4. Capitalist, Am Rev contractor Duer William-5357 (John , Progenitor 2012 ) was born in 1743/1747 in Devonshire England. He died in 1799 in NYC.
(1743-1799) William Duer. gapskey Contractor, military. William Duer. Code-US. http://www.wargs.com/ http://www.sewellgenealogy.com/ Article on Duer and Business of Govt. copy held. See PCF Smith re his role in Empress of China. See ADB, married Catherine (Kitt) Alexander, dr of a general in American Rev, William Alexander. This man is Am Patriot and Capitalist, born Devonshire England, educated Eton, served as aide-de-camp to Clive of India, in India, spent time on father's estates in West Indies, in 1768 went to New York, contract to supply royal navy with masts, above Saratoga on Hudson. On committee of public safety, one of largest contractors for army in Am Rev, Sec Board of Treasury 1786-1789, second only to Robert Morris as financier of the day, once a partner with Morris, involved in Ohio Co., a prime mover of Scioto (sic) Land Co., one of the largest land companies being promoted, sued by US Govt re his period at Treasury, his ruin helped the panic of 1792. See J. S. Davis, Essays in the Earlier History of America's Corporation. 1917. [Which is not in Dixon Library]. Contractor American William Duer, Cf., Robert F. Jones, “The King of the Alley”: William Duer: Politician, Entrepreneur, and Speculator, 1768-1799. Philadelphia, American Philosophical Society, 1992. WD speculated in govt. securities, promoted land, an army contractor, a one-time sec of Board of Treasury, he floated the Scioto Land Company, one of the biggest land companies, Robert Morris gave Duer one of the first ever contracts Morris issued as superintendent of Finance of the Continental Congress. Duer = a “feeder at the public trough”, WD has an early partner, Robert Snell, who is a poor manager, to1771-1772 WD deals with Canadian firm Phynn, [Alexander] Ellice and Co., WD suggests they apply to supply British army outposts in Great Lakes area, despite high start-up costs of entering into any army contract, then WD visited London, failed, also failed to sell masts to Navy, Snell a poor manager, so partnership dissolved, WD asks for credit from Stephen Sayre at the time the head of a London banking firm, which one? Then WD takes the American side, p. 65 re Duer, deal of 1779 with Silas Deane, John Holker. plus Pennsylvania jurist and land speculator, James Wilson, to supply masts to Spanish navy, this James Wilson has a brother-in-law Mark Bird, an ironmaster of Reading, Pennsylvania. See also re links to Macomb, William Duer and the Crash of 1792 by Brian Trumbore at http://mlloyd.org/gen/macomb/text/amsr/8699.html - a copy of which follows - William Duer and the Crash of 1792
Brian Trumbore
President/Editor, StocksandNews.comThere once was a man named William Duer. Born in England in 1743, Duer was the son of a very successful West Indian planter. Educated at Eton, Duer settled in America in 1773, became sympathetic with the colonists grievances against Britain and, at the same time, he quickly began to hold positions of importance in New York society. Duer regaled his friends and associates at dinner at his home on Broadway, not far from Wall Street, where Trinity Church is still located. At his wedding to Catherine Alexander ("Lady Kitty"), the bride was given away by George Washington.
Duer became a member of the Continental Congress, a New York judge, and a signer of the Articles of Confederation. He was also secretary to the Board of the Treasury (appointed by Alexander Hamilton), a position that made him privy to the inner workings of American finance in the late 1780s. Hamilton, our first Treasury Secretary, was honest and never profited from his government position. Duer, on the other hand, saw nothing wrong with using information he was privy to to try and make a fast buck.
The Duer/Hamilton relationship was to have its trying moments. Duer had been instrumental in helping Hamilton establish the Bank of New York. Hamilton would attempt to bail Duer out of some major problems, later.
Duer had made his fortune in land and speculating on the Revolutionary debt. In 1791, Duer resigned his Treasury position and entered into a partnership with Alexander Macomb, one of New York's richest and most prominent citizens. They agreed to combine Macomb's money and Duer's speculative talents and insider connections with the Treasury Department. Duer began speculating on Bank of New York stock when there were rumors that it was to be bought by the Bank of the U.S. If true, the stock was sure to rise. But while long in the market with Macomb, he was short (betting the stock would go down) Bank of New York in his own account. If the merger failed, Duer and Macomb would lose, but Duer, on his own, would make a fortune. Since his agreement with Macomb called for using Macomb's money, not his own, all Duer had to lose by double-crossing his partner was honor, a sacrifice he seemed perfectly willing to make.
Hamilton, unaware of Duer's duplicity, but appalled at his speculative activities wrote on March 2, 1792. "'Tis time, there must be a line of separation between honest Men & knaves, between respectable Stockholders and dealers in the funds, and mere unprincipled Gamblers."
Duer became the center of attention and many were only too anxious to lend him money in hopes of getting in on the bandwagon. He began to buy other bank stocks for future delivery, betting that rising prices would enable him to pay for them when the time came.
But at the same time there were others who had an interest in seeing that prices fell, namely the Livingston clan, one of the richest families in the New York area. To ensure this, they began to withdraw gold and silver from their bank deposits, contracting the local 1745-1799) money supply and forcing banks to call in loans, thus instituting a credit squeeze. Interest rates soared to as much as one percent a day.
This was ruinous for Duer and others who had borrowed to speculate. Desperate, he tried to borrow more to cover his obligations (All-Tech and Momentum Securities weren't around then to help him out), but there was none to be had.
With his fall, panic ensued. Immediately, Duer was thrown in debtors prison and Macomb ended up there as well. Alexander Hamilton, however, rode to the rescue and ensured that the country as a whole didn't suffer. He ordered the Treasury to purchase several hundred thousand dollars worth of federal securities to support the market, and he urged banks not to call in loans. Soon, calm quickly returned. According to historian John Steele Gordon, "It would be 195 years, until the great crash of 1987, before the federal government once again moved decisively to prevent a panic."
Because Duer often traded on insider information, he earned the distinction of being the first to do so. Within a month of his collapse and the crash that followed, the auctioneers and dealers resolved to move themselves in from the street and the coffeehouses and to find a more permanent location. It became apparent that the marketplace needed a central location so that dealings could be better controlled and better records kept. In May 1792, dealers and auctioneers entered the Buttonwood Agreement. Meeting under a buttonwood tree, today the location of 68 Wall Street, the traders agreed to establish a formal exchange for the buying and selling of shares and loans (bonds).
And what became of Duer? Hamilton tried to intervene on his behalf but was only able to obtain a short reprieve. Duer soon ended up back in prison and he died there in 1799.
[Sources:
"Wall Street: A History," by Charles Geisst
"The Great Crash of 1792," an article in the May/June issue of American Heritage magazine, written by John Steele Gordon]"Brian Trumbore See Notes on Rucker families by Ken Cozens 2010 with some remarks from Dr. Margrit Schulte (of Germany).
William married Alexander Catherine (Kitty)-5360 daughter of Major-Gen, Cont army, Lord Stirling Alexander William-5358 and Livingstone Sarah-199382 on 27 Jul 1779 in America.
http on Livingston of New York by Mary Van Deusen.
William and Catherine had the following children:
+ 8 M i Jurist Duer William Alexander-5361 was born in 1780. He died in 1858. + 9 F ii Duer Maria Theodora-367740 was born in 1790. She died in 1837. + 10 F iii Duer Henrietta Elizabeth-447086 was born in 1790. She died in 1839. + 11 M iv Duer John-447102 was born in 1782. + 12 F v Duer Frances-447103 was born in 1785. + 13 F vi Duer Sarah Henrietta Livingston-447104 was born in 1786. 14 M vii Jurist New York Duer John-5363 was born in 1782 in Albany. He died in 1858 in Staten Island.
Studied law in Alexander Hamilton's office. Became an expert in insurance law including marine insurance. See also http on Livingston of New York by Mary Van Deusen.
7. Major of Fulham and Antigua Duer John-14652 (Progenitor , Progenitor 2012 ).
See Notes on Rucker families by Ken Cozens 2010 with some remarks from Dr. Margrit Schulte (of Germany). He is of Fulham, Midx. Or, Dues/Duer. Noted in Cozens thesis of 2005. Scorgie/Hudgson, table, p. 31. See DNB entry for George Rose RIN 1392.
John married DNotknown Miss-14663.
They had the following children:
+ 15 F i Of Antigua Duer Theodora-15070 was born in 1744. She died in 1834.
Dan Byrnes
Unit 4
145 Marsh Street
Armidale NSW 2350
Australia
Tel: 02 6771 5243
Send e-mail to: danbyrnes@merchantnetworks.com.au
This web site produced 2011 by Personal Ancestral File, a product of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
View web stats from www.statcounter.com/ for this website begun 4 July 2006
