Joseph Trumbull (NYPL NYPG94-F149-419975)

Joseph Trumbull (March 11, 1737 – July 23, 1778), son of Governor Jonathan Trumbull of

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

, was the first commissary general of the Continental Army 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 ...

Biography

Trumbull was born in Lebanon, Connecticut. He graduated from Harvard in 1756, the same year his brother, artist John Trumbull, was born, and worked in his father's mercantile business. He served in the

Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut State House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an equal number of districts, with ...

from 1767 to 1773. He joined the Connecticut

Committee of Correspondence The committees of correspondence were, prior to the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, a collection of American political organizations that sought to coordinate opposition to British Parliament and, later, support for American independe ...

at the outset of 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 Revoluti ...

. He was elected as an alternate delegate to the First Continental Congress in 1774, but did not attend any sessions. After

Lexington and Concord The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. The battles were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concord ...

in April 1775, the Connecticut Assembly appointed Trumbull as commissary general in charge of supplying food for the Connecticut troops who had joined the siege of Boston. At Boston, General

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 ...

was impressed with Trumbull's efforts, and recommended him for the same job in the newly created Continental Army. On 19 July 1775, Congress appointed Trumbull as Commissary General of Stores and Provisions, with the rank of colonel. Trumbull struggled to meet the needs of the army, and was strongly criticized by some congressmen. He got into a dispute with General

Philip Schuyler Philip John Schuyler (; November 18, 1804) was an American general in the Revolutionary War and a United States Senator from New York. He is usually known as Philip Schuyler, while his son is usually known as Philip J. Schuyler. Born in Alb ...

, who wanted to appoint his nephew

Walter Livingston Walter Livingston (November 27, 1740 – May 14, 1797) was an American merchant, lawyer and politician. Early life He was a son of Robert Livingston (1708–1790), 3rd Lord of Livingston Manor, and Maria Thong Livingston (1711–1765), a grand ...

as commissary for Schuyler's Northern Department. Trumbull was charged with corruption but an official inquiry cleared him of wrongdoing in December 1775. Trumbull resigned in 1777 when Congress took away some of his duties. Congress then appointed him to the

Board of War The Board of War, also known as the Board of War and Ordinance, was created by the Second Continental Congress as a special standing committee to oversee the American Continental Army's administration and to make recommendations regarding the ar ...

, and he served from August 1777 until his resignation in April 1778 due to sickness. He died three months later in Lebanon and was buried in the East Cemetery.

Notes

References

: *Purcell, L. Edward. ''Who Was Who in the American Revolution''. New York: Facts on File, 1993. . *Risch, Erna. ''Supplying Washington's Army''. Washington, D.C.: Center of Military History, U.S. Army, 1981
"Chapter 6: Organization of the Commissariat".

External links

Trumbull biography on U.S. Congress website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trumbull, Joseph 1737 births 1778 deaths Continental Army officers from Connecticut American people of English descent Continental Army staff officers Harvard University alumni Members of the Connecticut House of Representatives Military personnel from Connecticut 18th-century American politicians

Biography

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