James Warren 1726-1808
Born in Plymouth, MA, a descendant of Mayflower passenger, Richard Warren, James attended Harvard College and became a businessman, farmer and the high sheriff of Plymouth County. He was a member of the Massachusetts militia. By appointment of the Continental Congress, James Warren became the first Paymaster-General for the Continental Army. After the signing of the Treaty of Paris, James Warren was elected to be the Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives.
William Palfrey 1741-1780
Before the War for Independence, William was the chief clerk for John Hancock. During the War, he was aide-de-camp for George Washington before he was appointed paymaster for the Continental Army. In 1780, he was appointed consul-general to France by a unanimous vote of Congress. He embarked by ship for France in December; he was lost at sea when his ship went down losing all on board.
John Pierce 1752- 1788
John Pierce joined the Continental Army at the age of 23 in 1775. By 1776, he was the assistant Paymaster General and soon became the Deputy Paymaster General.
By 1781, he was the Paymaster General for the Army until his death in 1788. During his tenure as Paymaster General, he was responsible for overseeing the payment of 93,000 certificates amounting to $10M. He was responsible for settling the Army’s accounts when it was disbanded.
Joseph Howell 1750-1798
During the Battle of Long Island (August 27-29, 1776) Joseph Howell was captured by the British along with nearly one hundred others including his commander, Colonel Attlee. It is believed that he was imprisoned in British prison hulks located in Wallabout Bay near Brooklyn where prisoners were brutally treated. He was released in December 1776 and returned to active duty as a company commander. Later, in 1778, he was appointed the Regimental Paymaster. In 1779, he was appointed an army auditor working closely with John Pierce, the Paymaster General. When Pierce died in 1788, Howell administered the department until 1792.
Nathaniel Towson 1784-1854
Nathaniel Towson began his military career as an artilleryman who served in the War of 1812. In 1819, he was appointed the Paymaster General for the US Army. He spent much of this assignment in Washington, D.C. He served in the Mexican War (1846-48) and died in 1854 while on active duty having served our country for 42 years.
John Alvord 1813 – 1884 USMA 1833
John Alvord was born in Vermont and graduated from West Point in 1813 where he showed particular skill in mathematics. He branched into the Infantry serving in the Seminole War. Besides returning to West Point to teach Math, John spent 21 years in the 4th Infantry Regim in 1846.ent. He was assigned to the military occupation of the new State of Texas. He served with distinction in the Mexican War at the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma. John was them assigned to various post in the West where he built the military road in southern Oregon and was the chief paymaster from 1854-1862. He remained in the Oregon territory until 1865 commanding Fort Vancouver. He became the Paymaster General of the Army in 1872 after serving as paymaster in the District of Omaha and the Department of the Platte. He wrote several books and essays on Mathematics, most notably on the tangencies and intersections of circles and spheres. As a natural history lover, he studied and wrote the first description of the compass plant’s ability to orient itself in the north/south direction. Alvord Valley and the Alvord Desert in Oregon are named in his honor.
