Joseph Wanton Sr. (15 August 1705 – 19 July 1780) was a merchant and governor in the
Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until ...
from 1769 to 1775. Not wanting to go to war with Britain, he has been branded as a
Loyalist
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...
, but he remained neutral during the war, and he and his property were not disturbed.
Born in Newport of a prominent Quaker family that was very involved in Rhode Island politics, Wanton became a highly successful merchant. He is depicted in the satirical 1750s painting by
John Greenwood John Greenwood may refer to:
Sportspeople
* John Greenwood (cricketer, born 1851) (1851–1935), English cricketer
* John Eric Greenwood (1891–1975), rugby union international who represented England
* John Greenwood (footballer) (1921–1994) ...
, ''
Sea Captains Carousing in Surinam
''Sea Captains Carousing in Surinam'' is an oil painting by John Greenwood made between 1752-1758. It depicts a humorous scene in a tavern in Surinam, with many merchants and sea captains from Rhode Island enjoying themselves. It has been desc ...
'', with other prominent merchants and seamen from the colony. As a merchant, he was involved in the trade of most goods, including slaves, and at one point his ship with a cargo of rum and slaves was confiscated off the coast of Africa by a French
privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...
.
With no known civic background, Wanton was elected as governor of the colony in 1769, and served for six years. With 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 ...
on the horizon, he was involved with a large array of issues and incidents, most notably the
Gaspee Affair
The ''Gaspee'' Affair was a significant event in the lead-up to the American Revolution. HMS ''Gaspee'' was a British customs schooner that enforced the Navigation Acts in and around Newport, Rhode Island, in 1772. It ran aground in shallow ...
in 1772, where he played an important role in thwarting the crown from finding the members of the group of colonists that boarded and burned the royal
schooner
A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...
''Gaspee''. The formation of the
Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...
took place during his administration, and he was in continuous communication with governors of other colonies. He also became a founder and trustee of the new college in the Rhode Island colony, eventually named
Brown University
Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
.
As the Revolutionary War approached, members of the General Assembly were getting very hawkish, and when Wanton was elected for the seventh time in 1775, he refused to agree to the raising of an army of 1500 men, and would not commission new officers. He also would not immediately take the oath of office, and for these reasons the Assembly refused to seat him as governor, and formally removed him from office a few months later, with
Nicholas Cooke
Nicholas Cooke (February 3, 1717September 14, 1782) was a governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations during the American Revolutionary War, and after Rhode Island became a state, he continued in this position to become the ...
taking his place. While he was not overtly Loyalist, he did not see a war with Great Britain to be in the interest of the colony. He retired to his home in Newport where he was undisturbed during the war, and died before its conclusion, in 1780.
Early life
Born in
Newport
Newport most commonly refers to:
*Newport, Wales
*Newport, Rhode Island, US
Newport or New Port may also refer to:
Places Asia
*Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay
Europe
Ireland
*Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...
in the
Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until ...
on 15 August 1705, Wanton was the seventh of nine children born to
William Wanton
William Wanton (September 15, 1670 – December 1733) was a governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, serving a short term prior to his death. He spent most of his adult life in the civil and military service of the colon ...
and his first wife, Ruth Bryant. His father had been a governor of the colony, as had his uncle
John Wanton
John Wanton (December 24, 1672 – July 5, 1740) was a governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, serving for six consecutive terms from 1734 to 1740. He was the son of Edward Wanton who was a ship builder, and who became ...
and his older first cousin,
Gideon Wanton
Gideon Wanton (October 20, 1693 – September 12, 1767) was a governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations who served for two separate one-year terms. His father was Joseph Wanton, a shipbuilder in Tiverton, and his mother ...
. His grandfather, Edward Wanton, was a ship builder, who became a
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 ...
after witnessing the persecution of these people, and became a speaker (preacher) of that religion. His grandfather had lived in
York, Maine
York is a town in York County, Maine, United States, near the southern tip of the state. The population in the 2020 census was 13,723. Situated beside the Atlantic Ocean on the Gulf of Maine, York is a well-known summer resort town. It is home ...
;
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
; and
Scituate, Massachusetts
Scituate () is a seacoast town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States, on the South Shore, midway between Boston and Plymouth. The population was 19,063 at the 2020 census.
History
The Wampanoag and their neighbors have inhabited ...
, and though he likely never lived in Rhode Island, many of his children settled in Newport or other parts of the colony. Though Wanton was of a Quaker background, his mother was a Presbyterian, and as a compromise, her children were raised in the
Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
faith.
![John Greenwood - Sea Captains Carousing in Surinam - 256-1948 - Saint Louis Art Museum](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/John_Greenwood_-_Sea_Captains_Carousing_in_Surinam_-_256-1948_-_Saint_Louis_Art_Museum.jpg)
While some sources say he graduated from
Harvard College
Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...
in 1751, it is far more likely that this was his 21-year-old son,
Joseph Jr., rather than the 46-year-old Wanton, who was by then a highly successful merchant sailing the globe in pursuit of commercial interests. That he was well educated, however, is certain from the vast amount of correspondence in which he engaged, particularly as governor of the colony. In the mid-1750s, the Boston portraitist,
John Greenwood John Greenwood may refer to:
Sportspeople
* John Greenwood (cricketer, born 1851) (1851–1935), English cricketer
* John Eric Greenwood (1891–1975), rugby union international who represented England
* John Greenwood (footballer) (1921–1994) ...
, followed a group of sea captains and merchants to
Surinam Surinam may refer to:
* Surinam (Dutch colony) (1667–1954), Dutch plantation colony in Guiana, South America
* Surinam (English colony) (1650–1667), English short-lived colony in South America
* Surinam, alternative spelling for Suriname
...
on the northeast coast of South America. The trading usually took time, so the men often waited in pubs. Being commissioned by the merchants to create a satirical painting, Greenwood concocted a 22-figure tavern scene, showing himself among the affluent traders, all subject to the "intoxicating effects of alcohol and economic ambition." Most accounts agree that Wanton is the bald man slumped in a chair by the table, being doused with a pitcher of rum, by one account, or of punch and vomit, by other accounts.
As a merchant, Wanton was involved in the maritime trade of a variety of goods. During the first half of the 18th century the slave trade was booming in Newport, and from 1708 to 1755 the population of black slaves in the colony burgeoned from 220 to nearly 4700. In 1758 Wanton declared that he had sailed the ''Snow King of Prussia'' with a cargo of 124 hogsheads of rum and 54 slaves. While at anchor along the African coast, he and his cargo were captured by a French privateer.
In 1765 Wanton became one of the founders of the new college in Rhode Island, called the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, and later named
Brown University
Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
. He is named as an original "corporator," and as an original trustee of the college.
Governorship
There is no evidence that Wanton held any important office in the colony prior to his election as governor in May 1769. Once elected, his first act was to send a letter to
Lord Hillsborough
Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire, (30 May 1718 – 7 October 1793), known as The 2nd Viscount Hillsborough from 1742 to 1751 and as The 1st Earl of Hillsborough from 1751 to 1789, was a British politician of the Georgian era.
Best known ...
, the Colonial Secretary of State, with whom his predecessor,
Josias Lyndon
Josias Lyndon (March 10, 1704 – March 30, 1778) was a governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, serving for a single one-year term.
Biography
Lyndon was the son of Samuel and Priscilla (Tompkins) Lyndon of Newport, t ...
, had corresponded. In the letter he boldly stated that it was not possible for him as governor to obey the instructions of the crown "without acting diametrically opposite to the
constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When ...
of the colony...; we cannot but humbly express our opinion that the power exercised by the Parliament of Great Britain (in which we are not represented), of raising monies upon us without our consent (which it is possible under a bad administration, may be extended to our last penny), is a real grievance; we are not without hopes that his Majesty's rejecting our petition, is entirely owing to the false information he hath received from America, of the state and temper of his subjects here."
Disquiet among the American colonists caused by irritants such as the
Stamp Act mounted during the 1760s, and the decade drew to a close with the most serious event yet. In July 1769 the British revenue ship ''
Liberty
Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom.
In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...
'' brought into the Newport harbor two Connecticut vessels, a brig and a sloop, suspected of smuggling. When some difficulty arose between the officers of the ''Liberty'' and those of the brig, the captain of the brig was fired upon from the ''Liberty''. That evening some Newport citizens, who considered the seizure of the two vessels to be an outrage, boarded the ''Liberty'' and scuttled it, while the two captured vessels sailed away. This was the first overt act of violence of the colonies against Great Britain, and showed the temperament of the people towards the British customs officers. Wanton issued a proclamation for the arrest of the guilty parties, but no arrests were ever made.
Gaspee Affair
In March 1772, the people of the colony were harassed by his Majesty's schooner ''Gaspee'', with eight guns, stationed in the
Narragansett Bay
Narragansett Bay is a bay and estuary on the north side of Rhode Island Sound covering , of which is in Rhode Island. The bay forms New England's largest estuary, which functions as an expansive natural harbor and includes a small archipelago. Sma ...
to enforce the revenue acts. The commander, Lieutenant William Dudingston, had engaged in a number of annoyances upon vessels in the bay, detaining them without pretext, stopping market boats, and sometimes plundering the people ashore. He violated the
charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...
of the colony by acting without showing his commission. The inhabitants of Providence complained to Deputy Governor
Darius Sessions
Darius Sessions (17 August 1717 – 27 April 1809) was a deputy governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations during the buildup to the American Revolutionary War. He was heavily involved in moderating the effects of t ...
, who consulted with
Chief Justice Stephen Hopkins, who offered the opinion "that no commander of any vessel has a right to use any authority in the body of the colony, without previously applying to the governor, and showing his warrant for so doing, and also being sworn to a due exercise of his office."
Sessions then communicated the complaints, with Hopkins' opinion, to Wanton, who immediately sent a letter to the commanding officer requiring him to produce his commission and instructions. The next day, Dudingston sent an arrogant reply, to which Wanton replied directly, repeating his demand, and assuring Dudingston of safety in coming to shore. Dudingston then enclosed the correspondence in a letter to his superior officer,
Admiral Montagu, in Boston, who sided with the lieutenant, addressing an extremely insolent letter to Wanton, defending the commander and ridiculing the governor, suggesting that those interfering with the crown's activities could "hang as pirates." Wanton then informed Montagu "that I do not receive instructions for the administration of my government from the King's Admiral stationed in America." He then presented the chain of correspondence to the General Assembly, and directed that copies of the correspondence be sent to England. Wanton also wrote Lord Hillsborough, complaining of Montagu's insolence, and detailing the conduct of the ''Gaspee''.
On 8 June 1772 the
sloop
A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular sa ...
''Hannah'', coming from New York, arrived in Newport, reported to the custom house, and the next day proceeded up the river. The ''Gaspee'', in its customary fashion, gave chase, but ran aground on Namquit (later called Gaspee Point), near Pawtuxet, and the ''Hannah'' escaped to Providence. That evening, by beat of drum, men were called to the house of James Sabin to organize an attack on the ''Gaspee''. John Brown provided eight long-boats of five oars each, and shortly after 10 p.m., the party headed towards the ''Gaspee'', commanded by Captain
Abraham Whipple
Abraham, ; ar, , , name=, group= (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Jews ...
. Well after midnight the party approached the vessel, and when hailed, did not answer the ship's sentinel. This prompted Dudingston himself to hail, again without answer. A second hail by the commander was then answered with profanity by Whipple, who ordered his men to spring to their oars. Shots were fired in both directions, and a musket ball fired by Joseph Bucklin hit Dudingston in the groin, and as he fell, the attackers boarded the schooner, and took over the vessel. The crew of the schooner was overtaken, bound, and put on shore, while Dudingston was attended to by Dr. John Mawney. A milestone had been reached; this was the first British blood shed in the American War for Independence. After removing the crew, the captors set fire to the vessel, and then returned to Providence.
A report was sent by a crew member to Montagu, who then forwarded a copy to Wanton with the request to apprehend the offenders. Wanton then issued his proclamation, offering 100 pounds reward for evidence sufficient for conviction of the guilty parties. An active correspondence then ensued between Wanton, the Admiral, and Lieutenant Dudingston, with an account of the event sent to Lord Hillsborough. An escaped slave who was with the expedition gave names of some of the men involved to Admiral Montagu, who then forwarded this deposition to Wanton, requesting that the instigators be questioned. Wanton, instead of obeying the request, took depositions invalidating the testimony of the slave. When news reached England,
George III
George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...
issued a proclamation offering a reward of £1000 each for either of the leaders of the expedition, and £500 for each of the other involved parties. Wanton, along with others from neighboring colonies, was commissioned to inquire into the report upon the facts.
The perpetrators of the ''Gaspee'' incident were well known, and among the most prominent citizens of the colony. Some of the younger and more rash of the accomplices had openly boasted of the events, while the ship still smoldered off the shore. Wanton and the other Rhode Island leaders were successful in subtly hampering the progress of the investigations, and amid all of the communications, commissions, claims, and counter claims, the court could not obtain enough direct evidence to indict a single person.
Approach to war
At some point during Wanton's tenure as governor the inhabitants of Providence urged the General Assembly to prohibit the importation of black slaves into the colony. They further wanted black slaves born in the colony to be freed at a certain age. These were "in a measure" adopted by the Assembly. In early 1773, a movement to unite the colonies was underway. Resolutions advising the appointment of inter-colonial committees of correspondence were unanimously passed, and sent to every colony for approval and adoption. In May 1774, the first explicit movement for a
Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...
was made at a meeting in Providence, and within a few weeks delegates were elected to attend. Of the 13 colonies, all but Georgia sent representatives to the congress, with Rhode Island's delegates being
Stephen Hopkins and
Samuel Ward.
On 19 April 1775, the
Battle of Lexington
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 ...
began the long-anticipated war between the colonies and Britain. Three days later the Rhode Island General Assembly, sympathetic of Massachusetts, passed an act for raising 1500 men as an army of observation, prepared to assist any sister colonies. On 25 April Governor Wanton, Deputy Governor
Darius Sessions
Darius Sessions (17 August 1717 – 27 April 1809) was a deputy governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations during the buildup to the American Revolutionary War. He was heavily involved in moderating the effects of t ...
and two others signed a protest against raising an army of observation "because we are of the opinion that such a measure will be attended with the most fatal consequences to our charter privileges,
ndinvolve the country in all the horrors of a civil war."
Removal from office
At the May 1775 session of the Assembly, Wanton was elected governor for his seventh term, but
Nicholas Cooke
Nicholas Cooke (February 3, 1717September 14, 1782) was a governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations during the American Revolutionary War, and after Rhode Island became a state, he continued in this position to become the ...
replaced Sessions as deputy governor. A resolution of the Assembly outlined a number of grievances against Wanton, some being that he protested raising an army; he refused to commission officers to command the troops; and he failed to attend the Assembly and take the oath of office. Wanton sent a calm reply to this resolution, but continued his opposition to the army and the commissions. This was not satisfactory to the patriots in the General Assembly, and at the June session of the Assembly Wanton was excused from office, without an impeachment trial, then formally removed in November, and Deputy Governor Cooke fulfilled the duties of his office until the next election.
While critics treated Wanton harshly for his actions, and branded him as a
loyalist
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...
, he did have valid concerns about going to war with the mother country. He was a resident of Newport, the wealthiest community of its size in the colonies. A war with the home government would likely cause loss of wealth and social rank in the town. As an important seaport center, the occupation and devastation of the town was also likely. On 2 May 1775, Wanton wrote in a letter, "The prosperity and happiness of this colony is founded in its connection with Great Brittain; for if once we are separated, where shall we find another Britain to supply our loss? Torn from the body to which we are united by religion, liberty, laws and commerce, we must bleed at every vein."
Following his removal from office, Wanton retired to private life, occupying a strict neutrality, and giving neither aid nor comfort to the British. Neither he nor his property were disturbed, and he died in 1780, being buried in the
Clifton Burying Ground
The Clifton Burying Ground is an early colonial cemetery located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It is a Quaker cemetery, and has the graves of four Rhode Island colonial governors.
Description
The Clifton Burying Ground is located ...
where several other Quaker governors are buried.
Family
Wanton married Mary, the daughter of John Still Winthrop of
New London
New London may refer to:
Places United States
*New London, Alabama
*New London, Connecticut
*New London, Indiana
*New London, Iowa
* New London, Maryland
*New London, Minnesota
*New London, Missouri
*New London, New Hampshire, a New England town
* ...
in the
Connecticut Colony
The ''Connecticut Colony'' or ''Colony of Connecticut'', originally known as the Connecticut River Colony or simply the River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636 as a settl ...
, the great granddaughter of Connecticut colonial Governor,
John Winthrop Jr.
John Winthrop the Younger (February 12, 1606 – April 6, 1676) was an List of colonial governors of Connecticut, early governor of the Connecticut Colony, and he played a large role in the merger of several separate settlements into the unif ...
, and a great great granddaughter of Massachusetts colonial Governor and Boston founder
John Winthrop
John Winthrop (January 12, 1587/88 – March 26, 1649) was an English Puritan lawyer and one of the leading figures in founding the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the second major settlement in New England following Plymouth Colony. Winthrop led t ...
. They had eight children, the oldest of whom,
Joseph Wanton Jr.
Joseph Wanton Jr. (1730–1780) was a Loyalist, merchant, Deputy Governor of Rhode Island in 1764 and 1767, and owner of Hunter House in Newport, Rhode Island.
Early life and career
Wanton was born to Governor Joseph Wanton and Mary Winthrop Wan ...
was a deputy governor of the colony for two terms, but also an overt
Loyalist
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...
whose Newport property was confiscated after the British occupation of Newport ended.
While Wanton himself was outwardly neutral during the war, his sentiments leaned heavily toward the British, with not only his son being a Loyalist, but several of his daughters marrying prominent British officials.
His chest of drawers is at the
Chipstone Foundation
The Chipstone Foundation is a Wisconsin-based foundation dedicated to promoting American decorative arts scholarship. Originating from the private collection of Stanley and Polly Stone, the foundation uses its objects and resources to support dec ...
. The chest was made in
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...
.
See also
*
List of colonial governors of Rhode Island
This is a list of the judges, presidents, and governors of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations from 1638 to 1776.
Governor of Providence
*Roger Williams June 1636 - September 1644
Judges of Portsmouth
*William Coddington 7 ...
*
Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
*
*
*
External links
*
Gaspee Virtual Archives infoChronological list of Rhode Island leadersState list of lieutenant governors of Rhode Island
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wanton, Joseph
1705 births
1780 deaths
18th-century Quakers
American slave traders
Brown University people
Colonial governors of Rhode Island
People of Rhode Island in the American Revolution
Politicians from Newport, Rhode Island
University and college founders
Burials at Clifton Burying Ground