Artemas Ward Artemas Ward ( November 26 , 1727 – October 28 , 1800 ) was an American major general in the American Revolutionary War and a Congressman from Massachusetts . President John Adams described him as " " . . . universally esteemed , beloved and confided in by his army and his country . " " He was considered an effective political leader . Early life and career . Artemas was born at Shrewsbury , Massachusetts , in 1727 to Nahum ( 1684 – 1754 ) and Martha ( Howe ) Ward . He was the sixth of seven children . His father had broad and successful career interests as a sea captain , merchant , land developer , farmer , lawyer and jurist . As a child he attended the common schools and shared a tutor with his brothers and sisters . He graduated from Harvard in 1748 and taught there briefly . On July 31 , 1750 , he married Sarah Trowbridge ( December 3 , 1724 – December 13 , 1788 ) , the daughter of Reverend Caleb Trowbridge and Hannah Trowbridge of Groton , Massachusetts . The young couple returned to Shrewsbury where Artemas opened a general store . In the next fifteen years they would have eight children : Ithamar in 1752 , Nahum ( 1754 ) , Sara ( 1756 ) , Thomas ( 1758 ) , Artemas Jr . ( 1762 ) , Henry Dana ( 1768 ) , Martha ( 1760 ) and Maria ( 1764 ) . The next year , 1751 , he was named a township assessor for Worcester County . This was the first of many public offices he was to fill . Artemas was elected a justice of the peace in 1752 and also served the first of his many terms in the Massachusetts Bay Colony ' s assembly , or " general court . " French and Indian War . In 1755 the militia was restructured for the war , and Artemas Ward was made a major in the 3rd Regiment which mainly came from Worcester County . They served as garrison forces along the frontier in western Massachusetts . This duty called him at intervals between 1755 and 1757 , and alternated with his attendance at the General Court . In 1757 he was made the colonel of the 3rd Regiment or the militia of Middlesex and " Worchester " Counties . In 1758 the regiment marched with Abercrombie ' s force to Fort Ticonderoga . Ward himself was sidelined during the battle by an " attack of the stone . " Prelude to revolution . By 1762 Ward had completely returned to Shrewsbury and was named to the Court of Common Pleas . In the General Court he was placed on the taxation committee along with Samuel Adams and John Hancock . On the floor , he was second only to James Otis in speaking out against the acts of parliament . His prominence in these debates prompted the Royal Governor Francis Bernard to revoke his military commission in 1767 . At the next election in 1768 , Bernard voided the election results for Worcester and banned Ward from the assembly , but this didn ' t silence him . In the growing sentiment favoring rebellion , the 3rd Regiment resigned " en masse " from British service on October 3 , 1774 . They then marched on Shrewsbury to inform Colonel Ward that they had unanimously elected him their leader . Later that month the governor abolished the assembly . The towns of Massachusetts responded by setting up a colony - wide Committee of Safety . One of the first actions of the Committee was to name Ward as general and commander - in - chief of the colony ' s militia . The Army of Observation . Following the Battle of Lexington and Concord on April 19 , 1775 , the rebels followed the British back to Boston and started the siege of the city . At first Ward directed his forces from his sickbed , but later moved his headquarters to Cambridge . Soon , the New Hampshire and Connecticut provisional governments both named him head of their forces participating in the siege . Most of his efforts during this time were devoted to organization and supply problems . Additional British forces arrived in May , and in June Ward learned of their plan to attack Bunker Hill . He gave orders to fortify the point , setting the stage for the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17 , 1775 . Command during the battle devolved upon General Israel Putnam and Colonel William Prescott . Service in the Continental Army . Meanwhile , the Continental Congress was creating a Continental Army . On June 17 they commissioned Artemas Ward a major general , and second in command to George Washington . Ward was one of the original four major generals in the Continental Army along with Charles Lee , Philip Schuyler and Israel Putnam . Over the next nine months he helped convert the assembled militia units into the Continental Army . After the British evacuation on March 17 , 1776 , Washington led the main army to New York City . Ward took command of the Eastern Department on April 4 , 1776 . He held that post until March 20 , 1777 , when his health forced his resignation from the army . Politics : Life after war . Even during his military service , Artemas served as a state court justice in 1776 and 1777 . He was President of the state ' s Executive Council from 1777 – 1779 , which effectively made him the governor before the 1780 ratification of the Massachusetts Constitution . He was continuously elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives for each year from 1779 through 1785 . He also served as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1780 and 1781 . Ward was the Speaker of the Massachusetts House in 1785 . He was elected twice to the United States House of Representatives , serving from 1791 to 1795 . Artemas died at his home in Shrewsbury on October 28 , 1800 , and is buried with Sarah in Mountain View Cemetery . His great - grandson , Artemas Ward wrote " The Grocer ' s Encyclopedia " ( published in 1911 ) . Legacy . Artemas Ward House . Artemas ' s lifelong home had been built by his father , Nahum , about the time Artemas was born . The home is now known as the " Artemas Ward House " and is a museum preserved by Harvard University . Located at 786 Main Street in Shrewsbury , Massachusetts it is open to the public for limited hours during the summer months . Ward Circle . Ward Circle is a traffic circle at the intersection of Nebraska Avenue and Massachusetts Avenue in Northwest Washington , D . C . . The land on three sides of Ward Circle is owned by American University . The circle contains a statue of Artemas Ward . The great - grandson of Artemas Ward gave over four million dollars to Harvard University on the condition that they erect a statue in honor of Ward , and maintain his home in Shrewsbury . Harvard ’ s initial offer in 1927 of $ 50 , 000 toward the statue was enough for a statue , but inadequate to provide the general with a horse . The statue was completed in 1938 . Although there is no pedestrian access to the circle , the base of the statue bears this inscription : ARTEMAS WARD , 1727 - 1800 , SON OF MASSACHUSETTS , GRADUATE OF HARVARD COLLEGE , JUDGE AND LEGISLATOR , DELEGATE 1780 - 1781 TO THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS , SOLDIER OF THREE WARS , FIRST COMMANDER OF THE PATRIOT FORCES American University . American University named the home of the American University School of Public Affairs , being the closest building at the time to Ward Circle in honor of Artemas Ward . References .