William Pynchon

William Pynchon (October 11, 1590 – October 29, 1662) was a colonial assistant, treasurer and original patentee of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He led the 1635 settlement of Springfield, Hampden County, Massachusetts, which was named after his home village, now a suburb of Chelmsford in Essex, England.

Pynchon was a theologian; he expressed his views in "The Meritorious Price of Our Redemption" (1650). Officials of the colony ordered this book burned and demanded that he retract its argument, which was contrary to the colony's official Calvinism. Instead of retracting, he returned to England in 1652 where remained for the rest of his life. [Henry M. Burt. "The First Century of the History of Springfield". Henry M. Burt (1898), Vol. I, p. 12.]

He is a direct ancestor of the novelist Thomas Pynchon and the actress Fay Wray.

His daughter, Mary Pynchon, married Elizur Holyoke.

Notes

ources

*Chr.G.F. de Jong, "“Christ’s descent” in Massachusetts. The doctrine of justification according to William Pynchon (1590-1662)", in: Gericht Verleden. Kerkhistorische opstellen aangeboden aan prof. dr. W. Nijenhuis ter gelegenheid van zijn vijfenzeventigste verjaardag; ed. by dr. Chr.G.F. de Jong & dr J. van Sluis (1991) 129–158 [pub: Leiden, J.J. Groen & Son]
*See also: http://members.home.nl/cgf.de.jong/

Further reading

* http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/conn.river/pynchon.html