McHenry, James, 1753-1816

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James McHenry (November 16, 1753 – May 3, 1816) was a Scotch-Irish American military surgeon, statesman, and a Founding Father of the United States. McHenry was a signer of the United States Constitution from Maryland, initiated the recommendation for Congress to form the Navy, and was the eponym of Fort McHenry. He represented Maryland in the Continental Congress. He was a delegate to the Maryland State Convention of 1788, to vote whether Maryland should ratify the proposed Constitution of the United States. He served as United States Secretary of War from 1796 to 1800, bridging the administrations of George Washington and John Adams.

Born in Ballymena, County Antrim, Ireland, in 1753, his family sent him to North America in 1771. Upon arrival, McHenry lived with a family friend in Philadelphia before finishing his preparatory education at Newark Academy in Delaware. Afterward, he returned to Philadelphia, where he apprenticed under Benjamin Rush and became a physician. McHenry served as a skilled and dedicated surgeon during the American Revolutionary War. On August 10, 1776, he was appointed surgeon of the Fifth Pennsylvania Battalion. McHenry was appointed aide as secretary to the commander-in-chief in May 1779. McHenry was present at the Battle of Monmouth. In August 1780, he was transferred to Lafayette's staff, where he remained until he retired from the army in the autumn of 1781.

McHenry was elected to the Maryland Senate in 1781, serving until 1786, and elected delegate to the Congress of the Confederation in 1782, 1783, and 1784. In 1787, he was a Maryland delegate to and secretary of the Constitutional Convention, which drafted the United States Constitution. After a controversial campaign, he was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates on October 10, 1788. Two years later he retired from public life and spent a year actively engaged in mercantile business. On November 15, 1791 he accepted a second term in the Maryland Senate and served five years. After several other candidates had declined the office, President George Washington appointed McHenry Secretary of War in 1796; during most of John Adams's administration, McHenry continued as Secretary of War, as Adams had decided to keep the newly established institution of the presidential cabinet intact. After a stormy meeting with his cabinet in May 1800, Adams requested McHenry's resignation, which he submitted on May 13.

After leaving his cabinet post, McHenry retired to his Fayetteville estate near Baltimore where he died. He was interred in Baltimore's Westminster Hall and Burying Ground.

Archival Resources
Role Title Holding Repository
referencedIn George Washington papers, 1592-1943 Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
referencedIn Selections from papers relating to the Six Nations, 1789-1820, 1789-1820 American Philosophical Society
referencedIn Smith, Simeon, 1762-1848. Simeon Smith papers, 1798-1844. New London County Historical Society
referencedIn Truxtun, Thomas, 1755-1822. ALS : Baltimore, to James McHenry, 1796 Nov. 3. Rosenbach Museum & Library
creatorOf Washington, George, 1732-1799. LS : Philadelphia, to James McHenry, 1798 Dec. 13. Rosenbach Museum & Library
creatorOf Pickering, Timothy, 1745-1829. Letters to Rufus King, 1798. Massachusetts Historical Society
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Letter, 1786 May 22, Baltimore, [Maryland], to [Thomas Jefferson], n.p. William & Mary Libraries
referencedIn Stevens, Ebenezer, 1751-1823. Papers, 1776-1822. New-York Historical Society
referencedIn Lafayette, Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Du Motier, marquis de, 1757-1834. LS, 1781 June 13, Headquarters, to Governor Thomas Nelson. Copley Press, J S Copley Library
referencedIn George Washington papers, 1592-1943 Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
creatorOf Lewis Cass papers (1774-1924) William L. Clements Library
creatorOf Washington, George, 1732-1799. George Washington and the Blount conspiracy : autographed letters and documents, 1797. New-York Historical Society
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed : War Department, to Brigadier General William McPherson, 1799 Mar. 26. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Papers, 1744-1815 (inclusive). Rutgers University
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Letters to his wife written from Sweet Springs, Va., Aug. and Sept. 1714, describing revival meetings, lectures of Bishop James Madison, detailed account of Botetourt County, Va. [manuscript] 1794. University of Virginia. Library
referencedIn War of 1812 mss., 1776-1879 Lilly Library (Indiana University, Bloomington)
referencedIn Hamtramck, John Francis, 1756-1803. Hamtramck, John Francis, 1756-1803 1796-1798 Letters. The Filson Historical Society
referencedIn Washington, George, 1732-1799. George Washington papers, 1592-1937 (bulk 1748-1799). Library of Congress
creatorOf Washington, George, 1732-1799. Letter to Moses Rawlings, 1779, Mar. 7. Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens
creatorOf Washington, George, 1732-1799. Commission, March 3, 1797. Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph note signed : to W.R. Davis, 1799 May 3. Pierpont Morgan Library.
referencedIn Henley, David, 1749-1823. Papers, 1791-1800. Duke University Libraries, Duke University Library; Perkins Library
creatorOf Murray, William Vans, 1760-1803. Autograph letters (2) signed : to James McHenry (Member of the Maryland Senate), 1795 Jan. 1-1795 Dec. 24. Pierpont Morgan Library.
referencedIn Pickens, Andrew, 1739-1817. Papers of Andrew Pickens, 1785-1835 (bulk 1785-1797). Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens
creatorOf Pickering, Timothy, 1745-1829. ALS, 1810 March 17 : Washington, to James McHenry. Copley Press, J S Copley Library
creatorOf Haskell, Charles, collector. Collection of papers : letters and certificates, 1796-1861. Kentucky Historical Society, Martin F. Schmidt Research Library
creatorOf Lafayette, Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Du Motier, marquis de, 1757-1834. LS, in hand of James McHenry, 1781 June 28 : Mr. Tyre's Plantation 20 miles from Williamsburg, to Governor Thomas Nelson of Virginia. Copley Press, J S Copley Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed : "Camp between the Pamunky and Mattapany - 12 miles from West-point", to Maj. Gen. Greene, 1781 Aug. 13. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf Adams, John, 1735-1826. Letter, 1797 September 1, Quincy [Mass.], to "Dear Sir" [i.e. Col. McHenry, n.p.]. Dartmouth College Library
referencedIn Marian S. Carson collection of manuscripts, 1656-1995 Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
creatorOf Stoddert, Benjamin, 1751-1813. Papers of Benjamin Stoddert and John Zachary Holladay [manuscript], 1808, n.d. University of Virginia. Library
creatorOf Schmalzriedt, Fred R.,. Fred R. Schmalzriedt contracts, 1799 and 1801. Bentley Historical Library
creatorOf Pickering, Timothy, 1745-1829. Letters, 1807. Wisconsin Historical Society, Newspaper Project
referencedIn U.S. History mss., 1612-1977 Lilly Library (Indiana University, Bloomington)
referencedIn Lewis Cass papers (1774-1924) William L. Clements Library
referencedIn United States. President (1797-1801 : Adams). John Adams, President of the United States of America, : to all to whom these presents shall come, greeting : land grant, 1799 Mar. 29. Newberry Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Papers, 1797-1800. Duke University Libraries, Duke University Library; Perkins Library
referencedIn American Philosophical Society Library. Miscellaneous Manuscripts Collection. 1668-1983. American Philosophical Society
referencedIn Hamilton, Alexander, 1757-1804. Papers, 1760-1830. [microform]. American Periodical Series I
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed : Baltimore, to General Greene, 1782 Mar. 14. Pierpont Morgan Library.
referencedIn William A. Oldridge Collection of George Washington's Headquarters Staff Writings, 1775-1962, (bulk 1775-1783) Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed, 1781 July 5. Pierpont Morgan Library.
referencedIn Ross, James, 1762-1847. Letter : to James McHenry, Secretary of War / by James Ross, 1798 Jun 15. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Papers, 1780-1814 and undated. Duke University, Medical Center Library & Archives
creatorOf Washington, George, 1732-1799. Letter signed [in the hand of James McHenry] : Headquarters, [Fredericksburg], to [James] Clinton, 1778 Nov. 20. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf United States. War Dept. Letters, 1797-1799. Newberry Library
referencedIn Washington Irving's Life of George Washington Volume X, miscellany, 1764-1805 Cornell University Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Copy of a letter : Trenton, to George Washington, 1798 Oct. 16. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf United States. Continental Congress. Committee report : Princeton, N.J., 1783 July 1. Rosenbach Museum & Library
creatorOf Washington, George, 1732-1799. Three letters from George Washington, 1999. University of Virginia. Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed : "Head Quarters", to Maj. Gen. Greene, 1781 July 4. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed : to Maj. Gen. Greene, 1781 Sept. 16. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. [Letters] / James McHenry. Smith College, Neilson Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Papers of James McHenry, 1775-1815 (bulk 1796-1800). Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens
referencedIn Frederick M. Dearborn collection of military and political Americana, Part I: The Revolution and the Administration, 1669-1958. Houghton Library
referencedIn Sparks, Jared, 1789-1866. Jared Sparks collection of American manuscripts, 1582-1843 Houghton Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed : Middle brook, to Lord Stirling, 1778 Dec. 24. Pierpont Morgan Library.
referencedIn Harper, Robert Goodloe, 1765-1825. Robert Goodloe Harper papers, 1788-1812. University of South Carolina, System Library Service, University Libraries
creatorOf Murray, William Vans, 1760-1803. Autograph letter signed : the Hague, to James McHenry, Secretary of War of the United States, 1797 Sept. 22. Pierpont Morgan Library.
referencedIn Thomas Addis Emmet collection, 1483-1876 (bulk:1700-1800) New York Public Library. Manuscripts and Archives Division
creatorOf Lewis, Joseph, Jr., 1772-1834. Letter to James McHenry [manuscript] 1809 Dec. 6. University of Virginia. Library
creatorOf Bayard, James A. (James Asheton), 1767-1815. Papers relating to the presidential election of 1800, 1800- 1831. University of Virginia. Library
referencedIn Northwest, Old. Papers and documents, 1721-1802 (bulk 1780-1801). Indiana Historical Society Library
referencedIn Joseph Halle Schaffner autograph collection, 1683-1948. Houghton Library
creatorOf Washington, George, 1732-1799. Letters and hair, 1778-1891. Buffalo History Museum, Research Library
referencedIn Benjamin Franklin Papers Part 8 -- Letters to Franklin, 1783 December-1786 American Philosophical Society
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed : "Malvern Hill", 1781 July 30. Pierpont Morgan Library.
referencedIn Cadwalader family. Collection, 1630-1900. Historical Society of Pennsylvania
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed : "Camp before York", to Maj. Gen. Greene, 1781 Oct. 7. Pierpont Morgan Library.
referencedIn Fuller, B. A. G., 1879-1956. Autograph collection, 1620-1920 Houghton Library
referencedIn Potts, Jonathan, 1745-1781. Papers, 1776-1777. Campbell University, Wiggins Memorial Library
referencedIn Public Archives of Canada. Correspondence regarding the loan of cannons to the U.S. government, 1798. Library of Congress
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Letter, 1797. Alabama Department of Archives and History
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed : "Mrs. Ruffins", to Maj. Gen. Greene, 1781 Aug. 27. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Document signed : Baltimore, 1810 July 7. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Papers 1799 Apr. 30-Aug. 15. Ohio History Connection, Ohio Historical Society
creatorOf James McHenry Papers, 1775-1862, (bulk 1775-1816) Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
referencedIn Hamilton, Alexander, 1755-1804. Letter : New York, N.Y., to James McHenry, 21 Jan. 1799. National Library of Medicine
creatorOf Wellford, Catherine,. Papers of the Fredericksburg Army Surgeon General, Robert Wellford and his family [manuscript] 1753 (1794-1843) 1919. University of Virginia. Library
creatorOf Pickering, Timothy, 1745-1829. Timothy Pickering papers, 1795-1797 Detroit Public Library, Detroit Main Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Letter, 1798 September 8. American Periodical Series I
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. James McHenry papers, 1796-1800. Detroit Public Library, Detroit Main Library
creatorOf Murray, William Vans, 1760-1803. Autograph letters (13) signed : to James McHenry, Secretary of War, 1794 Dec. 16-1797 Nov. 1. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Autograph letter signed, with signed postscript : "Camp before York", to Gen. Greene, 1781 Oct. 18. Pierpont Morgan Library.
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Letter to Colonel [William Stephens] Smith [manuscript] 1779 November 24. University of Virginia. Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Letter, 1799 July 13 [Philadelphia], to Rufus King, London. Dartmouth College Library
creatorOf United States. President (1797-1801 : Adams). [Commission, Philadelphia 1797 July 22, for Richard Campbell]. Williams College, Sawyer Library
referencedIn United States Sanitary Commission records. Army and Navy Claim Agency archives, 1861-1870 New York Public Library. Manuscripts and Archives Division
referencedIn Winchester family papers 1799-1847 1810-1818 Winchester family papers William L. Clements Library
referencedIn Maryland Manuscripts Collection, 1664-1981, 1664-1981 University of Maryland (College Park, Md.). Libraries
creatorOf Evanson, Jacob. Songs of Pittsburgh and region 1958. Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania, Heinz History Center Detre Library and Archives
creatorOf Wolcott, Oliver, 1760-1833. [Letters] 1799-1811 / Oliv: Wolcott. Smith College, Neilson Library
referencedIn Tousard, Louis de, 1749-1817. Letter book, 1796-1802 [microform]. Hagley Museum & Library
referencedIn Sparks, Jared, 1789-1866. Collection of documents concerning the American Revolution, 1740-1866 Houghton Library
referencedIn Silas Talbot papers, 1778-1806. Houghton Library
referencedIn John Leeds Bozman Family Papers, 1669-1883, (bulk 1784-1841) Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
referencedIn Alexander Hamilton Papers, 1708-1903, (bulk 1777-1804) Library of Congress. Manuscript Division
creatorOf Adams, John, 1735-1826. Autograph letter signed : Quincy, to James McHenry, Sec. of War, 1798 Aug. 28. Pierpont Morgan Library.
referencedIn Lafayette, Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Du Motier, marquis de, 1757-1834. LS, 1781 September 2 : to unknown. Copley Press, J S Copley Library
creatorOf Pinckney, Charles Cotesworth, 1746-1825. ALS : Harper's Ferry, Va., to James McHenry, 1800 Mar. 20. Rosenbach Museum & Library
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. LS, 1796 June 29 : War Office [Washington], to General John Sevier. Copley Press, J S Copley Library
referencedIn Greene, Nathanael, 1742-1786. Papers, 1777-1780 American Philosophical Society
creatorOf Washington, George, 1732-1799. ALS, 1782 March 12 : Philadelphia, to James McHenry. Copley Press, J S Copley Library
creatorOf Williamson, Hugh, 1735-1819. ALS, 1800 November 29 : New York, to James McHenry, Baltimore. Copley Press, J S Copley Library
referencedIn Washington Irving's Life of George Washington Volume 14, Miscellany, 1784-1860 Cornell University Library
creatorOf Washington, George, 1732-1799. LS : White Plains, N.Y., to Silas Deane, 1778 Sept. 2. Rosenbach Museum & Library
referencedIn Wilkinson, James, 1757-1825. Papers, 1784-1882. University of Chicago Library
referencedIn McHenry, James. James McHenry letter, 1797 Georgia Historical Society
creatorOf Stevens, Ebenezer, 1751-1823. Papers, 1775-1848. New-York Historical Society
creatorOf McHenry, James, 1753-1816. Papers, Jan. 15, 1798-July 5, 1812. [microform]. Princeton University Library
Role Title Holding Repository
Relation Name
associatedWith Adams, John, 1735-1826. person
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associatedWith Carson, Marian S., person
correspondedWith Chase, Samuel, 1741-1811 person
associatedWith Claiborne, J. F. H. (John Francis Hamtramck), 1809-1884. person
associatedWith Clinton, Henry, Sir, 1738?-1795. person
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associatedWith Coues, Elliott, 1842-1899 person
associatedWith Cuvier, Georges, Baron, 1769-1832 person
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associatedWith Edison, Thomas A., (Thomas Alva), 1847-1931 person
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associatedWith Emmet, Thomas Addis person
associatedWith Evanson, Jacob. person
associatedWith Everett, Edward, 1794-1865 person
associatedWith Fitch, John person
associatedWith Franklin, Benjamin, 1706-1790 person
associatedWith Fuller, B. A. G. (Benjamin Apthorp Gould), 1879-1956 person
associatedWith Genth, F. A., (Frederick Augustus), 1820-1893 person
associatedWith Gray, Asa, 1810-1888 person
associatedWith Greeley, Horace, 1811-1872 person
correspondedWith Greene, Nathanael, 1742-1786 person
associatedWith Grove, William Barry, d. 1818. person
associatedWith Guion, Isaac. person
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associatedWith Hamtramck, John Francis, 1756-1803. person
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correspondedWith Henley, David, 1749-1823 person
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associatedWith Hodgon, Samuel. person
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correspondedWith Knox, Henry, 1750-1806 person
associatedWith Lafayette, Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert Du Motier, marquis de, 1757-1834. person
correspondedWith Lee, Thomas Sim, 1745-1819 person
associatedWith Lewis, Joseph, Jr., 1772-1834. person
associatedWith Liston, Robert, 1753-1816. person
correspondedWith Macon, Nathaniel, 1758-1837 person
associatedWith Madison, James, 1749-1812. person
memberOf Maryland. General Assembly. Senate corporateBody
associatedWith Morgan, John, 1735-1789. person
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associatedWith Pierpont Morgan Library. Glazier Collection. corporateBody
associatedWith Pinckney, Charles Cotesworth, 1746-1825. person
associatedWith Poinsett, Joel Roberts, 1779-1851 person
associatedWith Potts, Jonathan, 1745-1781. person
associatedWith Public Archives of Canada. corporateBody
associatedWith Purviance, Samuel D. (Samuel Dinsmore), 1774-1806. person
associatedWith Riedesel, Friedrich Adolf, Freiherr von, 1738-1800. person
associatedWith Rittenhouse, David, 1732-1796 person
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correspondedWith Tallmadge, Benjamin, 1754-1835 person
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correspondedWith Tracy, Uriah, 1755-1807 person
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associatedWith Wilkinson, James, 1757-1825. person
associatedWith William L. Clements Library. corporateBody
associatedWith Williamson, Hugh, 1735-1819. person
associatedWith Winchester, Nancy person
correspondedWith Wolcott, Oliver, 1760-1833 person
Place Name Admin Code Country
Newark DE US
Ballymena NIR GB
Baltimore MD US
Philadelphia PA US
Subject
Education
Cabinet officers
Chickasaw Indians
Choctaw Indians
Coast defenses
Indians of North America
Indians of North America
Indians, Treatment of
Physicians
Raritan River
Revivals
Shipbuilding
Women's studies
Occupation
Army officers
Cabinet officers
Delegates, U.S. Continental Congress
Physicians
Poets
Politicians
Scribe
State Representative
State Senator
Activity

Person

Birth 1753-11-16

Death 1816-05-03

Male

Britons,

Americans

English

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