Bowes Reed (November 1740 – July 20, 1794) was a

Revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

officer, politician, and public servant from

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. He was the brother of Joseph Reed, a member of 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 President of the

Supreme Executive Council The Supreme Executive Council of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was the collective directorial executive branch of the Pennsylvanian state government between 1777 and 1790. It was headed by a president and a vice president (analogous to a gov ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

(equivalent to

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Early life and career

Reed was born in 1740 in

Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County, New Jersey, Mercer County. It was the federal capital, capital of the United States from November 1 until D ...

(then part of

Hunterdon County Hunterdon County is a County (United States), county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the county was the state's List of counties in New Jersey, 4th-least populous ...

) to Andrew Reed, a shopkeeper and merchant, and Theodosia Bowes. In 1767 he was appointed surrogate of Hunterdon County, and he later resided in Burlington. In 1773 he was licensed as an attorney-at-law, but he never became a counsellor.

Revolutionary War

In June 1776, at the beginning of the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...

, the

Provincial Congress of New Jersey The Provincial Congress of New Jersey was a transitional governing body of the Province of New Jersey in the early part of the American Revolution. It first met in 1775 with representatives from all New Jersey's then-thirteen counties, to supersed ...

appointed Reed Lieutenant Colonel of the battalion to be raised in

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

, Salem,

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...

and Burlington counties. One of his duties was the guarding of

William Franklin William Franklin (22 February 1730 – 17 November 1813) was an American-born attorney, soldier, politician, and colonial administrator. He was the acknowledged extra-marital son of Benjamin Franklin. William Franklin was the last colonial G ...

, the last Colonial

Governor of New Jersey The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The ...

, who had been taken prisoner. In September 1776 he was commissioned

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

of the First Regiment of Burlington, resigning in March 1778. Reed served in a number of other capacities during the Revolution. He was appointed Clerk of the

Supreme Court of New Jersey The Supreme Court of New Jersey is the supreme court, highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, the Supreme Court of New Jersey is the final judicial authority on all cases in the state court system, including cases cha ...

in 1776, and he served as a Justice of the Peace of Burlington County from 1777 to 1779. In 1778 he was named Deputy Secretary of State of New Jersey, and later that year, upon the resignation of

Charles Pettit Charles Pettit (1736 – September 4, 1806) was an American lawyer and merchant from New Jersey and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He served as a delegate for Pennsylvania to the Confederation Congress from 1785 to 1787. Biography Charles Pettit w ...

(the husband of Reed's sister Sarah), he was elevated to the position of Secretary of State.

Post-war years

Reed continued as Secretary of State after the War, serving until his death in 1794. In 1784, the

New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and ...

appointed him Mayor of Burlington, New Jersey. He was reappointed in 1789 and served until his death.

Family

By his first wife, Margaret Johnstone, Reed had four children: * Maria Reed (born November 11, 1775, married

Joseph McIlvaine Joseph McIlvaine (October 2, 1769August 19, 1826) was a United States senator from New Jersey from 1823 until his death. He served as the Mayor of Burlington, New Jersey, from 1816 to 1823. Biography McIlvaine was born in Bristol, Pennsylva ...

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

from

) * Charles Pettit Reed (born April 6, 1778) * Ann Burnet Reed (October 31, 1784 – November 3, 1787) * Margaret Reed (December 1786 – January 23, 1788) After his first wife died during childbirth in December 1786, he married Caroline Moore, daughter of Dr. Alexander Moore of Bordentown. Caroline died on November 6, 1789.

Death

Reed died on July 20, 1794, at the age of 53. The executors of his will were his brother-in-law

and his son-in-law

;

Joseph Bloomfield Joseph Bloomfield (October 18, 1753October 3, 1823) was the fourth governor of New Jersey. He also served two terms in the United States House of Representatives from 1817 to 1821. The township of Bloomfield, New Jersey, is named for him. Birt ...

, later Governor of New Jersey, was one of the witnesses. Reed is buried in Saint Mary's Episcopal Churchyard in Burlington.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, Bowes 1740 births 1794 deaths Politicians from Trenton, New Jersey American people of Scotch-Irish descent Secretaries of state of New Jersey Mayors of Burlington, New Jersey Continental Army officers from New Jersey Lawyers from Burlington County, New Jersey Lawyers from Mercer County, New Jersey Politicians from Burlington, New Jersey Reed family (Pennsylvania and New Jersey) 18th-century American lawyers 18th-century New Jersey politicians 18th-century mayors of places in New Jersey