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Susanna Hutchinson Cole was born 15 November 1633 in Alford, Lincolnshire, England to William Hutchinson (1586-1641) and Anne Marbury (1591-1643) and died 14 December 1713 Wickford, Washington County, Rhode Island of unspecified causes.

Biography

A bronze statue in front of the Massachusetts State House in Boston, dedicated in 1922, displays an assumed likeness of Cole as a youngster, and her mother, Anne Hutchinson.

Early Years

Born in Alford, Lincolnshire, England, Susanna Hutchinson was less than a year old when her family sailed from England to New England in 1634. She was less than five when her family settled on Aquidneck Island (later Rhode Island) in the Narragansett Bay following her mother's banishment from Massachusetts during the Antinomian Controversy. Shortly after her father's death, when she was about eight years old, she, her mother and six of her siblings left Rhode Island to live in New Netherland. They settled in an area that became the far northeastern section of The Bronx in New York City, near the Westchester County line.

Susanna survived the indian raid of 1643 on her childhood home in New Netherlands.

During the attack, Hutchinson's nine-year old daughter, Susanna, is said to have been out picking blueberries, and was found, according to legend, hidden in the crevice of Split Rock, nearby. She is believed to have had red hair, unusual to the attackers, and perhaps because of this curiosity her life was spared. She was taken captive and by one account was named "Autumn Leaf", and lived with the Native Americans for two to six years (accounts vary) until ransomed back to her family members, most of whom were living in Boston.

In his journal, Massachusetts governor John Winthrop provided an account of Susanna under the date of July 1646:

A daughter of Mrs. Hutchinson was carried away by the Indians near the Dutch, when her mother and others were killed by them; and upon the peace concluded between the Dutch and the same Indians, she was returned to the Dutch governor, who restored her to her friends here. She was about eight years old, when she was taken, and continued with them about four years, and she had forgot her own language, and all her friends, and was loath to have come from the Indians.


Return to Boston

Susanna Hutchinson was taken to Boston where her oldest brother and an older sister lived, was re-introduced into English society, and at the age of 18 married John Cole (1625-1707), the son of Boston innkeeper Samuel Cole. They lived in Boston for a few years, but by 1663 had moved to the Narragansett country of Rhode Island (later North Kingstown) to look after the lands of her oldest brother, Edward Hutchinson. Here the couple remained and raised a large family. Susanna Cole was still alive in 1707 when given administration of her husband's estate, but was deceased by December 1713 when her son William took receipts concerning his parents' estate.

Marriage & Family

At the age of 18 she married John Cole (1625-1707), the son of Samuel Cole who had built the first inn in Boston. Together they had 11 children, at 9 reached maturity.

Susanna and John Cole had 11 children: Susanna, Samuel, Mary, John, Ann, a second John, Hannah, William, Francis, Elizabeth, and Elisha; at least 9 of them grew to maturity. Their oldest daughter,

  1. Susanna Cole (1656-1726) - eldest daughter, married Thomas Eldred, a lieutenant in the Train Band Militia of Kingstown RI.
  2. Samuel Cole - the fate of their oldest son, Samuel is not known.
  3. Mary Cole - lived into her 60s, never marrying, and
  4. John Cole, Jr. died as a youngster.
  5. Ann Cole (1661-1704) - married Henry Bull (1659-1691), the son of Jireh Bull (1638-1684) (whose house was burned in the Great Swamp Fight of 1675, and grandson of Rhode Island colonial governor Henry Bull (1609-1693).
  6. John Cole II - A second John grew to maturity,
  7. Hannah Cole married Thomas Place, and
  8. William Cole (1671-1734) - married Ann Pinder.
  9. Francis Cole grew to maturity,
  10. Elizabeth Cole married Robert Potter,
  11. Elisha Cole - married Elizabeth Dexter and was for many years a Deputy or Assistant in the Rhode Island colony.

Among her well known descendants are two aspirants to the United States Presidency, Stephen Arnold Douglas who lost to Abraham Lincoln in the 1860 election, and Willard Mitt Romney, who lost to incumbent Barack Obama in 2012.[18] Her grandson, John Cole, the son of Elisha Cole, was a chief justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court.



Children


Offspring of John Cole (1625-1707) and Susanna Hutchinson Cole
Name Birth Death Joined with
Susanna Cole (1656-1726) 1656 Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts 1726 Kings Town, Washington County, Rhode Island Thomas Eldred (1648-1726)
Samuel Cole (1656-1667)
Mary Cole (1658-)
John Cole (1658-1660)
Ann Cole (1661-1704) 7 March 1661 Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts 31 May 1704 North Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island Henry Bull (1659-1691)
Francis Cole (1663-)
Hannah Cole (1668-)
William Cole (1671-1734) 13 July 1671 Kingstown, King's Province, Rhode Island 17 September 1734 North Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island Ann Pinder (1675-)
Elizabeth Cole (1675-)
Elisha Cole (1675-)



Siblings


Offspring of William Hutchinson (1586-1641) and Anne Marbury (1591-1643)
Name Birth Death Joined with
Edward Hutchinson (1613-1675) 28 May 1613 Alford, Lincolnshire, England 19 August 1675 Marlborough, Middlesex County, Massachusetts Katherine Hamby (1615-1649)
Abigail Fermayes (1615-1689)
Susanna Hutchinson (1614-1630) 4 September 1614 Alford, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom 1630 Alford, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom
Richard Hutchinson (1615-) 8 December 1615 Alford, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom
Faith Hutchinson (1617-1652) 14 August 1617 Alford, Lincolnshire, England 20 December 1651 Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Thomas Savage (1607-1682)
Bridget Hutchinson (1619-1698) 15 January 1619 Alford, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom 1698 Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States John Sanford (c1605-1653)
Francis Hutchinson (1620-1643) 24 December 1620 Alford, Lincolnshire, England August 1643 Pelham Bay, Bronx County, New York
Elizabeth Hutchinson (1622-1630) 17 February 1622 Alford, Lincolnshire, England 1630 Alford, Lincolnshire, England
William Hutchinson (1623-1624) 22 June 1623 Alford, Lincolnshire, England 1624 Alford, Lincolnshire, England
Samuel Hutchinson (1624-) 17 December 1624 Alford, Lincolnshire, England 9999 Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Unknown Wife Hutchinson (c1625-)
Anne Hutchinson (1626-1643) 5 May 1626 Alford, Lincolnshire, England August 1643 Pelham Bay, Bronx County, New York William Collins (1612-1705)
Mary Hutchinson (1628-1643) 22 February 1628 Alford, Lincolnshire, England August 1643 Pelham Bay, Bronx County, New York
Katherine Hutchinson (1629-1643) 7 February 1629 Alford, Lincolnshire, England August 1643 Pelham Bay, Bronx County, New York
William Hutchinson (1631-1643) 28 September 1631 Alford, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom August 1643 Pelham Bay, Bronx County, New York, United States
Susanna Hutchinson (1633-1713) 15 November 1633 Alford, Lincolnshire, England 14 December 1713 Wickford, Washington County, Rhode Island John Cole (1625-1707)
Zuriel Hutchinson (1636-1643) 30 March 1636 Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States August 1643 Pelham Bay, Bronx County, New York, United States


References

There have been numerous books and articles written about Susanna Cole's famous mother, Anne Hutchinson, most of which mention Susanna. One book has been written about Cole, Trouble's Daughter by Katherine Kirkpatrick, which presents a fictionalized account about her life with the native Americans who captured her, but also presents some of the limited historical information that is available about her.



Residences

Footnotes (including sources)

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