Thomas Mifflin Pennsylvania
Thomas Mifflin - A Founding Father
There thirty-nine signers of the Constitution out of the fifty-five delegates from the thirteen states. Of the thirty-nine signers, there was Thomas Mifflin. He was a General of about 40 years and a very handsome man that was known for his activity of his mind and brilliancy of his parts (The Framers of the Constitution).
Thomas Mifflin was born on January 10, 1744 to a fourth generation family of Quakers in Pennsylvania that emigrated from England. He was the oldest of John Mifflin and Elizabeth Bagnal. Thomas was raised as a Quaker, which is a belief that opposes war.
He went to College of Pennsylvania, later known as University of Pennsylvania, and graduated at the age of sixteen. After he graduated, he went to Europe for a tour in 1765. Once he returned, he got into the business field with his brother, George. Then, Thomas married his cousin, Sarah Morris and joined the American Philosophical society. This got him interested in serving the public and in government.
Finally, in 1772, he was elected into the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly and two years later, he was sent to Continental Congress. Thomas was one of the youngest and most radical members of the First Continental Congress (Major General Thomas Mifflin). Then in 1775, the war began. As a Quaker, he was to believe that war was not good for a country, but this did not stop him; he became a major of a volunteer company. By doing this, he was expelled from his Quaker faith (Ferris, 2005).
He was well-recognized for his accomplishments as a major of a volunteer company. Even George Washington heard of him and sent for him to go to New York and become and Aide-de-camp for him on June 23, 1775. Later that year on August 14, Washington appointed him as the first Quartermaster-General. On November 9, the British attached at Lechmire's Point, but Mifflin had great braver and cool conduct. This was able to move him up to a Colonel Mifflin. Then on May 16, 1776, Thomas was able to rise to the position of Brigadier-General. However, the congress needed him back to his Quartermaster-General position because no once else could be found.
During 1777 and 1778, Mifflin, along with two other men, studied the army and tried to find ways to make it more effective. During this, his relationship with General Washington was strained because Mifflin supported Horatio Gates to replace Washington as commander of the Continental Army (Major General Thomas Mifflin). After a while, Thomas collected many political enemies and they wanted to lash out at him. They said that he embezzled funds and misused assets (Find a Grave). Thomas invited the search and resigned his position. After he stepped away, the search never happened. This really damaged his political view of many people. However, he wanted to support he army and began to work at the national level in 1780; he was one of three commissioners the recommended the reorganization of military staff departments (Pennsylvania Archives).
Even though Mifflin's political views was cut down, the people in Pennsylvania still cherished his wisdom. In 1778, the people sent him back to the Pennsylvania legislature, which in turn moved him on to the Continental Congress from 1782 to 1784. In 1783, he became the fifth president of the Continental Congress. As the new president, it was Mifflin's first mission to insure that the Treaty of Paris was ratified under the six month time constraint set forth in the agreement (Thomas Mifflin, 2000). The ratifying convention was set to be on November 1783 at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, but the quorum wasn't met. There were many tries and many failures to get the quorum to pass the Treaty of Paris, but finally on January 12th, there were seven of the thirteen representative and they needed one more. So the South Carolina Representative, Richard Beresford came, although ill, on January 14 to get a quorum and ratify the Treaty of Paris.
The state of Pennsylvania wanted to keep him at work in politics so he was selected as a delegate at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 and signed the Constitution. After that was done, Thomas was elected to be the speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representative from 1785 to 1788. From 1790 to 1799, he became the governor. As Governor, Mifflin was able to suppress the Whiskey Rebellion near Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania Archives). Then, when the bicameral legislatures were set in 1780, he ran again for governor and was elected by having an almost ten-to-one win. He served as Governor for three terms from 1790 to 1799. During that time he was able to construct new roads and strengthen their militia.
After his three terms as governor, the people elected him to the statesman to the state legislature until his death on January 20, 1800 at the age of 56 in Lancaster Pennsylvania. By dedicating his life to the people, it financially took a toll on him. His finances were so unsettled that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania paid his burial expenses that the local Trinity Luther Church (Ferris, 2005). Thomas Mifflin was a hero to Pennsylvania and a significant impact on America today.
Sources
Ferris, Robert G. , ed. "The Religious Affiliation of Thomas Mifflin. " Religious Affiliation of the Signers of the U.S. Constitution. 19 Nov. 2005. 28 Aug. 2008 http://www.adherents.com/people/pm/thomas_mifflin.html
"The Framers of the Constitution. " U.S. Constitution Online. 28 Aug. 2008 http://www.usconstitution.net/constframe.html
"Major General Thomas Mifflin - 1st Quartermaster General. " Quartermaster Generals. 28 Aug. 2008 http://www.qmfound.com/mg_thomas_mifflin.htm
"Thomas Mifflin. " Find a Grave. 28 Aug. 2008 http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&grid=4717
"Thomas Mifflin. " Geocities. 28 Aug. 2008 http://www.geocities.com/presfacts/8/mifflin.html
"Thomas Mifflin (1744-1800). " Bibiographical Directory of the United States Congress. 1952. 28 Aug.
2008 http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=m000701
"Thomas Mifflin (1744-1800). " Pennsylvania Archives. 28 Aug. 2008
http://www.archives.upenn.edu/histy/features/1700s/people/mifflin_thos.html
"Thomas Mifflin. " Virtulology. 2000. 28 Aug. 2008 http://thomasmifflin.com/
Vinci, John, ed. "Thomas Mifflin. " Colonial Hall. 1 Jan. 2004. 28 Aug. 2008 http://colonialhall.com/mifflin/mifflin.php
Wright, Jr. , Robert K. , and Morris J. MacGregor, Jr. "Thomas Mifflin. " Soldier-Statesmen of the Constitution. 11 Aug. 2000. 28 Aug. 2008 http://www.history.army.mil/books/revwar/ss/mifflin.htm
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