Major Eleazer Lusher (died 1672 [1] ) was a politician and military leader from Dedham, Massachusetts.
Major Eleazer Lusher (died 1672 [1] ) was a politician and military leader from Dedham, Massachusetts.
Lusher had unmatched political influence in Dedham and was one of the most powerful men in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. [2] He was one of ten men, constituting five percent of the adult male population, who were reelected so many times to Dedham's seven-member Board of Selectmen that they filled sixty percent of the seats between 1639 and 1687. [3] He served 29 one-year terms in total. [4] [5] He was town clerk for 23 years, having first been elected in 1641. [6]
Lusher was also a signatory of the Dedham Covenant.
Between the years of 1650 and 1685, Lusher was one of three men elected to serve in the Massachusetts General Court. [7] Additionally, he served on the Massachusetts Council of Assistants from 1663 to 1673. [7] Other positions include being a diplomat, judge, and mediator. [7] He was also on the commission that established the Angle Tree Stone. [8] He led a trainband. [9]
In recognition of his service, he was awarded 500 acres of land near Sudbury, Massachusetts in 1666. [10]
Lusher, along with Joshua Fisher, owned a saw mill on the Neponset River that is depicted on the seal of the Town of Walpole, Massachusetts. [11] [12] Lusher was one of the eight establishing members of the First Church and Parish in Dedham. [13]
Had he wished, Lusher "could have made a fortune" by exploiting the connections he made in the colonial government, as many others did. [2] When he died he had a comfortable estate of 500 pounds but was not overwhelming wealthy. [2] He is buried in the Old Village Cemetery [14] in the tomb of Timothy Dwight. [15]