Thomas Melvill

(January 16, 1751 – September 16, 1832) 

One of the few Boston Tea Party participants with a university education, Thomas Melvill earned a bachelor’s degree at Princeton and was subsequently awarded an honorary master’s from Harvard College in 1774. 

A Sons of Liberty sympathizer, Melvill, participated in the Boston Tea Party at Griffin’s Wharf on December 16, 1773. Some tea that followed him home in his shoes was preserved and held by the wife of his son Thomas in Illinois. The leaves eventually ended up in the hands of his grandson, Herman Melville, and are now on display at the Old State House in Boston.  

By his own account of his service in his Revolutionary War pension application, Melvill related that he was on an expedition with Thomas Crafts Jr. in the Continental Army in Rhode Island and that he also served under Lieutenant Paul Revere. He admitted that at the age of eighty-one, his memory of specific details was hazy. However, other sources, such as Boston Tea Party historian Francis S. Drake and the compilation Mass Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War, expand upon and confirm Melvill’s service record. He was chosen as an aide to General Joseph Warren just prior to the Battle of Bunker Hill. Considering Melvill was already well acquainted with fellow Boston Tea Party participant Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Crafts, it is logical that he would continue his involvement in the Revolution as part of Crafts’ artillery train beginning May 10, 1776. From there, Melvill served almost continuously throughout the following year. He was appointed Captain early in his enlistment, then as Major in 1777. On October 21, 1778, Melvill asked to resign his commission, citing the inability to support his family on an officer’s pay. His resignation was accepted, and Colonel Crafts was ordered to discharge Melvill on November 2, 1778. 

Melvill continued service to the new nation after Independence, becoming a naval officer in the port of Boston from 1786 through 1789. With the help of his friend Samuel Adams, Melvill was eventually appointed as a United States government customs inspector. Melvill held the post until 1829, when President Andrew Jackson opted to appoint his own man to the position. For most of 1779-1825, Melvill served as a fireward for the town of Boston. In recognition of his long service, the town fire department named one of its engines “Melvill” in his honor. At the age of 80, Melvill was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives, where he served from 1830 to 1831.  

Thomas Melvill died the following year, on September 16, 1832, and is buried in Boston’s King’s Chapel Burying Ground.