First Schoolmaster of Rowley
William Boynton (1605-1686)
William Boynton is our 9th great grandfather by this path: RWA → Fred Pemberton Abbott → Arthur Merrill Abbott → Justin Edwards Abbott → Rebecca Boynton Abbott → Thomas Boynton → Thomas Boynton → David Boynton → Joshua Boynton → Joshua Boynton → William Boynton
We have other teachers in our ancestry, but William Boynton is believed to be the first schoolmaster in Rowley, Massachusetts.
The Old Deluder Act (1647)
The Puritans were an odd bunch, but one of their beliefs had the by-product of fostering the education of children. Puritans believed that the papist clergy (including the Anglican church) were agents of Satan and those clergy purposely distorted the scriptures in order to serve Satan. The only way to protect yourself from this was to be able to read the scriptures yourself and make your own interpretation. As a result, Puritans required that all settlements educate their children to read. They did not need to learn writing or math, but they were required to read. Here is one passage from that law:
It being one chief project of that old deluder, Satan, to keep men from the knowledge of the Scriptures, as in former times by keeping them in an unknown tongue, so in these latter times by persuading from the use of tongues, that so that at least the true sense and meaning of the original might be clouded and corrupted with false glosses of saint-seeming deceivers; and to the end that learning may not be buried in the grave of our forefathers, in church and commonwealth, the Lord assisting our endeavors.
Every settlement with 50 households or more was required to select one teacher. When the town reached the size of 100 households, the town was required to have a grammar school with a school master. Even before the 1647 law, many communities had set up schools. For example, Boston established its first grammar school in 1635. Both boys and girls were taught to read; after all, both genders could potentially be victims of the Satan deluder. This basic education focused on reading was in elementary schools; this basic education could also be conducted at home. Although it was required to teach all children to read, grammar school was designed primarily for children on a path to college. Children entered grammar school around age 7 years and needed to be able to read a bible passage prior to starting school. The grammar school program lasted about seven years and included writing, Latin, arithmetic, and classics.
The first schoolmaster in Rowley was William Boynton who served as schoolmaster 1656-1681. William Boynton was related to the Boynton family of the village of Boynton, East Riding of Yorkshire who were baronets, although William was not a baronet. William emigrated in 1638 on the ship John of London with a group of wealthier settlers who were led by Reverend Ezekiel Rogers. Also making the trip were William’s wife Elizabeth Jackson, William’s mother the widow Elizabeth Chambers Boynton, and William’s brother John. On the boat was the first printing press in New England which was delivered to Boston. This group purchased a large tract of land which was later named Rowley. The name Rowley is believed to come from the Rowley, Yorkshire where Reverend Rogers preached.
William and his wife Elizabeth Jackson had seven children five of whom lived to adulthood. Our ancestor is the fourth child Joshua. William was quite successful in his life and able to deed farms to each of his children.
Family group sheet for William Boynton and Elizabeth Jackson: http://sites.rootsmagic.com/colonialgenealogy/family.php?f=434
Sources:
Johnson, Claudia Durst. (2002). Daily life in colonial New England. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Shurtleff, Nathaniel (Ed.). (1853). Records of the governor and company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England, volume II. Boston, MA: William White (printer to the Commonwealth).