Freeborn Williams Clarke

• BIRTH 4 Oct 1635 Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts, USA
• DEATH 10 Jan 1710 (aged 74)
• BURIAL Clifton Burying Ground, Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island, USA
• MEMORIAL ID 12221429 Photos by Keefe

Freeborn was the daughter of Roger Williams, who founded the Rhode Island colony. She was twice married, first to Thomas Hart and then to Gov. Walter Clarke. Her children included Mary Hart Cranston, wife of Gov. Samuel Cranston. Following the death of his second wife in 1681 Walter Clarke married Freeborn Hart, the widow of Thomas Hart, and the daughter of Providence founder Roger Williams.[1] Following her death in 1710 Clarke married a fourth time, to Sarah Gould, the widow of John Gould, and the daughter of Matthew and Mary Prior.[2]

Roger Williams (c. 21 December 1603 – between 27 January and 15 March 1683)[1] was a Puritan minister, theologian, and author who founded Providence Plantations, which became the Colony of Rhode Island. He was a staunch advocate for religious freedom, separation of church and state, and fair dealings with American Indians, and he was one of the first abolitionists.[2][3]

Williams was expelled by the Puritan leaders from the Massachusetts Bay Colony for spreading "new and dangerous ideas", and he established the Providence Plantations in 1636 as a refuge offering what he called "liberty of conscience". In 1638, he founded the First Baptist Church in America, also known as the First Baptist Church of Providence.[4][5] He studied the Indian languages and wrote the first book on the Narragansett language, and he organized the first attempt to prohibit slavery in any of England's North American colonies.[5]

Parents
Roger Williams 1600–1683
Mary Barnard Williams 1609–1676

Spouse
Walter Clarke 1638–1714

Siblings
Mary Williams Sayles 1636–1681
Providence Williams 1638–1686
Mercy Williams Waterman Winsor 1640–1705
Daniel Williams 1641–1712
Joseph Williams 1643–1724

Half Siblings
Freelove Williams 1636–1707
Daniel Williams 1640–1712

Children
Mary Hart Cranston 1663–1710

Notes

Direct Descendant of Roger Williams: Roger Williams [1602-1683]

References

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Williams

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Clarke_(governor)_

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Baptist_Church_in_America

[4] https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12221429/freeborn-clarke

[5] https://archive.org/details/edwardhartdescen00kenn/page/8/mode/2up page 9