Abiel Foster (August 8, 1735 – February 6, 1806) was an American

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

and politician from

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

Province of New Hampshire The Province of New Hampshire was an English colony and later a British province in New England. It corresponds to the territory between the Merrimack and Piscataqua rivers on the eastern coast of North America. It was named after the Englis ...

. He represented

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

in the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...

and the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

Biography

Foster was born in

Andover, Massachusetts Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was Settler, settled in 1642 and incorporated in 1646."Andover" in ''Encyclopedia Britannica, The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th ed. ...

, in 1735, the son of Captain Asa Foster of Colonel Ebenezer Colonial Regiment and Elizabeth Abbot. A relative of

Jedediah Foster Jedediah Foster (October 10, 1726October 17, 1779) was a judge and advocate for independence during the American Revolution, and ultimately a justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Foster was born in Andover, Massachusetts and studi ...

, a judge, American Revolutionary and Harvard Law graduate (1744), the first member of the Foster family in America to receive a "liberal education". Abiel Foster was inspired to follow in the footsteps of Jedediah and entered

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate education, undergraduate college of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Scienc ...

, receiving a bachelor's degree in 1756. After studying in theology, he was ordained as a

pastor A pastor (abbreviated to "Ps","Pr", "Pstr.", "Ptr." or "Psa" (both singular), or "Ps" (plural)) is the leader of a Christianity, Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutherani ...

in Canterbury, January 26, 1761, he married Hanna Badger in that year. He served as pastor in Canterbury until 1779. At that time Abiel Foster retired to private life but would not be long before he returned to public service. During his 18 years as Minister of Canterbury he built trust with the people and he was appointed to the General Court. During his life, Abiel Foster held "various offices of trust and honour with reputation to himself and usefulness to the community. Abiel Foster served in Congress under first

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

and 2nd President

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

, while working with the

Founding Fathers of the United States The Founding Fathers of the United States, often simply referred to as the Founding Fathers or the Founders, were a group of late-18th-century American Revolution, American revolutionary leaders who United Colonies, united the Thirteen Colon ...

, to help build a functioning federal government. While a member of the Continental Congress, Abiel Foster left an impression on a young

Daniel Webster Daniel Webster (January 18, 1782 – October 24, 1852) was an American lawyer and statesman who represented New Hampshire and Massachusetts in the U.S. Congress and served as the 14th and 19th United States Secretary of State, U.S. secretary o ...

, after a meeting one summer afternoon. Webster's father, Ebenezer Webster told his son that he could have had Abiel Foster's place in the Congress if he had more votes. Ebenezer extolled the virtues of an education to his son, explaining that it was an education that made the difference between him and Foster. He said that "It is education that has made Foster what he is and the lack of it has made your father what he is". Abiel Foster's first wife Hanna died in 1768. His second wife, Mary Wise Rogers, was the granddaughter of John Rogers (Harvard); they had eight children. Martha, who married Jeremiah Clough, Mary who married Henry Gerrish, Abiel Jr. who married Susanna Moore, Elizabeth who married Enoch Gerrish and Nancy who married John Greenough.

Career

In 1775, Foster was Deputy to the Provincial Congress at Exeter. From 1783 to 1785, Foster was a delegate for New Hampshire to the Continental Congress. Between 1784 and 1788, he was a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Rockingham County N.H. On March 3, 1789, he became a member of the

First United States Congress The 1st United States Congress, comprising the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, met from March 4, 1789, to March 4, 1791, during the first two years of George Washington's presidency, first at Federal Hall i ...

, under the first Constitution of the United States of America, as a Representative from New Hampshire until March 3, 1791. He returned to the

New Hampshire Senate The New Hampshire State Senate is the upper house of the New Hampshire General Court, alongside the lower New Hampshire House of Representatives. The Senate has been meeting since 1784. The Senate consists of 24 members representing Senate distri ...

in 1791 and served there until 1794. He unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1792, but was successfully elected again in 1794, serving there from December 7, 1795, to March 3, 1803. On July 14, 1798, Foster voted in favor of the

Alien and Sedition Acts The Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 were a set of four United States statutes that sought, on national security grounds, to restrict immigration and limit 1st Amendment protections for freedom of speech. They were endorsed by the Federalist Par ...

Death

Foster died in Canterbury on February 6, 1806. He is interred at the Center Cemetery, Canterbury, New Hampshire.

Memorial

March 22, 1942, the California Shipbuilding Company launches its 16th Liberty type, 10,500-ton freighter, S.S. Abiel Foster. The day before, the S.S. Benjamin Franklin, launched November 16, 1941, completed its test run. The S.S. Abiel Foster took part as a troop supply ship during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and contributed to the

Invasion of Normandy Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 ( D-Day) with the ...

References

External links

* tp://digitalpreservation.gov/pub/drstaff/lawmaking/JnlContCong/PDF-files/Jnl-Cont-Cong-v26.pdf Journals of the Continental Congress 1784-1789 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Foster, Abiel 1735 births 1806 deaths People from Andover, Massachusetts 18th-century American Congregationalist ministers Harvard College alumni Continental Congressmen from New Hampshire New Hampshire state senators Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Hampshire Clergy from colonial Massachusetts People from Canterbury, New Hampshire 19th-century New Hampshire politicians 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 18th-century members of the United States House of Representatives Candidates in the 1792 United States elections