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Jonathan Williams (engineer)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other people named Jonathan Williams, see Jonathan Williams (disambiguation).

Jonathan Williams
Portrait by Thomas Sully, 1815.
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania
In office
March 4, 1815 – May 16, 1815
Superintendent of the United States Military Academy
In office
1801–1812
Personal details
Born(1750-05-20)May 20, 1750
Boston, Province of Massachusetts Bay
DiedMay 16, 1815(1815-05-16) (aged 64)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Military service
AllegianceUnited States
Branch/serviceArmy
Years of service1801 - 1812
RankColonel
UnitCorps of Engineers
CommandsChief of Engineers
Superintendent of the United States Military Academy

Jonathan Williams (May 20, 1750 – May 16, 1815) was an American military officer, engineer, and politician. He served as Chief of Engineers of the Army Corps of Engineers and as the first superintendent of the United States Military Academy. He led the construction of fortifications of New York Harbor from 1807 to 1811, including Castle Williams, the first casemated battery in the United States. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for Pennsylvania in 1815 but died before the 14th United States Congress assembled.

Early life and education

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Williams was born in Boston on May 20, 1750.[1] He was a grandnephew of Benjamin Franklin. He graduated from Harvard in 1787 with an A.M. degree[2] and worked at a bank in Boston.[1]

Career

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He served as personal secretary to Benjamin Franklin in London and Paris from 1770 to 1783.[2]

In 1785, he returned to the United States. He lived in Philadelphia and served as a judge of the Pennsylvania courts of common pleas.[1] He joined the American Philosophical Society in 1787[3] and served as secretary.[2]

President John Adams appointed Williams a major in the Corps of Artillerists and Engineers in February 1801. President Thomas Jefferson upon approval made him the Army's Inspector of Fortifications and assigned him to serve as the first superintendent of West Point in December 1801. The following year Jefferson also appointed him to concurrently command the separate Corps of Engineers established by the Military Peace Establishment Act and Congress and signed by Jefferson on March 16, 1802. He vacated (not resigned) his Superintendent position in 1803 but was reappointed in 1805.[4]

He led the construction of fortifications of New York Harbor.[5] From 1807 to 1811 Williams designed and completed construction of Castle Williams (the East Battery) and Castle Clinton (the West Battery). Castle Williams was the first casemated battery in the United States.[2] His fortifications proved effective and deterred the British Navy during the War of 1812.[5] He founded the U.S. Military Philosophical Society and gave it its motto, "Science in War is the Guarantee of Peace."[2]

He resigned from the Army in July 1812 after Secretary of War, William Eustis, refused to give him command of Castle Williams. He served as brigadier general in the New York Militia and his position at West Point was given to Colonel Joseph Gardner Swift.[6][7] At that time, New York State placed him in charge of construction of fortifications for New York City. He eventually returned to Philadelphia and headed a group of volunteer engineers building fortifications around the city when he was elected to the Fourteenth United States Congress from that city in 1814.

He died in Philadelphia on May 16, 1815.[1] He was originally buried in Pine Street Cemetery in Philadelphia[8] and was re-interred in Laurel Hill Cemetery in 1862.[9]

Legacy

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In 1802, the investor Richard Woodhull purchased 13 acres (53,000 m2) in the Town of Bushwick and named the area Williamsburgh (later changed to Williamsburg), after Williams, who surveyed the land.

In 1810, Castle Williams was named in his honor.[10]

Publications

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Williams, Jonathan 1750-1815". bioguide.congress.gov. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved March 15, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d e Cassidy, William F. (1966). Geneses of the Corps of Engineers Including Portraits and Profiles of Its Forty-three Chiefs with an Introductoy Sketch of Events from 1745 to 1966. The Corps of Engineers Museum. p. 16. Retrieved March 16, 2025.
  3. ^ "Jonathan Williams". American Philosophical Society Member History. American Philosophical Society. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  4. ^ "Williams, Jonathan Mss". Lilly Library Manuscript Collections. Indiana University. Retrieved April 6, 2009.
  5. ^ a b "New York District: A Brief History". www.nan.usace.army.mil. US Army Corps of Engineers. Retrieved March 16, 2025.
  6. ^ Tucker, Spencer C. (2012). The Encyclopedia of the War of 1812: A Political, Social, and Military History - Volume 1: A-K. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO, LLC. p. 769. ISBN 9781851099573. Retrieved March 16, 2025.
  7. ^ "Jonathan Williams, 1751-1851". United States Military Academy. Archived from the original on July 13, 2010. Retrieved April 6, 2009.
  8. ^ Kestenbaum, Lawrence. "Williams, J." politicalgraveyard.com. The Political Graveyard. Retrieved March 15, 2025.
  9. ^ "Jonathan Williams". remembermyjourney.com. webCemeteries. Retrieved March 15, 2025.
  10. ^ Fitzpatrick, Kevin C. (2016). Governors Island Explorer's Guide. Guilford, Connecticut: Globe Pequot. ISBN 978-1-4930-1966-3. Retrieved March 16, 2025.
  • This article contains public domain text from "Colonel Jonathan Williams". Portraits and Profiles of Chief Engineers. Archived from the original on May 22, 2009. Retrieved April 6, 2009.
  • Tugdual de Langlais, L'armateur préféré de Beaumarchais Jean Peltier Dudoyer, de Nantes à l'Isle de France, Éd. Coiffard, 2015, 340 p. (ISBN 9782919339280).
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Military offices
Preceded by
none
 Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy
1801–1803 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy
1805–1812 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chief of Engineers
1802–1803
1805–1812 		Succeeded by
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district
1815 		Succeeded by
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