Henry Knox Biography

Dromo's Den

KNOX, Henry (1750-1800 ). An American soldier, prominent in the Revolutionary War. He was born in Boston, where he was engaged in business as a bookseller from 1770 to 1775. He entered the Continental army immediately after the battle of Lexington, served as aid to General Ward at the battle of Bunker Hill and during the siege of Boston, and distinguished himself by procuring from Lake George and the Canadian frontier a large number of cannon, which were used by Washington in fortifying Dorchester Heights. For this he was made a brigadier general of artillery by Congress. At Trenton and Princeton he served with great distinction and was prominent in the battles of Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth and at Yorktown. He became major general in 1781, was one of the commissioners appointed in 1782 to negotiate the exchange of prisoners, and in 1783 was delegated by Washington to receive the surrender of New York. From December, 1783, until June, 1784, he was the senior officer of the United States army. From 1785 to 1795 he was Secretary of War, having charge for a time of the Navy Department as well, and then removed first to St. Georges and later to Thomaston, Me., where he died. Knox was not a man of great ability, though he seems to have possessed the entire confidence of Washington. As an officer, he was conspicuous for his bravery, his skill in handling artillery, and his tireless energy. Consult Drake, Life and Correspondence of Henry Knox (Boston, 1873), and Brooks, Henry Knox: A Soldier of the Revolution, in the "American Men of Energy Series" (New York, 1900).

The New International Encyclopaedia, Vol. XIII (New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1920) 310.