William Coxe Jr. (May 3, 1762 – February 25, 1831) was a pioneer
pomologist
Pomology (from Latin , “fruit,” + ) is a branch of botany that studies fruit and its cultivation. The term fruticulture—introduced from Romance languages (all of whose incarnations of the term descend from Latin and )—is also used.
Pomol ...
and a U.S. Representative from New Jersey. He served as
Mayor of Burlington, New Jersey Burlington, New Jersey was incorporated on December 21, 1784. It is governed within the Faulkner Act (formally known as the Optional Municipal Charter Law) under the Mayor-Council form of municipal government (Plan 4), implemented based on the re ...
.
Personal life
Born in
Burlington, New Jersey
Burlington is a city in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 9,743.
Burlington was first incorporated on October 24, 1693, and was r ...
, he was the son to Mary Francis and William Coxe.
William married Rachel Smith. He had eight children with Rachel Smith. She was the daughter of Richard Smith and the only heir to a massive fortune. He received a massive amount of inheritance from his wife's family. As a gesture to his wife, he made a will leaving her an estate in Pennsylvania and New York on January 15, 1822. The names of the eight children were Maria,
Margaret
Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian.
Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular througho ...
, Anne, Harriet, Emily, William Smith, Richard Smith and Elizabeth.
He died in
Burlington, New Jersey
Burlington is a city in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 9,743.
Burlington was first incorporated on October 24, 1693, and was r ...
, on February 25, 1831. He was interred in St. Mary's Churchyard.
Politician
William Coxe Jr. served as a member of the
New Jersey General Assembly 1796–1804 from 1806 to 1809, and again in 1816 and 1817. He served as speaker 1798–1800 and again in 1802. Coxe was elected as a Federalist to the Thirteenth Congress (March 4, 1813 – March 3, 1815).
Pomologist
Coxe is better known as a
pomologist
Pomology (from Latin , “fruit,” + ) is a branch of botany that studies fruit and its cultivation. The term fruticulture—introduced from Romance languages (all of whose incarnations of the term descend from Latin and )—is also used.
Pomol ...
. He maintained the first experimental orchard in America. His ''A View of Cultivation of Fruit Trees, and the Management of Orchards and Cider'' (1817) was the first book on pomology written by an American or about American fruit trees. The illustrated book provided information about 200 fruits, including apples, cherries, peaches, pears, and plums.
Abolitionist
William Coxe Jr. and his brother
Tench Coxe were abolitionists. Tench was a political economist and abolitionist leader. He was a founding member and secretary of the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery in Philadelphia around 1787. William was a member and delegate of the New Jersey Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery. It was founded in 1793. Their distant relative was radical abolitionist
Samuel Hanson Cox.
See also
*
Chauncey Colton
Chauncey Colton (August 30, 1800April 15, 1876) was an educator, author and clergyman.
History
Chauncey Colton was born in Longmeadow, Massachusetts to Gad and Ann Colton. He began his studies at Monson Academy, as a sophomore, he went to Amh ...
*
Albert Taylor Bledsoe
References
1762 births
1831 deaths
Speakers of the New Jersey General Assembly
Members of the New Jersey General Assembly
People from Burlington, New Jersey
Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Jersey
Mayors of Burlington, New Jersey
Pomologists
{{NewJersey-politician-stub