George W. Campbell
Former United States Secretary of the Treasury
Education
- Graduated - College of New Jersey
- law -
Overview
George Washington Campbell was an American statesman who served as a U.S. Representative, Senator, Tennessee Supreme Court Justice, U.S. Ambassador to Russia and the 5th United States Secretary of the Treasury from February to October 1814.
Secretary of the Treasury :
Appointed Secretary of the Treasury on his forty-fifth birthday by James Madison, Campbell faced national financial disorder brought on by the War of 1812. Congress had failed to recharter the First Bank of the United States after its charter expired in 1811, and appropriations for the war were unavailable, so Campbell had to convince Americans to buy government bonds. He was forced to meet lenders' terms, selling government bonds at exorbitant interest rates. In September 1814 the British occupied Washington, D.C., and the credit of the government was lowered even further. He was unsuccessful in his efforts to raise money through additional bond sales and he resigned that October after only eight months in office, disillusioned and in bad health.
Campbell died in 1848 and is buried at Nashville City Cemetery in Nashville, Tennessee.
Early Life
George W. Campbell Born February 9, 1769 in the village of Tongue, Sutherlandshire on the north coast of Scotland, Campbell immigrated as a young boy to North Carolina in 1772 with his parents. He graduated from the College of New Jersey (which is now Princeton University) in 1794[1] and began studying law. He was admitted to the bar in North Carolina and began practicing in Knoxville, Tennessee. He owned slaves
Career
- United States - Former Secretary of the Treasury
