John's father,Nathaniel Ward,was an esteemed Puritan minister from Ipswich. He petitioned the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony for a settlement along the Merrimack River. This was to secure a residence and ministry for his son, John. The lands of Pentucket,a native American word for "place of the winding river", appeared promising. In 1640,without land titles, homes were erected and a town was settled. However,two chiefs,Passaconnaway and Saggahew, ruled over a confederacy of tribes in this region. It wasn't until 1642 that the Indian chiefs sold the Pentucket land to the colonists.
Since John had achieved an AB degree from Emmanuel College,Cambridge, England in 1626 and an AM degree in 1630,he became the settlement's first minister. In deference to his birthplace,the town was renamed Haverhill. He settled in the vicinity of the graveyard, acquiring 16 acres of land in which to build his home.
Considered a virtuous man, he was educated in not only religion, but in the sciences and matters of reason. He had a good memory and was considered a good speaker. John married Alice Edmunds, daughter of Nicholas Edmunds, and had two children, Elizabeth and Mary. Together they chose a life in the wilderness, meeting the spiritual and moral needs of their fellow settlers.
Taken from "A Memoir of the Rev. Nathaniel Ward, A.M." by John Ward Dean, pgs. 124-125:
"He was an exact Grammarian,an expert Physician and which was the Top of all, a thorough Divine,accompanied with a most Healthy, Hardy and Agile Body which enabled him to make nothing of walking on foot, a Journey as long as Thirty Miles together."
Since John had achieved an AB degree from Emmanuel College,Cambridge, England in 1626 and an AM degree in 1630,he became the settlement's first minister. In deference to his birthplace,the town was renamed Haverhill. He settled in the vicinity of the graveyard, acquiring 16 acres of land in which to build his home.
Considered a virtuous man, he was educated in not only religion, but in the sciences and matters of reason. He had a good memory and was considered a good speaker. John married Alice Edmunds, daughter of Nicholas Edmunds, and had two children, Elizabeth and Mary. Together they chose a life in the wilderness, meeting the spiritual and moral needs of their fellow settlers.
Taken from "A Memoir of the Rev. Nathaniel Ward, A.M." by John Ward Dean, pgs. 124-125:
"He was an exact Grammarian,an expert Physician and which was the Top of all, a thorough Divine,accompanied with a most Healthy, Hardy and Agile Body which enabled him to make nothing of walking on foot, a Journey as long as Thirty Miles together."
John's father,Nathaniel Ward,was an esteemed Puritan minister from Ipswich. He petitioned the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony for a settlement along the Merrimack River. This was to secure a residence and ministry for his son, John. The lands of Pentucket,a native American word for "place of the winding river", appeared promising. In 1640,without land titles, homes were erected and a town was settled. However,two chiefs,Passaconnaway and Saggahew, ruled over a confederacy of tribes in this region. It wasn't until 1642 that the Indian chiefs sold the Pentucket land to the colonists.
Since John had achieved an AB degree from Emmanuel College,Cambridge, England in 1626 and an AM degree in 1630,he became the settlement's first minister. In deference to his birthplace,the town was renamed Haverhill. He settled in the vicinity of the graveyard, acquiring 16 acres of land in which to build his home.
Considered a virtuous man, he was educated in not only religion, but in the sciences and matters of reason. He had a good memory and was considered a good speaker. John married Alice Edmunds, daughter of Nicholas Edmunds, and had two children, Elizabeth and Mary. Together they chose a life in the wilderness, meeting the spiritual and moral needs of their fellow settlers.
Taken from "A Memoir of the Rev. Nathaniel Ward, A.M." by John Ward Dean, pgs. 124-125:
"He was an exact Grammarian,an expert Physician and which was the Top of all, a thorough Divine,accompanied with a most Healthy, Hardy and Agile Body which enabled him to make nothing of walking on foot, a Journey as long as Thirty Miles together."
Since John had achieved an AB degree from Emmanuel College,Cambridge, England in 1626 and an AM degree in 1630,he became the settlement's first minister. In deference to his birthplace,the town was renamed Haverhill. He settled in the vicinity of the graveyard, acquiring 16 acres of land in which to build his home.
Considered a virtuous man, he was educated in not only religion, but in the sciences and matters of reason. He had a good memory and was considered a good speaker. John married Alice Edmunds, daughter of Nicholas Edmunds, and had two children, Elizabeth and Mary. Together they chose a life in the wilderness, meeting the spiritual and moral needs of their fellow settlers.
Taken from "A Memoir of the Rev. Nathaniel Ward, A.M." by John Ward Dean, pgs. 124-125:
"He was an exact Grammarian,an expert Physician and which was the Top of all, a thorough Divine,accompanied with a most Healthy, Hardy and Agile Body which enabled him to make nothing of walking on foot, a Journey as long as Thirty Miles together."
Inscription
His family inscription reads: "The Revd. John Ward, son of the Revd. Nathaniel Ward of Ipswich, the first and for 53 years, the honoured and faithful Teacher and Minister of Haverhill, died Dec. 27, 1693 in the 88th year of his age...."
...the rest of the inscription applies to his dau., Elizabeth.
Family Members
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