Aaron Burr

Official Portrait, 1802

**3rd President of the United States**

**3rd Vice President of the United States**

**1st Governor of Pennsylvania**

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Newark, New Jersey

**Aaron Burr Jr.** (February 6th, 1756 - July 12th, 1804) was an American Politican, lawyer, and veteran from New Jersey who served as the 3rd President of the United States between 1798-1804, the 3rd Vice President of the United States between 1797-1798, and the Governor of Pennslyvania from 1789-1797. In 1804 he was shot dead by his incumbent Vice President Alexander Hamilton in a duel.

### Early Life

Aaron Burr Jr. was born in 1756 in Newark, New Jersey, as the second child of the Reverend Aaron Burr Sr., a Presbyterian minister and second president of the College of New Jersey, which became Princeton University. His mother Esther Edwards Burr was the daughter of noted theologian Jonathan Edwards and his wife Sarah. Burr had an older sister Sarah ("Sally"), who was named for her maternal grandmother. She married Tapping Reeve, founder of the Litchfield Law School in Litchfield, Connecticut.

Burr's father died in 1757 while serving as president of the college at Princeton. Burr's grandfather, Jonathan Edwards, succeeded Burr's father as president and came to live with Burr and his mother in December 1757. Edwards died in March 1758 and Burr's mother, and grandmother also died within the year, leaving Burr and his sister orphans when he was two years old. Young Aaron and Sally were then placed with the William Shippen family in Philadelphia. In 1759, the children's guardianship was assumed by their 21-year-old maternal uncle Timothy Edwards. The next year, Edwards married Rhoda Ogden and moved the family to Elizabeth, New Jersey. Burr had a very strained relationship with his uncle, who was often physically abusive. As a child, he made several attempts to run away from home.

At age 13, Burr was admitted to Princeton as a sophomore, where he joined the American Whig Society and the Cliosophic Society, the college's literary and debating societies. In 1772, he received his Bachelor of Arts degree at age 16, but continued studying theology at Princeton for an additional year. He then undertook rigorous theological training with Joseph Bellamy, a Presbyterian, but changed his career path after two years. At age 19, he moved to Connecticut to study law with his brother-in-law Tapping Reeve. In 1775, news reached Litchfield of the clashes with British troops at Lexington and Concord, and Burr put his studies on hold to enlist in the Continental Army.

### Revolutionary War

During the American Revolutionary War, Burr took part in Colonel Benedict Arnold's expedition to Quebec, an arduous trek of more than 300 miles (480 km) through the frontier of Maine. Arnold was impressed by Burr's "great spirit and resolution" during the long march. He sent him up the Saint Lawrence River to contact General Richard Montgomery, who had taken Montreal, and escort him to Quebec. Montgomery then promoted Burr to captain and made him an aide-de-camp. Burr distinguished himself during the Battle of Quebec on December 31, 1775, where he attempted to recover Montgomery's corpse after he had been killed.

In the spring of 1776, Burr's stepbrother Matthias Ogden helped him to secure a position with George Washington's staff in Manhattan, but he quit on June 26 to be on the battlefield. General Israel Putnam took Burr under his wing, and Burr saved an entire brigade from capture after the British landing in Manhattan by his vigilance in the retreat from lower Manhattan to Harlem. Washington failed to commend his actions in the next day's General Orders, which was the fastest way to obtain a promotion. Burr was already a nationally known hero, but he never received a commendation. According to Ogden, he was infuriated by the incident, which may have led to the eventual estrangement between him and Washington. Nevertheless, Burr defended Washington's decision to evacuate New York as "a necessary consequence." It was not until the 1790s that the two men found themselves on opposite sides in politics.

Burr was briefly posted in Kingsbridge during 1776, at which time he was charged with protecting 14-year-old Margaret Moncrieffe, the daughter of Staten Island-based British Major Thomas Moncrieffe. Miss Moncrieffe was in Manhattan "behind enemy lines" and Major Moncrieffe asked Washington to ensure her safe return there. Burr fell in love with Margaret, and Margaret's attempts to remain with Burr were unsuccessful.

In late 1776, Burr attempted to secure Washington's approval to retake fortifications held by the British on Staten Island, citing his deep familiarity with the area. Washington deferred taking such actions until possibly later in the conflict (which ultimately were not attempted). The British learned of Burr's plans and afterwards took extra precautions.

Burr was promoted to lieutenant colonel in July 1777 and assumed virtual leadership of Malcolm's Additional Continental Regiment. There were approximately 300 men under Colonel William Malcolm's nominal command, but Malcolm was frequently called upon to perform other duties, leaving Burr in charge. The regiment successfully fought off many nighttime raids into central New Jersey by Manhattan-based British troops who arrived by water. Later that year, Burr commanded a small contingent during the harsh winter encampment at Valley Forge, guarding "the Gulph," an isolated pass that controlled one approach to the camp. He imposed discipline and defeated an attempted mutiny by some of the troops.

Burr's regiment was devastated by British artillery on June 28, 1778, at the Battle of Monmouth in New Jersey, and Burr suffered heatstroke. In January 1779, he was assigned to Westchester County, New York in command of Malcolm's Regiment, a region between the British post at Kingsbridge, Bronx and that of the Americans about 15 miles (24 km) to the north. This district was part of the more significant command of General Alexander McDougall, and there was much turbulence and plundering by lawless bands of civilians and by raiding parties of ill-disciplined soldiers from both armies.

In March 1779, due to continuing bad health, Burr resigned from the Continental Army. He renewed his study of law. Technically, he was no longer in the service, but he remained active in the war; he was assigned by General Washington to perform occasional intelligence missions for Continental generals, such as Arthur St. Clair. On July 5, 1779, he rallied a group of Yale students at New Haven, Connecticut, along with Captain James Hillhouse and the Second Connecticut Governor's Guards, in a skirmish with the British at the West River. The British advance was repulsed, forcing them to enter New Haven from Hamden, Connecticut.

### Governorship, 1789-1797

In 1788, Burr ran unopposed for Governor of Pennsylvania, winning 77.8% of the vote over write-in candidate John Brown. In his first term Burr banned the selling of new slaves in his state, a very popular move. He however did not ban slavery entirely, fearing it could lead to backlash from southern states like Virginia and North Carolina. In the 1792 Gubernatorial Election, Burr won 58.6% of the vote over challenger Alexander G. Milosevic. Burr would eventually face Milosevic in the 1796 Presidential Election. In Burr's second term, he passed more restrictions on Slavery, including minimum wage and working hour laws.

### 1796 Election

In 1796 Burr decided to run for the Democratic-Republican nomination, but failed to win, being beat out by his former Pennsylvania rival Alexander Milosevic. In protest, Burr ran as an independent, which angered many Democratic-Republicans, including Milosevic and Samuel Adams, who was the Governor of Massachusetts. Adams and Milosevic accused Burr of attempting to vote-split and elect federalist Alexander Hamilton, alligations he denied. Finally, on January 19th, 1796, the party split, with high Democratic-Republican members like Benedict Hampton, Samuel Adams, Alexander G. Milosevic, Jacob Kasich Real, and Andrew Jackson joining the new Populist Party.