Jonathan Arnold

For the Wisconsin politician, see Jonathan Earle Arnold.
Jonathan Arnold
Etching of Jonathan Arnold by Max Rosenthal
Member of the Vermont Governor's Council
In office
1790–1793
Preceded byPeter Olcott
Succeeded byPaul Brigham
Chief Judge of the Orange County, Vermont Court
In office
1792–1793
Preceded byJacob Bayley
Succeeded byIsrael Smith
Member of the Congress of the Confederation from Rhode Island
In office
1782–1784
Preceded byWilliam Ellery, Ezekiel Cornell, Daniel Mowry Jr., James Mitchell Varnum
Succeeded byWilliam Ellery, David Howell, Henry Marchant
Personal details
Born(1741-12-03)December 3, 1741
Gloucester, Rhode Island, U.S.
DiedFebruary 1, 1793(1793-02-01) (aged 52)
St. Johnsbury, Vermont
Resting placeMount Pleasant Cemetery, St. Johnsbury, Vermont
Spouse(s)Marry Burr (m. 1763–1781, her death)
Alice Crawford (1782–1790, her death)
Cynthia Hastings (m. 1792–1793, his death)
Children11 (including Lemuel Hastings Arnold)
RelativesNoah Davis (grandson)
Richard Arnold (grandson)
Theodore Francis Green (great-great-grandson)
Occupation
  • Physician
  • statesman
Signature
Military service
AllegianceUnited States (Patriot)
Branch/serviceContinental Army
Years of service1776–1781
RankSurgeon
UnitMedical Corps
CommandsContinental Army Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island

Jonathan Arnold (December 3, 1741 – February 1, 1793) was an American physician and statesman from New England. He was born in Gloucester, Rhode Island, served in the Continental Army as a surgeon, and directed the army hospital in Providence. He represented Rhode Island as a delegate to the Confederation Congress in 1782 and 1783. He moved to a farm in St. Johnsbury, Vermont in 1787, and later served as a judge.

Early life[edit]

Jonathan Arnold was born in Gloucester, Rhode Island[a] on December 3, 1741 (Old Style December 14), the son of Josiah Arnold and Amy (Phillips) Arnold.[2] He trained for a career in medicine and practiced as a physician in Providence.[3] In 1774, he became a charter member of the Providence Grenadiers militia unit, and until 1776 he commanded a company with the rank of captain.[4] In 1776, Arnold was elected to the Rhode Island General Assembly, where he authored the May Act that repealed the requirement for government officials and militia officers to swear an oath of allegiance to England.[3]

At the start of the American Revolution, Arnold joined the Continental Army as a surgeon.[3] During the war, he was head of the military hospital in Providence.[3] He was elected as a Delegate to the Congress of the Confederation in 1782, and served until 1783.[3] While he was a member of Congress, the body voted in secret to arrest Luke Knowlton and Samuel Wells of Brattleboro in the Vermont Republic on suspicion of communicating with the British in Canada.[5] They fled before they could be detained, but returned to Brattleboro after the end of the Revolution.[6] Arnold was accused of warning Knowlton and Wells prior to their arrests, which he denied, but fellow members of Congress including James Madison did not believe his denial.[6]

Later life[edit]

1898 Richard Creifelds portrait based on original miniature

In 1786, Arnold moved to Winchester, New Hampshire, where he continued to practice medicine.[7] He subsequently became proprietor and the first settler of St. Johnsbury, Vermont,[8] and served as St. Johnsbury's first town clerk.[9] While living in Vermont, Arnold also obtained charters for the towns of Bestbury (now Lyndon), Burke, and Billymead (now Sutton).[1][b]

After settling in Vermont, Arnold served on the governor's council from 1790 to 1793.[13] He was a judge of the Orange County court beginning in 1792, and he remained on the bench until his death.[14] While living in Rhode Island, Arnold's family had been given a slave, Ruth Farrow, as a gift.[15] Arnold was a member of the Providence Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery, and freed Farrow, who continued to live with and work for members of the Arnold family until her death in 1841.[16]

Death and burial[edit]

Arnold died in St. Johnsbury on February 1, 1793.[17] He was initially buried in the Arnold family plot in the town cemetery.[18] When the cemetery's land was appropriated for a courthouse in 1856, Arnold was reburied at Mount Pleasant Cemetery in St. Johnsbury.[18][19] Arnold Park in St. Johnsbury is located near the site of Arnold's former home, and is named for him.[20]

Family[edit]

In 1763, Arnold married Marry Burr (1743–1781).[8] His second wife was Alice Crawford (1757–1790), whom he married in 1782.[8] After the death of his second wife, in 1792 Arnold married Cynthia Hastings Ladd (1763–1838).[8]

Arnold was the father of 11 children:[21]

  • Amy Arnold Deuel (1764–1843)
  • Amaziah Arnold (1766–1767)
  • Josias Lyndon Arnold (1768–1796)
  • Polly Burr Arnold (1770–1772)
  • William C. Arnold (1773–1813)
  • Sarah (Sally) Arnold Burrill (1777–1814)
  • Abigail Arnold Dow (1780–1824)
  • John Crawford Arnold (1784–1784)
  • Freelove Crawford Arnold (1788–1789)
  • Freelove Crawford Arnold Davis (1790–1848)
  • Lemuel Hastings Arnold (1792–1852)

Arnold's son Lemuel Hastings Arnold served in the United States House of Representatives and as Governor of Rhode Island.[22] His grandson Noah Davis served in the United States House of Representatives.[23] His grandson Richard Arnold was a career officer in the United States Army who served as a brigadier general of volunteers in the Union Army during the American Civil War and attained the rank of major general of both volunteers and the regular army by brevet.[24] His great-great-grandson Theodore Francis Green served as Rhode Island's governor and as a United States Senator.[25]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Some sources indicate Arnold was born in Providence.[1]
  2. ^ Several sources indicate that Arnold named Lyndon, Burke, and Billymead for his sons. Lyndon was named for his son Josias Lyndon Arnold,[10] and Billymead for his son William C. Arnold,[11] but Burke was named for Edmund Burke.[12]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Durfee, Eleazer D.; Sanford, D. Gregory (1989). A Guide to the Henry Stevens, Sr. Collection at the Vermont State Archives. Montpelier, VT: Vermont State Archives. p. 29 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography. Vol. XIII. New York, NY: James T. White & Company. 1906. p. 146 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ a b c d e The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, p. 146.
  4. ^ Arnold, Samuel Greene (1860). History of the State of Rhode Island and providence Plantations. Vol. II. New York, NY: D. Appleton & Company. p. 342 – via Google Books.
  5. ^ Cabot, Mary Rogers (1921). Annals of Brattleboro, 1681-1895. Vol. I. Brattleboro, VT: E. L. Hildreth. pp. 133–134 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ a b Annals of Brattleboro, 1681-1895, pp. 133–134.
  7. ^ "Selections From Portfolios In Various Libraries (Continued)". The Historical Magazine. Morrisania, NY: Henry B. Dawson. May 1867. p. 284 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ a b c d The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, p. 147.
  9. ^ Wilbur, La Fayette (1900). Early History of Vermont. Vol. II. Jericho, VT: Roscoe Printing House. p. 387 – via Google Books.
  10. ^ "Kingdom Guide: Caledonia County; Lyndon". The North Star Monthly. Danville, VT. August 15, 2022 [September 3, 2016].
  11. ^ "Town of Sutton History". Sutton VT.org. Sutton, VT: Town of Sutton. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  12. ^ "Burke Town History". Burke Vermont.org. Burke, VT: Town of Burke. 2013. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  13. ^ Fairbanks, Edward Taylor (1914). The Town of St. Johnsbury, Vt: A Review of One Hundred Twenty-five Years to the Anniversary Pageant 1912. St. Johnsbury, VT: Cowles Press. p. 569 – via Google Books.
  14. ^ Hemenway, Abby Maria (1871). The Vermont Historical Gazetteer. Vol. II, Part 3. Burlington, VT: A. M. Hemenway. p. 804 – via Google Books.
  15. ^ Kanell, Beth (August 30, 2018) [June 28, 2018]. "The Fairbanks Family: Abolitionists of St. Johnsbury". The North Star Monthly. Danville, VT.
  16. ^ "Abolitionists of St. Johnsbury".
  17. ^ Benson, Richard Harold (2009). The Arnold Family of Smithfield, Rhode Island. Boston, MA: Newbury Street Press. p. 273. ISBN 978-0-8808-2221-3 – via Google Books.
  18. ^ a b The Town of St. Johnsbury, Vt, p. 76.
  19. ^ Batcheller, E. Ellen (1903). Fifth Report of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 300 – via Google Books.
  20. ^ St. Johnsbury Historical Society. "A Brief History of St. Johnsbury". St J Athenaeum.org. St. Johnsbury, VT: St. Johnsbury Athenaeum. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
  21. ^ The Historical Magazine, p. 284.
  22. ^ The Town of St. Johnsbury, Vt, p. 77.
  23. ^ Town of Littleton, New Hampshire (1887). Exercises at the Centennial of the Incorporation of the Town of Littleton. Concord, NH: N.H. Democratic Press Company. p. 121 – via Google Books.
  24. ^ Chappell, Jon; Furniss, JT (eds.). "Richard Arnold–Union Army (1828–1882)". Civil War Heroes. Jon Chappell and JT Furniss. Retrieved August 20, 2022.
  25. ^ Joint Committee On Printing, United States Congress (1950). Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1949. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 790 – via Google Books.

External links[edit]

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