Biography
Capt. Jireh Bull, Sr. was born 6 September 1638 in Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island to Henry Bull (1609-1693) and Elizabeth Eveleth (c1610-1665) and died 1684 North Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island of unspecified causes. He married Elizabeth Bull (1638-1665) 1652 in Kingston, Washington County, Rhode Island. He married Katherine Bull (1638-1685) 1658 in Kingston, Washington County, Rhode Island.
House Torched in King Philip's War
King Philip's War (1675-1678) was an armed conflict between Native American inhabitants of present-day New England and English colonists and their Native American allies. The war continued in the most northern reaches of New England until the signing of the Treaty of Casco Bay in April 1678.
The Great Swamp Fight of 1675 (AKA: Great Swamp Massacre or Battle of Narragansett Fort was a crucial battle fought during King Philip's War between colonial militia of New England and the Narragansett tribe in December 1675. It was fought near the villages of Kingston and West Kingston in the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. The combined force of the New England militia included 150 Pequots, and they inflicted a huge number of Narragansett casualties, including many hundred women and children. The battle has been described as "one of the most brutal and lopsided military encounters in all of New England's history." Since the 1930s, Narragansett and Wampanoag people commemorate the battle annually in a ceremony initiated by Narragansett-Wampanoag scholar Princess Red Wing.
Jireh Bull Blockhouse
Inscription on stone says: "A FEW RODS WEST OF THIS SPOT STOOD THE STONE HOVSE OF JIREH BVULL BURNED BY THE INDIANS DECEMBER 15, 1675." This marker is beside the approach to Middle Bridge over Narrow River. The site of the house is on private property. --From Gates family tree
The Jireh Bull Blockhouse (RI-926, also known as the Jireh Bull Garrison House or Jireh Bull Block House) is an historic archaeological site on Middlebridge Road in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. In 1657 a blockhouse was built on the site by Jireh Bull, son of Rhode Island Governor Henry Bull (1609-1693). The stone garrison house was burned by the Native Americans in King Philip's War on December 15, 1675, and fifteen of its defenders were massacred. The site was acquired by the Rhode Island Historical Society in 1925.
On December 15, 1675, Narraganset warriors attacked the Jireh Bull Blockhouse and killed at least 15 people. 15 year-old James Eldred (1651-1687) escaped from the blockhouse and was pursued a considerable distance; he survived having a tomahawk thrown at him at close range and a hand-to-hand encounter with a Narraganset warrior. This occurred along Indian Run Brook in Wakefield-Peacedale, Rhode Island.[1]
Four days later, the Great Swamp Battle took place on the bitterly cold and stormy day of December 19, 1675. The colonial militia from Plymouth Colony, Connecticut Colony, and Massachusetts Bay Colony were led to the main Narragansett settlement in South Kingstown, Rhode Island by an Indian guide named Indian Peter.
Marriage and Family
Jireh Bull was the son of Henry Bull (1609-1693), 12th/14th Colonial Governor of Rhode Island.
1st Marriage
- Mary Bull (1653-1754) - married grandchild of early colonial President John Coggeshall,
2nd Marriage
- Henry Bull (1659-1691) married a granddaughter of William and Anne Hutchinson.
- Jireh (son of Jireh) married Godsgift Arnold, the daughter of Governor Benedict Arnold.[17]
- Ephraim Bull (1669-1721), married grandchild of early colonial President John Coggeshall,
- Ezekiel Bull
Children
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Mary Bull (1653-1754) | 1653 Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island | 13 June 1754 Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island | James Coggeshall (1660-1712) |
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Henry Bull (1659-1691) | 26 September 1659 North Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island | 1691 Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island | Ann Cole (1661-1704) |
| Jireh Bull (1659-1709) | 26 September 1659 Portsmouth, Newport County, Rhode Island | 16 July 1709 Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island | Godsgift Arnold (1658-1691) |
| Ephraim Bull (1669-1721) | 1669 Kingston, Washington County, Rhode Island | 1721 Kingston, Washington County, Rhode Island | Mary Coggeshall (1662-1699) |
| Ezekiel Bull (1671-1727) | 1671 Washington County, Rhode Island | 27 September 1727 Narragansett, Washington County, Rhode Island | Elizabeth Sage (1666-1726) |
Siblings
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Jireh Bull (1638-1684) | 6 September 1638 Newport, Newport County, Rhode Island | 1684 North Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island | Elizabeth Bull (1638-1665) Katherine Bull (1638-1685) |
| Amey Bull (1656-1696) | |||
Residences
References
- Template:FAG #86131737
Footnotes (including sources)
- ^ Jo Anne Butler. "The Great Swamp Fight". The Rebel Puritan. http://rebelpuritan.blogspot.com/2012/01/great-swamp-fight-of-1675.html. Retrieved 15 Oct 2017.