The Rogerenes

In my last blog post, James Rogers, a very early immigrant, I shared information about the first Rogers in our line that came to America in the colonial era.  James Rogers was believed to descend from a long line Protestant preachers including John “The Martyr” Rogers who was burned at the stake in England for his anti-Catholic sermons in 1554.

In colonial times, we find that many early immigrants were prompted to leave England or their homeland because of both political and religious differences.  In the New London area (now part of Connecticut), the majority of early residents were members of the Congregational Church, a Protestant group. Others associated with Seventh Day Baptists or Quaker communities.

While we are direct descendants of James Rogers (1615-1687), I would like to digress slightly and tell you about John Rogers, the third son of James Rogers who was a brother to three of our direct ancestors.  And even though he isn’t our direct line, the story about him is interesting in that he was the founder of a religious sect called The Rogerenes.

John Rogers (1648 – 1721) was raised in a family that belonged first to the Congregational Church in New London and later joined local the Seventh Day Baptist church.  As a young adult, John was attracted to the Baptist faith and began to oppose the Congregational Church, and eventually also the Seventh Day Baptists.  As a young man, when his religious beliefs began to change he embarked on a career as a minister.  He began to oppose some of the teachings of the Congregational Church, and supported several of the beliefs of both the Baptist and also the Quaker theologies.  John founded the new religious group known as The Rogerenes in 1674. 

The Rogerenes maintained that they did not have to pay taxes to support the Congregational Church or any church.  They didn’t violate civil laws, but loudly proclaimed and displayed their unwillingness to abide by ecclesiastical laws that they believed were not in keeping with the Rogerene faith. 

Several years after John Rogers founded his Rogerene sect, his wife, Elizabeth Griswold Rogers petitioned for a divorce.  She described his unusual behavior, conduct and beliefs as her reason to divorce him.  Her divorce was granted.

Rogerenes were not Congregationalists, Quakers or Seventh Day Baptists, though they shared some of the same beliefs.  The Rogerenes were advocates of peaceful non-resistance as were the Quakers.  They also believed in healing by prayer known as faith healing without the attentions of a physician and were against any medicines or formal medical treatment.  They believed healing would be achieved only by prayer and the laying on of hands.  They prayed specifically in silent worship (opposed to oral prayer like the Quakers); they believed in adult baptism by immersion; and they believed in celebrating communion in the evening like the Baptists.  And while the Rogerenes believed in Sunday worship, unlike the Congregationalists, they didn’t believe that anyone had to abstain from work on the Sabbath for the whole day.

Rogerenes opposed slavery and were active in the abolitionist cause and the Underground Railroad.  They advocated for the rights of women, a peaceful co-existence with the Native Americans, and were opposed to war and the military. 

The Rogerenes, though Christian, were very anti-clerical and were vocal religious dissenters, often showing up at Congregational Church events where they created disruptions and were known to go out of their way to provoke conflict and garner attention.  Not surprisingly, the Rogerenes were often persecuted for their beliefs and their disruptive behavior. 

Members of the Rogerenes were known to march through New London on Sunday proclaiming that they were working on the Sabbath and would attend functions at churches of other denominations to disrupt and argue with those of differing beliefs.  As a result, Rogerenes were also frequently hauled before the courts where they were fined or imprisoned, tarred or whipped either for their behavior or for their refusal to pay taxes which at the time supported the Congregational Church. 

In the early 1700’s the former leader of the Congregationalist Church in New London, Gurdon Saltonstall, became the Governor and actions against The Rogerenes escalated.  As a result, John Rogers and his followers spent more time in prison.  John Rogers cumulatively spent about 15 years of his life incarcerated.

In 1721, John Rogers traveled to Boston to minister to the sick during an outbreak of smallpox.  He believed that his faith would protect him from contracting the infection.  John later returned home to New London, only to become sick with smallpox himself and die along with a couple of members of his family who likely contracted the disease from him.

The Rogerenes remained active long after the death of John Rogers “the Founder” for over 200 years and well into the 1800’s.  Eventually one branch of the sect resettled in New Jersey and others integrated into nearby Quaker communities. 

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Key Individuals:

James Rogers  (1615 – 1687), 8^th or 9^th great grandfather

Elizabeth Rowland Rogers  (abt 1620 – 1709), 8^th or 9^th great grandmother

1)  Samuel Rogers  (1640 – 1713)

2)  Joseph Rogers  (1646 – 1697), 7^th great grandfather

3)  John Rogers  (1648 – 1721) – founder of the Rogerenes

4)  Bathsheba Rogers  (1650 – 1711), 8^th great grandmother

5)  James Rogers  (1652 – 1714)

6)  Jonathan Rogers  (1655 – 1697), 8^th great grandfather

7)  Elizabeth Rogers  (1658 – 1716) 

For an explanation of the notations of 7^th, 8^th and 9^th great grandparents, please see the Notes section of my previous blog post titled James Rogers, a very early immigrant.

Notes:

Bathsheba Rogers (1650 – 1711), one of my 8^th great grandmothers became an early convert to The Rogerenes.  She was known to be a particularly zealous Rogerene and according to one account “she suffered long and cruel imprisonments” as a result of her work with the Rogerenes, as she was very devoted to her brother John’s religious movement.  Bathsheba married Richard Smith (1640 – 1682) in 1670, and her great grandson, James Smith Jr (1832 – 1798) was featured in my April 10, 2022 blogpost Ancestors Who Fought in the Revolution – part 2. 

- Jane Scribner McCrary

James Rogers, a very early immigrant

One of my earliest ancestors to arrive in the New World was James Rogers, my 8^th or 9^th great grandfather depending on the line that you follow.  Manuscripts that are preserved in the Public Record Office in England contain a document noted as a “licens to go beyond the seas” that is dated April 15, 1635 and reads “to be transported to New England imbarqued in the Increase [ship], James Roger, 20 years.”

James Rogers was born in England around 1615.  Within 2 years after his 1635 arrival in New England, James was noted as living near Saybrook (now in Connecticut).  He was a participant in the Pequot war – which was a brief conflict between the Pequot people on one side, and the Narragansett and Mohegan peoples who were allied with the colonists on the other side.   

By 1640, John is recorded as a property owner in Stratford, where he met and married Elizabeth Rowland.   The couple moved to Milford where James Rogers purchased a home lot and also obtained a warehouse. In Milford, James began baking and selling bread and biscuit products.  His business grew considerably and before long he was furnishing biscuit for seamen sailing to Virginia and Barbados, and for Colonial troops.  James had a great deal of business in nearby New London, probably because of the increasing port activity, and sometime between 1656 and 1660 he moved his business and family to New London.  New London by then had over a hundred families on the tax roll.  James was generous with his good fortune and often provided free biscuits for seamen and colonial troops.

In New London, James leased the town mill, built a home and a bakery next to the mill, and was quite successful.  James and his wife became involved in community affairs, the local Congregationalist church and in his later years in the Seventh Day Baptist church.  James Rogers served as deputy to the Court of Elections, and as the Corn Commissioner for New London.  He eventually handed his bakery business over to his eldest son, Samuel, though James stayed active locally serving as the Representative to the General Court seven times between 1662 and 1673.  

As you might expect from his success, James Rogers became a wealthy tradesman and major landowner during his lifetime.  James & Elizabeth had 8 children that lived to adulthood, and we have direct lines of descent through at least 3 of their children!  James Rogers died in 1687 in New London, and Elizabeth lived until around 1709.

 

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Key Individuals:

James Rogers  (1615 – 1687) 8^th or 9^th great grandfather, married

Elizabeth Rowland Rogers  (abt 1620 – 1709) 8^th or 9^th great grandmother, and had the following children:

1)  Samuel Rogers  (1640 – 1713)

2)  Joseph Rogers  (1646 – 1697) 

3)  John Rogers  (1648 – 1721) – founder of the *Rogerenes

4)  Bathsheba Rogers  (1650 – 1711) 

5)  James Rogers  (1652 – 1714)

6)  Jonathan Rogers  (1655 – 1697) 

7)  Elizabeth Rogers  (1658 – 1716)

    

Notes:

1)  English Protestant religion played a significant role in the history of this Rogers family.  James Rogers, the immigrant, claimed that he was the grandson of the clergyman known as John “The Martyr” Rogers (1507-1555) in England.  John “The Martyr” was a well-known Protestant preacher at the time that Queen Mary I (also known as Mary Tudor or Bloody Mary), a Roman Catholic, who came to the throne in England in 1553.  Rogers delivered sermons warning against papist preachings.  It wasn’t long before Rogers and other Protestant preachers in England were brought before the Privy Council and accused of heresy.  He was among a group that was imprisoned for over a year at Newgate as heretics and sentenced to be burned to death at the stake at Smithfield.  Before his sentence was carried out John Rogers was offered a pardon if he were to recant, but he refused.  He was burned at the stake on February 4, 1555 and was thereafter referred to as John The Martyr.

It is recorded in several places that when James Rogers came to New England, he brought with him a bible that was reported to have belonged to his grandfather, John “The Martyr” Rogers.

2) My next blog post will tell you about the *Rogerenes, a religious group that was established by John Rogers, the 3^rd son of our James Rogers of New London. 

3)  If you are working on our family tree, it will be very easy to get confused with all of the John Rogers that you will find who lived in and around New London, Connecticut.  Our line actually goes directly back to James Rogers (1615-1687) at least three different ways – through James & Elizabeth’s 2^nd child, Joseph, and through their 4^th child Bathsheba, and again through their 7^th child, Jonathan.

 

1st path:  James Rogers (1615-1687) m. Elizabeth Rowland (abt 1620-1709)

                     Joseph Rogers (1646-1697) m. Sarah Haughton (1652-1728)

                        John Rogers (1675-1739), Deborah Dayton (1675-1739)

                             John Rogers (1716-1779) m. Martha Colver (1717-1760)

                                  **John Rogers (1760-1796) m. Hannah Smith (1761-1845)

                                        Mary B Rogers (1790-1875) m. David Bill Dickinson (1787-1846)

2nd path:  James Rogers (1615-1687), m. Elizabeth Rowland (abt 1620-1709)

                       Bathsheba Rogers (1650-1711) m. Richard Smith (1640-1682)

                           James Smith (1674-1750) m. Elizabeth Rogers (1681-1760)

                              James Smith “the Barber” (1703-1758) m. Susannah ?

                                 **James Smith (1732-1798) m. Abigail Hempstead (1738-1814)

                                      Hannah Smith (1761-1845) m. **John Rogers (1760-1796)     

                                            Mary B Rogers (1790-1875) m. David Bill Dickinson (1787-1846)

3rd path:  James Rogers (1615-1687), m. Elizabeth Rowland (abt 1620-1709)

          Jonathan Rogers (1655-1697) m. Naomi Burdick (dates unknown)

             Elizabeth Rogers (1681-1760) m. James Smith (1674-1750)

                 James Smith “the Barber” (1703-1758) m. Susannah ?

                       **James Smith (1732-1798) m. Abigail Hempstead (1738-1814)

                                      Hannah Smith (1761-1845) m. **John Rogers (1760-1796)     

                               Mary B Rogers (1790-1875) m. David Bill Dickinson (1787-1846)        

**To learn for more about John Rogers (1760-1796) or James Smith (1732-1798), both noted above, see my earlier blog post titled Ancestors Who Fought in the Revolution – part 2, published earlier this year on April 10, 2022.

Note above that both James Smith & Elizabeth Rogers (who married) were grandchildren of James Rogers (1615-1687) & Elizabeth Rowland (abt 1620-1709) making them first cousins. 

And to add to the confusion, if you track my lineage through James & Elizabeth Rogers’ son Joseph, they will be my 8^th great grandparents.  However, if you follow the line through either of his siblings, Bathsheba or Jonathan, then James & Elizabeth will be my 9^th great grandparents.  

If you are in my family line that comes down through Mary B Rogers Dickinson (1790-1875), the wife of David Bill Dickinson, then all three ways lead to us.   I have to tell you that entering all of this in my ancestry program was a true challenge!

- Jane Scribner McCrary