Samuel Waldo (August 7, 1696 – May 23, 1759) was an American merchant, land speculator, army officer and politician in the
Province of Massachusetts Bay
The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in British America which became one of the Thirteen Colonies, thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III of England, William III and Mary II ...
.
Biography
He was born in
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 ...
, the son of Jonathan Waldo and Hannah Mason.
In 1722, he married Lucy Wainwright. In 1730, he purchased a 17th-century title to a large tract of land in
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
with the intent of establishing a colony there; the title did not stand up when he proposed this plan to the authorities in England. A one-time business partner of
Colonel Thomas Westbrook
Colonel Thomas Westbrook (1675–1743/44) was a senior New England militia officer in Maine during Father Rale's War. In addition to this senior militia role he was a scout, a colonial councillor, an innkeeper, a mill owner, a land specul ...
, Waldo acquired a large tract of land between the
Penobscot
The Penobscot (Abenaki: ''Pαnawάhpskewi'') are an Indigenous people in North America from the Northeastern Woodlands region. They are organized as a federally recognized tribe in Maine and as a First Nations band government in the Atlantic pr ...
and
Muscongus Rivers in what is now
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
where he settled Irish and German immigrants and purchased several
slaves
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
.
During
King George's War
King George's War (1744–1748) is the name given to the military operations in North America that formed part of the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748). It was the third of the four French and Indian Wars. It took place primarily in t ...
, he served as
brigadier-general
Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...
in
the reduction on
Louisbourg Fortress in 1745 and served on the temporary council that administered the settlement until
Peter Warren was named governor. In 1757, during the
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...
, he submitted a plan to
William Pitt which served as a basis for the
second capture of Louisbourg from the French the following year. Waldo died of
apoplexy
Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleedi ...
near present-day
Bangor, Maine
Bangor ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat of Penobscot County. The city proper has a population of 31,753, making it the state's 3rd-largest settlement, behind Portland (68,408) and Lewiston (37,121).
Modern Bangor ...
in 1759 while participating in a military expedition with Governor
Thomas Pownall
Thomas Pownall (bapt. 4 September 1722 N.S. – 25 February 1805) was a British colonial official and politician. He was governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay from 1757 to 1760, and afterwards sat in the House of Commons from 1767 t ...
. He was initially buried at
Fort Pownall
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
(at
Cape Jellison), but his remains were transported to Boston in 1760 and interred at the
King's Chapel Burying Ground
King's Chapel Burying Ground is a historic graveyard on Tremont Street, near its intersection with School Street, in Boston, Massachusetts. Established in 1630, it is the oldest graveyard in the city and is a site on the Freedom Trail. Despi ...
.
The Maine towns of
Waldo
Waldo may refer to:
People
* Waldo (given name), a list of people and fictional characters
* Waldo (surname), a list of people
* Waldo (footballer) (1934-2019), full name Waldo Machado da Silva, Brazilian footballer
Places Canada
* Waldo, ...
and
Waldoboro, together with
Waldo County
Waldo County is a county in the state of Maine, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,607. Its county seat is Belfast. The county was founded on 7 February 1827 from a portion of Hancock County and named after ...
, are named for their early proprietor.
His son-in-law
Thomas Flucker was royal secretary of
and later Provincial Governor. His granddaughter,
Lucy Flucker Knox, married Revolutionary War hero and founding father
Henry Knox
Henry Knox (July 25, 1750 – October 25, 1806), a Founding Father of the United States, was a senior general of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, serving as chief of artillery in most of Washington's campaigns. Following the ...
. The Knox family built the impressive ''Montpelier'' on Waldo's tract of land in
Thomaston, Maine
Thomaston (formerly known as Fort St. Georges, Fort Wharf, Lincoln) is a town in Knox County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,739 at the 2020 census. Noted for its antique architecture, Thomaston is an old port popular with tourists ...
.
See also
*
Waldo Patent The Waldo Patent, a letters patent also known as the Muscongus Patent or the Lincolnshire Patent, was a document granting title to of land in what is now the U.S. state of Maine. It is named variously for businessman Samuel Waldo, who eventually ...
*
Colonel Thomas Westbrook
Colonel Thomas Westbrook (1675–1743/44) was a senior New England militia officer in Maine during Father Rale's War. In addition to this senior militia role he was a scout, a colonial councillor, an innkeeper, a mill owner, a land specul ...
*
Thomas Westbrook Waldron
References
Further reading
* ''The Lithgow Family-Descendants of John Bridge'', 1884, by William Frederick Bridge
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waldo, Samuel
1696 births
1759 deaths
People of King George's War
American slave owners
British America army officers
American militia generals
People of Massachusetts in the French and Indian War
Military personnel from colonial Massachusetts
People of colonial Maine
People from colonial Boston
People of pre-statehood Maine
Deaths from bleeding
Burials in Boston