William Palfrey
William Palfrey (1741–1780) was an American Patriot.
Biography
Early life
William Palfrey was born in 1741 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Career
Working as John Hancock's chief clerk, he was active in the movements that preceded the American Revolution, and visited England in 1771. During the War of Independence, he served as an aide-de-camp to George Washington in March and April 1776, after which Hancock arranged to have him appointed paymaster-general in the Continental Army, with the rank of lieutenant-colonel. In November 1780, he was appointed consul-general in France by a unanimous vote of Congress, and embarked in a ship for that country, which was never heard of after she had left the capes.
Death
He died in 1780.
Legacy
His grandson John G. Palfrey was a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts.
References
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wilson, James Grant; Fiske, John, eds. (1891). "article name needed". Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography. New York: D. Appleton.
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