The Life of Rev. William Leverich

William Leverich was born in England c 1606. He was not the son of Sir Saville Leverich of Drawlington Hall, Warwickshire. No documentation of such a person or place has been found. William may have been the William Leverich baptized at Ecton, Northamptonshire 9 November 1606, the son of Abraham and Eleanor Leverich.

The Life of Rev William Leverich (pdf)
A page from the Register at Emmanuel College showing the name of our ancestor - March 28, 1621/1622

This is a copy of a page from the Register at Emmanuel College showing the name of our ancestor – March 28, 1621/1622

Church of Saint Peter, Great Livermere, Suffolk, England - Photo courtesy of Michael E. Leveridge, Cambridge, England
Church of Saint Peter, Great Livermere, Suffolk, England
Photo courtesy of Michael E. Leveridge, Cambridge, England
William Leverich discusses the treaty with the Indians, 1652 - WPA Mural at Oyster Bay, Long Island, New York Post Office
“William Leverich discusses the treaty with the Indians, 1652”
WPA Mural at Oyster Bay, Long Island, New York Post Office
  • 1622: William registers at Emmanuel College, Cambridge
  • 1626: BA Emmanuel College
  • 1626: Ordained Deacon Church of England
  • 1627: Ordained Priest Church of England
  • 1628: William appointed to first clerical assignment as curate, Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, Great Bowden, Leichestershire
  • 1629: Court action was taken against William for various forms of non-conformity at Great Bowden
  • 1629: William marries Ellin Johnson at Great Bowden
  • 1631: MA Emmanuel College, Cambridge
  • 1631: William appointed Rector of Church of St. Peter, Great Livermere, Suffolk
  • 1632: Baptism of Hannah Leverich, daughter of William and Ellin Leverich, at Great Livermere
  • 1633: William departs for New England on the Ship James. Mr. Grant, Master, accompanied by Capt. Wiggin
  • 1633: William arrives Salem, Massachusetts
  • 1633: First pastor Dover, New Hampshire
  • 1635: William joins with the First Church Church at Boston
  • 1637: William assistant to Rev. Partridge at Duxbury, Massachusetts
  • 1638: First pastor Sandwich, Cape Cod, Massachusetts
  • 1653: One of the original purchasers of land at Oyster Bay, Long Island, New York
  • 1658: First pastor at Huntington, Long Island, New York
  • 1669: Second pastor at Newtown, Long Island, New York
  • 1677: William dies at Newtown

Rev. William Leverich Scriptural Commentary

An interesting relic of Mr. Leverich exists in the town clerk’s office. It is a volume of between six and seven hundred pages, about one hundred of which are occupied by a running commentary on the first fourteen books of the Old Testament, written by his hand, but in part copied from the commentary of the learned Piscator.

photo of Rev. William Leverich's Scriptural Commentary book

Scriptural Notes of Rev. William Leverich
Newtown Town Records: Municipal Archives of the City of New York

The book seems to have been originally intended by Mr. Leverich as an index to subjects he should meet within the course of his study, the pages being numbered and headed with a great variety of subjects, written in Latin, and arranged alphabetically. But the design was not carried out, and after the decease of Mr. Leverich, the book was given to the town for public records.

(Annals of Newtown, by James Riker Jr, 1852)

Rev. William Leverich Scriptural Commentary (pdf)