Benjamin Thurston, a distinguished lawyer in Providence, and his brother, also a lawyer, are descendants of John Rogers. We will now speak of ministers, and first of Rev. Peter Rogers, descendant of James Rogers, 2d, and John Rogers, 2d, his father being a grandson of the former and his mother a granddaughter of the latter. We give the following extract from an obituary notice[22] of this early New England Baptist minister. Elder Peter Rogers was born in New London, Conn., June 23, 1754, and died at Waterloo, Munroe Co., Illinois, Nov. 4, 1849, at the age of 95 years. His father was a seafaring man and commanded a vessel; his mother was a devout, praying woman and made a lasting impression upon his character. Yet he grew up worldly and thoughtless, and at an early period in the Revolutionary War, enlisted in the army as a musician and became attached to the corps denominated “Washington’s Life Guards.” After three year’s service in the army, he was honorably discharged and then commanded a government vessel, in which he performed valiant deeds and took three prizes from the enemy. His conviction of sin was instrumentally produced by the life of faith and happy death of his first wife (we think she lived to rejoice in his conversion, but died soon after) and remembrance of the prayers and instruction of his mother. He was baptized by Eld. Amos Crandall and soon began to “improve his gift,” as the Baptist phrase was in early times. In 1790, he was ordained by Elder Zadoc Darrow, Sr., Jason Lee and Christopher Palmer. His ministry was distinguished by revivals. ----- Footnote 22: Obituary Notice of Elder Peter Rogers, by Rev. J. M. Peck, D.D., of Illinois. Published in the Minutes of the Pastoral Union for 1850. ----- For a number of years, Eld. Rogers was a retailing merchant, while his gratuitous labors were abundant as an evangelist and pastor. He lived and preached in New London, Killingly and Hampton, in Connecticut, in Leicester, Mass., and Swanzey, N. Ham., from 1789 to 1828, when he removed to Munroe County, Illinois. For a few years, he was partially sustained as a pastor; but for a large part of sixty years he performed the warfare at his own charges, as did nearly all the Baptist ministers of New England in that day. Several hundred were converted and baptized under his ministry, a much larger number, in that day and in that part of the country, than by other Baptist ministers. He was past threescore and ten when he came to Illinois, yet for a number of years he labored much in the gospel and was highly esteemed and beloved by all his brethren. He delighted in Christian society, and, like a memorable patriarch of a former age, his presence, counsel and kindness were welcome in all our circles. “He fell like a shock of corn fully ripe in its season,” strong in faith, full of hope, and abundant in joy and consolation.