The founder of Salem
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The American Connection
Statue of Roger Conant in Salem.
A millstone from the Conant family Mill.
Part of the petition, submitted in 1671, that Roger Conant
wrote requesting that the town of Beverly should be
renamed Budleigh. The original document,
signed by Roger Conant, is part of the collection
from the Massachusetts Historical Society1880 records.
A young descendant of East Budleigh-born Roger Conant,
pointing to this historical marker at Beverly, Massachusetts,
is obviously proud of his ‘very great’ grandfather. This early
group of European settlers in New England 400 years ago
- Roger Conant, John Woodbery and John Balch
- was known for independence and tolerance. They seem
to have been West Country people – economic migrants –
as opposed to the stricter and less tolerant settlers from
Eastern England.
Thanks to Jonathan David Conant for the Photo.