|
BINGHAM,
WILLIAM
was (1752-1804) a wealthy
and influential Philadelphia banker and a financier during the Revolutionary
War, a United States Senator, and an owner of great tracts of land in Maine,
once totaling two million acres. He was also the founder of the country's
first Bank in 1781.
In 1786 he secured
the Bingham Purchase, in two tracts, from Massachusetts. Each comprised
1,000,000 acres. The first, or Bingham Penobscot Purchase, was located
in Washington and Hancock counties. Somerset County was the site of his
second or Kennebec Purchase, including the current town of Bingham. Bingham
survived the financial panic of 1797 and remained a powerful financial and
political force. Nearly a decade after Bingham's death, President John
Adams "charged that the Presidency, the Capital and the Country has really
been governed by Bingham and his family connections." (Isaacson,
p. 382) Additional
resources
Alberts, Robert C.
The Golden Voyage. |