McDougall, Alexander, 1732-1786

Alexander McDougall (1732 – 9 June 1786) was a Scottish-born American seaman, merchant, a Sons of Liberty leader from New York City before and during the American Revolution, and a military leader during the Revolutionary War. He served as a major general in the Continental Army, and as a delegate to the Continental Congress. After the war, he was the president of the first bank in the state of New York and served a term in the New York State Senate.

Born on the Isle of Islay, in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, McDougall immigrated to the United States in 1740 with hiis parents, settling in New York City. In around 1745, when he was fourteen, he signed on as a merchant seaman, working on a number of vessels, briefly returning to Great Britain for 4 months in 1751. After the onset of the French and Indian War in 1756, McDougall became commissioned by the crown as a merchant privateer. During the war, McDougall commanded two ships; the Tyger, an 8 gun sloop, and the Barrington, a 12 gun sloop. Following the end of the war, he invested in land and became a merchant, importer, and slave trader.

When revolutionary fervor grew with resistance to the Stamp Act, McDougall became active in the Sons of Liberty, and later was a leader in the movement in the colony of New York. When New York established their revolutionary government in 1775, he was elected to the New York Provincial Congress. On 30 June 1775, McDougall became a commissioned colonel of the 1st New York Regiment by an act of the New York Provincial Congress. Eventually, he would rise the rank of Major General in the Continental Army. McDougall was also involved in the establishment of an American navy in 1776. In 1780, he was elected as delegate to the Continental Congress. He spent only 37 days in Congress, however, he was soon nominated to serve as the Secretary of Marine. He served in that role from February to August 1781. In 1784, he was elected to the New York State Senate where he served until his death.

McDougall died in New York City and was interned in the family vault in the First Presbyterian Church there.