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make trips between the two locations, often swapping places. Governor
Belcher therefore proposed to the General Assembly that a township be granted to the mission, so that the entire tribe could live together, and attend the same church and school. This involved swapping lands with those who had already settled the land in question. The township, which was to become Stockbridge, but was then simply called "Indian Town", was granted March 25, 1736 and settled in May. One of the stipulations of the grant was that four new English families would be allowed to settle there.
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139:. His father died while he was still young, and his mother married Colonel John Cooper, who raised him. Due to a farming accident, he was left unable to move his left hand, which consequently led him to seek a career in academia, as opposed to following in the footsteps of his father, and stepfather, as a farmer. He enrolled at Yale in 1725, and graduated as
198:, Bull baptized the first native, an interpreter with an already advanced grasp of English and Christianity, afterward called Ebenezer, on October 18. On October 21, they began building a public house, to serve as both a church and school, and it opened November 5. From November 25 through the 30th, John was called away to Albany to visit with the
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165:'s well-known good character and disposition towards Christianity, decided to meet with John Stoddard, an authority on the local Native Americans, on the subject of a possible mission to the so-called "River Indians" (the term "River-Indians" in eighteenth century Massachusetts meant the Mohicans who came from the
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to assist the minister, and oversee the mission in
Sergeant's absence. Sergeant left to return to Yale on December 9, bringing the young sons of Captain Konkapot and Lieutenant Umpachanee along with him, for their education. After finishing his work at New Haven, he returned to the mission on July 5,
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In the summer of 1749, Sergeant fell ill with "a slow or nervous fever, attended with canker, and an inflammation in the throat". He died on July 27, 1749, at age 39, after four weeks of illness. The
Stockbridge Native Americans displayed their affection for him by gathering for prayers, and, after
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Initially, there were two Native
American settlements, separated by about eight miles, called Skatehook, to the south, where Lieutenant Umpachanee lived, and Wnahktukook, to the north, where Captain Konkapot lived. This created logistical issues, and John and schoolmaster Timothy Woodbridge had to
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In
September 1734, Stephen Williams and Nehemiah Bull approached Sergeant at Yale with the proposal. Sergeant agreed, on the condition he could spend half the first year at Yale, to be able to see his students through their final year, and then devote himself entirely. On October 8, he set off for
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in 1729, and his valedictory speech has since been published. In
September 1731, he was appointed as a tutor and was described as "one of the most successful holders of that office in the early history of the College", serving through 1735. He earned a second bachelor's degree from Yale, in
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Stockbridge went without a resident minister for over two years, with the schoolmaster, Timothy
Woodbridge, overseeing the mission. During this time, a feud for control of the town started, between the Woodbridge and the Williams factions. Sergeant was eventually succeeded by the Reverend
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and the commissioners authorized the mission on August 16, 1734, granting a salary of 100 pounds per year for a minister. Hopkins already had John
Sergeant in mind as the ideal candidate, as he had privately expressed that he would rather work among the natives than the English.
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January 1737, in order to live among his congregation, John Sergeant came to live with Timothy Woodbridge, who had recently married and built the first permanent house in the town. Sergeant began building his
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John and
Abigail Williams Sergeant and her family are the subjects of the novel, The Prospering (1967, currently out of print) by Elizabeth George Speare, as told by Abigail’s youngest sister.
173:. With encouragement from Stoddard, he informed the Reverend Stephen Williams, and, together, they asked the Reverend William Williams to write to the Commissioners for Indian Affairs in
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his passing, mourning their loss. He left behind his wife, Abigail, and 3 young children. The epitaph on his tombstone was said to be composed by one of the local Native Americans:
177:. The commissioners recommended a trip to consult with the Native Americans there regarding the possibility of a missionary being installed to live among them. When they consented,
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Nehemiah Bull's house, who accompanied him to the settlement, in order to introduce him. They arrived on October 12, and announced their desire for a meeting the following day.
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The Causes and Danger of Delusions in the Affairs of Religion, Consider'd and Caution'd Against, with Particular Reference to the Temper of the Present Times
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minister. He helped establish a day school at what became Stockbridge, and laid the groundwork for a boarding school, before his early death.
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granted funds to build a church and a schoolhouse. John married Abigail Williams, half-sister of
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John preached his first sermon to about 20 adults. Being that he was not yet
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A Letter from the Revd. Mr. Sergeant of Stockbridge, to Dr. Colman of Boston
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428:, Purple Mountain Press, Fleischmanns, NY, page 167, ISBN 1-930098-12X.
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A Valedictorian Oration: Delivered at Yale College in the Year 1729
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He's not within, false stone, There's nought but Dust below;
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Wilt thou pretend, vain cypher, THAT'S with thee enshrined?
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And where's that pious soul, that Thinking conscious MIND?
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I'll go to Heav'n & I shall find my Sergeant there.
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Where is that pleasing Form, I ask, thou canst not show;
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John was born in 1710 to Jonathan and Mary Sergeant, in
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In 1734, the Reverend Samuel Hopkins, having heard of
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Historical Memoirs Relating to the Housatonic Indians
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Alas, my Friend's not here with thee that I can find;
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I'll seek him hence, for all's alike Deception here.
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516:Biographical Sketches of Graduates of Yale College
275:Here's not a Sergeant's body or a Sergeant's MIND.
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298:John Sergeant was the subject of a painting by
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566:Protestant missionaries in the United States
561:18th-century New England Puritan ministers
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99:(1710 – July 27, 1749) was an American
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70:Province of Massachusetts Bay
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532:. S. Bowels & Co., 1854
426:The Mohican World 1680-1750
211:1735. John was ordained at
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157:Establishing the mission
528:Jones, Electa Fidelia.
501:Norman Rockwell Museum
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356:United States portal
571:Yale College alumni
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293:In popular culture
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101:missionary
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233:own home
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109:Mahicans
200:Mohawks
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