Atlee, Samuel John, 1739-1786

Samuel John Atlee (1739 – November 25, 1786) was an American soldier and statesman from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress for Pennsylvania from 1778 to 1782.

Born in Trenton in the Province of New Jersey, Atlee moved with his mother to Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1745. Educated by a private tutor, he subsequently commenced the study of law before abandoning it to join the British Army and fight in the French and Indian War. In 1776 Pennsylvania began raising new units for the Continental Army, and on March 21, 1776, Atlee was named Colonel of a unit, the Pennsylvania Musketry Battalion. Captured by the British at the Battle of Long Island, Atlee was held as a prisoner until October 1, 1778, when he was exchanged.

When Atlee returned home, the Pennsylvania Assembly named him as a delegate to the Continental Congress. He served there until 1782. In 1782, Lancaster County sent Atlee to the Pennsylvania Assembly. In 1783, he became a charter member in the Pennsylvania branch of the Society of the Cincinnati, and was named the County executive for Lancaster County. In 1784 he served on the commission negotiating Indian treaties that acquired most of the remaining Native American lands in Pennsylvania. Atlee was returned to the state assembly in 1785 and 1786. He died on November 25, 1786, while attending a meeting of the legislature in Philadelphia, and is buried in the Christ Church Burial Ground there.