forms the borough of Torbay which was created in 1998. The Torbay area is a holiday destination known as the English Riviera. Paignt ...

(near

Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignton ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

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 ...

, to John Chapin and Phillipe Easton. His baptism is recorded as October 8, 1598. On February 9, 1623/4, Samuel married Cicely Penny. They had seven children: David, Catherine, Sarah, Josiah, Henry, Japhet and Hannah. The oldest five children were born in England and the last two in Massachusetts, Japhet in Roxbury and Hannah in Springfield. He immigrated to America either with or shortly after

William Pynchon William Pynchon (October 11, 1590 – October 29, 1662) was an English colonist and fur trader in North America best known as the founder of Springfield, Massachusetts, USA. He was also a colonial treasurer, original patentee of the Massachu ...

, between 1630 and 1635, and became a full member of John Eliot's congregation at Roxbury (later incorporated into the city of

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

). The Chapins lived in Roxbury till the close of the year 1642, as on 15 of October of that year Japhet was baptized there. Soon after this, however, they must have moved to Springfield, for we find them there in January 1642/3. On 26 September 1644, Samuel Chapin was chosen for a committee of five to order the prudential affairs of the town. This prudential committee was in reality the first board of Selectmen in Springfield. The Selectmen, or Townsmen as they were sometimes called, were generally five in number. They were elected by a vote of all the freemen of the town at the

town meeting Town meeting is a form of local government in which most or all of the members of a community are eligible to legislate policy and budgets for local government. It is a town- or city-level meeting in which decisions are made, in contrast with ...

, and were to serve for one year. They settled disputes, heard complaints, admitted inhabitants, regulated highways, bridges, fences, finances, etc., and had a general supervision over all the affairs of the town. Samuel Chapin held the office of Selectman continuously from 26 September 1644, to 22 November 1652, when having taken the oath of a Commissioner, he could no longer serve as Selectman. After the

Massachusetts General Court The Massachusetts General Court (formally styled the General Court of Massachusetts) is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from the earliest days of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, ...

's displeasure with William Pynchon's heresy, Pynchon had to resign as the magistrate of Springfield in 1651. The office was taken up by his son-in-law, Henry Smith but in the summer of 1652 Pynchon and Smith left for

. In October 1652, Chapin, Pynchon's son John and another Pynchon son-in-law,

Elizur Holyoke Elizur Holyoke (1618 1676) of Springfield, Massachusetts was an English colonist, surveyor, scribe, soldier, the namesake of the mountain, Mount Holyoke, and indirectly, of the city of Holyoke, Massachusetts. Background Elizur Holyoke arriv ...

, were appointed town Commissioners (essentially a board of magistrates). They had full power and authority to govern the inhabitants of Springfield; to hear and determine all cases and offenses, both civil and criminal, and to inflict all punishments not reaching life, limb, or banishment; to give oaths to constables; and to examine witnesses on oath. He apparently held office as a commissioner until 1660/1. Chapin then alternated between being a selectman (1660 and 1663) and a commissioner (1662, 1664 and 1665). Chapin was actively interested in the church and appears to have been a deacon as early as 1650. Chapin died in Springfield in November 1675 shortly after the town was devastated in

King Philip's War King Philip's War (sometimes called the First Indian War, Metacom's War, Metacomet's War, Pometacomet's Rebellion, or Metacom's Rebellion) was an armed conflict in 1675–1676 between indigenous inhabitants of New England and New England coloni ...

. In October 1675 Chief

Metacomet Metacomet (1638 – August 12, 1676), also known as Pometacom, Metacom, and by his adopted English name King Philip,Pocomtuc The Pocumtuc (also Pocomtuck or Deerfield Indians) were a Native American tribe historically inhabiting western areas of Massachusetts. Settlements Their territory was concentrated around the confluence of the Deerfield and Connecticut Rivers ...

tribe) residing within the town and incited them to mount an

attack on Springfield The siege of Springfield was a siege of the colonial New England settlement of Springfield by Native Americans during King Philip's War. Springfield was the second colonial settlement in New England to be burned to the ground during the war, fo ...

. Despite the inhabitants being warned of the attack many of the houses and barns were burned to the ground, as were its saw and

grist mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...

s. Cicely survived him by just over seven years, dying in February 1682. All their children grew to adulthood, married, and produced a total of 72 grandchildren, most of whom grew up and married.

Commemoration

In 1881,

Chester W. Chapin Chester William Chapin (December 16, 1798 – June 10, 1883) was an American businessman, president of the Boston and Albany Railroad from 1868 to 1878, and U.S. Congressman from Massachusetts. He was a multimillionaire at his death in 1883, an ...

, a railroad tycoon, congressman and Chapin descendant, commissioned master sculptor Augustus St. Gaudens to produce a work memorializing his ancestor. The sculpture, most commonly known as ''The Puritan'', is currently sited in Springfield's Merrick Park. It emphasizes the piety, and perhaps moral rigidity, of the country's religious founders—evident in the sculpted Chapin's proud pose, certain stride, flowing cape and hefty Bible, as well as his assertive use of a walking cane. Smaller variants of the same work can be found in several museums. File:Samuel Chapin Statue, aka, The Puritan.jpg, alt=The Puritan, completed by

in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1887. Photographed in 1905., ''

'', completed by

in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1887. Photographed in 1905. File:The Puritan by Augustus Saint-Gaudens.jpg, alt=A small version of the statue in the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

collection., ''Deacon Samuel Chapin'', a small version of the statue in the

collection.

Descendants

Samuel Chapin had many famous direct descendants, including United States Presidents

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...

and

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

, Canadian Prime Minister

Richard Bedford Bennett Richard Bedford Bennett, 1st Viscount Bennett, (July 3, 1870 – June 26, 1947), was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, philanthropist, and politician who served as the 11th prime minister of Canada from 1930 to 1935. Bennett was born in ...

, abolitionist and author

Harriet Beecher Stowe Harriet Elisabeth Beecher Stowe (; June 14, 1811 – July 1, 1896) was an American author and abolitionist. She came from the religious Beecher family and became best known for her novel ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' (1852), which depicts the harsh ...

, abolitionists

Henry Ward Beecher Henry Ward Beecher (June 24, 1813 – March 8, 1887) was an American Congregationalist clergyman, social reformer, and speaker, known for his support of the Abolitionism, abolition of slavery, his emphasis on God's love, and his 1875 adultery ...

and

John Brown John Brown most often refers to: *John Brown (abolitionist) (1800–1859), American who led an anti-slavery raid in Harpers Ferry, Virginia in 1859 John Brown or Johnny Brown may also refer to: Academia * John Brown (educator) (1763–1842), Ir ...

, financier J.P. Morgan, poet and playwright

T.S. Eliot Thomas Stearns Eliot (26 September 18884 January 1965) was a poet, essayist, publisher, playwright, literary critic and editor.Bush, Ronald. "T. S. Eliot's Life and Career", in John A Garraty and Mark C. Carnes (eds), ''American National B ...

, auto industry pioneer Roy D. Chapin and auto executive

Roy D. Chapin Jr. Roy Dikeman Chapin Jr. (September 21, 1915 – August 5, 2001) was the chairman and chief executive officer of American Motors Corporation (AMC). Chapin's father, Roy D. Chapin Sr., was one of the co-founders of the Hudson Motor Car Company; Hud ...

, American painter

James Ormsbee Chapin James Ormsbee Chapin (9 July 1887 – 12 July 1975) was an American painter and illustrator. He was the father of jazz musician Jim Chapin and grandfather of folk singer Harry Chapin. Life Chapin was born in West Orange, New Jersey, to James A. ...

, and James Ormsbee's son, jazz drummer

Jim Chapin James Forbes Chapin ( ) (July 23, 1919 – July 4, 2009) was an American jazz drummer and the author of books about jazz drumming. He was the author of several albums (later converted to CDs) on jazz drumming, as well as 2 CDs entitled ''Jim Cha ...

, and his sons, singers

Harry Chapin Harold Forster Chapin (; December 7, 1942 – July 16, 1981) was an American singer-songwriter, philanthropist, and hunger activist best known for his folk rock and pop rock songs. He achieved worldwide success in the 1970s. Chapin, a Grammy ...

Tom Chapin Tom Chapin (born March 13, 1945) is an American musician, entertainer, singer-songwriter, and storyteller. Chapin is known for the song " Happy Birthday", released in 1989 in his ''Moonboat'' album. It takes its melody from "Love Unspoken", a so ...

and Steve Chapin; singer

Mary Chapin Carpenter Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

; banker

Timothy J. Sloan Timothy J. Sloan (born 1959/60) is an American banker. He was the chief executive officer (CEO) of Wells Fargo from October 2016 until he resigned in March 2019, after significant pressure related to an ongoing controversy related to an account ...

;

Dwight L. Chapin Dwight Lee Chapin (born December 2, 1940) is an American political organizer, businessman, and retired public servant. He was Deputy Assistant to President Richard Nixon, during the Watergate scandal. Chapin was convicted of lying to a grand jury ...

; engineer

C. Chapin Cutler Cassius Chapin Cutler (December 16, 1914 – December 1, 2002) was an American electrical engineer at Bell Labs. His notable achievements include the invention of the corrugated waveguide and differential pulse-code modulation (DPCM). Biogr ...

and world champion sailor Dave Chapin; Aaron Chapin. And many non-famous descendants as well.

Notes

References

* Burt, Henry M. ''The First Century of the History of Springfield: the Official Records from 1636 to 1736, with an Historical Review and a Biographical Mention of the Founders, Volume I'' Henry M. Burt, 1898. Springfield MA
full text online
* Chapin, Gilbert Warren. ''The Chapin Book of Genealogical Data with Brief Biographical Sketches of the Descendants of Deacon Samuel Chapin; Vol. I: First Seven Generations and Vol. II: Eighth to Twelfth Generation''. Chapin Family Association, 1924. Hartford, CT. * Chapin, Howard Millar. ''Life of Deacon Samuel Chapin of Springfield'' 1908. Providence RI. se
full text online(PDF)
or se
other electronic versions available at The Internet Archive (archive.org)
* Chapin, Orange. ''The Chapin Genealogy: Containing a Very Large Proportion of the Descendants of Dea. Samuel Chapin, who Settled in Springfield, Mass. in 1642''. Metcalf & Company, 1862. Northampton MA. Se
full text online(PDF)
or se
other electronic versions available at The Internet Archive (archive.org)
* Coan, Peter M. ''Taxi: The Harry Chapin Story''. Ashley Books, 1987. * Dryfhout, John H. ''The Work of Augustus Saint-Gaudens''. University Press of New England, 1982. Lebanon, NH. *

External links