Josiah Taft

Josiah Taft (April 2, 1709 – September 30, 1756)

Early life

Josiah was born on April 2, 1709, at Mendon, Massachusetts, the son of Daniel and (Lydia Chapin) Taft, and the grandson of the first American Taft, Robert Taft, Sr. Josiah's father Daniel, had been a local "squire" and Justice of the Peace. Josiah grew up in the western part of Mendon which became the incorporated town of Uxbridge in 1727.

Marriage and adulthood

Taft married Lydia Chapin of Mendon., on December 28, 1731, (as recorded in Mendon vital records of Taft marriages), and she became known as Lydia Chapin Taft. They were married at the Congregational Church in Mendon. Lydia and Josiah then settled in Uxbridge. It is possible that when they settled in Uxbridge that they then joined the only Uxbridge church, a Congregational church, gathered in 1727, and mentioned first in a list of new Congregational parishes in the Great Awakening of 1731. Josiah was a prominent landowner. The famous Taft family in America had ts origins in Uxbridge and Mendon, starting with Josiah's grandfather, an English immigrant, Robert Taft, Sr who settled here in 1680. Josiah and Lydia went on to have a family of 8 children between 1732 and 1753. Josiah was a farmer, and soldier, and Lydia was a colonial mother and homemaker. Josiah became a prominent citizen in early Uxbridge. He was a farmer, local official, and Massachusetts legislator. Josiah went on to serve a number of terms as a member of the Board of Selectmen, as town clerk, and as town moderator. Josiah served in the Massachusetts General Court. HR, 1753. Lydia and Josiah were among the wealthiest families in Uxbridge.

Josiah

Josiah or Yoshiyahu (/dʒoʊˈsaɪ.ə/ or /dʒəˈzaɪ.ə/;Hebrew: יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ, Modern Yoshiyyáhu, Tiberian Yôšiyyāhû, literally meaning "healed by Yah" or "supported of Yah"; Latin: Iosias; c. 649–609 BCE) was a king of Judah (641–609 BCE), according to the Hebrew Bible, who instituted major reforms. Josiah is credited by most historians with having established or compiled important Hebrew Scriptures during the Deuteronomic reform that occurred during his rule.

Josiah became king of Judah at the age of eight, after the assassination of his father, King Amon, and reigned for thirty-one years, from 641/640 to 610/609 BCE.

He is also one of the kings mentioned in one of the two divergent genealogies of Jesus in the New Testament.

Family

Josiah is only known through biblical texts. No reference to him exists in surviving texts of the period from Egypt or Babylon, and no clear archaeological evidence, such as inscriptions bearing his name, has been found.

According to the Bible, Josiah was the son of King Amon and Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. His grandfather Manasseh was one of the kings blamed for turning away from the worship of Yahweh. Manasseh adapted the Temple for idolatrous worship. Josiah's great-grandfather was King Hezekiah who was a noted reformer.

Jehoshaphat ben Saul

Jehoshaphat ben Saul (Hebrew: יהושפט בן שאול) was the son of Saul ben Anan and the grandson of Anan ben David. He lived in Iraq during the early ninth century. Jehoshaphat was nasi and resh galuta of the nascent Karaite movement of Judaism. He was the father of Boaz ben Jehoshaphat.

Josiah (given name)

Josiah (/dʒoʊˈzaɪə/) is a given name derived from the Hebrew Yoshi-yahu (Hebrew: יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ, Modern Yošiyyáhu, Tiberian Yôšiyyāhû, "supported of Yahu (YHWH)".

The Latin form Josias was used in some early English translations of the Bible.

People with this name