William Blount, North Carolina

William Blount, North Carolina

William Blount was born in March 26th 1749 in North Carolina Blount had been appointed as a delegate for North Carolina to the Constitutional Convention. He was also the only governor of the Southwest Territory. He was a man who took an important part in the establishment of the state of Tennessee. Blount was the first U.S Senator to be expelled from his position in the Senate.

Blount was appointed as the regimental paymaster for the 3rd North Carolina Regiment during the Revolutionary War. While his position as a paymaster did not make him a commissioned officer, he served under a warrant of regimental staff and was paid similar allowances and pay as a Captain. Blount was involved in one of the key battles defending Philadelphia from the invasion of the British.

After the war was over, Blount returned to his home and slid into the position of chief paymaster of state forces. Blount was later promoted to the position of deputy paymaster general for the state of North Carolina. Blount was ultimately responsible for overseeing the provision of fresh troops to Washington through recruitment operations.


When Charleston fell in May 1780, Blount participated with citizen soldiers to fight against British forces. At that time, it was extremely difficult to gather enough forces together to counter the British invasion. Therefore, Blount not only helped in organizing the citizens and soldiers, he also joined together to fight with them. The North Carolina was under General Horatio Gates who deployed his units. The continentals were placed in the right. Meanwhile, the Virginia militia and the North Carolina were on the left. In addition, the militia elements had been gathered with the regular. However, the collaboration of these two components could not be achieved. Finally, Gates' army was lost which became a second defeat. In this case, Blount learned a valuable lesson from this experience of the importance of proper and adequate preparation. Blount’s active career in the military came to a close after this.

In 1790, George Washington appointed him to be Governor of the Territory South of the Ohio River. Having concluded the Treaty of Holston, Blount declared that the capital of territory would be moved to Knoxville. In Knoxville, Blount built a mansion in 1792, which was called Blount Mansion. In modern times, this building still stands as a museum.

During his time in the Senate, Blount began to experience financial difficulties. He incited the Cherokee Indians and Creek to aid the British in order to conquer the Spanish territory of West Florida. However, his plan was discovered by President John Adams when he intercepted a letter detailing his devious plans. As a result, on July 7th, he was impeached by the House of Representatives. Finally, he was expelled from the Senate. There were certain limitations surrounding action that could be taken against members of Congress, and so Blount’s political career did not end. In 1798, Blount was elected to Tennessee State Senate. Two years later, he died at Knoxville on March 21st, 1800. He left a son named William Grainger Blount.

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