Hugh Shiell (died November 1785?) was an Irish physician who became a financier and patriot of the American Revolution. Born in

Dublin, Ireland Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cen ...

, Shiell studied at the University of Edinburgh. He graduated with his M.D. and emigrated to Philadelphia where he opened a medical practice. By this point he had amassed a substantial fortune and became familiar with the wealthy elite of his new city; he became close friends with banker and financier of the American Revolution, Robert Morris. In 1780, Shiell invested a large sum of money in Morris’ Bank of North America, which was the first bank in the United States and which supplied the American troops with provisions. John Adams alluded to Shiell in a letter to James Lovell. James Armstrong Sr recommended him to

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 th ...

. Through his friendship with Morris, Shiell met his wife, Ann Harris; they had one child, Catherine. Alongside his medical practice, Shiell ran a shipping business, records of which are held in the archive of the Kentucky Historical Society. He was elected as a member to the American Philosophical Society in 1781. In 1783 or 1784, he retired from city life and relocated with his family to Lincoln County, Kentucky, where, among other activities, he operated a distillery. He died not long thereafter, attempting to cross a stream; he either drowned or caught pneumonia and died later. His widow subsequently married

Harry Innes Harry Innes (January 4, 1752 – September 20, 1816) was a Virginia lawyer and patriot during the American Revolutionary War who became a local judge and prosecutor as well as helped establish the state of Kentucky, before he accepted appointment ...

. His name is inscribed on a plaque at the American Revolution Memorial in

Danville, Kentucky Danville is a home rule-class city in Boyle County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 17,236 at the 2020 Census. Danville is the principal city of the Danville Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes ...

. The memorial was erected "to honor and commemorate the men who fought in the American Revolution and sleep in Boyle County Kentucky."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shiell, Hugh Members of the American Philosophical Society 18th-century Irish medical doctors 1785 deaths Year of birth unknown University of Edinburgh Medical School alumni Financiers of the American Revolution American businesspeople in shipping Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923) American drink distillers