Talk:Henry Laurens

message: I removed the following portion:
:Some aspects of the life of Henry Laurens were used in creating the fictional character Benjamin Martin in the 2000 motion picture The Patriot. Like Martin, he maintained a residence in Charleston and was a reluctant rebel. While he didn't see military service, his home was burned and his oldest son died in battle.
This seems to be OR; I can't find any reference to it elsewhere. The The Patriot article says "Benjamin Martin is a combination of Brig. Gen. Francis "Swamp Fox" Marion and Col. Daniel Morgan," And this website  makes no mention of Henry Laurens. The facts that his house burned and his son died in battle seem to coincidental and common to the era. Also, as president of the continental congress, I highly doubt he was a reluctant rebel. Anyway, if there is actual evidence that Henry Laurens was an inspiration for the character, please source and reinsert. —pfahlstrom 01:51, 16 August 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  The Patriot? 

message: The sentences regarding John Laurens's plan to enlist slaves in the armed services, as an eventual step to freedom, were essentially true but exaggerated so I toned them down and added a reference.  I have never seen evidence that Henry Laurens supported this plan.  His letters about it to his son are gentle, but make it clear that he did not think it was likely to succeed.  Needless to say, most other South Carolina property-holders found the plan laughable.  Drfryer 22:09, 18 September 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  John Laurens's plan to free slaves 

message: "Henry was born to John and Esther Grasset Laurens in Charleston, South Carolina. According to the Julian calendar, Laurens was born on February 24, 1724; according to the Gregorian calendar, which was adopted in Britain and its colonies during Laurens' lifetime, he was born on March 6, 1724."
*How can this be explained please?Zigzig20s 19:21, 25 March 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: What is to explain? Have you looked at the linked articles for Julian calendar and Gregorian calendar or the related Old Style and New Style dates? England began using a different calendar in 1752. In American history, tradition is to convert the dates to the new style. Laurens was born on February 24 old style. The conversion to the new style means adding eleven days, hence March 6. (1724 was a leap year, so there was a February 29.) The only questionable aspect as far as I'm concerned is the year. In addition to adding eleven days, the change to the new calendar also changed the beginning of the new year. Prior to the change in England and English colonies, the new year began on March 25. After the change the new year began on January 1. While there are reliable sources that give February 24 as his birth date, I've not come across any that give the year as 1723. older ≠ wiser 21:31, 25 March 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  birth 

message: Laurens never made it to Holland to negotiate a loan. He was captured by the British on 3 September 1780, en route to Holland and was replaced by John Adams.Fightinchickin (talk) 21:54, 23 January 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Capture by British 

message: If he was born in 1724 and died in 1792 he was obviously not 71 when he died. Don't know how to fix it, though.Closedthursday (talk) 18:57, 18 September 2015 (UTC)
replies: text: I mean, you could edit it.  (talk) 20:23, 1 January 2017 (UTC)
thread_title:  Age at death 

message: There appears to be a question over sourcing on the main page about Laurens' cremation. Stephen Prothero's book Purified by Fire: A History of Cremation in America on page 9 has Henry Laurens was first black European to be cremated in the United States. AnneofKeys (talk) 08:15, 22 February 2021 (UTC)
thread_title:  First Caucasian Cremated in the US? 

message: In legal parlance, one does NOT bequeath real property.  The term bequeath is reserved for transferring personal property.  If the author wishes to use the legal word for transferring real property, it is "devise."  Thus, consider the WAS and RECOMMENDED:
WAS:
This took place in the company of Richard Oswald.[3] John Laurens died in 1747, bequeathing a considerable estate to 23-year-old Henry.[2]
RECOMMENDED:
This took place in the company of Richard Oswald.[3] John Laurens died in 1747, devising a considerable estate to 23-year-old Henry.[2] Danhegner (talk) 10:52, 27 September 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: Not done: This language matches the source used. ScottishFinnishRadish (talk) 11:55, 28 September 2021 (UTC)
thread_title:  Semi-protected edit request on 27 September 2021 

message: The first paragraph of this section is taken word for word from its source, Encyclopedia.com, as is most of the second paragraph. I came across this in researching Henry's background and believe the source may not be correct. According to Wallace's biography, Henry's grandfather was Jean Laurent (an early spelling) and his father was Andre. The Encyclopedia.com bio says the grandfather's name was Andre. So this needs to be sorted out, which I'll do as time allows. Meanwhile, I've applied a copyright violation template to the first paragraph. Allreet (talk) 19:38, 25 April 2022 (UTC)
replies: text: The confusion stems from the Laurens being French and then the fact that some of their names were anglicized. Henry's grandfather was Andrew, originally André; his father John, originally Jean. Their original surname was Laurent. I believe the forename translations are notable enough to mention because their French heritage sets Henry apart from the other founders who were predominantly Anglo-Scotch-Irish. I don't know if this influenced his politics in anyway, though that bears looking into. The family's transition from France to New York to Charleston is also worth mentioning, and more detail is needed on Henry's business career, particularly regarding his firm's involvement in the slave trade. Allreet (talk) 03:13, 26 April 2022 (UTC)
thread_title:  Early Life section: possible plagiarism 

message: This article may have copyright violations, but it may be the websites used Wikipedia instead of the author using those sources. What should I do?  Helloheart  (talk) 22:09, 15 September 2022 (UTC)
thread_title:  Propose for Deletion? 

message: I’ve added a brief description to the Commons file giving the date of the portrait and the fact that it is a crop of a full length painting. That painting can be viewed at the following link:
https://npg.si.edu/object/npg_NPG.65.45?destination=edan-search/default_search%3Fedan_local%3D1%26edan_q%3D%2525E2%252580%25259CHenry%252Blaurens%2525E2%252580%25259D
Could someone with the skills figure out a shorter URL for that and add it as a reference to the caption? Humphrey Tribble (talk) 05:47, 22 September 2023 (UTC)
replies: text: Done. Thanks for the direction on improving the article , and LMK if you need anything else. jengod (talk) 06:38, 22 September 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  Source for Copley portrait 

message: The northwest Iowa town of Laurens also was named after Henry Laurens, and his son John. Robert Elliott Flickinger (1904), The Pioneer History of Pocahontas County, Iowa. G. Sanborn. pp. 752. 134.197.0.22 (talk) 20:20, 18 April 2024 (UTC)
thread_title:  Laurens, Iowa