- Person
- Haym Salomon
- Lived
- 1740–1785
- Field
- Finance
- From
- Polish-American
The story
Haym Salomon was born in 1740 in Leszno, then in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, into a Jewish family. He learned finance while travelling in Western Europe and arrived in New York around 1775, where he worked as a broker. After escaping British-occupied New York in 1778, he rebuilt his business in Philadelphia.
The new American government was desperately short of money. Much of its help came from France and the Netherlands, but that aid often took the form of bills of exchange: paper orders for payment drawn on banks in Europe. To pay soldiers and suppliers, these bills had to be sold for cash in America, which required a skilled and trusted broker.
In 1781 Robert Morris became Superintendent of Finance and turned to Salomon. Morris's diary mentions him at least 75 times between August 1781 and April 1784, and Morris described him as practically the only agent he employed to sell bills of exchange. Salomon became the main broker for the French and Dutch subsidies, and in July 1782 he became the official broker to the Office of Finance. His work helped provide over $650,000 in financing between 1781 and 1784.
Popular legend later went much further, claiming that Salomon personally paid for the Revolution with his own fortune, and a 1975 US postage stamp called him a financial hero. Historians are more cautious. Much of the money he handled was government money that passed through his hands as an agent, and it is not certain how much of his own wealth he put at risk. Stories linking him to the design of the Great Seal have no supporting evidence.
What is well documented is enough. At a moment when the young nation's credit was weak, Salomon's skill and reputation made it possible to turn foreign promises into money that could be spent on the war and on running the government. He died in Philadelphia on 6 January 1785, aged about 44, and his estate was left in debt.
Why it matters
By helping the Continental government raise the money it needed to fight and govern, Salomon contributed to the founding of the United States and the democratic ideals it carried into the world.
About Haym Salomon
Polish-born Jewish broker who sold the bills of exchange that kept the Revolution’s Office of Finance afloat, quietly supported members of Congress and died nearly penniless.
More about Haym Salomon
Sources
- Haym Salomon Wikipedia
- Salomon, Haym Jewish Encyclopedia
- Haym Salomon Encyclopedia.com
Another act of tikkun olam. This is part of tikkun olam, the Jewish idea of repairing the world, and every one of us can add to it.