The Pequot War by Charles Stanley Reinhart
In the nearly 400 years since Aaron Stark, our controversial first generation immigrant to New England, was brought in as an “unpromising youth, appearing before the court”, a thread of rebellion and warfare has woven its way through the Stark generations. Here are a few of their stories.
Aaron Stark: Rogue of Puritan New England
Aaron Stark, born about 1608, is believed to have come to the Connecticut Colony in the late 1620s to early 1630s as a Scottish mercenary soldier, possibly after spending some time in England. He may have arrived with John Mason, the English deputy governor of the Connecticut Colony.
Not long after the arrival of the English, the Connecticut River Valley underwent a power struggle for control of the fur trade. Dutch traders already established on Long Island with their Native Pequot allies tried to chase the English out of the region. This sparked the vicious Pequot War from 1636-37.
In May 1637 Aaron Stark fought in the battle of Mistik Fort under Captain John Mason, the most decisive conflict of the Pequot war. The battle, which became known as the Mistik Massacre, established the level of aggression the English were willing to use in order to control New England.
“An expeditionary force of 77 Connecticut soldiers and as many as 250 Native American allies attacked and burned the fortified Pequot village at Mistick. Some 400 Pequot (including an estimated 175 women and children) were killed in less than an hour, half of whom burned to death. Those who tried to escape the burning structure were shot by the English or by their Mohegan and Narragansett allies, who formed a secondary outer ring around the fortress and fired on any Pequot who managed to escape through the English lines. “
McBride
After the war was over, it would seem that Aaron Stark found other ways to entertain himself. Court records show that Aaron was brought in on at least five occasions for fighting, unclean practices, and other violations of Puritan laws. In order to keep this blog family friendly I won’t list all of the crimes he was accused of, but if you have a strong constitution and want to know more read the Aaron Stark Family Chronicles Vol I, by Clovis LaFleur. Each of Aaron’s crimes called for public punishment, the worst of which was for:
“Aaron Starke to Stand uppon the pillory and be whipt as Williams and to have the letter R burnt uppon his cheeke”.
La Fleur
“The punishment John Williams was to receive [along with Aaron Stark] included standing upon the pillory all day, being pulled and whipped behind a cart.“
We don’t know for certain what the “R” stood for, but it is believed it could have been for Ravisher or Rogue. Either as a result of the punishments for his dalliances or out of a desire to settle down, in 1645 Aaron married a woman named Sarah and settled on property in New London County. Documents would indicate that Aaron may have turned from his Rogue ways in latter years, becoming a landowner and farmer, and earning the respect of his neighbors. Aaron and Sarah had at least five children and Aaron died around the age of 77.
William Stark: A different kind of rebel
Aaron’s son, William Stark born about 1664, did not take on his father’s violent and unruly nature. Instead, William followed the path of a farmer, family man, and church-goer. He and wife Elizabeth were members of the Congregational Church, where attendance and monetary contribution was made mandatory by the General Court of Connecticut.
In 1689, when an Act of Toleration was passed in English Parliament, granting freedom to select a congregation of choice, William and Elizabeth converted to the Baptist church. William was a key member of the non-conformist Baptist church at Groton, donating land and ascribing his signature on a petition to break away from the established Congregational Church and hold their own religious meetings.
“To the Honorable Cort Setting at New Haven
La Fleur
These are to signify that we differ from you in Som Poynts of Religion but yett we desier to Live Pesably and quiettly with our Neighbours and in order hear unto we Send These to signify That since it has Pleased the Almity God to putt it into the hart of our Gracious Queen to grant us dissenters Proclamated liberty of Consiense which both you and us are greatly favor with and whereas she hath given you Power to surpress Imorality and Vice we humbly submitt our selves to it and to all others that do not prohibitt the liberty of our Consienses and we understanding that your laws Requiers us to Petition to you for the settling of our Meeting we humbly submitt thereto and do beseech of you That you would not deny us hearin, we do desier that our meeting might be stated and held at Will Starks in New London.”
William Stark’s passive resistance to the government church displays a small streak of the rebellion that characterized his father, Aaron.
A continuous line of warriors
Throughout Aaron Stark’s lineage, succeeding generations of Stark sons would display the warrior DNA of their forefather.
James Stark, William’s great-grandson, fought in New York and Poughkeepsie during the Revolutionary War.
James’ Grandson Moses Stark was part of the Indiana Militia and fought in the battle of Tippecanoe.
For more information about this House Stark lineage please check out Tales of House Stark Part I: Stark Lineage.
Sources
Hinman, R. R. Catalogue of the Names of the First Puritan Settlers of the Colony of Connecticut. Hartford, CT.: E. Gleason, 1846. Imaged. Ancestry.com : 2019
La Fleur, Clovis. The Aaron Stark Family Chronicles Volume I. 2006. http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~clovis/genealogy/Volume%201.pdf
Blaeu, Willem Janszoon. “Nova Belgica et Anglia Nova.” Map. 1635. Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center, https://collections.leventhalmap.org/search/commonwealth:3f462s680 (accessed May 18, 2019).
McBride, Kevin. Pequot War. Encyclopædia Britannica, 9 Apr 2019. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pequot-War
American Baptist History. American Baptist Historical Society. https://www.fbcmalden.org/about-us/a-brief-history-of-the-american-baptists/ (accessed May 18, 2019).
