Thomas Collins (1732 - 1789)

Born 1732 in Duck Creek. Kent Upon Delaware [uncertain]

Descendants

Died 29 Mar 1789 at about age 57 in Smyrna, Kent, Delaware, United States

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Thomas Collins is a part of Delaware history. Join: Delaware Project Discuss: Delaware

Preceded by 7th President Nicholas Van Dyke

Thomas Collins 8th President of Delaware 1786—1789

Succeeded by 9th President Jehu (John) Davis

Biography

Thomas Collins is Notable.

Brigadier General Thomas Collins served with Kent County Militia, Delaware Militia during the American Revolution.

Thomas Collins was the eighth president (now called governor) of Delaware. He was president at the time that Delaware became the first state to ratify the Federal Constitution, doing so with a unanimous vote December 7, 1787. As president, Collins signed the ratification document attesting to its validity. This document is currently housed in the National Archives. ^[1]

Thomas Collins was born in 1732 at Duck Creek, Kent Upon Delaware. He is generally considered to be of English heritage, although the identity of his parents has not been established. He was evidently born into a wealthy family as he was able to buy large tracts of land early in life.

He married Sarah, and had four children, William, Elizabeth, Mary, and Sarah. The exact identity of his wife is still unknown, although some accounts say she was the sister of John Cook, the 6th President of Colonial Delaware. Some accounts also say that Collins' sister married Cook, but this is unclear as well.

Collins was trained in the law, but never practiced. He was a planter who held numerous political offices and military commissions.

Political Career

Delaware Ratification Document

Collins served as Sheriff of Kent County from 1764 until 1767, and was a member of the Colonial Assembly in five of the nine annual sessions during the period from the 1767/68 session through the 1775/76 session. He was a member of the Delaware Constitutional Convention of 1776 and was elected to two terms in the Legislative Council beginning with the 1776/77 session and continuing through the 1782/83 session, serving as the Speaker in the 1778/79 session and in the 1781/82 session. In 1782 he became a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. The Delaware General Assembly unanimously elected him State President in 1786 and he served from October 28, 1786 until his death on March 29, 1789.

Military Career

Thomas Collins is a DAR Patriot Ancestor, A024562.

Thomas Collins is an NSSAR Patriot Ancestor.
NSSAR Ancestor #: P-328473
Rank: BrigGen, Delaware Militia

Collins began his military career during the American Revolution as lieutenant colonel in Caesar Rodney's Upper Kent Militia and within a year was a brigadier general of the Delaware Militia. Collins served with General George Washington in New Jersey in 1777, but returned home to contend with loyalist uprisings in Sussex County. He was probably involved in the efforts to block General William Howe on his march from the Elk River, but there is no evidence that he was at the actual Battle of Brandywine.

Residence

Collins purchased 91 acres of an area known as "Pearman's Choice" which was a 600 acre tract granted by William Penn to Henry Pearman in 1684. At that time there was a house on the property that was referred to as “The Manor House near Duck Creek”. Collins finished building the Georgian house in 1773 and named it Belmont Hall. Belmont Hall still stands today, it is currently owned by the state of Delaware and managed by a local group, the Friends of Belmont, who among many other activities rent out the mansion for weddings and other functions. Tours of the historic mansion can also be arranged. Belmont Hall is on the Historic American Building Survey (HABS); is marked by a State Historic Marker, a D.A.R. plaque and is listed on The National Registry of Historic Places. ^[2]

Death

Collins was the first "governor" of Delaware to die in office. He died while in the office of President of Delaware on the 29th of March, 1789. His health had begun to fail in early 1789. He became bedridden and had to arrange to have passed bills brought to him at his residence, Belmont Hall for his signature. He was interred in the "Collins Cemetery" on the tract at "Gloster" along Dawson's Branch. In 1970, his remains were moved to St. Peter's Churchyard in Smyrna., Delaware. ^{[3] [4]}

Legacy

A State Office building, The Thomas Collins Building, was named in his honor and is located on U.S. 13 in Dover, the Capital of Delaware.

There is no know portrait of Governor Collins.

Sources

1. ↑ National Archives. (2016). Observing Constitution Day. [online] Available at: https://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/constitution-day/ratification.html [Accessed 4 Sep. 2018].
2. ↑ [1]
3. ↑ http://www.russpickett.com/history/collbio.htm
4. ↑ Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 08 September 2018), memorial page for Thomas Collins (1732–29 Mar 1789), Find A Grave Memorial no. 7447826, citing Saint Peter's Cemetery, Smyrna, Kent County, Delaware, USA ; Bio by Russ Pickett, Maintained by Find A Grave.

See also:

• History of the State of Delaware by Henry C. Conrad, Volume III, Published by the Author, Wilmington, Delaware, 1908.

• Thomas Collins on Wikipedia

• DAR Book Listing for great-grand niece.