Andrew Oliver was a merchant and public official in the Province of Massachusetts Bay

Province of Massachusetts Bay

The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a crown colony in North America. It was chartered on October 7, 1691 by William and Mary, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of England and Scotland...

. Born in Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

, he was the son of Daniel Oliver, a merchant, and Elizabeth Belcher Oliver, daughter of Governor Jonathan Belcher

Jonathan Belcher

Jonathan Belcher was colonial governor of the British provinces of Massachusetts Bay, New Hampshire, and New Jersey.-Early life:Jonathan Belcher was born in Cambridge, Province of Massachusetts Bay, in 1682...

. Andrew had two brothers: Daniel Oliver (1704–1727) and Peter Oliver (1713–1791). He inherited his father's mercantile business, and, after graduating from Harvard College

Harvard College

Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...

, entered politics. He held many local offices, and was a leader of the Hutchinson-Oliver faction, which dominated politics in colonial Massachusetts.

In 1765, Oliver was commissioned to administer the unpopular Stamp Act

Stamp Act 1765

The Stamp Act 1765 was a direct tax imposed by the British Parliament specifically on the colonies of British America. The act required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in London, carrying an embossed revenue stamp...

 in Massachusetts. He was privately against the act, but told people he was in favor of it, leading colonists to rise against him. On August 14, he was hanged in effigy from Boston's Liberty Tree

Liberty Tree

The Liberty Tree was a famous elm tree that stood in Boston near Boston Common, in the days before the American Revolution. Ten years before the American Revolution, colonists in Boston staged the first act of defiance against the British government at the tree...

 in a protest organized by the "Loyal Nine", a precursor to the Sons of Liberty

Sons of Liberty

The Sons of Liberty were a political group made up of American patriots that originated in the pre-independence North American British colonies. The group was formed to protect the rights of the colonists from the usurpations by the British government after 1766...

. That night his house in Cambridge was ransacked by an angry crowd. On August 17, he was compelled to publicly resign his commission. On December 17, the Sons of Liberty again forced him to publicly swear that he would never act as stamp distributor.

He became lieutenant governor of the colony when his brother-in-law, Thomas Hutchinson, became governor in 1771. He died in office after suffering a stroke.

External links

• Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Portrait of Daniel, Peter and Andrew Oliver, by John Smibert, 1732.