Lewis Morris
Lewis Morris (born April 8, 1726 in Morrisania , Bronx , Province of New York , colony of the Kingdom of Great Britain , today USA ; † January 22, 1798 in Morrisania, Bronx, New York , USA) was a British-American landowner and is as a signatory of the US Declaration of Independence one of the founding fathers of the US .
Lewis Morris had the same name as his grandfather and father and was born on the Morrisania family estate . His mother's maiden name was Katrintje Staats. His great-grandfather Robert Morris († 1672) immigrated to New York via Barbados after serving in Oliver Cromwell's army in the English Civil War of 1648. He bought the first portion of land in the Bronx that became the basis for the Morrisania manor. Lewis Morris grandfather of the same name Lewis Morris (1671-1746) expanded the country estate and expanded it. Lewis attended Yale University and graduated in 1746. When his father died in 1762, he inherited most of the estate. His son Lewis (1753-1824) was Vice Governor of the State of South Carolina from 1794 to 1796 .
Being a prominent landowner in colonial New York, Morris was appointed judge of the New York Province Admiralty Court in 1760 . When the American independence movement arose, he gave up his office in 1774. In 1769 he was elected to the Colonial Council. When the American Revolutionary War broke out, he was a member of the New York Convention (government of the independence movement) from 1775 to 1777. This in turn sent Morris to the Continental Congress for exactly this period . He was an active supporter of independence in Congress and signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776. When his brother, the British General Staats Long Morris , warned him of the consequences of signing this inflammatory document, Morris reportedly said: “Fuck the consequences. Give me the pen. "(" Damn the consequences. Give me the pen. ")
Morris returned to New York in 1777 and served in the new state government and senate from 1778 to 1781 and again from 1783 to 1790. His younger half-brother, Governor Morris , was named in honor of this office. When the New York Convention met to ratify the United States Constitution in 1788, he was one of the delegates.
Morris had to rebuild the family manor after the American Revolutionary War after it was looted and burned by the British when they occupied New York. Always active in the community, he served on the first board of directors of New York University from 1784 to 1798 .
He died in his family home and is buried in the family vault under St. Anne's Episcopal Church in the Bronx.
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| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Morris, Lewis |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British-American landowner, signer of the United States 'Declaration of Independence, one of the United States' founding fathers |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 8, 1726 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Morrisania , Bronx , New York Province |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 22, 1798 |
| Place of death | Morrisania , Bronx , New York Province |