Elizabeth Hooton
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Hooton was one of the earliest preachers in the Religious Society of Friends
and was beaten and imprisoned for propagating her beliefs; she was the first woman to become a Quaker minister . She is considered one of the Valiant Sixty
, a group of daring Friends preachers. Her surname is sometimes spelled Hooten.
. Some sources indicate, however, that Fox actually clarified some of his beliefs from Hooton’s mentoring of him. She was a middle-aged, married woman when she met Fox in 1647 in Skegby
, Nottinghamshire, and was already a Nonconformist
—specifically, a Baptist
.
In 1651, she was imprisoned in Derby
for reproving a priest. The following year she was put in prison at York Castle for preaching to a congregation at the end of the service. She was assaulted in 1660 by a church minister in Selston
, who passed her on the street and knew that she was a Quaker.
She traveled to Boston in 1662, where she was taken on a two-week walk into the woods and abandoned. She managed to make her way back to civilization in Rhode Island
and then sailed back to England by way of Barbados
.
Back home, she discovered that some of her cattle had been confiscated. She petitioned King Charles II
for justice, and used the opportunity to preach to him and inform him of the religious intolerance occurring in the Massachusetts Bay Colony
. He gave her a letter authorizing her to settle anywhere she liked in the American colonies and to set up a safe house for Quakers. She first went to Boston
and was expelled. Then she went to Cambridge, Massachusetts
. The authorities there gave no respect to the letter either, and ordered her whipped. Afterwards, she was again abandoned in the woods, but she made her way back to England.
Hooton was undeterred by the persecutions she suffered. In 1664, she was imprisoned in Lincoln
for five months for disturbing a congregation.
George Fox wrote about her death, “. . . Elizabeth Hooton, a woman of great age, who had travelled much in Truth's service, and suffered much for it, departed this life. She was well the day before she died, and departed in peace, like a lamb, bearing testimony to Truth at her departure.”
Hooton is memorialized in a panel of the Quaker Tapestry
(panel B2), along with Mary Fisher, as an example of the Publishers of Truth, who were the earliest proponents of Quakerism.
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
and was beaten and imprisoned for propagating her beliefs; she was the first woman to become a Quaker minister . She is considered one of the Valiant Sixty
Valiant Sixty
The Valiant Sixty were a group of early leaders and activists in the Religious Society of Friends . They were itinerant preachers, mostly from northern England who spread the ideas of the Friends during the second half of the Seventeenth Century, and were also called the First Publishers of Truth...
, a group of daring Friends preachers. Her surname is sometimes spelled Hooten.
Introduction to George Fox
Hooton was among the first, perhaps the very first, to be convinced by the teachings of George FoxGeorge Fox
George Fox was an English Dissenter and a founder of the Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as the Quakers or Friends.The son of a Leicestershire weaver, Fox lived in a time of great social upheaval and war...
. Some sources indicate, however, that Fox actually clarified some of his beliefs from Hooton’s mentoring of him. She was a middle-aged, married woman when she met Fox in 1647 in Skegby
Skegby
Skegby is a small village in the Ashfield district of Nottinghamshire, England, located two miles west of Mansfield and one mile north of Sutton-in-Ashfield, close to Stanton Hill lying on the B6014 road. Skegby sits on both sides of a deep valley near the source of the River Meden...
, Nottinghamshire, and was already a Nonconformist
Nonconformism
Nonconformity is the refusal to "conform" to, or follow, the governance and usages of the Church of England by the Protestant Christians of England and Wales.- Origins and use:...
—specifically, a Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
.
Ministry and persecution
She believed that God called her to preach, which led her to leave her family, because her husband was not at first sympathetic to Quaker ideas. Like other early Quakers she was imprisoned and beaten for her outspoken preaching, which went against the established church.In 1651, she was imprisoned in Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
for reproving a priest. The following year she was put in prison at York Castle for preaching to a congregation at the end of the service. She was assaulted in 1660 by a church minister in Selston
Selston
Selston is a hilltop village and civil parish in the District of Ashfield in Nottinghamshire, England. At the time of the 2001 census it had a population of 12,208 St Helen's Church dates back to 1150 AD although the exterior of the church was altered by restoration and enlargement in 1899...
, who passed her on the street and knew that she was a Quaker.
She traveled to Boston in 1662, where she was taken on a two-week walk into the woods and abandoned. She managed to make her way back to civilization in Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
and then sailed back to England by way of Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
.
Back home, she discovered that some of her cattle had been confiscated. She petitioned King Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
for justice, and used the opportunity to preach to him and inform him of the religious intolerance occurring in the Massachusetts Bay Colony
Massachusetts Bay Colony
The Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...
. He gave her a letter authorizing her to settle anywhere she liked in the American colonies and to set up a safe house for Quakers. She first went to Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
and was expelled. Then she went to Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
. The authorities there gave no respect to the letter either, and ordered her whipped. Afterwards, she was again abandoned in the woods, but she made her way back to England.
Hooton was undeterred by the persecutions she suffered. In 1664, she was imprisoned in Lincoln
Lincoln, Lincolnshire
Lincoln is a cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England.The non-metropolitan district of Lincoln has a population of 85,595; the 2001 census gave the entire area of Lincoln a population of 120,779....
for five months for disturbing a congregation.
Final journey
Hooton embarked on her final voyage in 1670, joining George Fox on a trip to the West Indies and the American continent. The purpose of the trip was to encourage Friends in the New World. A week after arriving in Jamaica in 1672, Hooton died peacefully of natural causes.George Fox wrote about her death, “. . . Elizabeth Hooton, a woman of great age, who had travelled much in Truth's service, and suffered much for it, departed this life. She was well the day before she died, and departed in peace, like a lamb, bearing testimony to Truth at her departure.”
Hooton is memorialized in a panel of the Quaker Tapestry
Quaker Tapestry
The Quaker Tapestry consists of 77 panels illustrating the history of Quakerism from the 17th century up to the present day. The idea of Quaker Anne Wynn-Wilson, the tapestry has a permanent home at the Friends Meeting House at Kendal, Cumbria, England....
(panel B2), along with Mary Fisher, as an example of the Publishers of Truth, who were the earliest proponents of Quakerism.
Sources
- Calkins, Susanna. “Colonial Whips, Royal Writs and the Quaker Challenge: Elizabeth Hooton's Voyages through New England in the Seventeenth Century”. Journeys, vol. 5, no. 2.
- Mack, Phyllis. Visionary Women : Ecstatic Prophecy in Seventeenth-Century England ISBN 0-520-08937-5
- Manners, Emily. Elizabeth Hooton, First Quaker Woman Preacher. (London: Headley Brothers, 1914).
- Trevett, Christine. Women and Quakerism in the 17th Century. York, England: Ebor Press, 1991.