Our First Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton

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Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers, is regarded as the architect of American capitalism.  Born in the Caribbean around 1755, he was orphaned while still young and worked as a clerk as a young man. His writing talent caught the attention of local patrons who sent him to New York to get more formal education.

Hamilton joined the Continental Army when the Revolutionary War began, became an aide to George Washington, and later commanded a battalion at the Battle of Yorktown.

Hamilton wrote 51 of the 85 essays in the Federalist Papers. These essays were critical in building support for the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. He also played a major role at the Constitutional Convention with his compelling support for a strong federal government.

After the Revolutionary War many of the states had their own currency which created confusion and made trade between the states difficult. Hamilton built the entire U.S. financial system from scratch. As our first Secretary of the Treasury Hamilton created the Bank of the United States, established the U.S. Mint, and designed the system of federal taxation. He also engineered the federal assumption of state debts which stabilized our young nation’s credit.

A long-standing political rival of Hamilton was Aaron Burr. This rivalry was fueled by personal animosity and political opposition, especially after Hamilton defeated Burr in the 1804 race for governor of New York. The rivalry culminated in a duel that Burr won when he shot Hamilton in the abdomen resulting in Hamilton’s death the following day.

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