Samuel Hardy (June 10, 1758 – October 17, 1785) was an American lawyer, planter and politician, who served as a delegate to 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. ...

and in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two parts of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

representing

Isle of Wight County Isle of Wight County is a county located in the Hampton Roads region of the U.S. state of Virginia. It was named after the Isle of Wight, England, south of the Solent, from where many of its early colonists had come. As of the 2020 census, th ...

, as well as briefly on Virginia's Executive Council and as Lieutenant Governor of Virginia.

Early and family life

Born in

Isle of Wight County, Virginia Isle of Wight County is a county located in the Hampton Roads region of the U.S. state of Virginia. It was named after the Isle of Wight, England, south of the Solent, from where many of its early colonists had come. As of the 2020 census, th ...

, to planter Richard Hardy (who served two terms in the

House of Burgesses The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been established ...

) and his wife, Samuel received a private education suitable to his class, including studies at

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

College of William and Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William III a ...

to the extent it was open 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 ...

1776-1781 time period and he was not serving in the legislature. His grandfather, George Hardy (or Harddie) had emigrated from England, established the family's plantations and represented Isle of Wight county several times in the decade beginning in 1642. Samuel married and was survived by his widow and at least sons Thomas and William who served as his executors.

Career

Following admission to the Virginia bar on October 1, 1778, Hardy began a law practice. Two days later, voters in Isle of Wight county first chose him to represent them to complete the term of Major

Josiah Parker Josiah Parker (May 11, 1751March 11, 1810) was an American politician, Revolutionary War officer and Virginia planter who served in the United States House of Representatives from Virginia in the First through Sixth United States Congresses as ...

, who was leading Virginia troops with the Continental Army and had been disqualified by the

in the term's first session, but who subsequently won re-election to serve alongside John Scarsbrook Wills, as did Hardy for three consecutive one-year terms (1780-1782). In June 1781 Hardy began his brief service on Virginia's Executive Council, and from May 29 to October 11, 1782 served as

Lieutenant Governor of Virginia The lieutenant governor of Virginia is a constitutional officer of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The lieutenant governor is elected every four years along with the governor and attorney general. The office is currently held by Winsome Earle S ...

. Elected to the Continental Congress from Virginia, Hardy served from 1783 until 1785. On May 6, 1784, he voted against the resolution in the Congress restricting the salary of a foreign minister of the United States to $8,000, and on May 7 opposed the motion that the salary of a United States Secretary for Foreign Affairs should not exceed $3,000 per annum. In May 1784, Hardy nominated

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

as minister plenipotentiary to Europe to assist

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 ...

and

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...

in negotiating treaties of commerce; and in January 1785, was a member of a committee that reported on letters that had been received from United States ministers in Europe relative to a foreign loan.

Death and legacy

Hardy died in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

while Congress was in session (then meeting in New York City), and is buried in St. Paul's Church Cemetery. His death and funeral were reported in many newspapers at that time. One newspaper was The Freeman's Journal of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on October 26, 1785 on pages 2 and 3. The entire Congress and many dignitaries attended his funeral at St. Paul's Church. Archivist at Trinity Church have not been able to locate Hardy's grave marker or records of his funeral yet in their files but agree the newspaper story implies the funeral did occur and he is buried there but records of that time may be incomplete. They have records that Rev. Beach and Rev. Provost, who gave the sermons according to the article, were there at that time but cannot locate a copy of the specific sermons. Hardy was a friend of

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first United States secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795. Born out of wedlock in Charlest ...

, who may have written a poetical tribute to his memory in the article, although the authorship is in dispute. The

Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, the first elected legislative assembly in the New World, and was established on July 30, 161 ...

named Hardy County (in what became

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

) in his honor. His son William Hardy continued the family political tradition by representing Isle of Wight county in the 1793 and 1794 termsLeonard pp. 193-196 Their relation to a young lieutenant Samuel Hardy who fought with the

18th Virginia Infantry The 18th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia. The 18th Virginia completed its organiz ...

during the Civil War until losing his arm following a wound during the

Battle of Gaines Mill The Battle of Gaines' Mill, sometimes known as the Battle of Chickahominy River, took place on June 27, 1862, in Hanover County, Virginia, as the third of the Seven Days Battles (Peninsula Campaign) of the American Civil War. Following the inconc ...

in 1862 is unclear.

References

External links

Hardy's biographic note at U.S. Congress website
*
Samuel Hardy's Funeral in The Freeman's Journal October 28, 1785
Continental Congressmen from Virginia 18th-century American politicians College of William & Mary alumni Members of the Virginia House of Delegates 1758 births Virginia lawyers 1785 deaths People from Isle of Wight County, Virginia Virginia colonial people {{Virginia-delegate-stub