John Cotton

John Cotton was born in Derby, England on 4 December 1584/5, the son of Roland Cotton. He migrated to Boston, Massachusetts. He married Elizabeth Horrocks on 3 July 1613 in England. He married second Sarah Hawkridge (or Hankridge) Story, the widow of William Story, on 25 April 1630. John and Sarah had six children; their daughter Maria married Reverend Increase Mather, who became the parents of John Cotton Mather.

Reverend John Cotton died in Boston, Massachusetts on 23 December 1652. (His wife Sarah survived him and married the Reverend Richard Mather.)