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Thomas Minor

American city founder (1608-1690)

Architectural plans, a scale model, maps and brass measuring instruments
Places and architectureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 21, 2026
Entity authorityQ7792490 ↗
Source-derived summary

Thomas Minor (April 23, 1608 – October 23, 1690) was a founder of New London and Stonington, Connecticut, United States, and an early colonial New England diarist.

Early life and marriage

Minor was born in Chew Magna, in Somerset, England, on April 23, 1608, to Clement Miner (born February 23, 1585;

died March 31, 1640). In 1629, he emigrated to Salem, Massachusetts, aboard the Lyon's Whelp. In the introduction of The Diary of Thomas Minor, Stonington, Connecticut 1653-1684, it states the name of the ship was the Arabella. It landed in Salem, Massachusetts on June 14, 1630. He quickly moved to Watertown, and then on to Charlestown, after typhus fever broke out in Salem.

In Charlestown, Minor met Grace Palmer, whom he married in 1634. She was the daughter of Walter Palmer. The couple eventually had seven sons and three daughters:

John Minor (1635–1719)

Clement Minor (1639–1700)

Thomas Miner (1640–1662)

Ephraim Miner (1642–1724)

Joseph Miner (1644–1712)

Manassah Minor (1647–1728)

Ann Minor (1648-?)

Marie Minor (1651–1660)

Samuel Minor (1652–1682)

Hannah Minor (1655–1721)

In 1636, the Minors moved to Hingham.

Settling Stonington

After several years in Hingham, the family moved south to the Wequetequock area of present-day Stonington, Connecticut, where Minor and his son Ephraim helped found the Road Church.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Thomas Minor” as american city founder (1608-1690). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Thomas, Minor and American.

Editorial reviewA strong orientation record where physical form, institutional use and historical geography need to be read together. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1608, 1690, 1585, 1640—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1608-04-23. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Thomas, Minor and American providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Thomas Minor”, the useful work is to connect “american city founder (1608-1690)” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7792490. VIAF identifies the subject as 315532943. The Library of Congress control number is n2006166208. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1608, 1690, 1585 and 1640.

Critical limits

Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.

Best used for
  • Historic place names
  • Jurisdictional context
  • Routes into maps and plans
Verify next

Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Thomas Minor”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Thomas Minor primary sources, Thomas Minor archive and Thomas research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Thomas Minor”?
  2. What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
  3. Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Thomas Minor” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.