Simon Stone

August 1, 1686 – October 22, 1746

Simon Stone, born c.1686, was a founding father of Harvard and served in town government.

Simon Stone, born c.1686, was one of the founders of Harvard. He was the descendant of Deacon Simon Stone of Watertown, who came to America in 1635. The Stone family eventually settled in Groton, and in 1716 Simon was deeded 100 acres from Jonas Prescott, land bounded by Old Mill Brook, Cold Spring Brook, and the Robbins and Farnsworth properties.

Records of the Massachusetts General Court show that, beginning in 1730, Simon Stone and seven others journeyed to Boston several times, bringing forward a proposition to set off acres for a new town with lands from Lancaster, Groton and Stow. Their petition was rejected each time. Finally the Committee on Petitions accepted the proposed boundaries and put forward a bill for township. June 29, 1732, the governor signed the bill establishing 16,400 acres for the town of Harvard.

Simon Stone, named as one of the principal inhabitants of the new town, was empowered to “Assemble and Convene the Inhabitants of said Town to Choose Town Officers,” thus issuing Harvard’s first town warrant. Simon Stone’s civic and religious involvement in Harvard included many elected terms as a selectman as well as serving as Harvard’s first moderator. He was instrumental in the town’s construction of the first Meetinghouse, completed by 1733. He, along with Joseph Fairbank, Jonathan Whitney, and Joseph Haskell, organized the ordination in October 1733 of John Seccomb as Harvard’s first minister. Simon also became a Deacon.

Simon Stone died in 1746. His widow, Sarah, and eldest son, Simon, settled his estate, land and personal property valued at approximately 540 pounds. He was regarded as “a man of the utmost in thrifty yeomanry who lived a simple personal life, yet his life stands in Harvard’s history as one of the greatest.”