History
Dr. Davis
John Winthrop The most prominent of the Founding Fathers was John Winthrop. Winthrop was the first Governor of the Massachusetts Colony. He served his term from 1630 to 1634. He was one of the best educated of the Puritan company. Winthrop had great wisdom and strict integrity. He was very religious, and was very aware about all his choices, both in public and private life. John Winthrop was born on 12 January 1587 to Adam and Anne Winthrop in Edwardstone, Suffolk, England. His father's family had been successful in the textile business, while Winthrop’s father was a lawyer and prosperous landowner with several properties in Suffolk. His mother's family was also very wealthy and owned multiple properties. Later in life, Winthrop married a woman by the name of Mary Forth. Mary bore him five children, of whom only three survived to adulthood. Later on in life, John Winthrop became the lord of a Manor in Groton. In the mid to late 1620s, the religious atmosphere in England began to collapse for Puritans and other groups who believed the English Reformation was in danger. King Charles I had taken power in 1624, and he had married a Roman Catholic. After the first successful colony in the New World in Plymouth, there was a colony established named the Massachusetts Bay Colony. John Winthrop was not on the first fleet of ships headed to the New World, but he was aware of what was happening. While still in England, Winthrop won the election in choosing a Governor for the New Colony. Winthrop, along with other company officials, then began the process of arranging a transport fleet and supplies for the migration. He also worked to recruit individuals with special skills the new colony would require, including pastors to see to the colony's spiritual needs.
When Arriving, They first decided to base the colony at Charlestown, but a lack of good water there prompted them to instead move to the Shawmut Peninsula. The colony struggled