John Read (7 July 1769,

Newcastle, Delaware New Castle is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The city is located six miles (10 km) south of Wilmington and is situated on the Delaware River. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 5,285. History New Cast ...

- 13 July 1854,

Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Biography

John Read was a son of U.S. statesman

George Read George Read may refer to: * George Reade (colonial governor) (1608–1671), politician, judge, and Acting Governor of Virginia Colony * George Read (American politician, born 1733) (1733–1798), lawyer, signer of Declaration of Independence and U ...

, brother of George Read Jr., and uncle of

George Read III George Read III (June 4, 1787 – November 1, 1836) was an American lawyer who served as the second U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware taking over for his father. Family George Read Jr. was born in the Read mansion on June 4, 17 ...

. He graduated from

Princeton Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ni ...

in 1787, and then studied law with his father. In 1789, he moved to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, where he was admitted to the bar in 1792. In 1796, he married Martha Meredith. They had five children. Their son

John M. Read John Meredith Read Sr. (July 21, 1797 – November 29, 1874) was an American lawyer, jurist, and politician from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was one of the founders of the Republican Party and chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. ...

was a noted Philadelphia jurist. In 1797, John Read was appointed by President

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...

as agent general of the United States under the sixth article of

Jay's Treaty The Treaty of Amity, Commerce, and Navigation, Between His Britannic Majesty and the United States of America, commonly known as the Jay Treaty, and also as Jay's Treaty, was a 1794 treaty between the United States and Great Britain that averted ...

, and held that office until its expiration in 1809. From 1809 to 1815, Read was a member of the city council of Philadelphia; he then served in the

Pennsylvania legislature The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times (1682–1776), the legislature was known as the Pennsylvani ...

, and in 1816 chairman of its celebrated committee of seventeen. Read succeeded

Nicholas Biddle Nicholas Biddle (January 8, 1786February 27, 1844) was an American financier who served as the third and last president of the Second Bank of the United States (chartered 1816–1836). Throughout his life Biddle worked as an editor, diplomat, au ...

in the

Pennsylvania Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered ...

in 1816, was state director of the Philadelphia Bank in 1817, and succeeding his wife's uncle,

George Clymer George Clymer (March 16, 1739January 23, 1813) was an American politician, abolitionist and Founding Father of the United States, one of only six founders who signed both the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. He was among the e ...

, as president of that bank in 1819, he filled that post until 1841, when he resigned. He was prominent in the councils of the Episcopal Church. During the yellow-fever plague in Philadelphia in 1793, Read and Stephen Girard remained in the city, and he opened his purse and exposed his life in behalf of his suffering fellow citizens. Read was the author of ''Arguments on the British Debts'' (Philadelphia, 1798).

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Read, John 1769 births 1854 deaths American bankers Princeton University alumni 19th-century American Episcopalians Pennsylvania state senators Members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Politicians from Philadelphia People from New Castle, Delaware People of colonial Delaware 19th-century American lawyers