Working Class History Test

T. C. Frank wedelbe at gsbalum.uchicago.edu
Fri Jul 23 06:41:08 PDT 1999


Tom Lehman asked about George Washington's personal wealth.

By the time of the Washington administration, certainly the richest man in the U.S. was William Duer, the speculator. He was also the under-secretary of the Treasury, and got caught up before very long in all sorts of scandals. I believe he was the one who embezzled the funds for Hamilton's famous industrial project in Paterson, New Jersey.

I don't know if Duer was the richest at the time of the Revolution. I doubt it.

Tom Frank



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