Large Broadside on the Maryland Toleration Act

William Stone, 3rd

Proprietary Governor A proprietary colony was a type of English colony mostly in North America and in the Caribbean in the 17th century. In the British Empire, all land belonged to the monarch, and it was his/her prerogative to divide. Therefore, all colonial proper ...

Province of Maryland The Province of Maryland was an English and later British colony in North America that existed from 1632 until 1776, when it joined the other twelve of the Thirteen Colonies in rebellion against Great Britain and became the U.S. state of Maryland ...

(c. 1603 – c. 1660) was an early

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 ...

settler in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. He was governor of the colony of Maryland from 1649 to 1655.

Early life

William Stone was born in

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It 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 ...

.''Concise Dictionary of American Biography'', p. 1018. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons/London: Oxford University Press, 1964.

Business dealings in Virginia Colony

On September 15, 1619, William Stone set sail for the

Virginia Colony The Colony of Virginia, chartered in 1606 and settled in 1607, was the first enduring English colonial empire, English colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertG ...

, on the ship, ''Margaret of Bristol'' and was one of the new colonists, being sent to

Berkeley Hundred Berkeley Hundred was a Virginia Colony, founded in 1619, which comprised about eight thousand acres (32 km²) on the north bank of the James River. It was near Herring Creek in an area which is now known as Charles City County, Virginia. It w ...

, to work under Captain John Woodlief's supervision. Stone was supposed to serve the Society of Berkeley Hundred's investors for six years in exchange for 30 acres of land. Sometime, prior to February 9, 1629, he received a tobacco bill from Richard Wheeler. By June 4, 1635, William had patented 1,800 acres in Accomack.

Family, marriage, and colonial government official

Local court records revealed, that he was the brother of Andrew Stone and Captain John Stone, who had been trading, on the Eastern Shore, since 1626. By 1634, William Stone had become a commissioner of the county court. Sometime, prior to February 1636, he married Verlinda Graves, the daughter of

Captain Thomas Graves Thomas Graves (c. 1580–1635) was one of the original Adventurers (stockholders) of the Virginia Company of London, and one of the very early Planters (settlers) who founded Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in North Ameri ...

. William went on to become sheriff and vestryman. In 1645 he was residing on the Eastern Shore, in what had become Northampton County. By 1648, he had become the third proprietary governor of Maryland.

First Puritan settlement in Virginia

Stone came to

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, in 1619, with a group of

Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Catholic Church, Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become m ...

s, who settled on the Eastern shore, of

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the ...

, in the colony of Virginia. The first Puritan settlement, in Virginia, thrived, but eventually came into conflict with the established Episcopal Church. In 1648, William Stone reached an agreement, with Cecilius Calvert, the 2nd Lord Baltimore to resettle the Virginia Puritan colonists, in the central region of the

Governor of Province of Maryland

On August 8, 1648, Lord Baltimore named Stone the Governor of his colony. He was the first

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

Governor. The Assembly sought a confirmation of their religious liberty and in 1649 Governor Stone signed the Religious Toleration Act, which permitted liberty to all

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

denominations. In 1649, William Stone and

exiles, from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, founded the town of Providence, now

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

, on the north shore, of the Severn River and across from, the future site of, the Maryland state capital of

Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

. In 1654, after the

Third English Civil War Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hig ...

(1649–51), the victorious,

Parliamentary A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democracy, democratic government, governance of a sovereign state, state (or subordinate entity) where the Executive (government), executive derives its democratic legitimacy ...

forces assumed control of Maryland and Stone went into exile in Virginia. Per orders from Lord Baltimore, Stone returned the following spring at the head of a

Cavalier The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...

force. But, in what is known as the

Battle of the Severn A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

(March 25, 1655), Stone was defeated and taken prisoner. William Stone was later replaced as Governor by Josias Fendall (1628–87), and took no further part in public affairs.

Post-governor years

William Stone wrote his will on December 3, 1659, and it was proved in Charles County, Maryland, on December 21, 1660. Verlinda Graves Stone wrote her will, on March 3, 1674-5 and the will was proved, on July 13, 1675, in Charles County.

Restoration, land grant, and death

In 1660, the monarchy in

and the proprietor's government in Maryland were

restored ''Restored'' is the fourth studio album by American contemporary Christian music musician Jeremy Camp. It was released on November 16, 2004 by BEC Recordings. Track listing Standard release Enhanced edition Deluxe gold edition Standard ...

. Lord Baltimore granted William Stone as much land as he could ride, by horseback, in a day, as a reward for Stone's faithful service. Stone concentrated on developing his plantation at Poynton Manor in what is now

Charles County, Maryland Charles County is a county in Southern Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 166,617. The county seat is La Plata. The county was named for Charles Calvert (1637–1715), third Baron Baltimore. Charles County is part of the Wash ...

, where he died in about 1660.

Legacy

Stone's great-grandson, David (born 1709), greatly expanded the value of the estate at Poynton and returned the family to prominence.David Stone died intestate on March 18, 1773, at the age of 64
/ref> William Stone's great-great-grandsons made major contributions to the foundation of Maryland as an American state:

Thomas Stone Thomas Stone (1743 – October 5, 1787) was an American Founding Father, planter, politician, and lawyer who signed the United States Declaration of Independence as a delegate for Maryland. He later worked on the committee that formed the Artic ...

signed the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the ...

, Michael Jenifer Stone represented Maryland in the

First United States Congress The 1st United States Congress, comprising the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, met from March 4, 1789, to March 4, 1791, during the first two years of George Washington's presidency, first at Federal Hall in ...

, John Hoskins Stone was Governor of Maryland 1794–97, and

William Murray Stone William Murray Stone, D.D. (June 1, 1779–February 26, 1838) was an American Episcopal clergyman from Maryland. He was bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland at Baltimore from 1830 until his death. Early life William was born in Somer ...

was the Episcopal Bishop of

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

. A great-great-great grandson,

Barton W. Stone Barton Warren Stone (December 24, 1772 – November 9, 1844) was an American evangelist during the early 19th-century Second Great Awakening in the United States. First ordained a Presbyterian minister, he and four other ministers of the Washingt ...

, was a prominent early leader of the

Restoration Movement The Restoration Movement (also known as the American Restoration Movement or the Stone–Campbell Movement, and pejoratively as Campbellism) is a Christian movement that began on the United States frontier during the Second Great Awakening (179 ...

.Douglas Allen Foster and Anthony L. Dunnavant, ''The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement: Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Christian Churches/Churches of Christ, Churches of Christ'',

William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company is a religious publishing house based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1911 by Dutch American William B. Eerdmans (November 4, 1882 – April 1966) and still independently owned with William's daught ...

, 2004, , , 854 pages, entry on "Stone, Barton Warren"

References

External links

Battle of the SevernWilliam Stone papers
at the

University of Maryland Libraries The University of Maryland Libraries is the largest university library in the Washington, D.C. - Baltimore area. The university's library system includes eight libraries: six are located on the College Park campus, while the Severn Library, an of ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stone, William 1603 births 1660 deaths 17th-century American people American Puritans Colonial Governors of Maryland People of colonial Maryland People from Northamptonshire Puritanism in Maryland Stone family