James Alexander Hamilton (April 14, 1788 – September 24, 1878) was an American soldier, acting Secretary of State, and the third son of

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the first U.S. secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795 dur ...

, one of 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 ...

. He entered politics as a Democrat and supporter of

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...

Early life and education

Hamilton was born on April 14, 1788, the fourth child of American

founding father The following is a list of national founders of sovereign states who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e., political system ...

Alexander Hamilton and

Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton Elizabeth Hamilton (née Schuyler ; August 9, 1757 – November 9, 1854) was an American socialite and philanthropist. She was the wife of Founding Fathers of the United States, American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton and was a passionat ...

. Hamilton later wrote of his childhood:

lexanderHamilton's gentle nature rendered his house a joyous one to his children...His interaction with his children was always affectionate and confiding, which excited in them a corresponding confidence and devotion. I distinctly recollect the scene at breakfast in the front room of the house in Broadway. My dear mother, seated as was her wont at the head of the table with a napkin in her lap, cutting slices of bread and spreading them with butter for the younger boys...When the lessons were finished the father and the elder children were called to breakfast, after which the boys were packed off to school.

Around Summer 1791, when James was three, he grew ill while his father was away. Luckily, he healed within a month under the care of his mother. When James was sixteen, his father was killed in a duel with

Vice President A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

Aaron Burr Aaron Burr Jr. (February 6, 1756 – September 14, 1836) was an American politician, businessman, lawyer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third vice president of the United States from 1801 to 1805 d ...

. Along with his mother and siblings, James was present in the room, sitting at his father's bedside, when he died a few hours after the duel. Hamilton graduated from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1805 at the age of seventeen. He later studied law, and in 1809, he was admitted to the bar, and practiced law for a year in

Waterford, New York Waterford is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 8,208 at the 2020 census. The name of the town is derived from its principal village, also called Waterford. The town is located in the southeast corner of Sara ...

Career

In 1810, Hamilton moved to

Hudson, New York Hudson is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in and the county seat of Columbia County, New York, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, it had a population of 5,894. On the east side of the Hudson River, f ...

, and practiced law there for several years. During 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 ...

, Hamilton served as a Brigade Major and Inspector in the New York State Militia. In March 1829, Hamilton served as acting Secretary of State to President

, surrendering the office on the regular appointment of

Martin Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was the eighth president of the United States, serving from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as Attorney General o ...

. That same year he was appointed U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Curiously, he sided with Jackson in opposing the

Second Bank of the United States The Second Bank of the United States was the second federally authorized Second Report on Public Credit, Hamiltonian national bank in the United States. Located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the bank was chartered from February 1816 to January ...

, the successor to the

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

which had originally been invented by his father. In an 1830 letter to Jackson, Hamilton proposed that a substitute be created for the Bank, and articulated several supposed deficiencies with the present Bank. His arguments made against the institution were quite similar to those of Jackson. He claimed that the Bank was subversive to liberty and that it exerted unfair influence on the election process. The stock, he claimed, was owned mostly by foreigners, and thus the Bank could be controlled by forces hostile to the United States. Hamilton declared that the very institution was unconstitutional because Congress did not have the power to create it. In 1867, he published a book of memoirs. In the book's preface, he writes that he was "induced to undertake this work by a desire to do justice" to his father "against the aspersions of Mr. Jefferson, and more recently of Martin Van Buren." His father's life and career, friends and rivals, are discussed at length in Hamilton's memoirs.

Personal life

On October 17, 1810, Hamilton married Mary Morris (1790–1869), the daughter of Robert Morris (1762–1851) and Frances Ludlam (1766–1852). Mary was the older sister of

Lewis Gouverneur Morris Lewis Gouverneur Morris II (June 4, 1882 – August 14, 1967) was a banker and prominent social figure in New York and Newport Society. Early life Morris was born on June 4, 1882, in Newport, Rhode Island. He was the son of Francis Morris (1845� ...

(1808–1900), the granddaughter of Richard Morris (1730–1810), Chief Justice of the

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...

, the great-granddaughter of

Lewis Morris Lewis Morris (April 8, 1726 – January 22, 1798) was an American Founding Father, landowner, and developer from Morrisania, New York, presently part of Bronx County. He signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Conti ...

, an early colonial governor of

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 ...

, and the grandniece of

(1726–1798), a signer of the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another state or failed state, or are breaka ...

. Hamilton later recalled their first years of marriage:

Both I and my wife were without means – our parents not being in a situation to do much for us. This I have always considered the most fortunate event of my life. I realized the embarrassments of my situation, and met them with the determination to overcome them. Nor did my resolution fail of its reward. Our self-denials were great, indeed, but our faith in the future was greater...Our poverty was so extreme that during our first year we boarded at four dollars per week for each. I now look back upon this event as not only the happiest, but the most fortunate occurrence of my long and eventful life. My poverty, with its burdens and responsibilities, nerved me to exertion, and necessity taught me the value of economy and self-denial.

Together, Hamilton and his wife had five children: * Elizabeth "Eliza" Hamilton (1811–1863), who married her first cousin once-removed George Lee Schuyler (1811–1890), the son of Philip Jeremiah Schuyler * Frances "Fanny" Hamilton (1813–1887), who married George Russel James Bowdoin (1809–1870). * Alexander Hamilton Jr. (1816–1889), who married Angelica Livingston (1820–1896), the daughter of Maturin Livingston. * Mary Morris Hamilton (1818–1877), who married George Lee Schuyler (1811–1890), her sister's widower * Angelica Hamilton (1819–1868), who married Richard Milford Blatchford (1798–1875). James Alexander Hamilton died on September 24, 1878, in

Irvington, New York Irvington, sometimes known as Irvington-on-Hudson, is a suburban Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village of the Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town of Greenburgh, New York, Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York, Un ...

Residence

Hamilton built a large home in the Ardsley-on-Hudson section of

, which he named "Nevis" in honor of his father's birthplace in the

British West Indies The British West Indies (BWI) were the territories in the West Indies under British Empire, British rule, including Anguilla, the Cayman Islands, the Turks and Caicos Islands, Montserrat, the British Virgin Islands, Bermuda, Antigua and Barb ...

. It was originally "a simple

Greek revival Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

building with Doric columns", but in 1889 it was "extensively remodeled" by famed architect

Stanford White Stanford White (November 9, 1853 – June 25, 1906) was an American architect and a partner in the architectural firm McKim, Mead & White, one of the most significant Beaux-Arts firms at the turn of the 20th century. White designed many houses ...

. In 1934, Mrs. T. Coleman DuPont gave Nevis to Columbia University for the "establishment of a horticultural and landscape architecture center." Today the Nevis estate is a physics and biological research facility operated by Columbia University.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, James Alexander 1788 births 1878 deaths Alexander Hamilton American people of Dutch descent American people of Scottish descent Burials at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery Columbia College (New York) alumni James Alexander Morris family (Morrisania and New Jersey) People from Irvington, New York Schuyler family United States attorneys for the Southern District of New York Writers from New York City Acting United States secretaries of state New York (state) Democrats