The Story of William Phips

1. The Story of William Phips By: Sean-Jacob Harley Davidson

2. Birth and Childhood • I was born on February 2, 1651 near Kennebec, Maine. • In Woolwich • I was the youngest of twenty-six children. • My father was a gunsmith and died when I was six years old. • Once my father died, my mother married our neighbor and her business partner, John White. • I was a shepherd until I turned the age of 18 • At an early age I set off to Boston to fulfill my dream to be a carpenter. • Got sidetracked by many different expeditions that eventually landed me in Boston.

3. Education • I did not attend school at a young age. • I then got a 4 year apprenticeship as a ships carpenter. • Although I did not attend school, I learned to read and write, but it was at a rudimentary level. • Later in life, I relied a lot on my “right hand man” to write everything down for me. I did not have him sign my name or read to me however, that much could be done on my own.

4. Career as a Ship Captain and Treasure Hunter • In the year 1682, I went on an expedition as the captain of the Resolution to the Bahamas to seek treasure from sunken Spanish ships. • My major find was the ship Señora de la Concepción which had gold and silver doubloons, jewelry, and other precious artifacts. • I reported recovering upwards to 300,000 Euros. • Other smaller ships were scattered around with treasure only worth 10,000 Euros. • This was not worth my time, so I left and sailed for Boston.

5. Career as a Military Leader • In March of 1790, I was appointed, by the General Court, to lead an expedition against the French in Acadia. • Leading a fleet of seven ships and over seven hundred men, I arrived at Port Royal in early June. • The governor and I had negotiated the terms of capitulation, but he had violated them so I ordered my men to destroy the town and the Church. • On August 20th, I set sail for another expedition against Quebec. • I had called for the governor to surrender, but he declined so we went to war. • The war ended in failure, and cost more than 50,000 Euros • Upwards of 230 casualties and a field cannon were lost. • Caused me to seek financial and political support for another expedition. • This did not happen.

6. Family Life as an Adult • I married Mary Spencer Hull in the year of 1673. • She was the widow of the prosperous Boston merchant, John Hull • I did not have children.

7. Returning to Boston… • In May of 1692, I had arrived back in Boston to be the First Royal Governor of Massachusetts. • The Witch Trials in Salem had already started two months earlier and the people, who were not in prison for practicing witchcraft, were bantering me for trials on the accused. • I wasn’t sure what to do so I demanded that irons be put on the accused in prison. • I created the Court of Oyer and Terminer to have hearings and determine all the backlog cases. • I placed experienced men of Boston and Salem to be judges. • William Stoughton was to be the man in charge.

8. My Involvement Continued… • William Stoughton was very keen on trying the accused witches with spectral evidence and being killed based on spectral evidence. • Once I realized that the trials were all being based on spectral evidence and not cold, hard facts, I shut the whole thing down. • I shut down the Oyer and Terminer courts. • I pardoned eight people whom Stoughton sentenced to death. • I wrote a letter to the King chastising Stoughton for his ruthless behavior on February 21, 1693. • I used this letter to defend myself from the fat that I did not realize the dangers and the stupidity of allowing the use of spectral evidence.

9. After the Trials… • On July 4th 1694, I was summoned to appear before the Lords of Trade in London, England. • I spent much of my summer at Pemaquid overseeing frontier defenses while Stoughton gathered evidence for the hearing. • I arrived in London January 1, 1695 and was arrested on exaggerated charges. • Dudley had put a 20,000 Euro bail on my head which he hoped would prevent me from returning to Massachusetts. • This did not work, a man named Sir Henry Ashurst paid my bail and I was free for the time being.

10. Late Life and Death • While preparing my arguments, I had fallen greatly ill with a fever. • I was never able to present my arguments fro the hearing, because I died on February 18, 1695. • I was buried in London in the yard of Church of St. Mary Woolnoth. • My original marker and my grave was moved with the church grounds during renovations in the 18th century.

11. Bibliography • “Salem Witch Trials Governor Sir William Phips” <http://www2.iath.virginia.edu/salem/people/phi ps.html>. 2001. • “Sir William Phips” Salem Witchcraft Trials 1692. <http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/sal em/SAL_BPHI.HTM>