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 signer 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]
The history of Dedham, Massachusetts, 1635–1699, begins with the first settlers' arrival in 1635 and runs to the end of the 17th century. The settlers, who built their village on land the native people called Tiot, incorporated the plantation in 1636. They sought to build a community in which all would live out Christian love in their daily lives, and for a time did, but the Utopian impulse did not last. The system of government they devised was both "a peculiar oligarchy" and a "a most peculiar democracy." Most freemen could participate in Town Meeting, though they soon established a Board of Selectmen. Power and initiative ebbed and flowed between the two bodies.
Ensign Daniel Fisher (1618-1683) was a politician from Dedham, Massachusetts and Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Deputies.
Lieutenant Joshua Fisher was a politician from Dedham, Massachusetts and a member of the Massachusetts House of Deputies. He was a blacksmith, saw mill owner, and tavern keeper.
Henry Phillips was a wealthy businessman and politician from Boston and Dedham, Massachusetts. Phillips was described as "tender and brokenhearted."
The First Church and Parish in Dedham is a Unitarian Universalist congregation in Dedham, Massachusetts. It was the 14th church established in Massachusetts. The current minister, Rev. Rali M. Weaver, was called in March 2007, settled in July, and is the first female minister to this congregation.
Samuel Dexter was a minister from Dedham, Massachusetts. He ministered there from May 1724 to 1755.
Joseph Ellis, Sr. (1666–1752) was a colonial American politician. He served as an selectman, moderator, and representative to the Great and General Court where he served seven terms.
Joseph Belcher was a minister at the First Church in Dedham, Massachusetts.
Edward Alleyn was a businessman and early American politician. He served on the first board of selectmen in Dedham in 1639 and was a frequent representative to the Great and General Court beginning in 1638. He was town clerk for two years, having first been elected in 1639. As a businessman, he was involved with establishing an iron foundry.
Samuel Dexter (1726—1810) was an early American politician from Dedham, Massachusetts.
Captain Timothy Dwight (1629–1718) represented Dedham in the Great and General Court of Massachusetts and was the progenitor of the Dwight family.
John Hunting was Ruling Elder of the First Church and Parish in Dedham.
John Dwight was one of the first settlers of Dedham, Massachusetts and progenitor of the Dwight family.
John Kingsbury was an early resident of Watertown, Massachusetts and a founder of Dedham, Massachusetts. He represented Dedham in the Great and General Court in 1647.
Robert Hinsdale was a colonial American Puritan cleric and a founder of Dedham, Medfield, and Deerfield, Massachusetts who died in the Battle of Bloody Brook.
The history of Dedham, Massachusetts from 1700 to 1799 saw the town become one of the largest and most influential country towns in Massachusetts. As the population grew and residents moved to outlying areas of the town, battles for political power took place. Similar battles were taking place within the churches, as liberal and conservative factions bristled at paying for ministers with whom they had differences of theological opinion. New parishes and preciencts were formed, and eventually several new towns broke away.
Francis Chickering was an early settler of Dedham, Massachusetts who served in the Great and General Court of Massachusetts and on that town's Board of Selectmen for 15 years. He was also a teacher in the first public school in America, today well known as the Dedham Public Schools.
Peter Woodward represented Dedham, Massachusetts in the Great and General Court in 1665, 1669, and 1670. He also served on the board of selectmen for 16 years, with his first term beginning in 1643 and his last ending in 1670.
Joseph Kingsbury (1600–1676) was an early settler and selectman from Dedham, Massachusetts.
The early government of Dedham, Massachusetts describes the governance of Dedham from its founding in 1636 to the turn of the 18th century. It has been described as being both "a peculiar oligarchy" and a "a most peculiar democracy." Most freemen could participate in Town Meeting, though they soon established a Board of Selectmen. Power and initiative ebbed and flowed between the two bodies.