Belknap, Jeremy, 1744-1798
Dates
- Existence: 1744 June 4 (date of birth)
- Existence: 1798 June 20 (date of death)
Historical Summary
Jeremy Belknap was born in Boston on June 4, 1744. He received an AB from Harvard in 1762 and an AM in 1765. He became the minister of the First Congregational Church of Dover, New Hampshire in 1767, and later served as the minister of the Church in Long Lane, Boston. As a historian, Belknap published the History of New Hampshire and American Biography. His work on American Biography encouraged an interest in Harvard's history, and he explained in a letter two months before his death that he had "formed a design to go thru' the whole Catalogue of the graduates of Harvard College, & relate all that is proper to be related, of what can be known or can be recovered of each &; every one of them." Belknap founded the Massachusetts Historical Society in 1791 and also served on the Harvard Board of Overseers. He died on June 20, 1798.