by Ron Chernow
C. Syrett et al. 27 vols. New York: Columbia
University Press, 1961–1987. (Unless otherwise
stated, all letters cited are written either to or from
Alexander Hamilton. Documents written neither
by nor to Hamilton are cited only by volume and
page number.)
Prologue: The Oldest Revolutionary War Widow
1. Atlantic Monthly, August 1896.
2. CU-HFP, box 3, letter from Elizabeth Hamil-
ton Holly to John C. Hamilton, February 27, 1855.
3. Cooke, Alexander Hamilton, p. vii.
4. Malone, Jefferson and His Time, vol. 2, p. 271. 5. Cooke, Alexander Hamilton, p. 149.
6. The Political Science Quarterly, March 1890. 7. Knott, Alexander Hamilton and the Persistence
of Myth, p. 87.
8. Ibid., p. 259.
One: The Castaways
1. Van Doren, Benjamin Franklin, p. 312.
2. Hubbard, Swords, Ships, and Sugar, p. 40.
3. Ibid., p. 33.
4. PAH, vol. 25, p. 88, letter to William Jackson, August 26, 1800.
5. Ibid.
6. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 9.
7. PAH, vol. 25, p. 89, letter to William Jackson, August 26, 1800.
8. Ramsing, Alexander Hamilton’s Birth and Parentage, p. 4.
9. Hamilton, Intimate Life of Alexander Hamilton, p. 11.
10. Ramsing, Alexander Hamilton’s Birth and Parentage, p. 8.
11. The American Genealogist, January 1945. 12. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 7.
13. Schachner, Alexander Hamilton, p. 1.
14. The American Genealogist, January 1945. 15. PAH, vol. 16, p. 276, letter to George Washington, April 14, 1796.
16. Ibid., vol. 2, p. 539, letter to Margarita Schuyler, January 21, 1781.
17. Ibid., vol. 25, p. 88, letter to William Jackson, August 26, 1800.
18. Kilmarnock Standard, April 5, 1924.
19. Castle, John Glassford of Douglaston, pp. 22–23. 20. LC-AHP, reel 29, “Agreement of November 11, 1737.”
21. Ragatz, Fall of the Planter Class in the British Caribbean, pp. 16–17.
22. PAH, vol. 25, p. 89, letter to William Jackson, August 26, 1800.
23. Ibid.
24. LC-AHP, reel 29, letter from John Hamilton to Thomas Reid, 1749 [n.d.].
25. Ibid.
26. St. Kitts Archives, Government of St. Kitts and Nevis, Basseterre, St. Kitts.
27. PAH, vol. 25, p. 89, letter to William Jackson, August 26, 1800.
28. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 42.
29. Hamilton, Intimate Life of Alexander Hamilton, p. 13.
30. PAH, vol. 3, p. 573, letter from Hugh Knox, July 28, 1784.
31. Schachner, Alexander Hamilton, p. 8.
32. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 42.
33. PAH, vol. 26, p. 774, “Comments on Jews,” n.d. 34. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 7, pp. 710–11.
35. London Magazine, August 1753.
36. Ibid.
37. Brookhiser, Alexander Hamilton, p. 14. 38. Andrews, Journal of a Lady of Quality, p. 127. 39. Nevis Historical and Conservation Society, RG MG 2.25, Charlestown, Nevis.
40. Emery, Alexander Hamilton, p. 13.
41. The William and Mary Quarterly, April 1952. 42. Ramsing, Alexander Hamilton’s Birth and Parentage, p. 8.
43. Ibid.
44. PAH, vol. 21, p. 77, letter to William Hamilton, May 2, 1797.
45. Ibid.
46. Ibid., vol. 22, p. 223.
47. Tyson and Highfield, Kamina Folk, p. 46.
48. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 31.
49. PAH, vol. 20, p. 458, “From Ann Mitchell” [1796].
50. Ramsing, Alexander Hamilton’s Birth and Parentage, p. 28.
51. PAH, vol. 15, p. 331, “To the College of Physicians,” September 11, 1793.
52. Ibid., vol. 1, p. 369, letter from Edward Stevens, December 23, 1777.
53. MHi-TPP, reel 51.
54. Ibid.
55. Lodge, Alexander Hamilton, p. 286.
Two: Hurricane 1. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 44.
2. NYHS-NPP, “Draft Obituary Notice for Hamilton,” n.d.
3. PAH, vol. 1, p. 4, letter to Edward Stevens, November 11, 1769.
4. Ibid., p. 21, letter to Nicholas Cruger, late 1771 or early 1772.
5. Ibid., p. 23, letter to Tileman Cruger, February 1, 1772.
6. Ibid., p. 24, letter to Captain Newton, February 1, 1772.
7. Royal Danish American Gazette, January 23, 1771.
8. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 39.
9. PAH, vol. 1, p. 7.
10. Proceedings of the New Jersey Historical Society, vol. 69, April 1951.
11. Knox, Letter to the Rev. Mr. Jacob Green, p. 48. 12. PAH, vol. 3, p. 573, letter from Hugh Knox, July 28, 1784.
13. Royal Danish American Gazette, September 9, 1772.
14. Ibid., October 3, 1772.
15. PAH, vol. 3, p. 573, letter from Hugh Knox, July 28, 1784.
16. Royal Danish American Gazette, February 3, 1773.
17. PAH, vol. 26, p. 307, letter to Elizabeth Hamilton, July 10, 1804.
18. Royal Danish American Gazette, May 15, 1773. 19. PAH, vol. 1, p. 147, “The Farmer Refuted,” February 23, 1775.
20. Ibid., vol. 5, p. 125, “New York Ratifying Convention, Third Speech,” June 28, 1788. 21. St. Vincent Registry, deed book for 1784–1787, entered at Grenada on May 27, 1786, but first signed on March 14, 1774.
Three: The Collegian
1. The William and Mary Quarterly, April 1947.
2. The American Historical Review, January 1957.
3. Bowen, Miracle at Philadelphia, p. 65.
4. Burrows and Wallace, Gotham, p. 180.
5. Davis, Memoirs of Aaron Burr, vol. 1, p. 37.
6. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 150.
7. Davis, Memoirs of Aaron Burr, vol. 2, p. 434.
8. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 42.
9. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 468. 10. PAH, vol. 1, p. 43.
11. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 56.
12. Schachner, Alexander Hamilton, p. 25.
13. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 50.
14. Ketcham, James Madison, p. 38.
15. Wills, Explaining America, p. 15.
16. The William and Mary Quarterly, April 1947. 17. Ibid.
18. Ketcham, James Madison, p. 38.
19. Humphreys, Catherine Schuyler, p. 103. 20. The Columbia Monthly, February 1904. 21. Burrows and Wallace, Gotham, p. 214.
22. Van Amringe and Smith, History of Columbia University, p. 53.
23. PAH, vol. 25, p. 560, letter from Gouverneur Morris, March 11, 1802.
24. Parton, Life and Times of Aaron Burr, p. 142. 25. Ibid., pp. 143–44.
26. New York Mirror, n.d. Copy in LC-AHP, reel 31. 27. PAH, vol. 25, p. 436.
28. Ibid., vol. 22, p. 340, letter to Elizabeth Hamilton, December 10, 1798.
29. Ibid., vol. 7, p. 40, letter to George Washington, September 15, 1790.
30. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 47. 31. LC-AHP, reel 30, “Memo of Robert Troup on the Conway Cabal, October 26, 1827.”
32. Tripp, “Robert Troup,” p. 167.
33. Davis, Memoirs of Aaron Burr, vol. 1, p. 307, and Tripp, “Robert Troup,” p. 64.
34. The William and Mary Quarterly, April 1947. 35. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 63.
36. Wood, American Revolution, p. 37.
37. LC-AHP, reel 31, “Robert Troup Memoir of General Hamilton, March 22, 1810.”
38. Hibbert, George III, p. 144.
39. Burrows and Wallace, Gotham, p. 216.
40. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 63.
41. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 56.
42. Callahan, Royal Raiders, p. 139.
&
nbsp; 43. New-York Gazetteer, March 30, 1774.
44. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 53.
45. Columbia University Quarterly, September 1899.
46. New-York Journal; or, The General Advertiser, September 8, 1774.
47. Van Amringe and Smith, History of Columbia University, p. 46.
48. Columbia University Quarterly, September 1899.
49. Tyler, Literary History of the American Revolution, p. 394.
50. Columbia University Quarterly, September 1899.
51. Miller, Alexander Hamilton, p. 9.
52. Callahan, Royal Raiders, p. 143.
53. New-York Gazetteer, January 12, 1775.
54. PAH, vol. 4, p. 613.
55. New-York Gazetteer, December 15, 1774.
56. PAH, vol. 1, p. 65, “A Full Vindication of the Measures of Congress,” December 22, 1774.
57. Ibid., p. 68.
58. Ibid., p. 48.
59. Ibid., p. 50.
60. Ibid., p. 86, “The Farmer Refuted,” February 23, 1775.
61. Ibid., p. 82.
62. Ibid., p. 164.
63. Ibid., p. 122.
64. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 201.
65. PAH, vol. 1, p. 125, “The Farmer Refuted,” February 23, 1775.
66. Ibid., pp. 135–36.
67. Ibid., p. 128.
68. Ibid., pp. 157–58.
69. The William and Mary Quarterly, April 1947.
Four: The Pen and the Sword
1. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 119.
2. Burrows and Wallace, Gotham, p. 223.
3. CU-FFP, box 1818–1828, letter from Nicholas Fish to Timothy Pickering, December 26, 1823.
4. The William and Mary Quarterly, April 1947.
5. Van Amringe and Smith, History of Columbia University, p. 48.
6. O’Brien, Hercules Mulligan, p. 184.
7. LC-AHP, reel 31, letter from Robert Troup to Timothy Pickering, March 27, 1828.
8. Ibid.
9. The Columbia Monthly, February 1904. 10. Callahan, Royal Raiders, p. 139.
11. Gentleman’s Magazine, July 1776.
12. “The Presidents of Columbia,” Columbia University Archives, New York, N.Y.
13. Ferling, John Adams, p. 98.
14. Wood, American Revolution, p. 75.
15. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 142. 16. Wood, American Revolution, p. 74.
17. PAH, vol. 1, p. 174, “Remarks on the Quebec Bill,” June 15, 1775.
18. Wood, American Revolution, p. 53.
19. Maier, American Scripture, p. 24.
20. O’Brien, Hercules Mulligan, p. 182.
21. New-York Journal; or, The General Advertiser, September 1, 1774.
22. Royal Danish American Gazette, April 10, 1776.
23. O’Brien, Hercules Mulligan, p. 184.
24. PAH, vol. 1, pp. 176–77, letter to John Jay, November 26, 1775.
25. LC-AHP, reel 31, “Robert Troup Memoir of General Hamilton, March 22, 1810.”
26. Schachner, Alexander Hamilton, p. 32.
27. “The Monitor No. I,” New-York Journal; or, The General Advertiser, November 9, 1775.
28. “The Monitor No. VII,” New-York Journal; or, The General Advertiser, December 21, 1775.
29. Ibid.
30. “The Monitor No. I,” New-York Journal; or, The General Advertiser, November 9, 1775.
31. “The Monitor No. VIII,” New-York Journal; or, The General Advertiser, December 28, 1775.
32. “The Monitor No. I,” New-York Journal; or, The General Advertiser, November 9, 1775.
33. “The Monitor No. III,” New-York Journal; or, The General Advertiser, November 23, 1775.
34. PAH, vol. 21, p. 77, letter to William Hamilton, May 2, 1797.
35. “Extract of a Letter from a Gentleman in New York, Dated February 18th,” Royal Danish American Gazette, March 20, 1776.
36. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 79.
37. Valentine, Lord Stirling, p. 170.
38. PAH, vol. 23, p. 122, letter to James McHenry, May 18, 1799.
39. Hamilton, Reminiscences of James A. Hamilton, p. 11.
40. PAH, vol. 23, p. 122, letter to James McHenry, May 18, 1799.
41. The William and Mary Quarterly, April 1947.
42. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 150.
43. “Extract of a Letter from a Gentleman in New York, Dated February 18th,” Royal Danish American Gazette, March 20, 1776.
44. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 92.
45. “NEW YORK. Sandy Hook, June 21, 1776,” Royal Danish American Gazette, August 14, 1776.
46. Callahan, Royal Raiders, p. 69.
47. Ibid., p. 73.
48. “Extract of a Letter from New York, June 24,” Royal Danish American Gazette, August 14, 1776.
49. Callahan, Royal Raiders, p. 74.
50. “Extract New York, July 1,” Royal Danish American Gazette, August 28, 1776.
51. Maier, American Scripture, p. 44.
52. Burrows and Wallace, Gotham, p. 227.
53. Ibid., p. 231.
54. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 203. 55. Parton, Life and Times of Aaron Burr, p. 143. 56. The New York Times, July 4, 2003.
57. O’Brien, Hercules Mulligan, p. 183.
58. Schecter, Battle for New York, p. 104.
59. Ibid.
60. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 208. 61. Ibid.
62. Schecter, Battle for New York, p. 150.
63. “Extract of a Letter from New York, August 30,” Royal Danish American Gazette, December 14, 1776.
64. McCullough, John Adams, p. 158.
65. Flexner, Washington, p. 83.
66. O’Brien, Hercules Mulligan, p. 183.
67. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 126.
68. The William and Mary Quarterly, April 1947. 69. McCullough, John Adams, p. 159.
70. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 128.
71. Ibid., p. 133.
Five: The Little Lion
1. Wood, American Revolution, p. 78.
2. Brookhiser, Alexander Hamilton, p. 32.
3. Custis, Recollections and Private Memoirs of Washington, p. 344.
4. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 96.
5. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 229.
6. PAH, vol. 1, p. 200, letter to the Convention of the Representatives of the State of New York, March 6, 1777.
7. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 235.
8. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 137.
9. Ibid.
10. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 132.
11. PAH, vol. 1, p. 195.
12. Brookhiser, Alexander Hamilton, p. 29. 13. PAH, vol. 22, p. 37, letter to George Washington, July 29[–August 1], 1798.
14. Ibid., vol. 1, p. 209, letter to the New York Committee of Correspondence, March 20, 1777. 15. Ibid., vol. 2, p. 359, letter to Hugh Knox, July 1[–28], 1777.
16. Ibid., vol. 1, p. 202, letter to Alexander McDougall, March 10, 1777.
17. Smith, Patriarch, p. 4.
18. The Wall Street Journal, February 10, 2000. 19. Custis, Recollections and Private Memoirs of Washington, p. 214.
20. Ferling, John Adams, p. 136.
21. McCullough, John Adams, p. 593.
22. Smith, Patriarch, p. 8.
23. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 108.
24. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 177.
25. Steiner, Life and Correspondence of James McHenry, p. 572.
26. MHi-TPP, reel 51, p. 189.
27. PAH, vol. 1, p. 255, letter to Gouverneur Morris, May 19, 1777.
28. Kaminski, George Clinton, p. 21.
29. Custis, Recollections and Private Memoirs of Washington, pp. 345–46.
30. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 143.
31. Ibid., p. 146.
32. Ibid., p. 148.
> 33. Otis, Eulogy on Alexander Hamilton, p. 7.
34. Graydon, Memoirs of His Own Time, p. 276.
35. Hamilton, Life of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 1, p. 170.
36. Graydon, Memoirs of His Own Time, p. 277.
37. PAH, vol. 3, p. 150, letter to Richard Kidder Meade, August 27, 1782.
38. Ibid., vol. 1, p. 551, letter from James McHenry, September 21, 1778.
39. Ibid., vol. 2, pp. 53–54, letter to John Laurens, May 22, 1779.
40. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 149.
41. Ibid.
42. Ibid.
43. PAH, vol. 1, p. 225, letter to Catharine Livingston, April 11, 1777.
44. Ibid., p. 259, letter to Catharine Livingston, May 1777.
45. Wallace, Life of Henry Laurens, p. 470.
46. PAH, vol. 2, p. 17, letter to John Jay, March 14, 1799.
47. CU-JCHP, box 20.
48. Hamilton, Intimate Life of Alexander Hamilton, p. 245.
49. Lafayette, Lafayette in the American Revolution, vol. 3, p. 302.
50. Emery, Alexander Hamilton, p. 244.
51. Baxter, Godchild of Washington, p. 225.
52. Van Doren, Benjamin Franklin, p. 578.
53. Wilson and Stanton, Jefferson Abroad, p. 123.
54. PAH, vol. 2, p. 321.
55. Hamilton, Intimate Life of Alexander Hamilton, p. 245.
56. Lafayette, Lafayette in the American Revolution, vol. 3, p. 310.
57. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 316.
58. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 253.
59. Flexner, Young Hamilton, pp. 166–67.
60. Gerlach, Proud Patriot, p. 309.
61. PAH, vol. 1, p. 314, letter to Robert R. Livingston, August 18, 1777.
62. Ibid., p. 285, letter to John Jay, July 5, 1777.
63. Ibid., p. 300, letter to Hugh Knox, July 1777.
64. Ibid., p. 321, letter to Gouverneur Morris, September 1, 1777.
65. Ibid., pp. 326–27.
66. Ellis, Passionate Sage, p. 111.
67. PAH, vol. 1, p. 330, letter from George Washington, September 21, 1777.
68. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 121.
69. Bobrick, Angel in the Whirlwind, p. 244. 70. Flexner, Young Hamilton, p. 185.
71. PAH, vol. 1, p. 347, letter from George Washington, October 30, 1777.
72. Ibid.
73. Ibid., p. 350, letter to George Washington, November 2, 1777.
74. Ibid., p. 351, letter to Horatio Gates, November 5, 1777.
75. Ibid., p. 353, letter to George Washington, November 6, 1777.
76. Ibid., vol. 2, p. 36, letter to John Laurens, April 1779. 77. Mitchell, Alexander Hamilton: Youth to Maturity, p. 138.
78. Gerlach, Proud Patriot, p. 304.
