David Farnsworth was a Colonial-era

American Loyalist Loyalists were colonists in the Thirteen Colonies who remained loyal to the British Crown during the American Revolutionary War, often referred to as Tories, Royalists or King's Men at the time. They were opposed by the Patriots, who support ...

. He was a British agent during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

had him hanged for his involvement in a plot to destroy the American economy by placing counterfeit money into circulation.

American Revolution

Farnsworth initially joined up with Patriot forces in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston ...

at the age of 15 in 1775, serving as a drummer and participating in the Battle of Bunker Hill. The use of counterfeit money has been used as a strategy in warfare for centuries. The idea is to flood the enemy's economy with fake money, thus devaluing the real money and causing an economic collapse, rendering the enemy unable to fund their side of the war. During the

, the Continental Congress decided to create a new Continental currency to fund the war. Among the people enlisted to print this new currency was

Paul Revere Paul Revere (; December 21, 1734 O.S. (January 1, 1735 N.S.)May 10, 1818) was an American silversmith, engraver, early industrialist, Sons of Liberty member, and Patriot and Founding Father. He is best known for his midnight ride to a ...

. To counter this, the British enlisted teams of counterfeiters to travel throughout the American Colonies, placing their counterfeits into circulation in the hopes that it would devalue the Continental currency. These counterfeiters were known as "shovers," presumably for their ability to "shove" the fake money into everyday use. David Farnsworth and his partner John Blair were among the best-known of these counterfeiters, having been caught with over $10,000 in fake Continental dollars in their possession. On October 8, 1778, in a court-martial held in Danbury, Connecticut by order of General

Horatio Gates Horatio Lloyd Gates (July 26, 1727April 10, 1806) was a British-born American army officer who served as a general in the Continental Army during the early years of the Revolutionary War. He took credit for the American victory in the Battl ...

and Brigadier General John Paterson, Farnsworth and Blair were tried for, and convicted of, "being found about the Encampment of the Armies of The United-States as Spies and having a large sum of counterfeit Money about them which they brought from New-York". The sentence of execution was prescribed by a two-thirds vote. On October 23 in Fredericksburg, New York, Commander in Chief

approved the sentence and ordered their immediate execution upon their arrival at General Gates' division. Farnsworth and Blair were executed in Rocky Hill,

Hartford County, Connecticut Hartford County is a county located in the north central part of the U.S. state of Connecticut. According to the 2020 census, the population was 899,498, making it the second-most populous county in Connecticut. Hartford County contains the ...

on November 10, 1778.

In popular culture

In fiction, Farnsworth appeared in the '' Futurama'' episode " All The Presidents' Heads" as the ancestor of

Professor Hubert Farnsworth Professor Hubert J. Farnsworth, commonly referred to in-show as either Professor Farnsworth or simply Professor, is a fictional character in the American animated television series ''Futurama''. The mad scientist proprietor of the Planet Express ...

. As in history, he was presented as a counterfeiter and British agent. However, in an alternate timeline featured in the episode, in which Great Britain won the Revolution and all of North America became known as "West Britannia", he killed George Washington and was granted a

dukedom Dukedom may refer to: * The title and office of a duke * Duchy, the territory ruled by a duke * Dukedom, Kentucky and Tennessee Dukedom is an unincorporated community in both Graves County, Kentucky and Weakley County, Tennessee, straddling th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Farnsworth, David Loyalists in the American Revolution from Connecticut British counterfeiters British people of the American Revolution American Revolutionary War executions Continental Army soldiers 18th-century executions of American people People executed by the United States military by hanging 1778 deaths 1760 births Executed spies British spies during the American Revolution People executed for forgery Child soldiers