ABSTRACT
Blackwell left Dublin and London and became heavily involved in land transactions in New England. Again much of this was linked to his kin, specifically a plan of those he was connected with through Lambert to establish settlements in North America for those increasingly concerned about the prospect of the succession of the Catholic, James, Duke of York. Blackwell’s rapid acceptance by a core group within the Puritan elite of Massachusetts indicates prior contact, and his time there shows how he was viewed as a financial expert. Blackwell used his background in finance and in banking schemes of the 1680s to be a central figure in attempts by some of the Massachusetts elite to establish a bank but also explore opportunities in an open land market. During his time in Massachusetts Blackwell was linked with those who opposed the growing imposition of Crown authority through a royal governor and who, in 1688, welcomed the Glorious Revolution as an Atlantic revolution.
