James Habersham was a pioneering merchant and statesman in the British North America

British North America

British North America is a historical term. It consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary War and the recognition of American independence in 1783.At the start of the Revolutionary War in 1775 the British...

n colony of Georgia. Habersham is credited with opening the first direct trade between Savannah, Georgia and London, England. He was an influential advocate for slavery in the colonies. He served as King Secretary of the Province and as President of the King's Council. In opposition to his adult sons, Habersham remained a Loyalist

Loyalist

In general, a loyalist is someone who maintains loyalty to an established government, political party, or sovereign, especially during war or revolutionary change. In modern English usage, the most common application is to loyalty to the British Crown....

 during the American Revolution.

Early life

Habersham was born in Beverley, Yorkshire, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, the son of a freeman

Freeman

- Things :* An individual not tied to land under medieval serfdom, unlike a villein or serf* A person who has been awarded Freedom of the City or "Freedom of the Company" in a Livery Company* Freeman * Freeman...

 and burgess

Burgess

Burgess is a word in English that originally meant a freeman of a borough or burgh . It later came to mean an elected or unelected official of a municipality, or the representative of a borough in the English House of Commons....

, in January 1712/13. He was baptized in the Anglican church of St. Mary's on 26 January 1715/16. In 1722, he moved to London where he worked as a merchant apprentice. In the 1730s, Habersham began following the teachings of George Whitefield

George Whitefield

George Whitefield , also known as George Whitfield, was an English Anglican priest who helped spread the Great Awakening in Britain, and especially in the British North American colonies. He was one of the founders of Methodism and of the evangelical movement generally...

 and converted to Wesleyan Methodism

Methodism

Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...

. At Whitefield's behest, Habersham traveled to the Georgia Colony as a missionary and schoolmaster in 1738.

Business career

Habersham helped run the Bethesda Orphanage near Savannah, Georgia

Savannah, Georgia

Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...

. It was there that he married Mary Bolton. In 1744, he became a merchant and set up a partnership with Francis Harris to make commercial trans-Atlantic trips to England. He and Harris's business was considered the first successful commercial endeavor in Georgia. With resources from this business, Habersham acquired land along rivers for rice

Rice

Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...

 planting. After the slavery ban in Georgia was lifted, his rice fields developed into a massive 15,000 acre plantation with 200 slaves.

Politics

By the 1750s Habersham had become politically influential. His advocacy for the economic benefits of slavery influenced a repeal on the ban of slavery. He was a senior counselor to the royal government of the colony and in 1754 was appointed King Secretary of the province. Beginning in 1767, Habersham served as president of the Upper House of the General Assembly. As president of the council, he also assumed the position of acting governor of Georgia during the 19-month absence to England of Governor James Wright

James Wright (governor)

James Wright was an American colonial lawyer and jurist who was the last British Royal Governor of the Province of Georgia. He was the only Royal Governor of the Thirteen Colonies to regain control of his colony during the American Revolutionary War.James Wright was born in London to Robert Wright...

 in 1771/1772. All three of his sons became supporters of the American Revolution

American Revolution

The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...

, but Habersham pledged his loyalty to the crown. He died August 28, 1775.