Alexander Hamilton


Region Occupation Born Died
North America, Mid-Atlantic Politician 1757 1804

Revolutionary statesman and Founding Father; raised on West Indies island of Nevis, where he apprenticed as a shipping clerk for a leading maritime merchant. Came to New Jersey in 1771; attended King's College (later Columbia) for two years (1774-75) until he took a commission in Washington's army, where he served throughout the Revolutionary War. Participated in the land assault on Yorktown in 1781. Thereafter became a force in New York politics and an early advocate of a strong national government. In defending the work of the Philadelphia constititutional convention in the Federalist Papers, made a powerful case for the need for a strong national navy (#11).College. As Secretary of the Treasury in 1791, he established the Customs Service that later evolved into the Coast Guard.

Sources

Robert A. McCaughey

Images

Alexander Hamilton

Public Domain Source

External Additional Sources

http://www.let.rug.nl/usa/documents/1786-1800/the-federalist-papers/the-federalist-11.php

Compiler

Peter Richards

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