Thomas Hooker
Religious Leader
Puritan colonial leader. He founded the colony of Connecticut in 1636 and was active in its first government.
His Puritan beliefs forced him to leave England for the religious freedom of America.
He came to Connecticut by way of Massachusetts, where he was at odds with the religious establishment.
He grew up in a Puritan family in Leicestershire County, England.
He and Simon Bradstreet both led early American settlers in both politics and religion.