William H. Sumner

William Hyslop Sumner was born on July 4 1780 in Roxbury, Massachusetts, United States. He was the son of Increase Sumner who sat on the Supreme Court of Massachusetts and acted as the Governor of Massachusetts. W H Sumner graduated from Harvard University in 1799. He served as a General in the US Army. Sumner died in 1861.

War of 1812

In September, 1814 Massachusetts Governor Caleb Strong sent Lieutenant Colonel William H. Sumner to coordinate the defense of Portland which had been burned by the British in 1775. His task was to maintain 1900 militia and create a better relationship between the Massachusetts militia and the U.S. Army forces posted there. There were many problems with the early American militia

“Some of the men where deserting and had to be brought back by force and some officers where protesting against serving under regulars. The militia in Oxford county where even more troublesome……….its militia showed little interest in making sacrifices for war. According to Sumner, they were “undisciplined, badly armed, miserably provided and worse commanded.” ,,,,,, Sumner could see no way of implementing a command agreement except by using force, which meant using militia against militia.” the war of 1812: A forgotten conflict, Donald R. Hickey, published by University of Illinois Press 1990,Pg265, ISBN 0-252-06059-8]

In 1826 he served on a board with a young Zachary Taylor to consider improvements in the militia. They recommended that “a complete system of tactics and exercise for cavalry and artillery of the militia” be created. This would organize the US militia who where so disjointed during the war of 1812. Congress however did not approve this plan.Zachary Taylor: Soldier, Planter, Statesman of the Old Southwest(Southern Biography), Jack K. Bauer, Louisiana State University Press; Reprint 1993, Pg 46]

East Boston

William Sumner’s largest accomplishment was his ceaseless effort to develop several islands in Boston Harbor. This undertaking created what is now known as East Boston. During the development, Sumner founded several companies, including the East Boston Company and The East Boston Lumber Company.

Sumner's East Boston Lumber company was renowned for having the best Lumber in Massachusetts and supplied a building boom in Boston. It also fueled the ship building trade that employed much of East Boston at the turn of the Century.

The East Boston Company under the presidency of Sumner laid out the first planned neighborhood in the city of Boston. It also undertook one of the largest landfill projects the city had seen.

William H Sumner is also known for being the founder of the Massachusetts Horticultural society. In tribute to his tireless work for East Boston the Sumner Tunnel that runs under the Boston Harbor from East Boston to Boston bears his name. In Jamaica Plain Sumner Hill and in Cambridge Mass Sumner Street near Harvard University are also named for Sumner.

References

External links

* [http://www.jphs.org/people/2005/4/14/gen-william-hyslop-sumner.html Jamaica Plain Historical Society]