Joseph Tatnall (1740–1813) was an American businessman, who was a prominent

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

merchant, miller, and banker in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

Early life

The only son of Edward and Elizabeth (Pennock) Tatnall, Joseph was born in Wilmington on November 6, 1740. He established a mill on the

Brandywine River Brandywine Creek (also called the Brandywine River) is a tributary of the Christina River in southeastern Pennsylvania and northern Delaware in the United States. The Lower Brandywine (the main stem) is longU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydr ...

outside Wilmington, where he helped develop the

Brandywine Village Brandywine Village was an early center of U.S. industrialization located on the Brandywine River in what is now Wilmington, Delaware. The Brandywine crosses the Fall Line just north of Wilmington, and descends from about above sea level in Chadds ...

, a center of early American industrialization. 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 ...

, Tatnall hosted Generals

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 ...

and

Lafayette Lafayette or La Fayette may refer to: People * Lafayette (name), a list of people with the surname Lafayette or La Fayette or the given name Lafayette * House of La Fayette, a French noble family ** Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757� ...

at his stone mansion at 1803 Market Street, and lent his parlors to General

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his mil ...

to use as a headquarters. He also kept his flour mills "going day and night" to provide food for the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

Professional career

In 1795, Tatnall became the first president of the

National Bank of Delaware The National Bank of Delaware (founded as the Bank of Delaware) was the first bank chartered in the U.S. state of Delaware. Based in Wilmington, the bank operated independently from 1795 to 1929, when it was merged into the Security Trust Company, ...

, which would survive as an independent bank until 1929. With James Canby (1781–1858), a scion of another prosperous miller, Tatnall rented farm land for grazing and growing hay. In 1802, Tatnall was named president of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal Company, which sought to build a canal linking the Delaware River near

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 ...

, and the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the ...

to help bring Maryland grain to Brandywine mills. The company eventually ceased operations, but a successor effort completed the 13.6-mile canal in 1829. Among Tatnall's partners in shipping ventures was Joseph Shallcross, a miller, West Indies trader, and, from 1790 to 1792, mayor of Wilmington. Their joint ventures included the 1775

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the ...

''Nancy'' and the 1801 voyage of the sloop ''Sally''. On January 31, 1765, Tatnall married Elizabeth Lea (1743–1805), daughter of James and Margaret (Marshall) Lea, in Wilmington. Among their nine children was Sarah Tatnall, who married prominent Wilmington miller Thomas Lea (1757–1823), and whose grandson

Preston Lea Preston Lea (November 12, 1841 – December 4, 1916) was an American businessman and politician from Wilmington, in New Castle County, Delaware. He was a member of the Republican Party who served as Governor of Delaware. Early life and family L ...

would be

Governor of Delaware A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...

from 1905 to 1908. Tatnall and Thomas Lea operated several mills together. Another child of Joseph and Elizabeth was Edward Tatnall (1782–1856), one of the organizers of the Delaware and Maryland Rail Road Company, whose own grandson, Henry Tatnall (1897–1940), would become the

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name The Pennsylvania Railroad Company also known as the "Pennsy", was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was named ...

's first professionally trained vice president in charge of finance (1904–25). At his death in 1813, Tatnall owned stocks in a wide variety of ventures, including the canal company, Wilmington Insurance Company, Philadelphia Bank, and "various transportation companies"; and county and government bonds.

Notes

External links

Map
of the area occupied by Tatnall's and others' mills along the

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tatnall, Joseph 1740 births 1813 deaths American bank presidents History of Delaware People from Wilmington, Delaware People of Delaware in the American Revolution People of colonial Delaware 18th-century American businesspeople American Quakers