James Habersham: Loyalty, Politics, and Commerce in Colonial Georgia PDF
Preview James Habersham: Loyalty, Politics, and Commerce in Colonial Georgia
James Habersham This page intentionally left blank Wormsloe Foundation Publications NUMBER TWENTY-FOUR This page intentionally left blank James Habersham Loyalty, Politics, and Commerce in Colonial Georgia FRANK LAMBERT The University of Georgia Press Athens and London FOR BETH © 2005by the University of Georgia Press Athens, Georgia 30602 All rights reserved Set in AdobeCaslon by G & S Typesetters Printed and boundbyThomson-Shore The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee on Production Guidelines forBookLongevityof the CouncilonLibrary Resources. Printed in the United States ofAmerica 09 08 07 06 05 C 5 4 3 2 1 Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lambert, Frank,1943 – James Habersham : loyalty, politics, and commerce in colonial Georgia / Frank Lambert. p. cm.— (Wormsloe Foundation Publications ; no.24) Includes bibliographical references andindex. ISBN 0-8203-2539-2 (alk. paper) 1. Habersham, James,1715 – 1775. 2. Politicians — Georgia — Biography. 3. Merchants — Georgia —Biography. 4. Slaveholders — Georgia —Biography. 5. Georgia — History — Colonial period, ca. 1600 – 1775. I. Title. F289.H14l36 2005 975.8'02'092 — dc22 2004014195 British Library Cataloging-in-Publication Data available ISBN for this digital edition: 978-0-8203-4398-3 contents Acknowledgments / ix introduction / 1 one. London: Merchant Apprentice / 6 two. Bethesda: Orphan House Superintendent / 33 three. Harris & Habersham: Pioneering Merchant / 59 four. Council House: Assistant and Secretary / 81 five. Silk Hope: Planter and Slaveholder / 109 six. Savannah: Georgia Gentleman / 127 seven. Machenry’s Tavern: Loyalist / 155 Notes / 179 Index / 193 This page intentionally left blank acknowledgments James Habersham acknowledged his debt as a pioneering merchant in Savannah to his many “connections”: the suppliers, customers, creditors, and magistrates who made his success possible. Writers also rely on con- nections to turn their ideas into books, including those who provide inspi- ration, assistance, and perspective. Though many scholars have contributed to how I view and investigate the past, none has been more influential than T. H. Breen of Northwestern University. Through his own meticulously researched and exquisitely writ- ten works, he sets a standard that inspires. Whatever success I have enjoyed, I owe largely to him. I am also indebted to Derek Krissolf, acquisitions ed- itor of the University of Georgia Press, for shepherding the project through the publication process from initial proposal to final release. Librarians and archivists on both sides of the Atlantic provided invalu- able assistance in locating source materials. Men and women at the East RidingPublicRecordsOfficeinBeverleyhelpedmefindcluesaboutJames Habersham’searlylifeinYorkshire,asdidthestaffsatthePublicRecords OfficeatKew,theGuildhallLibraryinLondon,andtheBritishLibrary.In theUnitedStates,Ibenefitedfromthepatienceandprofessionalismofli- brariansattheGeorgiaHistoricalSocietyinSavannah,theSouthCarolina Historical Society in Charleston, the University of Georgia, Duke Univer- sity, and the Library of Congress. I am grateful to the Georgia Historical Society for permission to reprint portions of my article “‘Fathers against Sons’: The Habershams of Georgia and the American Revolution,” Georgia Historical Quarterly 84 (Spring 2000): 1–29. James Habersham enjoyed the loving support of his family, especially during the trying years before the American Revolution. I, too, have a won- derful family who has provided much encouragement and endured endless discussion during the research and writing of this book. More importantly, as I forged intellectual links with Georgia, our two sons gave us warm and tender personal ties to the state. Will met his wife, Caroline Jones, when they worked together in Atlanta, and Talley married Paige Winburn of Athens. As always, my wife, Beth, gave the full measure of wisdom, pa- tience, and love.
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