James Habersham Jr. ( – July 2, 1799) was an American merchant, slave trader, planter and politician who served as the

speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...

of the

Georgia General Assembly The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each of the General Assembly's 236 members serve two-year terms and are directly ...

in 1782 and 1784.

Early life

Habersham was born in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

, the son of

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

and Mary Habersham. He was the youngest brother of

Joseph Habersham Joseph Habersham (July 28, 1751 – November 17, 1815) was an American businessman, Georgia politician, soldier in the Continental Army, and Postmaster General of the United States. Early years Born in Savannah, Georgia, to James Habersha ...

and

John Habersham John Habersham (December 23, 1754 – December 17, 1799) was an American merchant, planter, and soldier from Georgia. He was the son of loyalist official James Habersham, the younger brother of patriot leader Joseph Habersham. They were both ...

, who were prominent Patriots during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

. For his part, James provided political and financial service. Habersham attended the College of New Jersey, but did not graduate. He is believed to be the first student from Georgia to attend the college. Habersham subsequently married Hester Wylly, who was born in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

.''Scots-Irish Migration to the Bahamas in the Eighteenth Century'' (Keith Tinker & Colin Brooker)
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Mercantile career

Habersham house, 25 Abercorn Street, Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia

Though according to his father, Habersham was "gentleman that is not overly fond of business", he founded a mercantile firm which specialized in importing goods with his cousin

Joseph Clay Joseph Clay (July 24, 1769August 27, 1811) was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. Joseph Clay was born in Philadelphia in the Province of Pennsylvania. He was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the Ei ...

in the 1760s. The firm imported hundreds of

African slaves Slavery has historically been widespread in Africa. Systems of servitude and slavery were common in parts of Africa in ancient times, as they were in much of the rest of the ancient world. When the trans-Saharan slave trade, Indian Ocean sl ...

to Savannah, some of which were advertised as being "direct from the

River Gambia The Gambia River (formerly known as the River Gambra) is a major river in West Africa, running from the Fouta Djallon plateau in north Guinea westward through Senegal and The Gambia to the Atlantic Ocean at the city of Banjul. It is navigable f ...

". Habersham also owned

slave plantations A slave plantation was an agricultural farm that used enslaved people for labour. The practice was abolished in most places during the 19th century. Slavery Planters embraced the use of slaves mainly because indentured labor became expensive. ...

on both the

Savannah River The Savannah River is a major river in the southeastern United States, forming most of the border between the states of South Carolina and Georgia. Two tributaries of the Savannah, the Tugaloo River and the Chattooga River, form the norther ...

and Broad River in

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

. He also served on the board of trustees which established the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

in 1785.

Habersham House

In 1789, construction was completed of Habersham House in Savannah's Reynolds Square."Habersham house, 25 Abercorn Street, Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia"
-

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

Habersham lived there until his death on July 2, 1799, aged 53 or 54.The Olde Pink House history
- www.theoldepinkhouse.comThe Olde Pink House: James Habersham’s real resting place
- SavannahNow.com, October 23, 2008 He is buried in Savannah's

Colonial Park Cemetery Colonial Park Cemetery (locally and informally, Colonial Cemetery) is a historic cemetery located in downtown Savannah, Georgia. It became a city park in 1896,1745 births 1799 deaths American planters American slave owners 18th-century American slave traders Colonial American merchants Princeton University alumni Speakers of the Georgia House of Representatives