On February 25, 1805, former Royal Governor Thomas Pownall died in Bath, England. Pownall had proven to be arguably the most popular royal governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, winning the love and respect of the people. He had been born to a family of moderate means and had chosen to seek his fortune in the colonies where he originally was an adventurer and explorer in the western frontiers. He was able to climb up the ladder of politics when he became lieutenant governor of New Jersey followed by governor of Massachusetts in 1757.
Governor Pownall was not a governor who constantly reminded the people of his status above them, instead he tried very hard to be one of them. At the end of the day he would come down from his governor’s chair and pretend he was just any other man. Even sometimes going on mini vacations where he would disguise himself, pretend he wasn’t governor, and go to the western frontiers where he would stay over at the home of a settler. During the course of his vacations the inevitable topic of politics would come up and this would allow him to gain valuable feedback about how the people in the western frontier felt that his administration was going. When returning to Boston, Pownall could use that valuable feedback to improve his administration.
Due to the fact that Pownall had started his career in the colonies as more of an explorer and adventurer, he also was a politician who was willing to “get in the trenches” with the men who were fighting a major war effort against the French in support of their mother country in the French and Indian War. Although his superiors would not allow Pownall to participate in any of the major battles of the war, they did allow him to lead an expedition to Maine where he built a fort on the western frontier to protect the area from French and Native American raids. While there, he also marked the northern most boundary of British territory with a lead plate before returning to Boston.
Back in Boston, Pownall also helped the rather large merchant and seafaring community by protecting the crews of merchants’ ships from impressment into British naval service, and when a fire broke out in the town that left a third of the adult male population destitute, Pownall opened up his office as a center of relief for those who had lost their businesses and homes. He also was someone who was willing to entertain the people by throwing lavish dinner and dance parties at the governor’s house. Despite the parties and socialization, Pownall still considered himself a lonely governor, being in his thirties and still a bachelor. This led to some criticisms of him from his political enemies who disliked his informal style of allowing women into the governor’s office (which was supposed to be exclusive only to the governor and his advisors). It would not be until after Pownall resigned his position as governor, and returned to England in 1760, that he would find a wife.
As Pownall left Massachusetts, he promised the colonists that he would always serve the colony no matter how far away he was. This was a promise that he planned to hold to. In 1767, Pownall entered Parliament at the same time that the Townshend Acts went into effect in the colonies. These acts, taxing a variety of items, caused merchant boycotts in Boston called the non-importation agreements against importing taxed goods, and also caused the riots and political unrest that we normally associate with the American Revolution today. In response to the colonists’ dismay, Pownall argued to Parliament that they should repeal the taxes or allow their thirteen North American colonies to have their independence peacefully. This argument caused Pownall to become the leading advocate in Parliament for American Independence. He wrote to the Patriots of Massachusetts encouraging their cause but discouraging violent actions which would only hurt their arguments. He also wrote to the royal governors who succeeded him offering them advice which was not well received. After the Revolution, Pownall asked for an honorary commission in the Massachusetts militia so that he might go to other countries and advertise the new country of the United States. He even entertained hopes of returning to the colonies one day, and continued his work encouraging the support of independence for the Spanish colonies in Central America after the thirteen North American colonies were successful in winning their own.
As Pownall grew older, however, his health began to decline and he developed rather painful episodes of gout which prevented him from being able to travel or walk. During these times, he would retire to Bath where he would seek the long legendary curative properties of the area’s water. Pownall was on one of his vacations to Bath where he was rewriting one of his essays on English antiquities when he died. He was buried at Walcott Church in a plain coffin carried by 8 men who, according to Pownall’s instructions, were each gifted with a new set of clothes.
Pownall’s governorship had gained him respect and honor amongst the people of Massachusetts which is important to note. As the next two royal governors came into the colony, the colonists now had an expectation of what values and ideals a royal governor should embody. Pownall exhibited all those values and ideals, and in the process, became a role model governor that was a very tough act to follow. Pownall left behind some pretty big shoes, and the governors after him would be hard pressed to fill them.
When Francis Bernard first became Governor of Massachusetts following Pownall, he witnessed the harmony in which Pownall had left the colony and called the colony within his own private journals, “Pownall’s Paradise,” in honor of everything that Pownall had done for the colony and the state in which he had left it. Pownall’s Paradise would not last long, however, because unpopular taxes from Parliament following the French and Indian War were soon to arrive causing upheaval and resentment. As representatives of King George III and Parliament, it was up to Francis Bernard and the other royal governors after him to enforce the new and unpopular taxes regardless of their own personal beliefs and opinions of them, setting the stage for a long and difficult struggle.
The foundation of Fort Pownall built by Governor Pownall during the French and Indian War and during his expedition to the western frontier of Maine to oversee and better protect frontier land and to mark the northern most boundary of British territory.
The foundation of Fort Pownall built by Governor Pownall during the French and Indian War and during his expedition to the western frontier of Maine to oversee and better protect frontier land and to mark the northern most boundary of British territory.
A sketch of the original layout of Fort Pownall.
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