Declaration House | Robert Morris and Haym Salomon – the two principal financers of the American Revolution. In 1781 he devised a plan for a National Bank and submitted it to Congress. This materially assisted in collecting together and paying that gallant band with which Washington re-crossed the Delaware, and won the glorious victory at Trenton.7 Many instances of a similar nature are related, where the high character of Mr. Morris enabled him to procure money when the government could not, and his patriotism never faltered in inducing him to apply it to the public benefit. This money provisioned the desperate troops, who went on to win the Battle of Trenton (Washington Crossing). Morris and his partner choose the side of the colonials and Robert engaged in the movements against British rule. Related Information | Date Created. Facing colonial resistance, Parliament repealed the tax, but it later implemented other policies designed to generate tax revenue from the colonies. 1783; Delegate to the Constitutional Convention, 1787; United States Senator, 1789-95; Appointed Secretary of the Treasury, 1789. When they retired, a salute was fired, and a wad from one of the guns hit Mr. Morris upon the arm. Robert Morris was 6 feet tall, well built, with sandy colored hair and piercing blue eyes. Rev. Mr. Morris was again elected to Congress on the eighteenth of July, 1776, fourteen days after the Declaration of Independence was adopted; and being in favor of the measure, he affixed his signature thereto on the second of August following. You can now sponsor your favorite page on Revolutionary War and Beyond. Robert Morris was a native of Lancashire, England, where he was born Young Robert transferred to Philadelphia where he studied under the tutelage of Charles Greenway, a member of the Library Company of Philadelphia, founded by Benjamin Franklin. Type of Resource. Native of England, he immigrated to America in 1747. Robert Morris was an American businessman and banker. Morris was a risk-taker and had many ships going to various countries that paid off. Served as a Delegate from Pennsylvania in the Continental Congress from 1775 to 1778. A contemporary described him as "bold and enterprising of great mercantile knowledge, fertile in expedients and an able financier. He was elected a Senator under that instrument, and took his seat at the first meeting of Congress in New York to organize the government in accordance with its provisions. Young Robert transferred to Philadelphia where he studied under the tutelage of Charles Greenway, a member of the Library Company of Philadelphia, founded by Benjamin Franklin. About This Item. Genealogy profile for Robert Morris Robert Morris (1796 - 1870) - Genealogy Genealogy for Robert Morris (1796 - 1870) family tree on Geni, with over … Robert Morris, (born Jan. 31, 1734, Liverpool, Merseyside, Eng.—died May 8, 1806, Philadelphia, Pa., U.S.), American merchant and banker who came to be known as the financier of the American Revolution (1775–83).. Morris left England to join his father in Maryland in 1747 and then entered a mercantile house in Philadelphia. Morris was immediately appointed Financial Agent (Secretary of Treasury) of the United States, in order to direct the operation of the new bank. Robert Morris Dickey (1776 - Unknown) How do we create a person’s profile? His business talent, and his extensive credit at home and abroad, were brought to bear in this vocation, and upon him alone, for a long time, rested the labor of supplying a famished and naked army and furnishing other necessary supplies for the public service. Born in England in 1734, he came to the Chesapeake Bay in 1744 and attended school in Philadelphia. After the passage of the Stamp Act and the Tea Act, and non-importation agreements became general in the commercial cities of the colonies,4 Willing and Morris, notwithstanding the great loss of business it would occasion, not only cheerfully entered into the plan, but did all in their power to induce others to do likewise. After the conclusion of peace, Mr. Morris served twice in the Legislature of Pennsylvania ; and he was a delegate to the Convention that framed the Constitution of the United States. More Resources |, by Ole Erekson, Engraver, c1876, Library of Congress. George Washington liked Morris’ character and fundraising abilities so much that he maintained regular communication with him, penning more than 130 letters from 1776 to 1798. 14th July 1776. Continental Congressmen Robert Morris and Gouverneur Morris (no relation) by Charles Willson Peale Mr. Morris was again elected to Congress on the eighteenth of July, 1776, fourteen days after the Declaration of Independence was adopted; and being in favor … The Revolutionary Diplomatic Correspondence of the United States. Morris was, next to General George Washington, "the most powerful man in America." Two years later his employer died and Morris entered a partnership with the gentleman's son. Robert Morris and Haym Salomon – the two principal financers of the American Revolution. Letters and reports of Superintendent of Finance and Agent of Marine Robert Morris, 1781-85, with an appendix volume, 1776-78, 1781-86. Delegate to the Continental Congress, 1775, Appointed Special Commissioner of Finance, 1776; Author of the plan for a National Bank, 1781; Financial Agent of the United States, 1781; Delegate to the Pennsylvania Legislature, ca. https://gw.geneanet.org/tdowling?lang=en&n=morris&oc=3&p=robert Being an importer, the business was hit hard by the Stamp Act and the colonial revolt against it. This tract Mr. Morris bought in 1796, and after selling considerable portions lying upon the Genesee River, he mortgaged the residue to Wilhelm Willink, of Amsterdam, and eleven associates, who styled themselves the "Holland Land Company." ... (1776), charged with protecting that great seaport in the opening phase of the Revolution. Robert Morris was the master financier of the Revolution and the early republic. In 1750, a freak accident took the life of Morris, Sr., and Robert found himself at sixteen the … The Document | Title: Robert Morris on the state of the war, Philadelphia, 1776 Creator: Morris, Robert Creation Date: 1776-12-24 Subject Date: 1776-12-24 Town: Boston, Philadelphia County: Philadelphia, Suffolk State: MA, PA Media: Ink on paper Dimensions: 39.2 cm x 24.1 cm Local Code: Coll. In one of his first major political acts, Morris joined with several other merchants in pressuring British agent John Hughesto refrain from collecting the new tax. https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/founding-fathers-pennsylvania Start page | He left his wife and four young children with debts greater than his estate. He died in 1806, in relative poverty, at the age of 73. 4 One of the measures adopted by the Colonists to force Great Britain to do them justice, was that of American merchants everywhere agreeing not to import anything from the mother-country. Morris, along with John Dickinson, did no… John Bradford to Robert Morris, July 14, 1776 . He afterward resold this tract to Sir William Pultney. Morris completed his office as Senator and then retired from public service. Author of numerous books, Robert Morris Ministries shares God's Word throughout the world to help others become followers of Jesus Christ and develop and intimate relationship with God. He was taught by a private tutor there, before he was sent to Philadelphia to finish his schooling. This scheme had the desired effect, and the aid it rendered to the cause was incalculable. The wound was severe, mortified, and in a few days terminated his life. A few remained and discussed the great question of American freedom: and there, within that festive hall, did Robert Morris and a few others, by a solemn vow, dedicate their lives, their fortunes, and their honor, to the sacred cause of the Revolution. Following the war, he served in the Pennsylvania Legislature. It was a service which no other man in the country seemed competent to perform, and that Congress well knew. Robert Morris, primary financier of the Revolutionary War, painted by Robert Edge Pine Public domain image. 8 At the time Washington was preparing, in his camp upon the Hudson, in Westchester county, to attack Sir Henry Clinton in New York, in 1781, Mr. Morris and Judge Peters of Pennsylvania were then at headquarters. YES! He was elected to the Pennsylvania Council of Safety, the Committee of Correspondence, the Provincial Assembly, the Pennsylvania Legislature, the Second Continental Congress, Pennsylvania Senator, and many others. It was a position of great trust, for they frequently had funds placed in their hands to be disposed of according to their discretion — like the *' secret service money" of the present day, placed in the hands of the Presi dent, with discretionary powers, it being inimical to the general good to take paS» He action upon such disbursements. Robert Morris lived quietly with his wife for another five years. Robert Morris, (1734-1806), American merchant, known as the "financier of the American Revolution." Mr. Morris promised him the amount, and he raised it upon his own responsibility. In the succeeding thirty nine years that business flourished, and Robert Morris' wealth and reputation were secured. —Robert Morris, 1776 The group of soldiers huddled around a small fire in front of their tent as darkness fell on the encampment of the Continental Army at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. In 1765, the Parliament of Great Britain imposed the Stamp Act, a tax on transactions involving paper that proved widely unpopular in British North America. Boston. ; attended school in Philadelphia; became a merchant in Philadelphia in 1748; signed the non-importation agreement of 1765; member of the Pennsylvania Council of Safety 1775; … Utter despondency ' wealth and integrity in Philadelphia, and the colonial against... 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