DANIEL MORGAN

Morgan was born in 1736, probably in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. As a teenager, he moved near Winchester, Virginia, to work as a farm hand and teamster. Around 1755, he contracted with the British Army under General Braddock, and, when the French and Indian War began, he volunteered for frontier defense. In 1758 his unit was caught in an ambush, and he was severely wounded in the upper jaw. Early in the Revolutionary War, Morgan commanded a rifle company in the Continental Army's abortive assault on Quebec during the winter of 1776 (in which he was captured). After his exchange, he joined the Northern Army and fought at the Battle of Saratoga. Following a short retirement, he returned to active service in 1779. Now attached to the Southern army, he commanded a militia force with light infantry and cavalry. In early 1781, he won a celebrated victory over the British at the battle of Cowpens. Afterward, injuries forced him home to Virginia. In 1794, he commanded the Virginia militia assigned to combat the Whiskey Rebellion in western Pennsylvania. Morgan entered Congress for a term in 1797 and died on July 6, 1802.