- born May 6, 1726 in Wrentham, MA
- 2nd son of Daniel and Deborah (Pond) Thurston
- 1751: received A.B. degree from Princeton
- 1st pastor 1752 - 1769
- ordained June 23, 1752
- May, 1754 - admitted to the Mendon Association
- resigned from the ministry, February 22, 1769
- settled on a farm in Oxford., later moved to Auburn and Sutton
- died May 5, 1777 in Sutton, MA
5 children:
- Susan
- Paul
- Elisha
- Abijah
- Nathan
Abijah and Elisha were both slain in the same Revolutionary War battle in
1777.
His ministry was fraught with much dissension among the congregation although
at one point there was a brief period of revival. A total of 79 were admitted
to the church. Twenty three of these owned the covenant. It has been written
that "..... he was not efficient enough to combat and overcome the difficulties
of his infant church. He yielded to them and escaped by resignation."
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