Hussey Memorial Stone from Founder's Park, Hampton N.H.
Christopher Hussey was born & baptized in Dorking, Surrey, England.
He was the son of John Hussey & Mary Wood. As a young man in
Holland, he met Theodate Batchilder. Christopher, his new wife Theodate
and her father & family Rev. Stephen Batchilder sailed for America
in 1632 on the ship 'WILLIAM & FRANCIS'. Christopher was one of the
first settlers of Hampton, New Hampshire. In 1639, Christopher Hussey was
made Justice of the Peace. He also held office of town clerk & was a
deacon in the church. He was one of the original "purchasers" of
Nantuckett. Christopher Hussey was also a Sea Captain [and first whaler
to take a sperm whale -- G.D.]. Christopher Hussey was the father of 3
boys and 3 girls.
"He (Christopher) was admitted freeman in 1634 having journeyed to America aboard the William and Francis which arrived 5 June, 1632. In 1635 he was one of the first settlers in Hampton, New Hampshire. In 1639 her served as representative and again in 1658, 1659, and 1660. He was a provincial counsellor of New Hampshire and proprietor of Nantucket Island, Mass. Christopher died in 1685. He was married to Theodate, daughter of Rev. Stephen Batchelor."
Practical economic considerations motivated the early settlers. The first Nantucketers wanted to enhance their wealth and they chose the method that was currently most successful in England. The lifeblood of England was the wool textile industry. The geography of Nantucket was ideal for sheep raising. But sheep could not be raised profitably in most of New England because the land was heavily forested in the seventeenth century, and what land was cleared was needed for food crops. NANTUCKET ISLAND, however, was a natural sheep pasture.
The economic advantage of raising sheep on Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard was seen in earliest colonial times by (missionary) Thomas Mayhew, a Watertown merchant who bought Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard and the Elizabeth Islands from the original royal proprietor. Mayhew and his son set about Christianizing the Indians on the islands. In 1659, Mayhew sold Nantucket to nine defectors from the Bay Colony while keeping a tenth share for himself. In the same year ten other families were recruited to settle Nantucket (Island). This small company of less than 20 families determined to own the island in common, establish a society based on feudal property arrangements and develop a textile industry which they hoped would be as profitable as that in the old country. But unlike European feudal societies, which were church-ridden, the Nantucketers left their religion behind them in the Bay Colony. They were decidedly set against establishment religion and none existed on the island for the first half century. The ONLY practicing Christians were the Indians!
For the first half century of the island's history, there is little evidence of achievement. The homes that have survived from that period are modest and plain; they are totally lacking in ornament and luxury of any kind. ...Any hopes of developing a prosperous woolen industry on Nantucket were dashed in 1699 when Parliament passed an act that forbade the colonists to trade in woolen goods anywhere, including among themselves.
In 1712, a Nantucket whaler (HUSSEY) killed a sperm whale whose oil commanded a premium price. Soon the advantages of pursuing and harvesting sperm whales became evident. Homes that had been scattered for the most part in the western end of the island were taken apart and moved to the harbor area. ...By the third decade of the eighteenth century the Nantucketers had built a wharf to accommodate substantial vessels. A new industry was built whose raw material was taken from all the oceans of the world. Pioneering the oceans after the whale, Nantucket ships charted unknown waters, discovered Pacific islands and trade around the world.
Christopher Hussey* Captain (1599 - 1686)
is our 8th great grandfather
son of Christopher Hussey* Captain
son of Stephen Hussey *
son of Batchelor Hussey *
daughter of Christopher Hussey *
son of Amy Naomi Hussey *
daughter of Enoch Cox *
son of Phoebe Hinton Cox *
daughter of Noah Stewart *
son of Mary Lou Ella Stewart *
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