{"history":[],"article":{"id":"5b62bb94-6466-4d1b-88b6-f6eef312dce9","title":"John Lothropp","slug":"john-lothropp","content":":::summary\n**Name:** John Lothropp \n**Other Names:** John Lothrop, John Lathrop \n**Birth Date:** 20 December 1584 \n**Birth Place:** [Etton](https://bliptext.com/articles/etton-east-riding-of-yorkshire), [East Riding of Yorkshire](https://bliptext.com/articles/east-riding-of-yorkshire), England \n**Death Date:** 8 November 1653 \n**Death Place:** Barnstable, Massachusetts \n**Nationality:** English subject \n**Education:** [Queens' College, Cambridge](https://bliptext.com/articles/queens-college-cambridge) \n**Spouse:** Hannah House, Ann Hammond \n**Children:** Jane, Anne, John, Barbara, Thomas, Samuel, Joseph, Benjamin, Elizabeth, Barnabas, Abigail, Bathsheba, John \n:::\n\n# \nRev. **John **Lothrop**p** (1584–1653) – or **Lothrop**, or **Lathrop** – was an English [Anglican](https://bliptext.com/articles/anglicanism) clergyman, who became a [Congregationalist](https://bliptext.com/articles/congregational-church) minister and emigrant to [New England](https://bliptext.com/articles/new-england).\nHe was among the first settlers of [Barnstable, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/barnstable-massachusetts) in 1639.\nLothropp was a strong proponent of the [separation of church and state](https://bliptext.com/articles/separation-of-church-and-state).\nThis idea eventually became the mainstream view of people in the United States of America, because of the efforts of Lothropp and others.\nLothropp influenced the culture of New England, and through that, upon the rest of the country.\nHe has had many notable descendants, including at least six US presidents, as well as many other prominent governors, government leaders, leaders of [The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints](https://bliptext.com/articles/the-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints), and businesspeople.\n\n# Biography\n\n## Early life\nLothropp was born in [Etton, East Riding of Yorkshire](https://bliptext.com/articles/etton-east-riding-of-yorkshire).\nHe was [baptised](https://bliptext.com/articles/baptised) on 20 December 1584.\nHe attended [Queens' College, Cambridge](https://bliptext.com/articles/queens-college-cambridge), where he [matriculated](https://bliptext.com/articles/matriculate) in 1601, graduated with a BA in 1605, and with an [MA](https://bliptext.com/articles/master-of-arts-oxford-cambridge-and-dublin) in 1609.\n\n## Ministry and incarceration\nHe was ordained in the [Church of England](https://bliptext.com/articles/church-of-england) and appointed [curate](https://bliptext.com/articles/curate) of [Egerton, Kent](https://bliptext.com/articles/egerton-kent).\nIn 1623 he renounced his orders and joined the [Independents](https://bliptext.com/articles/independent-religion).\nLothropp gained prominence in 1624, when he was called to replace Reverend [Henry Jacob](https://bliptext.com/articles/henry-jacob) as the pastor of the 'First Independent Church' in London, a congregation of sixty members which met at [Southwark](https://bliptext.com/articles/southwark).\nChurch historians sometimes call this church the Jacob-Lathrop-Jessey (JLJ ) Church, named for its first three pastors, Henry Jacob, John Lothropp and [Henry Jessey](https://bliptext.com/articles/henry-jessey).\nThey met in private to avoid the scrutiny of the Bishop of London, [William Laud](https://bliptext.com/articles/william-laud).\nFollowing the group's discovery on 22 April 1632 by officers of the king, forty-two of Lothropp's Independents were arrested; only eighteen escaped capture.\nThe arrested were prosecuted for failure to take the [Oath of Supremacy](https://bliptext.com/articles/oath-of-supremacy).\nEvidence gleaned by the historians Burrage and Kiffin and from the Jessey records indicate many were jailed in [the Clink](https://bliptext.com/articles/the-clink) prison.\nAs for Lothropp, the question is unresolved.\nEnglish historian [Samuel Rawson Gardiner](https://bliptext.com/articles/samuel-rawson-gardiner), whose book Reports of Cases in the Courts of Star Chamber and High Commission, gives an account of the courtroom trial and cites information from the trial record that the convicted dissenters were to be divided up and sent to various prisons.\nHistorian E. B. Huntington suggests Lothropp was incarcerated in either the Clink or [Newgate Prison](https://bliptext.com/articles/newgate-prison).\nFurther, it may be that Lothropp actually served time in both prisons since it was customary to move prisoners from one prison to another due to space availability.\nIn the end, the precise location of Lothropp's imprisonment is not confirmable from primary documentation.\nWhile Lothropp was in prison, his wife Hannah House became ill and died.\nHis six surviving children were, according to tradition, left to fend for themselves [begging](https://bliptext.com/articles/begging) for bread on the streets of London.\nFriends, being unable to care for his children, brought them to the Bishop who had charge of Lothropp.\nAfter about a year, all were released on bail except Lothropp, who was deemed too dangerous to be set at liberty.\nThe Bishop ultimately released him on [bond](https://bliptext.com/articles/bail-bond) in May 1634 with the understanding that he would immediately remove to the [New World](https://bliptext.com/articles/new-world).\nSince he did not immediately leave for the New World, a court order was subsequently put out for him.\nFamily tradition and other historical reflections indicate he then \"escaped.\"\n\n## Emigration\nLothropp was told that he would be [pardoned](https://bliptext.com/articles/pardon) upon acceptance of terms to leave England permanently with his family along with as many of his congregation members as he could take who would not accept the authority of the Church of England.\nLathropp accepted the terms of the offer and left for [Plymouth, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/plymouth-massachusetts).\nWith his group, he sailed on the [Griffin](https://bliptext.com/articles/griffin-ship) and arrived in [Boston](https://bliptext.com/articles/boston) on 18 September 1634.\nThe record found on page 71 of Governor Winthrop's Journal, quotes John Lothropp, a freeman, rejoicing in finding a \"church without a bishop ... and a state without a king.\"\nJohn Lothropp married Ann (surname unknown) (1616–1687).\nLothropp did not stay in Boston long.\nWithin days, he and his group relocated to [Scituate](https://bliptext.com/articles/scituate-massachusetts) where they \"joined in covenaunt together\" along with nine others who preceded them to form the \"church of Christ collected att [Scituate](https://bliptext.com/articles/scituate-massachusetts).\"\nThe Congregation at Scituate was not a success.\n[Dissent](https://bliptext.com/articles/english-dissenters) on the issue of [baptism](https://bliptext.com/articles/baptism) as well as other unspecified grievances and the lack of good [grazing](https://bliptext.com/articles/grazing) land and [fodder](https://bliptext.com/articles/fodder) for their cattle caused the church in Scituate to split in 1638.\nLothropp petitioned Governor [Thomas Prence](https://bliptext.com/articles/thomas-prence) in Plymouth for a \"place for the transplanting of us, to the end that God might have more glory and wee more comfort.\"\nThus as Otis says \"Mr. Lothropp and a large company arrived in Barnstable, 11 October 1639 O.S., bringing with them the crops which they had raised in Scituate.\"\nThere, within three years they had built homes for all the families and then Lothropp began construction on a larger, sturdier [meeting house](https://bliptext.com/articles/meeting-house) adjacent to Coggin's (or Cooper's) Pond, which was completed in 1644.\nThis building, now part of the [Sturgis Library](https://bliptext.com/articles/sturgis-library) in [Barnstable, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/barnstable-massachusetts) is one of John Lothropp's original homes and meeting houses, and is now also the oldest building housing a [public library](https://bliptext.com/articles/public-library) in the USA.\n\n# Genealogy\n# [Coat of Arms of John Lathropp | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Coat///of///Arms///of///John///Lathrop.svg]\n\n## Children\nLothropp married **Hannah House/Howse** in England, on 10 October 1610.\nThey had eight children:\nAfter Hannah's death, Lothropp married again, to **Ann Hammond** in 1635.\nThey had five children:\n

Barnabas Lothropp, baptised 6 June 1636 in [Scituate, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/scituate-massachusetts)

Unnamed daughter, buried 30 July 1638.\n

Abigail Lothropp, baptised 2 November 1639 in [Barnstable, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/barnstable-massachusetts)

Bathsheba Lothropp, baptised 27 February 1641/42 in Barnstable, MA

Elizabeth Lothropp, born about 1643

Captain John Lothropp, baptised 18 May 1645 in Barnstable, MA

Unnamed son, buried 25 January 1649/50 in Barnstable.\nDied immediately after birth.\n\n\n## Descendants\nLothropp's direct descendants in America and elsewhere number more than 80,000, including:\n\n## Family tree","current_revision":null,"created_by":"kACnuQmH5k9Nr5VNVEpVeg7XpvUmMctD","created_at":"2025-01-26T07:57:29.042Z","updated_at":"2025-01-26T07:57:29.042Z","search_vector":"'john':1 'lothropp':2","search_content":" \n**Name:** John Lothropp \n**Other Names:** John Lothrop, John Lathrop \n**Birth Date:** 20 December 1584 \n**Birth Place:** [Etton](https://bliptext.com/articles/etton-east-riding-of-yorkshire), [East Riding of Yorkshire](https://bliptext.com/articles/east-riding-of-yorkshire), England \n**Death Date:** 8 November 1653 \n**Death Place:** Barnstable, Massachusetts \n**Nationality:** English subject \n**Education:** [Queens' College, Cambridge](https://bliptext.com/articles/queens-college-cambridge) \n**Spouse:** Hannah House, Ann Hammond \n**Children:** Jane, Anne, John, Barbara, Thomas, Samuel, Joseph, Benjamin, Elizabeth, Barnabas, Abigail, Bathsheba, John \n \n\n# \nRev. **John **Lothrop**p** (1584–1653) – or **Lothrop**, or **Lathrop** – was an English [Anglican](https://bliptext.com/articles/anglicanism) clergyman, who became a [Congregationalist](https://bliptext.com/articles/congregational-church) minister and emigrant to [New England](https://bliptext.com/articles/new-england).\nHe was among the first settlers of [Barnstable, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/barnstable-massachusetts) in 1639.\nLothropp was a strong proponent of the [separation of church and state](https://bliptext.com/articles/separation-of-church-and-state).\nThis idea eventually became the mainstream view of people in the United States of America, because of the efforts of Lothropp and others.\nLothropp influenced the culture of New England, and through that, upon the rest of the country.\nHe has had many notable descendants, including at least six US presidents, as well as many other prominent governors, government leaders, leaders of [The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints](https://bliptext.com/articles/the-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints), and businesspeople.\n\n# Biography\n\n## Early life\nLothropp was born in [Etton, East Riding of Yorkshire](https://bliptext.com/articles/etton-east-riding-of-yorkshire).\nHe was [baptised](https://bliptext.com/articles/baptised) on 20 December 1584.\nHe attended [Queens' College, Cambridge](https://bliptext.com/articles/queens-college-cambridge), where he [matriculated](https://bliptext.com/articles/matriculate) in 1601, graduated with a BA in 1605, and with an [MA](https://bliptext.com/articles/master-of-arts-oxford-cambridge-and-dublin) in 1609.\n\n## Ministry and incarceration\nHe was ordained in the [Church of England](https://bliptext.com/articles/church-of-england) and appointed [curate](https://bliptext.com/articles/curate) of [Egerton, Kent](https://bliptext.com/articles/egerton-kent).\nIn 1623 he renounced his orders and joined the [Independents](https://bliptext.com/articles/independent-religion).\nLothropp gained prominence in 1624, when he was called to replace Reverend [Henry Jacob](https://bliptext.com/articles/henry-jacob) as the pastor of the 'First Independent Church' in London, a congregation of sixty members which met at [Southwark](https://bliptext.com/articles/southwark).\nChurch historians sometimes call this church the Jacob-Lathrop-Jessey (JLJ ) Church, named for its first three pastors, Henry Jacob, John Lothropp and [Henry Jessey](https://bliptext.com/articles/henry-jessey).\nThey met in private to avoid the scrutiny of the Bishop of London, [William Laud](https://bliptext.com/articles/william-laud).\nFollowing the group's discovery on 22 April 1632 by officers of the king, forty-two of Lothropp's Independents were arrested; only eighteen escaped capture.\nThe arrested were prosecuted for failure to take the [Oath of Supremacy](https://bliptext.com/articles/oath-of-supremacy).\nEvidence gleaned by the historians Burrage and Kiffin and from the Jessey records indicate many were jailed in [the Clink](https://bliptext.com/articles/the-clink) prison.\nAs for Lothropp, the question is unresolved.\nEnglish historian [Samuel Rawson Gardiner](https://bliptext.com/articles/samuel-rawson-gardiner), whose book Reports of Cases in the Courts of Star Chamber and High Commission, gives an account of the courtroom trial and cites information from the trial record that the convicted dissenters were to be divided up and sent to various prisons.\nHistorian E. B. Huntington suggests Lothropp was incarcerated in either the Clink or [Newgate Prison](https://bliptext.com/articles/newgate-prison).\nFurther, it may be that Lothropp actually served time in both prisons since it was customary to move prisoners from one prison to another due to space availability.\nIn the end, the precise location of Lothropp's imprisonment is not confirmable from primary documentation.\nWhile Lothropp was in prison, his wife Hannah House became ill and died.\nHis six surviving children were, according to tradition, left to fend for themselves [begging](https://bliptext.com/articles/begging) for bread on the streets of London.\nFriends, being unable to care for his children, brought them to the Bishop who had charge of Lothropp.\nAfter about a year, all were released on bail except Lothropp, who was deemed too dangerous to be set at liberty.\nThe Bishop ultimately released him on [bond](https://bliptext.com/articles/bail-bond) in May 1634 with the understanding that he would immediately remove to the [New World](https://bliptext.com/articles/new-world).\nSince he did not immediately leave for the New World, a court order was subsequently put out for him.\nFamily tradition and other historical reflections indicate he then \"escaped.\"\n\n## Emigration\nLothropp was told that he would be [pardoned](https://bliptext.com/articles/pardon) upon acceptance of terms to leave England permanently with his family along with as many of his congregation members as he could take who would not accept the authority of the Church of England.\nLathropp accepted the terms of the offer and left for [Plymouth, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/plymouth-massachusetts).\nWith his group, he sailed on the [Griffin](https://bliptext.com/articles/griffin-ship) and arrived in [Boston](https://bliptext.com/articles/boston) on 18 September 1634.\nThe record found on page 71 of Governor Winthrop's Journal, quotes John Lothropp, a freeman, rejoicing in finding a \"church without a bishop ... and a state without a king.\"\nJohn Lothropp married Ann (surname unknown) (1616–1687).\nLothropp did not stay in Boston long.\nWithin days, he and his group relocated to [Scituate](https://bliptext.com/articles/scituate-massachusetts) where they \"joined in covenaunt together\" along with nine others who preceded them to form the \"church of Christ collected att [Scituate](https://bliptext.com/articles/scituate-massachusetts).\"\nThe Congregation at Scituate was not a success.\n[Dissent](https://bliptext.com/articles/english-dissenters) on the issue of [baptism](https://bliptext.com/articles/baptism) as well as other unspecified grievances and the lack of good [grazing](https://bliptext.com/articles/grazing) land and [fodder](https://bliptext.com/articles/fodder) for their cattle caused the church in Scituate to split in 1638.\nLothropp petitioned Governor [Thomas Prence](https://bliptext.com/articles/thomas-prence) in Plymouth for a \"place for the transplanting of us, to the end that God might have more glory and wee more comfort.\"\nThus as Otis says \"Mr. Lothropp and a large company arrived in Barnstable, 11 October 1639 O.S., bringing with them the crops which they had raised in Scituate.\"\nThere, within three years they had built homes for all the families and then Lothropp began construction on a larger, sturdier [meeting house](https://bliptext.com/articles/meeting-house) adjacent to Coggin's (or Cooper's) Pond, which was completed in 1644.\nThis building, now part of the [Sturgis Library](https://bliptext.com/articles/sturgis-library) in [Barnstable, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/barnstable-massachusetts) is one of John Lothropp's original homes and meeting houses, and is now also the oldest building housing a [public library](https://bliptext.com/articles/public-library) in the USA.\n\n# Genealogy\n# [Coat of Arms of John Lathropp | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Coat///of///Arms///of///John///Lathrop.svg]\n\n## Children\nLothropp married **Hannah House/Howse** in England, on 10 October 1610.\nThey had eight children:\nAfter Hannah's death, Lothropp married again, to **Ann Hammond** in 1635.\nThey had five children:\n Barnabas Lothropp, baptised 6 June 1636 in [Scituate, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/scituate-massachusetts) \n Unnamed daughter, buried 30 July 1638.\n Abigail Lothropp, baptised 2 November 1639 in [Barnstable, Massachusetts](https://bliptext.com/articles/barnstable-massachusetts) \n Bathsheba Lothropp, baptised 27 February 1641/42 in Barnstable, MA \n Elizabeth Lothropp, born about 1643 \n Captain John Lothropp, baptised 18 May 1645 in Barnstable, MA \n Unnamed son, buried 25 January 1649/50 in Barnstable.\nDied immediately after birth.\n \n\n## Descendants\nLothropp's direct descendants in America and elsewhere number more than 80,000, including:\n\n## Family tree","revisionCount":0},"hasMore":false,"nextCursor":null}

History