William Duer (politician, 1747)

William Duer

William Duer (born March 18, 1747 in Devonshire , England , † April 18, 1799 in New York City ) was an American lawyer, land speculator and politician. He was the father of Judge William Alexander Duer and grandfather of Congressman William Duer (politician, 1805) (1805-1879).

Life

William Duer completed his preparatory studies and then attended Eton College (England). He became aide-de-camp of Lord Clive , Governor General of India in 1765 . Then he immigrated to America in 1768 and settled in Fort Miller (New York). On July 1, 1773 he was appointed justice of the peace and in the same year also a judge of Charlotte County (now Washington County ). He also built the first sawmills and grain mills at Fort Miller and built a snuff factory and a powder mill.

Duer was a prominent figure in the American independence movement . He was a member of the Provincial Congress in 1776 and 1777. Last year he also held a seat in the New York Senate . He was also appointed judge of the Court of Common Pleas in the same year and the following year . He moved to Fishkill (New York) and later to what today Paterson ( New Jersey ) is where he first cotton mill built. Duer was a member of the Continental Congress in 1777 and 1778 and signed the articles of confederation during this period . Then he moved to New York City in 1783. In 1786 he was a member of the New York State Assembly . He then worked between 1789 and 1790 as Deputy Minister in the Treasury Department . On March 10, 1792, he went bankrupt , bringing the Bank of New York (now Bank of New York Mellon ), the oldest bank in the United States, in trouble. It was founded in 1784 by Alexander Hamilton (1757-1804) and William Duer. Hamilton bought the bank's paper back to stabilize the price. He saved the financial institution from bankruptcy .

Duer died in New York City in 1799, was buried in the family vault in the old church of St. Thomas and later reburied in Jamaica, New York.

Web links

• William Duer in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• William Duer in the database of Find a Grave (English)