Quarrelsome Patriot

This First Patriot is among the many who served their country in diverse and remarkable ways - yet today, they remain virtually unknown to most Americans. These same Americans can recite trivial details about sports or, worse, reality TV. So, wipe the mindless pop culture from your thoughts and take a few minutes to focus on one of the unsung founders of the American republic.

Early Life & Militia Service

One of nine children, Timothy Pickering was born in Salem, Massachusetts, on July 17, 1745. His father was a successful farmer. Pickering attended Harvard College, where he studied law and became a licensed attorney. However, he chose not to practice law and instead became a local civil servant. In 1774, he was appointed register of deeds in Essex. Soon after, he was elected to represent Salem in the Massachusetts General Court and served as a justice on the Essex County Court of Common Pleas. On April 8, 1776, he married Rebecca White of Salem. He became a notable local Whig during the years leading up to the American Revolution. Like many other New England men, he joined the local militia. By 1775, Pickering had risen to the rank of colonel in the Essex County Militia, and in February of that year, he and his men successfully held off a column of British regulars under Colonel Alexander Leslie (see the Yankee Doodle Spies post on Leslie). "Leslie's Retreat" became one of the key events leading to war with Britain. In April that year, open conflict broke out between the colonists and their king. Pickering served with the army assembled around Boston. Recognizing the need for improved standards among the various colonial forces, he published "An Easy Plan for Discipline for a Militia." This manual functioned as the American army's drill guide until the arrival of General Friedrich von Steuben's renowned Blue Book.

Despite his "retreat" Alexander Leslie became
one of the better British generals of the
War for Independence

A Continental Adjutant General

Pickering eventually accepted a commission in the Continental Army—George Washington's response to the British regulars. He played a notable role in the hectic campaigns in New York and New Jersey during 1776. In December 1776, he led a well-trained regiment of the Essex County militia to New York, where General George Washington took notice and offered Pickering the position of adjutant general of the Continental Army in 1777. In this role, he oversaw the construction of the Great Chain, which was forged at Stirling Iron Works. The chain prevented the Royal Navy from advancing up the Hudson River past West Point and protected the crucial fort from attack throughout the conflict. He was widely praised for his efforts in supplying the troops during the remainder of the war. Pickering took over from General Horatio Gates, a former British officer. He served effectively as Adjutant during the Battle of Germantown in October of that year.

The Stirling Iron Works chain blocked the Hudson

A Continental Quartermaster General

Not long after, Congress appointed him to the newly created Board of War. He performed dual roles, continuing to serve as Washington's Adjutant General while helping organize overall war management. Over time, Pickering distanced himself from Washington and focused more on the functions of the Board of War. Around this period, he also became involved with the infamous Conway Cabal, but the cabal dissolved, and Pickering continued his service. In fact, his abilities soon earned him the most difficult post in the entire war effort—except for Washington's. In the summer of 1780, he took over as Quartermaster General, replacing General Nathanael Greene, while still serving on the Board of War. Supplying the needs of the ragged, yet growing, Continental Army was undoubtedly the greatest challenge facing Washington, and the burden of this impossible task largely fell on the shoulders of the Quartermaster General. Nobody wanted this job. The stubbornness of the states frustrated Congress's efforts to raise funds for food, clothing, and equipment necessary to keep the army going. Dishonest contractors and vendors were common—selling substandard supplies for quick profits. But Pickering took it on. Due to shortages of gold and silver, he pioneered the use of "specie certificates" to buy food and supplies. One of his notable achievements was organizing the food and supplies for the Continental Army's epic 1781 march from New York to Yorktown, Virginia. In that sense, he was a pioneer in logistics. The campaign was crucial in forcing the British government to enter negotiations. Pickering remained Quartermaster General for the rest of the war.

Pickering's logistics enabled the long march to Yorktown

A Servant of the Republic

After a period of controversial land speculation in Pennsylvania, Pickering had a turbulent post-war career in public service, holding successive appointments under George Washington. These included the Postmaster General, the Secretary of War, and the Secretary of State. Like Washington, Pickering helped establish the new republic and set precedents for how the cabinet functioned. In 1791, Washington asked him to negotiate a key treaty with the New York Iroquois under the great chief Corn-Planter. Pickering successfully negotiated what became the Treaty of Canandaigua in 1794.

Pickering allied with 
Hamilton's Federalists.

When John Adams succeeded Washington as president, he asked Pickering to stay on. Pickering did, but he was strongly anti-France and pro-Britain. This put him at odds with Adams, who was trying to avoid war with the French Republic. Politically, Pickering shifted into the camp of fiery New York politician and former cabinet member Alexander Hamilton. He conspired with others against Adams and was eventually dismissed in May 1800. In 1802, the contentious Pickering and a group of Federalists, upset about the lack of support for Federalists, attempted to gain support for the secession of New England from the Jeffersonian United States. It did not go well.

Pickering in the Cabinet

A Partisan in Congress

Despite, or perhaps because of his efforts, he was appointed to the United States Senate as a senator from Massachusetts in 1803, representing the Federalist Party. Pickering proved to be a staunch Federalist, fiercely opposing Thomas Jefferson and later James Madison in their populist initiatives. He opposed the American seizure and annexation of Spanish West Florida in 1810—anything to counter the expansionist policies of the Democrats was fair game to him. He fought strongly against the Embargo Act, calling for its nullification and even colluding with the British. His extreme agitation led him to read confidential documents on the Senate floor—an act that resulted in his censure. After his term as senator ended, Pickering was elected to Congress in 1812. Like most New England Federalists, Pickering opposed the War of 1812 with England and became a leader in the New England separatist movement.

The Embargo Act engendered much polemic and satire

Post-Public Life

Denied re-election in 1816, the passionate, controversial, and often quarrelsome Pickering retired to private life on a farm near Salem, where he pioneered improvements in agriculture. He died in Salem in January 1829, leaving a legacy of pugnacious and relentless public service as an effective military and civilian administrator who helped create and build a new nation. However, he was also one of the original proponents of factionalism, as well as partisan and regional struggles within the political arena.

Salem MA waterfront