Colonel Thomas Aspinwall (1786–1876) was the second-longest-serving
United States consul, holding that position in London from 1816–1854.
[Charles C. Smith, "Memoirs of Col. Thomas Aspinwall, A.M." in ''Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society'' Second series, vol. VII (1891), 32.]
Thomas was born to Dr. William Aspinwall and Susanna Gardner in
Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton, A ...
on 23 May 1786.
He matriculated at
Harvard College in 1804 and graduated three years later, delivering the Latin valedictory address.
In the
War of 1812, Aspinwall was appointed
Major
Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
of the
Ninth Regiment, U.S. Infantry. In 1813 he was made a
Lieutenant-Colonel and eventually a Colonel on account of his valor in the battle of Sackett Harbor. In September 1814, during the
Siege of Fort Erie, he sustained an injury to his left arm that required an amputation. In recognition of his service, President
Madison Madison may refer to:
People
* Madison (name), a given name and a surname
* James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States
Place names
* Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...
appointed him consul to
London during a
recess, and he was confirmed at the beginning of the subsequent legislative session.
While in London, Aspinwall acted as a literary agent and a liaison between American authors and British publishers. The American historian and
Hispanist William Prescott, for instance, engaged with him in this capacity, as did
Washington Irving, who was a close friend. He also procured books for Americans unable to do so, as for instance in the case of the
abolitionist Lewis Tappan.
Pryor-Johnson Rare Books weblog.
/ref>
Aspinwall died 11 August 1876 in Boston.
Notes
References
*Barnes, James J. and Patience P. Barnes, "Thomas Aspinwall: First Transatlantic Literary Agent" in ''The Paper of the Bibliographic Society of America'' 78.3 (1984): 321–331.
Campaniolo, Jennifer, ''Legendary Locals of Brookline''. Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2014. 65.Georgetown University Archives notes
*Smith, Charles C., "Memoirs of Col. Thomas Aspinwall, A.M." in ''Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society'' Second series, vol. VII (1891), 32–37.
Winthrop, Robert C., ''Addresses and Speeches on Various Occasions, from 1869–1879''. Boston: Little, Brown, 1879. 432–435.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aspinwall, Thomas (consul)
Harvard College alumni
1786 births
1876 deaths
People from Brookline, Massachusetts
American consuls
Literary agents