Loammi Baldwin
Colonel Loammi Baldwin (January 10, 1744 – October 20, 1807) was a noted American engineer, politician, and a soldier in the American Revolutionary War.
Baldwin is known as the Father of American Civil Engineering.
Education
Baldwin attended grammar school in
Military career
In 1774, Baldwin enlisted in a regiment, and commanded the Woburn militia at the
Then follows a particular account of the action and of his own experience. He had "several good shots," and proceeded on till coming between the meeting-house and Buckman's tavern at Lexington, with a prisoner before him, the cannon of the British began to play, the balls flying near him, and for safety he retreated back behind the meeting-house, when a ball came through near his head, and he further retreated to a meadow north of the house and lay there and heard the balls in the air and saw them strike the ground. Woburn sent to the field on that day, one hundred and eighty men. At the beginning of the war, he enlisted in the 26th Continental Regiment commanded by Colonel Samuel Gerrish. Here he rapidly advanced to be lieutenant-colonel, and upon Colonel Gerrish's retirement in August 1775, he was placed in command of the regiment, and was soon commissioned colonel.[4]
Until the end of 1775, Baldwin and his men remained near Boston, but in April 1776, he was ordered with his command to New York City. He took part in the Battle of Pell's Point on October 18, 1776. On the night of December 25–26, in the face of a violent and extremely cold storm of snow and hail, General Washington and his army crossed the Delaware to the New Jersey side, and fought the Battle of Trenton on the morning of December 26. Baldwin and his regiment participated in both the crossing and the fight. In 1777, Baldwin resigned from the army because of ill health.
Political career
Baldwin was elected to various public offices between 1780 and 1796. He was appointed high sheriff of Middlesex County in 1780, and was the first to hold office after the adoption of the state constitution. From 1778–1784, he represented Woburn in the Massachusetts General Court. In 1794, he was a candidate for election to the United States House of Representatives, and obtained all the votes cast in Woburn but one.
Engineering career
Baldwin began work with his older sons on the Middlesex Canal in 1794 and after nine years, the canal began service in 1803. He later worked on Boston's fortifications. His son Cyrus continued his father's work on the Middlesex Canal as an agent for the canal company. His son Benjamin worked on the Boston Mill Dam until his early death at the age of 43.
Other
Baldwin was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1782.[5] He opposed Shays' Rebellion. His published work as a member of the AAAS included early experiments with electricity "An account of a Curious Appearance of the Electrical Fluid," (Memoirs Am. Acad. Vol. 1, 1785, pp. 257–259); and "Observations on Electricity and an Improved Mode of Constructing Lightning Rods," (Memoirs, Vol. 2, pt. 2, 1804, pp. 96–104).
The first paper was written in 1783, and the "curious appearance" described was produced by raising an
His Baldwin House home—originally built in 1660 and expanded in the 1800s—still stands in Woburn and is currently in use as a Chinese restaurant.
Family
Baldwin married July 9, 1772, Mary Fowle (died 1786 age 39) daughter of James Fowle, Jr. and Mary Reed, and had four sons. He married again, May 26, 1791, Margaret Fowle (1747–1799), daughter of Josiah and Margery Carter, and had a son and a daughter.[4]
Howard Means in Johnny Appleseed: The Man, the Myth, The American Story, references Baldwin as a cousin of John Chapman (Johnny Appleseed).
References
- ^ Loammi Baldwin Jr., Boston National Historical Park, National Park Service, Accessed February 28, 2024
- ^ The Apples of NY (1905), and Lorraine Parsons in Hartford, Maine
- ^ a b The Woburnites http://www.yeoldewoburn.net/Baldwin.htm Archived March 9, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ OCLC 657162692
- ^ "Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter B" (PDF). American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved May 9, 2011.
Further reading
- Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of the State of Massachusetts. By William Richard Cutter, William Frederick Adams, published 1910. Loammi Baldwin Sr. article in volume 1 page 575.
- Ancient Middlesex with Brief Biographical Sketches of the Men who Have Served the County. By Levi Swanton Gould, Loammi Baldwin article on page 26.
- Transcript of Epitaphs in Woburn First and Second Burial Grounds, Compiled by William Richard Cutter, Edward Francis Johnson, published 1890, page 56, item 267.
- The Old Middlesex Canal by Mary Stetson Clarke, published 1974 The Hilltop Press, 191 pages. Page 19 for Baldwin biography,
External links
- Nice Web version of the Baldwin article Archived March 9, 2008, at the Wayback Machine from Historic Homes and Places and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs relating to the Families of Middlesex County, Massachusetts by W.R.Cutter published 1908, pages 9–22 of Volume 1, also see Volume 2,Volume 3, Volume 4.
- Guide to Loammi Baldwin papers at Houghton Library, Harvard University
- Baldwin Family Papers at the University of Michigan.
- Towpath Topics with biographies on the Baldwins.
- Baldwin Family Business Papers at Baker Library Historical Collections, Harvard Business School[permanent dead link]