William Trent (city founder)

William Trent (* around 1653 possibly in Inverness ; † December 25, 1724 ) was a Scottish immigrant and is considered the founder and namesake of the US city of Trenton in New Jersey . He became a wealthy merchant in what was then the British colony and built a country house on the Delaware River , from which, through further settlements, today's state capital, Trenton, arose.

Life

Little is known about William Trent's origins. Unsecured sources name Inverness in Scotland as his birthplace and show that he was born around 1653. What is certain is that he settled in Philadelphia in 1693 and made his fortune there as a merchant. William Trent traded in tobacco, flour and furs, but also with servants recruited in Europe . William Trent also participated in the slave trade, transporting slaves from Africa and the West Indies . From 1704 his career began as a politician and lawyer in the British colonial administration. First he served on the Pennsylvania Provincial Council, then he was appointed to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the highest court in Pennsylvania. Eventually, William Trenton was elected to the provincial government, most recently as spokesman for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

William Trent was married twice. He had four children with his first wife, Mary Burge Trent, and two children with his second wife, Mary Coddington Trent. His youngest son of the same name, William Trent, played an important role in the French and Indian War and in the conquest and conquest of parts of the British colony further west.

From 1716 to 1719 William Trent had a country house built on the Delaware River , which was called "William Trent House". Subsequent settlements later expanded the property into a small village, which was initially called "Trent-town" and subsequently Trenton. In the Battle of Trenton during the American Revolutionary War , the William Trent House was the scene of fighting. At that time it was manned by Hessian officers who were in the service of the British Army .

William Trent died suddenly and unexpectedly on Christmas Day in 1724, most likely from natural causes, a stroke. However, three African slaves were accused of killing him and were initially arrested. In 1737 the three suspects were hanged to death "because of the poisoning of William Trent".

credentials

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} [1] "Article on the homepage of the William Trent House Museum."
2. ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original from March 2, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. "Article in Trentonmagazin, December 2008."