tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post641757034675039233..comments2024-03-14T13:25:20.613-05:00Comments on Boston 1775: Samuel Danforth and the Philosopher's StoneUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-61334155964258725702007-08-23T19:02:00.000-05:002007-08-23T19:02:00.000-05:00Thanks for the Brewster info. Another alchemical r...Thanks for the Brewster info. Another alchemical researcher in the first decades of New England was John Winthrop, Jr., son of the Massachusetts governor and first governor of the Connecticut colony. He was probably more interested in his <A HREF="http://www.nysoclib.org/winthrop.html" REL="nofollow">alchemy books</A> than in governing; he probably took on that public office just so he would have enough social peace to carry out his studies. <BR/><BR/>I suspect there wasn't a big split between Puritan religion and natural philosophy (science) then. Both ways of looking at the world involved investigation rather than accepting traditional authority. <BR/><BR/>There certainly wasn't a stark split between alchemy and science. Isaac Newton spent a lot of his career pursuing alchemical ideas. The chemistry we know didn't really start to develop until around the time of the Revolution (Lavoisier, Priestley, &c.).J. L. Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15405157000473731801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-50376690843462227152007-08-23T16:32:00.000-05:002007-08-23T16:32:00.000-05:00Yet another interesting bit of history here. It's...Yet another interesting bit of history here. It's interesting you mention Chelsea, given even those of us who work with early 17th century American history identify it (Winnissimett). And, this reminded me of the fact that the son of the preacher in Plymouth colony (Brewster) actually dabbled in alchemy--so much for dad's influence on that one.pilgrimchickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13808106043964544413noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-55922826842613184862007-08-22T13:53:00.000-05:002007-08-22T13:53:00.000-05:00Thanks for writing about this!I am a direct descen...Thanks for writing about this!<BR/><BR/>I am a direct descendant of Samuel Danforth (the elder via the younger, whose son Peter fought in the Revolution), so any information I find on him is always exciting. I hadn't realized his brother, Thomas, was the Danforth mentioned in the Salem Witch Trials when I was in Salem, but I discovered it eventually.<BR/><BR/>I'm even more excited that my grandfather was acquaintances with Franklin!Robert S. Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06208771657848284055noreply@blogger.com