Peleg Wadsworth

Background

Peleg Wadsworth was born on May 6, 1748, in Duxbury, Massachusetts, United States, the son of Peleg Wadsworth and Lusanna (Sampson) Wadsworth. He was a descendant of Christopher Wadsworth, an early English settler of Duxbury (1632).

Education

Wadsworth graduated from Harvard College in 1769.

Career

Peleg Wadsworth began his professional life as a teacher, operating a private school in Plymouth where he prepared students for college and military service.

With the growing tensions preceding the American Revolutionary War, Wadsworth became actively involved in local militia organization. In 1774 he was elected captain of a company of minutemen and served on the Committee of Correspondence of Plymouth County, an important political body coordinating colonial resistance.

In April 1775, following news of the Battle of Lexington, Wadsworth marched with his company to Marshfield to confront British forces, although no engagement occurred. He subsequently served as an engineer under General John Thomas, helping design American defensive positions at Roxbury and Dorchester Heights, and examined coastal defenses at Cape Cod.

In February 1776, Wadsworth was appointed aide-de-camp to General Artemas Ward. Later that year he served under General George Washington in New York and on Long Island, and in 1778 under General John Sullivan in the Rhode Island campaign.

On August 25, 1778, he was appointed adjutant general of the Massachusetts militia, and on July 7, 1779, was promoted to brigadier general. During this period, Wadsworth also participated in the Massachusetts Board of War and served as a representative from Duxbury in the state legislature (1777–1778).

In 1779, Wadsworth served as second in command in the Penobscot Expedition, an unsuccessful attempt to expel British forces from Fort George in present-day Castine, Maine. A subsequent inquiry cleared him of responsibility for the failed operation.

In 1780, he was placed in command of the Eastern Department of Massachusetts with headquarters at Thomaston, Maine. In February 1781, British forces raided his residence and captured him, holding him at Fort George. Wadsworth later escaped in June 1781 by cutting through the roof of his prison with a tool he had obtained, demonstrating notable resourcefulness.

After the war, Wadsworth settled in Falmouth (now Portland), Maine, where he engaged in business and public affairs. He served as a selectman and remained active in regional politics, including participation in discussions concerning the separation of Maine from Massachusetts.

Wadsworth was elected as a Federalist to the United States House of Representatives, serving from the Third through the Ninth Congresses (1793–1807). His congressional career reflected the political integration of the District of Maine within Massachusetts prior to Maine’s statehood.

In 1806, he moved to Oxford County, Maine, where he owned extensive land holdings (approximately 7,800 acres) and contributed to the incorporation of the town of Hiram. There he spent his later years managing agricultural and civic affairs. His residence, known as Wadsworth Hall, served multiple community functions, including religious, judicial, educational, and militia activities.

Achievements

• Wadsworth’s residence in Portland, Maine, was later designated a National Historic Landmark due to its historical significance and association with both Wadsworth and his distinguished descendants.

Works

More photos

• book

  • A Story About a Little Good Boy: How He Became a Great Man and Had Little Good Boys of His Own (Classic Reprint)

    (Ninety-six years ago this story was written in the city o...)

  • Letters of General Peleg Wadsworth to His Son John, Student at Harvard College, 1796-1798

    (Introduction By Walter G. Davis.)

  • Letters of General Peleg Wadsworth to His Son John, Student at Harvard College, 1796-1798

Membership

Wadsworth was a member of the Committee of Correspondence of Plymouth County and served in the Massachusetts Senate in 1792.

Connections

Peleg Wadsworth married Elizabeth Bartlett on June 18, 1772. They had eleven children, including Zilpah Wadsworth, the mother of poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

Father:

Deacon Peleg Wadsworth

Mother:

Lusanna Sampson

Spouse:

Elizabeth Bartlett