Edward Fenner papers (Ms.Fenner)

Biographical note on Edward Fenner and the Fenner family

Biography of Edward Fenner, Jr. (1736?-1813)

Edward Fenner, Jr. was born 1736 in Cranston, Providence, RI, the fifth of ten children born to Edward Fenner and Amey Borden (married April 11, 1728). He married Dinah Potter on March 14, 1757 in Cranston. They had three children:

• Edward (ca. 1760 - March 19, 1782)
• Dinah (Nov. 9, 1772-Nov. 26, 1833) who married Thomas Sprague
• John (March 27, 1778- Feb. 22, 1858) who married Catherine Beverly

In addition to these children, Fenner had a son named Abel whose birthdate is unknown.

After the death of his first wife, Edward Fenner, Jr. married Welthian Colegrove on March 30, 1786 in Foster, RI.

He was President of the Johnston Town Council (in 1795) and also the town treasurer (dates unknown). He died on May 31, 1813 in Cranston, RI.

Fenner family history

The first Fenner to arrive in Rhode Island was Captain Arthur Fenner, who immigrated to Providence in 1649. He and his wife Mehitable Waterman were Edward Fenner, Jr.'s great grandparents. The house Captain Arthur and his son Thomas built in 1677 still stands in Cranston, RI.

Among Edward Fenner, Jr.'s relatives was a cousin once removed named Arthur Fenner whose wharf was used to launch the attack on the Gaspee on June 10, 1772. Known as the Gaspee Affair, this burning of a British Royal Naval Ship and the first intentional shooting of a British military man was Providence's equivalent to the Boston Tea Party.

Edward Fenner, Jr. was a second cousin to Rhode Island Governor Arthur Fenner whose son James Fenner was also a governor of Rhode Island. Governor James Fenner was the top-ranked student in the 1789 graduating class at Brown University.

Sources of information: Richard Arthur Fenner and Brown University Archives.