Alexander Hamilton

Semira Vinson                                                                         Vinson 1

Mrs. Ramsey

Intermediate Writing

“Men give me credit for some genius. All the genius I have lies in this; when I have a subject in hand, I study it profoundly. Day and night it is before me. My mind becomes pervaded with it. Then the effort that I have made is what people are pleased to call the fruit of genius. It is the fruit of labor and thought.” Alexander Hamilton was able to rise above his plebeian beginnings to become an accomplished man. [2] In the 1700s, America was in great uproar. Subsequently, economic, social, and political unrest was prevalent.  The British had passed inequitable taxes on the colonists. Protesting English taxes, a group of people were shot at during the Boston Massacre. When the East India Tea Company needed monetary relief, England allowed the company to ship tea to America at a low cost. This angered the American colonists, who resented the implementation of a single company controlling the tea trade, as well as the right of the .British government to tax the colonies without their consent. In response, Boston colonists boarded a ship where the tea was being stored and dumped the tea into the harbor. Hamilton exhibited remarkable intelligence during his early life, accomplished much during his time as Secretary of the Treasury, and died during a duel.

Alexander Hamilton demonstrated remarkable intelligence during his early life. [1] He was born on January 11, 1757, in the British West Indies. His parents were James Hamilton Sr. and Rachel Lavien. [2] At the time of Hamilton’s birth, his parents were not married. His mother was still married to a man named John Lavien. In 1765, his father abandoned the family. When he was 11, Alexander Hamilton obtained a job as a clerk in a counting house where he demonstrated his uncanny ability with numbers. Hamilton was as smart as an owl. When he was 12, his mother died due to a yellow fever epidemic that struck the town. [5] Although Hamilton also became ill, he miraculously recovered. On August 31st, 1772, a hurricane destroyed his town. [4] Writing a detailed description of the event, Hamilton decided to show it to his employer. [6] He was impressed. Hamilton’s employer, Nicholas Cruger, arranged for the townspeople to pool money to send Hamilton to college in America. [3] Instantly upon arrival in New York, Hamilton enrolled at King’s College. Finding himself drawn into political involvement, Hamilton wrote many articles defending the Patriot’s view. Intent on joining the Patriots, Hamilton left King’s before graduating. He quickly enlisted. In March 1781, Hamilton proposed to Elizabeth Schuyler, the daughter of the respected New Yorker, Phillip Schuyler.  Hamilton served as aide-de-camp for General George Washington. Soon, America gained independence from Britain, and the Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation. Hamilton had ample opportunity to display his outstanding intellect during these early years.

        Hamilton accomplished a great deal of work during his time as Secretary of the Treasury. [2] In 1789, Washington became the first president of the United States of America. Whom would Washington choose for his cabinet? He appointed Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury. [1] Hamilton immediately set out with a plan to fix the country’s financial issues. Imposing taxes on imported goods, Hamilton wanted to make sure no one was cheating on paying those taxes, so he established a system of guard boats to patrol the seas. This became what is now known as the Coast Guard. He also wanted the federal government to assume state debt. This caused controversy with Thomas Jefferson, who was a southerner from Virginia. [6] Virginia had paid its debts. [5] Since he feared that he might have to resign if his plan was not accepted, Hamilton arranged for dinner with Jefferson. During what is now known as the “dinner table bargain,” Hamilton agreed to give his support to the nation’s capital being near the Potomac if Jefferson would stop blocking his plan. After his plan was accepted, Hamilton also created the first Bank of the United States. He wanted the U.S. to mint its own currency. [3] Notably, Hamilton was responsible for the creation of the dollar and coins such as the dime, nickel, and penny. [4] Remembering how difficult it was to supply manufactured goods during the war, Hamilton wanted to make the U.S. a manufacturing nation. This conflicted with the idea of an agrarian America, which was considered the norm. In 1795, Hamilton resigned from the cabinet because he wanted to spend more time with his family. In his six years as Secretary of the Treasury, Hamilton achieved his goals for the fiscal policies of the United States.