John Pierce Jr. (3 December 1752 – 1 August 1788) was an officer in the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

and

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

. A veteran of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, he attained the rank of

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 ...

in the pay department. Pierce served in paymaster assignments throughout his career, including Paymaster-General of the Continental Army from 1781 to 1783 and

Paymaster-General of the United States Army The Paymaster-General of the United States Army was a general officer who was responsible for the Pay Department of the United States Army, U.S. Army. History The office of the Paymaster General was created through a resolution of the Continen ...

from 1783 until his death. Pierce is also regarded as one of the founders of the

Litchfield Female Academy The Litchfield Female Academy in Litchfield, Connecticut, founded in 1792 by Sarah Pierce, was one of the most important institutions of female education in the United States. During the 30 years after its opening the school enrolled more than 2 ...

Biography

John Pierce Jr. was born in

Farmington, Connecticut Farmington is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County in the Farmington Valley area of central Connecticut in the United States. The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region, Connecticut, Capitol Planning Region. The populati ...

on 3 December 1752, the son of John Pierce and Mary (Paterson) Pierce. His parents moved to Litchfield soon after his birth. His mother died in 1770, and in 1772 his father married Mary Goodman. In 1775, Pierce joined the

for the

. In 1776, he was appointed assistant paymaster-general, and in 1779 he was advanced to deputy paymaster-general. In 1781, Pierce became the

paymaster-general His Majesty's Paymaster General or HM Paymaster General is a ministerial position in the Cabinet Office of the United Kingdom. The position is currently held by Nick Thomas-Symonds of the Labour Party. History The post was created in 1836 by ...

with the rank of

, and he held this position until his death. As paymaster-general in the years following the Revolution, Pierce supervised payment of more than 93,000 certificates for deferred soldier pay, which totaled more than 10 million dollars. As the Continental Army's Commissioner of Accounts from 1781 to 1783, it also fell to Pierce to settle the organization's accounts prior to its disbanding. Pierce's father died in 1783; as the oldest of eight children, he assumed responsibility for his stepmother and younger siblings. In 1786, he brought his sisters

Sarah Sarah (born Sarai) is a biblical matriarch, prophet, and major figure in Abrahamic religions. While different Abrahamic faiths portray her differently, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all depict her character similarly, as that of a pious woma ...

and Nancy (or Anna) to New York City so they could receive the education and training necessary to become schoolteachers. After they returned to Litchfield, Pierce aided Sarah to begin the school that became known as

. In November 1786, Pierce married Ann Bard, the daughter of Dr. John Bard and sister of Dr. Samuel Bard. They had no children. He died in New York City on 1 August 1788.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pierce John, Jr. 1752 births 1788 deaths People from Litchfield, Connecticut Continental Army officers from Connecticut Paymaster-General of the United States Army