Page 246 - Family History

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Samuel Gorton – History

Samuel Gorton was baptized on February 12, 1592 in the Cathedral Church,
Lancashire, Manchester, England. He was probably born there in the Parish
known as Gorton. His father was Thomas Gorton and his mother was Thomas'
second wife, Anne. Samuel's parents were
influential and well to do, "not entirely
unknown to the heraldry of England," wrote

Judge George A. Brayton, Justice of the
Supreme Court of Rhode Island. Samuel had
private tutors who taught him the classics.
His fluency in both Greek and Hebrew
enabled him to study the Bible's original text.

All around Samuel, the world was torn by
religious wars. Samuel was caught in the
unrest. He befriended a Separatist elder who
later moved to Holland. The Separatists were
the people who chose to separate

themselves from the Church of England; some were eventually known as Pilgrims,
others were known as Puritans. Samuel Gorton was neither a Pilgrim nor a
Puritan. He was a nonconformist. He was a man of deep, strong feeling, keenly
aware of every injustice inflicted on the humblest of God's creatures. An excellent
preacher, he was also a profound thinker who, in his spiritual meditations,
wandered off into infinity often forgetting his earthly surroundings. The
Honorable Job Durfee, Chief Justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court, thought

that Samuel, "did indeed clothe his thought at times, in clouds, but then it was
because they were too large for any other garment."

Yet, in ordinary life, no one was more plain, simple, and unaffected than Samuel.
He was courteous, friendly, and elegant. He is said to have looked like a Saxon, tall
and thin, with blue eyes and light brown hair. Early records say he was a clothier
in London. This is where he might have met his wife, Mary Maplett. Incidentally,
her brother was to become a famous personal physician for King Charles I. An
articulate and passionate man, he was able to preach for hours at a time. A

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