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Hamilton moves to New York
At the age of 16, Hamilton, an intelligent young man, moved from his home on the Caribbean island of St. Croix to New York. There, he became a student at King's College, now known as Columbia University. One year later, he composed his first essay, in which he attacked King George III. -
Hamilton Joins the Military
In 1775, at the outbreak of the American Revolution, Hamilton joined the Continental Army to fight the King's troops, to whom he was completely opposed. After several years of service, General George Washington made him his assistant. He influenced strategy and even led to the British surrender at Yorktown. -
Hamilton Marries Elisabeth Schuyler
1780 brought Hamilton's marriage to Elisabeth Schuyler, the daughter of the wealthy and powerful general Philip Schuyler. Together, Hamilton and his wife had ten children, the first of whom was named after Elisabeth's father. After her husband died in a duel, Elisabeth recruited historians to document his life. She died at the age of 97 in 1854. -
Constituional Convention
Alexander Hamilton was a New York delegate at the Constitutional Convention, which set out to establish a much stronger and overall better government than what was set forth in the Articles of Confederation. Hamilton was not one of the primary debaters at the Convention, but did later convince the New York legislature to ratify it, despite deep-set opposition. -
Federalist Papers
Along with John Jay and James Madison, Alexander Hamilton wrote these 85 essays in favor of the new Constitution. These rose from the debate in New York concerning ratification of the document. Jay, Madison and Hamilton wanted to sway the public in favor of ratification by pointing out that stronger government would help the nation on the world stage. These essays helped to secure New York's vote for the Constitution in July of 1788. -
Hamilton becomes first Secretary of Treasury
Upon election to the Presidency in 1789, George Washington chose Alexander Hamilton as his Secretary of the Treasury. He favored a strong national government as well as a national bank, leading to conflict between Hamilton and Jefferson, who favored giving more power to the states. Hamilton left the position in 1795. -
Hamilton's Attack of John Adams is Published
In 1800, Aaron Burr, who later faced Hamilton in a duel, obtained and published an attack of the then-President John Adams. Hamilton had written the document for the eyes of Federalists only. The event caused Hamilton and Burr to become even greater enemies. -
Hamilton Decides Presidential Race
In 1800, Aaron Burr was running as Thomas Jefferson's Vice Presidential candidate. However, both received the same number of electoral votes, thus throwing the decision to the House of Representatives. Although Hamilton, as a Federalist, disliked Thomas Jefferson's ideals of decentralized government, had an even greater distrust of Burr. Hamilton chose the lesser of two evils in his mind and made Jefferson the third President of the United States. -
Hamilton's Son Philip Killed in a Duel
George Eacker, a lawyer who deeply crticized and even insulted Hamilton, was challenged do a duel by Hamilton's oldest son, Philip. Eacker had insinuated that Hamilton might overthrow the presidency of Thomas Jefferson, who was his greatest political rival. Following this, Hamilton's son and his friend fought against the speech, and met Eacker in New Jersey for a duel. Philip's friend survived, but Philip was shot and killed. No fewer than three years later, Hamilton died at the same site. -
Burr-Hamilton Duel
Hamilton and his long-time political rivals Aaron Burr met in a field in New Jersey for a duel. Burr was unscathed, but Hamilton was fatally wounded and died the next day. Because his date of birth was unknown, Hamilton's exact age at death can only be estimated.
