Dudley, Thomas (1576-1653), was a colonial governor of Massachusetts. Born in Northampton, England, he became steward to the powerful Earl of Lincoln, whose estates he managed. He sailed with John Winthrop on the Arbella in 1630 as deputy governor of the colony. He became governor four times. A Puritan of the stern and harsh type, he often differed with the tolerant and kind Winthrop. He was a founder of First Church at Charlestown, Massachusetts, and of Newtowne (now Cambridge, Massachusetts). He was an early promoter and overseer of Harvard College.
