John Nixon (financier)
Encyclopedia
John Nixon was a financier and official from Philadelphia who served as a militia officer in the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

.

He was born in Philadelphia, the son of a shipping merchant. Upon the passage of the Stamp Act
Stamp Act 1765
The Stamp Act 1765 was a direct tax imposed by the British Parliament specifically on the colonies of British America. The act required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in London, carrying an embossed revenue stamp...

 in 1765, he signed the non-importation agreement against the Act, became active in opposing the encroachments of the English
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...

 government upon American liberties, and was a member of the first committee of correspondence in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

.

In April 1775, he became lieutenant-colonel of the third battalion of the Philadelphia Associators, a militia unit. He was also a member of the Committee of Safety. From May to July 1776, he was in command of the defenses of the Delaware
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...

 at Fort Island, after which he was put in charge of the defenses of Philadelphia.

On July 8, 1776, he made the first public proclamation of the Declaration of Independence
United States Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a...

 from the steps of the Pennsylvania State House. The same year Nixon was promoted colonel and later served under Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...

 at the battle of Princeton
Battle of Princeton
The Battle of Princeton was a battle in which General George Washington's revolutionary forces defeated British forces near Princeton, New Jersey....

. In 1776 he became a member of the Navy Board, and two years later was with Washington again at Valley Forge
Valley Forge
Valley Forge in Pennsylvania was the site of the military camp of the American Continental Army over the winter of 1777–1778 in the American Revolutionary War.-History:...

. In 1780 he became a director of the Bank of Pennsylvania
Bank of Pennsylvania
The Bank of Pennsylvania was established on July 17, 1780, by Philadelphia merchants to provide funds for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War...

. Afterward he assisted in organizing the Bank of North America
Bank of North America
The Bank of North America was a private business chartered on December 31, 1781 by the Congress of the Confederation and opened on January 7, 1782, at the prodding of Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris. This was thus the nation's first de facto central bank. It was succeeded in its role as...

, of which he was president from 1792 until his death.

Nixon died in 1808; he was interred in the churchyard of St. Peter's Church, Philadelphia
St. Peter's Church, Philadelphia
St. Peter's Church is a historic church located on the corner of Third and Pine Streets in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It opened for worship on September 4, 1761 and served as a place of worship for many of the United States Founding Fathers during the period of the Continental Congresses. The...

.

Biographical Sketch

NIXON, John, soldier, was born in Philadelphia.
Pa., in 1733. His father was a wealthy shipping
merchant who left his son his business at his
death in 1756. John Nixon was among those who
signed the non-importation agreement of 1765, from
which time on he was one of the leaders of the patriot
cause in Philadelphia. He was a member of the
first committee of correspondence and of the committee
of public safety, served in the provincial
conventions of 1774 and 1775, and in April. 1775,
was chosen lieutenant-colonel of the 3rd Philadelphia
battalion. In May, 1776, he commanded the defences
of the Delaware, from which he was transferred
in July, 1776, and was assigned to the command
of the city guard of Philadelphia. He was
the first to read the declaration of independence to
an assemblage of citizens after its adoption. In the
summer of 1776 his battalion served at Amboy. In
the following December, Nixon, having in the meantime
succeeded to the chief command, reinforced
Washington at Trenton and participated in the battle
of Princeton. In 1776 Nixon served on the
navy board and in 1778 he spent the winter at Valley
Forge. When a bank to provision the army was
formed in 1780 he became its first director. He
was also one of the founders of the Bank of North
America, established in 1783, and its president from
1792 until his death, which occurred December 31, 1808.

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