
Samuel Chapin (baptized October 8, 1598 – November 11, 1675) was a prominent early settler of
Springfield,
. 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 Chur ...
(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 tra ...
sculpture entitled ''Deacon Samuel Chapin'' (also known as ''
The Puritan'').
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. Paign ...
(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 Paignt ...
),
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 ...
, 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 Massach ...
, between 1630 and 1635, and became a full member of
John Eliot's congregation at
Roxbury Roxbury may refer to:
Places
;Canada
* Roxbury, Nova Scotia
* Roxbury, Prince Edward Island
;United States
* Roxbury, Connecticut
* Roxbury, Kansas
* Roxbury, Maine
* Roxbury, Boston, a municipality that was later integrated into the city of Bosto ...
(later incorporated into the city of
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...
). 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
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 ...
. 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 arrived i ...
, 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 River ...]
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, a railroad tycoon, congressman and Chapin descendant, commissioned master sculptor
Augustus St. 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 ...
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 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 tra ...
in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1887. Photographed in 1905., '' The Puritan'', completed by 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 tra ...
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 100 ...
collection., ''Deacon Samuel Chapin'', 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 100 ...
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 ha ...
, 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 abolition of slavery, his emphasis on God's love, and his 1875 adultery trial. His r ...
and
John Brown, 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 Biogr ...
, auto industry pioneer
Roy D. Chapin
Roy Dikeman Chapin Sr. (February 23, 1880 – February 16, 1936) was an American industrialist and a co-founder of Hudson Motor Company, the predecessor of American Motors Corporation. He also served as the United States Secretary of Commerce fro ...
and auto executive
Roy D. Chapin Jr., 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, 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 Gramm ...
,
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 son ...
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 ca ...
; banker
Timothy J. Sloan ;
Dwight L. Chapin; engineer
C. Chapin Cutler and world champion sailor
Dave Chapin; Aaron Chapin. And many non-famous descendants as well.
[ C. Chapin Cutler]
See also
*
History of Springfield, Massachusetts
The history of Springfield, Massachusetts dates back to the colonial period, when it was founded in 1636 as ''Agawam Plantation'', named after a nearby village of Algonkian-speaking Native Americans. It was the northernmost settlement of the Co ...
* Other early settlers of Springfield:
**
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 Massach ...
**
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 arrived i ...
**
Miles Morgan
Miles Morgan (1616 – 28 May 1699) was a Welsh colonist of America, a pioneer settler of what was to become Springfield, Massachusetts. Being one of the few settlers whose homesteads were successfully defended during the Attack on Springfield, ...
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
City of Springfield, MassachusettsOfficial city website.
* Images of the sculpture and memorial plaque. Part of Stephen M. Lawson's genealogy site.
Metropolitan Museum of ArtDiscussion of the sculpture's history.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chapin, Samuel
People from Springfield, Massachusetts
1598 births
1675 deaths
People from Paignton