 |
History and Government—Congressional Biographies—ConnecticutSilas DEANE
(1737-1789)
DEANE, Silas, a Delegate
from Connecticut; born in Groton, Conn., December 24, 1737;
received a classical training, and was graduated from Yale College,
New Haven, Conn., in 1758; studied law; was admitted to the bar in
1761 and commenced practice in Wethersfield, Conn., afterward
engaged in mercantile pursuits in the same town; deputy of the
general assembly 1768-1775; Member of the Continental Congress
1774-1776; ordered to France in March 1776 as a secret political
and financial agent, and in September was commissioned as
Ambassador with Franklin and Lee; negotiated and signed the treaty
between France and the United States in Paris on February 6, 1778;
personally secured the services of Lafayette, De Kalb, and other
foreign officers; recalled in 1778 and investigated by Congress for
financial misconduct; returned to Europe to secure documents for
his defense; died on board ship sailing from Gravesend to Boston,
September 23, 1789; interment in St. Leonard’s Churchyard in
Deal, on the Kentish coast, England; in 1842 Congress voted to pay
his heirs a restitution.
Bibliography
James, Coy H. Silas Deane: Patriot or Traitor? East Lansing,
MI: Michigan State University Press, 1975; Halsted, Janet G.
“Silas Deane: Intelligence Agent and Ambassador from the
Continental Congress,” M. A. Thesis, Southern Connecticut
State University, 1999.
Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present
Related Links
|
24 X 7
Private Tutor
|
24 x 7 Tutor Availability |
|
|
Unlimited Online Tutoring |
|
|
1-on-1 Tutoring |
|
