Thomas Young (American revolutionary)
Encyclopedia
Dr. Thomas Young was an American patriot during the American Revolutionary War
who advocated for independence from Britain. He was a member of the Boston Committee of Correspondence and a participant in the Boston Tea Party
. Young was the only participant in the Boston Tea Party
not to wear an indian disguise, and the British singled him out for punishment for the deed, almost killing him.
Young was a mentor for Ethan Allen
and was mentored politically by Samuel Adams
, with whom he had a number of public correspondences. He also suggested the name of Vermont
for the new state north of Massachusetts, which was originally called New Connecticut. The reasoning in his letter to the Vermont Constitutional Convention in 1777 was that most of Vermont was in the Green Mountains
, and he chose to combine "vert" (green) with "mont" (mountain) to honor the Green Mountain Boys
. Young named several cities in New York state, including New Windsor
and Amenia
.
Young lived at various points in New York state, Boston, Connecticut, and Philadelphia. Young, like Thomas Paine
, advocated for a strongly democratic Pennsylvania constitution. Young favored the working class and western farmers, and he supported a redistribution of wealth clause in the proposed constitution that was later removed by more conservative influences. Still, Young supported the final result and suggested to Vermont's constitutional convention that Vermont's constitution be modeled on the Pennsylvania one, which it was.
The medical profession in revolutionary America was in flux, and there was a lack of licensing. Young supported creating a licensing regime run by state legislatures, and published his defense of the medical profession in a Boston newspaper.
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
who advocated for independence from Britain. He was a member of the Boston Committee of Correspondence and a participant in the Boston Tea Party
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a direct action by colonists in Boston, a town in the British colony of Massachusetts, against the British government and the monopolistic East India Company that controlled all the tea imported into the colonies...
. Young was the only participant in the Boston Tea Party
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a direct action by colonists in Boston, a town in the British colony of Massachusetts, against the British government and the monopolistic East India Company that controlled all the tea imported into the colonies...
not to wear an indian disguise, and the British singled him out for punishment for the deed, almost killing him.
Young was a mentor for Ethan Allen
Ethan Allen
Ethan Allen was a farmer, businessman, land speculator, philosopher, writer, and American Revolutionary War patriot, hero, and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of the U.S...
and was mentored politically by Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams was an American statesman, political philosopher, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. As a politician in colonial Massachusetts, Adams was a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and was one of the architects of the principles of American...
, with whom he had a number of public correspondences. He also suggested the name of Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
for the new state north of Massachusetts, which was originally called New Connecticut. The reasoning in his letter to the Vermont Constitutional Convention in 1777 was that most of Vermont was in the Green Mountains
Green Mountains
The Green Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Vermont. The range extends approximately .-Peaks:The most notable mountains in the range include:*Mount Mansfield, , the highest point in Vermont*Killington Peak, *Mount Ellen,...
, and he chose to combine "vert" (green) with "mont" (mountain) to honor the Green Mountain Boys
Green Mountain Boys
The Green Mountain Boys were a militia organization first established in the 1760s in the territory between the British provinces of New York and New Hampshire, known as the New Hampshire Grants...
. Young named several cities in New York state, including New Windsor
New Windsor
New Windsor may refer to:*New Windsor, Illinois, United States*New Windsor, Maryland, United States*New Windsor, New York, United States*New Windsor, New Zealand, AucklandNew Windsor may also refer to:*Windsor, Berkshire, England...
and Amenia
Amenia (town), New York
Amenia is a town in Dutchess County, United States. New York, United States. The population was 4,048 at the 2000 census. The name is derived from the Latin word, amoena, which means "pleasant to the eye."...
.
Young lived at various points in New York state, Boston, Connecticut, and Philadelphia. Young, like Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine
Thomas "Tom" Paine was an English author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States...
, advocated for a strongly democratic Pennsylvania constitution. Young favored the working class and western farmers, and he supported a redistribution of wealth clause in the proposed constitution that was later removed by more conservative influences. Still, Young supported the final result and suggested to Vermont's constitutional convention that Vermont's constitution be modeled on the Pennsylvania one, which it was.
The medical profession in revolutionary America was in flux, and there was a lack of licensing. Young supported creating a licensing regime run by state legislatures, and published his defense of the medical profession in a Boston newspaper.
Sources
- World Almanac -- Vermont naming
- A Right to Bear Arms: State and Federal Bills of Rights and Constitutional Guarantees
- Boston's Old South Meeting House Site provides information on the Boston Tea Party and Young's involvement.
- The New York State Museum has a nice site on Dr. Young, including the fact that he was the first signer of the Sons of LibertySons of LibertyThe 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...
's constitution. - Reason and Revolution: The Radicalism of Dr. Thomas Young, P. Maier, American Quarterly, 1976.