Nicholas Sension

Nicholas Sension was a man who is most well-known in history for having homosexual encounters during the middle and late seventeenth century in the United States. During this time, he often would pay men for sex and would today be considered as a sexual predator. For thirty years of his life, he was able to get away with sexually assaulting young adolescent men. It wasn’t until 1677 when he was charged for attempted sodomy. Sension was a very wealthy man and was seen as a notable member of his community. He was a married man with no children and had many indentured servants to his disposal.
Nicholas Sension first settled in Windsor, Connecticut in 1640. It was not until a few years later when he married his wife in 1645. As a wealthy man and a first class property holder, he lived in a large estate. In this estate he had many indentured servants working under him. Some of these servants were victims of Sension’s sexual assault and/or played witness in his attacks.
Nicholas Sension has had a long history of sexually assaulting young men. Of the seventeenth century, Sension’s case is the most analyzed sodomy case of the colonial period. On record, Sension has gone close to thirty years of sexually assaulting young men without any formal punishment. His behavior was not a secret to his community. On the contrary, many folks in his neighborhood of Windsor, Connecticut were quite aware of Sension’s sexual acts. During this time, sexual acts such as sodomy, pre-marital sex, and bestiality were considered sinful and in some cases punishable by death. Many historians would question as to why Sension was able to go for so long with these deeds and not receive any punishment. As a high class individual in Windsor, Connecticut, Sension was well liked in his community.
During the 17th century, there were many witness accounts to Sension’s behavior. Witnesses have come to state that Sension has been seen seducing other men and even offering to pay them for sex. One gentleman by the name of Peter Buoll was quoted saying, “He told me if I would let him have one bloo at my breech he would give me a charge of powder.”
Other claims against Sension were of his attempts of sodomy and other sexual acts towards young men of the community. George Griswold gave a testimony of one incident that occurred back in 1646. He was quoted saying, “I was in the mill house… and Nicholas Sension was with men, and he took me and threw me on the chest and took hold of my privy parts.” In 1658, Josiah Holcombe had been seduced by Sension in three separate occasions. One assault occurred while Holcombe was sleeping in his bed when Sension crept up on him. Holcombe would fight him off after Sension undressed him and groped him. Within the thirty years that Nicholas Sension had been harassing and assaulting these men, he has been informally punished twice. Very little was done about Nicholas Sension as not too many would testify against him. The first time he was taken to court was mentioned earlier in 1646 when George Griswold had testified against him. After this incident, Sension had received counseling from the court, but no formal actions were taken. The second time Sension was reprimanded occurred later in the 1660’s. It wasn’t until May 22, 1677 when he was finally taken to court and punished for his behavior.
There are a few factors that may give answer as to why Sension was not properly punished during the three decades of his assaults. Richard Godbeer is quoted in "The Cry of Sodom": Discourse, Intercourse, and Desire in Colonial New England” saying that “Sension characterized his many sexual overtures as a distinct realm of activity” and admitted to referring his behavior as his trade. With that said, it could be assumed that some people didn’t act against Sension as they saw it as something he typically did. Another factor to keep into account was that Sension had a lot of power as he was one of the wealthiest members of his community.
Many folks in Windsor, Connecticut were very nervous in fearsome of Nicholas Sension. People in the community were well aware of the antics that Sension was getting into and would warn each other of it. One victim, named Jacob Gibs, had an incident where he was approached by Sension. “ untied my shirt and uncovered me, being striving I told him that if he would not let me alone, I would cry for help.” Richard Godbeer tells of another example in his "The Cry of Sodom": Discourse, Intercourse, and Desire in Colonial New England,” where a man named Thomas Barber was assaulted. Thomas Barber was once expected to sleep in the same bed as Nicholas Sension. Sension had already a reputation, which worried Barber. Barber was very reluctant and unwilling to sleep in the same bed as Sension, but did so as he did not want to cause any trouble for anyone and make a “disturbance in a strange house.” That night as he was getting in bed, Sension “strove to turn back parts upwards and attempted with his yard to enter his body.” Barber would fight him off in fear by elbowing him until Sension to stop.
One of Nicholas Sension’s famous victims was one of his indentured servants. His servant, Nathaniel Pond was a seventeen year old servant of Sension’s. He had no interest in Sension’s acts and would attempt to fight him off. Pond would complain to his brother Isaac stating that Sension would be very violent and aggressive, making it quite difficult to fight back. The witness account of Pond being with Sension is recounted by Daniel Saxton, a fellow indentured servant. In 1677, Saxton would fall victim to another of Sension’s attacks.
Pond’s case is very interesting from other recorded instances. Nicholas Sension did not seem to only be interested in his servant physically, but also emotionally. Sension had a conversation with Joshua Holcombe and stated that he had fond affections for Pond. Nathaniel Pond had resented Sension for his behavior and acts. When this incident was brought to the court’s attention, they did not formally punish Sension but instead compensated Pond by offering to shorten his indenture by a year and pay him forty shillings for the abuse taken. Pond had refused to leave Sension as he kept his loyalty for him and even referred to his master as Uncle Sension.
Nicholas Sension was finally brought to court on May 22, 1677. Many people were coming up to the town’s elders and testified against Sension for sodomy. At this point, his attacks and advances towards young adolescent men was becoming to frequent and difficult to ignore. Of the many testimonies and witnesses, many involved Sension’s failed attempts at sodomy. Out of all of the recounts, only one was given claiming that Sension had “committed the sin of sodomy.” In the seventeenth century, in order to convict someone of sodomy, it is required that there are two witnesses. Because only one witness was able to say that Nicholas Sension committed the act of sodomy, he was only charged with attempted sodomy. For this crime, he was publicly whipped in front of his Windsor community and had his estate seized from him. Sension went on to live his life for another 12 years until he passed away in 1689. It is unclear and unrecorded as to if Sension had changed his ways or continued his sexual behaviors till death.
Although Sension acted with this behavior for over three decades, he knew what he was doing was wrong. He knew that his acts were sinful and was tormented by them. John Enno stated that he witnessed Sension sexually assaulting one his indentured servants. After doing so, Sension had went to the next room and was heard praying to god to “turn him from this sin he had so long lived in.” Nicholas Sension knew that his behavior was seen as wrong religiously and in a legal standpoint. Sension would later go to Enno and begged him to not say anything to the courts as to what he witnessed.

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