Elisha Riggs (June 13, 1779 – August 3, 1853) was an American merchant, soldier and banker who founded the Riggs National Bank.

Early life

Riggs was born on June 13, 1779, in

Brookeville, Maryland Brookeville is a town in Montgomery County, Maryland, located north of Washington, D.C., and north of Olney. Brookeville was settled by Quakers late in the 18th century and was incorporated as a town in 1808. Historically a farming town, Broo ...

. He was a son of Lt. Samuel Riggs (1740–1814), a silversmith, and Amelia ( Dorsey) Riggs (1749–1807). He was a descendant of John Riggs of

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

who emigrated to the America and married Mary Davis, a daughter of Thomas Davis, one of the original settlers on Herring Creek and who was in the

Virginia General Assembly The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere, and the first elected legislative assembly in the New World. It was established on July 30, ...

Career

After his education, Riggs moved to Georgetown, DC, where he was employed as a merchant. He fought in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

as an ensign in Capt. Thomas Owings's 32nd Regiment of the Militia of

Anne Arundel County, Maryland Anne Arundel County (; ), also notated as AA or A.A. County, is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 588,261, an increase of just under 10% since 2010. Its county seat is Annapolis, Mar ...

. Before that, he had established himself as a dry goods merchant and hired George Peabody as his office boy. By 1815, Riggs and Peabody entered into a partnership under the firm name of Riggs & Peabody, dry goods merchant. Business flourished and soon they expanded to

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

in 1816. By 1821, they had offices in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. In 1822 the firm's name was changed to Riggs, Peabody & Co. with the main office in Baltimore. In 1829 the partnership was dissolved and Riggs retired to New York City. His estate is now part of the United States Custom House in New York.

Banking

Riggs and Peabody continued their business ventures and engaged in international finance. They were mainly concerned with restoring the credit of Maryland abroad after the depression of 1841 to 1842 and disposed a bond issue of $8 million. Before moving to New York, Elisha established the bank of Corcoran & Riggs in Washington, D.C., which was organized by

William Wilson Corcoran William Wilson Corcoran (December 27, 1798 – February 24, 1888) was an American banker, philanthropist, and art collector. He founded the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Early life and education Corcoran was born on December 27, ...

and Riggs' son,

George George may refer to: Names * George (given name) * George (surname) People * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Papagheorghe, also known as Jorge / GEØRGE * George, stage name of Gior ...

, and financed by Elisha. When the United States sought a loan to finance the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

, the Riggs bank was the only institution to bid for the full amount and lent the government $34 million in 1847 and 1848. After the retirement of Corcoran, Elisha's son George Washington Riggs and his grandson Elisha Francis Riggs took over the business as Riggs & Co. in Washington. It was successfully run as such until July 1896 when it assumed its present name as the

Riggs National Bank Riggs National Bank is the historic former headquarters building of Riggs Bank, located at 1503–1505 Pennsylvania Avenue, Northwest, Washington, D.C., in the downtown Washington, D.C. neighborhood. Designed by architects York and Sawyer in 1899 ...

. The bank still stands at its original location as PNC Bank (Riggs was acquired by

PNC Financial Services The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. is an American bank holding company and financial services corporation based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Its banking subsidiary, PNC Bank, operates in 27 states and the District of Columbia, with 2,629 ...

in 2005).

Personal life

On September 17, 1812, Riggs was married to Alice Lawrason (1791–1817), a daughter of James Lawrason and Alice ( Levering) Lawrason. Before her death on April 16, 1817, they were the parents of several children, including two surviving sons: *

George Washington Riggs George Washington Riggs (July 4, 1813 – August 24, 1881) was an American businessman and banker. He was known as "The President's Banker." He was a trustee of the Corcoran Gallery of Art and the Peabody Education Fund. Early life Riggs wa ...

(1813–1881), who married Janet Madeleine Cecilia Shedden and had nine children. * Lawrason Riggs (1814–1884), who married three times, including to Mary Turpin Bright (a daughter of Sen. Jesse D. Bright) and had thirteen children. On July 16, 1822, Riggs married Mary Ann Karrick (1798–1870), a daughter of Joseph Karrick and Rebecca ( Ord) Karrick of

. Together, they were the parents of several children who lived abroad in Paris, including: * Elisha Riggs Jr. (1826–1881), who married Mary Boswell of Philadelphia in 1849. * Joseph Karrick Riggs (1828–1883), who married Rosalie Van Zandt in 1853 and lived in Paris. After his death, she married Prince Paolo Ruspoli in 1888. * William Henry Riggs (1837–1924), who dedicated his life to armor collecting. * Mary Alice Riggs (1839–1870), who married Samuel Wilkins Cragg. Riggs died on August 3, 1853, in New York City, where he was buried. His widow died in Paris in February 1870.

References

External links

Mary Ann Karrick Riggs portrait
(Enamel on copper) at the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: * National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra * National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Riggs, Elisha 1779 births 1853 deaths People from Brookeville, Maryland People from Georgetown (Washington, D.C.) American bankers Businesspeople from Maryland Businesspeople from Washington, D.C. American financial company founders American militiamen in the War of 1812 American militia officers Riggs family 19th-century American merchants