1246.Richard Smith. Born in 1596 in Gloucester, Gloucestershire.5 Richard died in Wickford, RI in 1666.5
Excerpts from Charles Wilson Opdyke’s The Op Dyck Genealogy, pages 69–80:5
Richard Smith, whose daughter Catherine became the wife of Gysbert Opdyck in 1643, was a man of wealth, character, activity and energy, and was prominent in Massachusetts, New Amsterdam and Rhode Island. He was born 1596 in Gloucestershire, England, and came to New England for the sake of religious freedom, bringing with him his daughter Catherine and other children. He “was a most acceptable inhabitant and prime leading man in Taunton in Plymouth Colony.” About 1639 he bought from Narragansett Sachems 30,000 acres on the west side of Narragansett Bay, erected there a house for trade among the thickest of the Indians, and gave free entertainment to travellers. It was on a very ancient path, often referred to in the old Deeds as the “Pequot Path,” which was adopted by the early settlers as the great road of the country, all the travel from Boston and the North and East to Connecticut and New York passing by Smith’s trading-house. His was the first purchase and the first house for many years in the Narragansett country. Very little was done however towards the settlement of the country by the whites for many years afterward. Eichard Smith did not probably occupy this house with his family for any length of time, although he kept coming and going with his children and servants. It was a trading post, 50 miles from any settlement; and in a neighborhood abounding with dangerous savages.
Not finding in Plymouth Colony the religious freedom which he sought, and the Narragansett country being as yet too lonely and dangerous a residence for his family, Eichard Smith came to New Amsterdam, where he was gladly welcomed by the Dutch. With him came from Taunton others, who too sought freedom of conscience; among them was John Smith, probably a brother of Richard, — and Rev. Francis Doughty, a dissenting clergyman who, while preaching at Cohasset, Mass., had been dragged out of the assembly for venturing to assert that “Abraham’s children should have been baptised.” Director Kieft immediately (1642) granted to them an absolute title to more than 13,000 acres of land at Mespath, now Newtown, Long Island. The Patent was made to “Francis Doughty and companions,” and gave them full power to build villages and churches, to exercise their own form of Christian religion and church discipline, and to administer their own laws, subject only to their acknowledging, during their possession of the land, the sovereignty of the Dutch West India Company. Doughty had no means of his own and had merely acted as agent for Richard Smith and his associates, who were to prepare for him a farm in the new colony, on the proceeds of which he might live, in return for his services as their preacher. But Doughty assumed high authority and attempted to collect for his own use rents from the settlers ; compelling Richard Smith to complain to Director Kieft and his Council, who decided that Doughty should be content with the farm reserved to him and that the associates should have full control of the land granted by the patent. Doughty undertook to appeal to Holland, but Director Kieft would not permit this, and imprisoned and fined him. Kieft's action was sustained afterward by his successor, Director Stuyvesant, who would not allow Doughty to return to Europe until he promised not to complain of what had befallen him in New Netherland.
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During the greater part of these twenty years [1642–1662], Richard Smith had his family-residence among the Dutch on Manhattan Island. ...
During all this time he continued his Narragansett Indian trading-house, making frequent visits there with some of his family, being himself skipper of his good sloop Welcome, and occasionally appearing before the Dutch Council at New Amsterdam for protection of his rights or on questions connected with his trading.
The records of Rhode Island do not mention him, after his first appearance there about 1639, until 1659 when he appears as witness on an Indian Deed, from which we have taken our fac-simile of his signature. The same year he joined Governor Winthrop of Connecticut and Major Atherton of Massachusetts in the purchase of a large tract of land from a Narragansett Sachem, who confirmed in this Deed the previous large sale to Smith. ...
Two years later, Eichard Smith died at his Wickford trading-house, dividing his large Narragansett tracts, by his will, among his children Richard and Elizabeth (Vial), and the children of his “deceased daughter Katharine sometime wife to Gilbert Updike,” and the children of his “deceased daughter Joan sometime wife to Thomas Newton.”
From Savage’s Genealogical Dictionary:25
Richard Smith, Taunton 1638,one of the first purchasers was from Gloucestershire may be the man, who went to R.I. the next year and some years after was the prominant man on the main, having a large trading hoouse in the Narraranset land, perhaps two, North Kingston and Wickford, purchased of the sachem in 1641, and this, in my opinion led to taking side against Gorton and his associates who bought of other sachems a principality of Showamet, or Warwick, to the Northward of Smith, who made Arnold and company of Providence cry out against Gorton and his friends, who preached bad doctrines in the judgment of Massachusetts people, and thence in the summer came the cruel, if not perfidious, slaughter of Miantinomo, head of both parties of the Indians and next the religious war of 1643 against Gortonism. For his knowledge Smith was employed with others, in Oct. 1643 “to fetch the cattle from Providence,” being the plunder our forces took with the misbelieving prisoners. Comp. Col. Rec. II. 43 with Winthrop II. 84 and 142-8.
In that wide estate, after a brief trial at Newtown, L.I. he enjoyed great esteem forty years as sovereign of all Misquamicuck, Caucumsquissic, and Pettaquamscut, was honored with a commission as chief magistrate from Connecticut 1671, as he had supported their rights against the claims of Providence, who were favored by the royal commission in 1665. His son of the same name was made constable there 1663, when the Connecticut Council dignified his neighborhood with the town rights of Wickford; but the ultimate decision of the disputed title, in the highest tribunal at home, went contrary to both Massachusetts and Connecticut.
Richard married Joan Barton. Born ca 1599 in Gloucester, Gloucestershire. Joan died in Wickford, RI in 1644.