Morris, Robert (1735-1806), a Pennsylvania merchant and banker, was one of six people who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. Morris became one of the wealthiest people in the American Colonies. He raised great amounts of money to support the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War in America (1775-1783). Because of this, he was known as “the financier of the American Revolution.”
Morris was born in or near Liverpool, England, on Jan. 31, 1735 (Jan. 20, 1734, according to the calendar then in use). He came to the American Colonies at the age of 13. Morris’s energy and intelligence helped him become an important member of a Philadelphia shipping and banking firm at the age of 20.
From 1775 to 1778, Morris served in the Second Continental Congress. This congress adopted the Declaration of Independence in 1776. He was superintendent of finance of the United States from 1781 to 1784. The treasury of the new country had all but collapsed because of the Revolutionary War in America. Morris improved the unsettled financial condition by establishing the Bank of North America, which opened in 1782. Through Morris’s efforts, the Continental Army had supplies and money that helped it win a decisive victory in the Battle of Yorktown. This victory ensured the success of the revolution.
After the war, Morris expanded his fortune through commercial and real estate undertakings. He attended almost every session of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 but played a minor role. Morris represented Pennsylvania as a United States senator from 1789 to 1795. By the time he left the Senate, Morris had invested heavily in unsettled land throughout the nation. By the late 1790’s, however, his credit had collapsed. Morris was sent to debtor’s prison in 1798. He was released in 1801 and spent the last years of his life living in near poverty. He died on May 8, 1806.
