American Founding Father and politician
John Collins
(June 8, 1717
[1]
– March 4, 1795), was an American politician and a
Founding Father of the United States
who, as a member of the
Continental Congress
, signed the
Articles of Confederation
. He was the
third governor
of the U.S. state of
Rhode Island
from 1786 to 1790.
Early life
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Born in
Newport
in the
Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
, he was the son of Samuel and Elizabeth Collins.
Political life
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He stood forth as a staunch advocate of the independence of the
Thirteen Colonies
. An admirer of
George Washington
, he was selected by the governor of Rhode Island in 1776 to carry a letter to Washington informing him of the condition of the colony and soliciting counsel upon the best method to adopt for its defense. In 1778, Collins represented Rhode Island in the
Second Continental Congress
, where he served until May 1781, when he was superseded by
William Ellery
. He was, however, re-elected in 1782 and held the position until 1783.
In 1782, he was made bearer to the
President of Congress
of a statement of Rhode Island's reasons for rejecting the Impost Act. During the
American Revolution
, Rhode Island was for the most part an agricultural area, and as such opposed the restrictions of a national government. The state's agricultural interests vigorously advocated a paper currency. Collins espoused their cause and in 1786 was elected governor. During his term in office, the issuance of paper money, which had been ceased at intervals since 1750, was resumed. It was provided by law that should any creditor refuse to accept the bills of the state the debtor might secure a discharge by depositing the amount of his debt with one of the judges of the state superior court or the court of common pleas. This law led to the suit of
Trevett vs. Weeden
, which resulted in a decision looking toward the right of courts to declare legislative enactments unconstitutional.
[2]
Rhode Island's ratification of the U.S. Constitution
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When Washington was inaugurated as
President of the United States
on April 30, 1789, Rhode Island was one of only two of the thirteen original states (along with
North Carolina
) not to have ratified the United States Constitution and was, technically speaking, an independent nation with Collins as it chief of state.
Anti-Federalist
elements in Rhode Island vigorously fought against the calling of a convention to decide upon entering the Federal Union, but on January 17, 1790, gave its sanction to such a call by a majority of one vote in the General Assembly. This vote was cast by Collins, who had come to realize the importance of a Federal connection. The vote cost him his popularity and the governorship. He left office on May 5, 1790. The Rhode Island General Assembly ratified the
United States Constitution
on May 29. Later in 1790, Collins was elected to the
1st Congress
but did not take his seat.
Personal life
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Collins was married to Mary, daughter of John Avery of Boston, and his daughter Abigail married
John Warren
. Collins died at Newport and was buried on his farm, "
Brenton Neck
", near Brenton Point in that city. His grandson and
namesake
,
John Collins Covell
(1823?1887), was a principal of the
Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind
and
West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind
. The Rhode Island Society of the
Sons of the Revolution
holds an annual observance of Rhode Island Independence Day (May 4) at Governor Collins' grave. John Collins was a close friend of Benjamin Franklin when he was young. John Collins and Benjamin Franklin unfortunately broke off their friendship after trouble due to money, as detailed in
The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin 1771-1790
.
Notes
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- ^
The
Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
states June 8, while the
Dictionary of American Biography states November 1.
- ^
Richman, I. B.,
Rhode Island, A Study in Separatism
, 1905, pp. 78?81.
References
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