Talk:Henry Knox

Lucy Flucker

Currently, the article says: "Henry married Lucy Fucker (1756–1824), the daughter of Boston Loyalists..." I believe that the correct name is Lucy Flucker, not the current expletive. Can anyone verify and correct this? (Hartnrm (talk) 03:43, 19 September 2009 (UTC)

 Done That's the second time I've reverted this (two close numbered IP's) so somebody else will have to the next time. Kresock (talk) 04:35, 19 September 2009 (UTC)

Maine and "tyrant"

Is there any way to verify the validity of the source for the following sentence:

In Maine, however, he would be remembered as a grasping tyrant and was forever immortalized in Nathanial Hawthorne's House of the Seven Gables, for which he served as the model for Col. Pynchon.

The reason I ask is that it seems to come out of the blue. He didn't live in Maine all that long and I think we should verify especially when saying someone is a "grasping tyrant." --RossF18 (talk) 17:03, 20 October 2009 (UTC)

The wording probably should be toned down a lot. No doubt there are some that consider Knox to be a tyrant, residual resentment from the Maine land controversy. See this for a more neutral discussion: "After the Revolutionary War, General Henry Knox, who served under George Washington as Secretary of the Department of War, began acquiring large parcels of the Waldo Patent, the before-mention tract of land comprising most of present-day Knox and Waldo Counties. General Knox was married to Lucy Flucker, descendant of the Waldo family, and through her inherited a portion of the Waldo Patent. Knox purchased the remaining shares of confiscated land (some of the Waldo family members had made the mistake of remaining Loyalists, and their property was confiscated after the Americans won). By 1793 Knox was the sole owner of the Waldo Patent. General Knox took an active interest in his newly acquired land, and set about putting his rights in order. Some settlers on Long Island Plantation, as Islesboro was then called, took deeds from General Knox, others did not, especially those living above the Narrows. A controversy quickly arose. The settlers living on the island insisted that the island should not be included in the Waldo Patent, since they believed it lay over three miles off shore. In 1788, islanders sent a petition to the General Court asking for an examination of General Knox’s claim to ownership of the land. Several surveys were conducted by both sides of the controversy, trying to determine the actual distance from shore. The controversy was settled in 1799, in favor of General Knox, who quickly sold off most of the island in 100 acre plots to islanders, many of whom had been living on and developing the island for thirty years." SaltyBoatr (talk) 18:35, 20 October 2009 (UTC)

Knox was considered a tyrant by most of Maine's backcountry settlers, a fact well documented in primary sources and also by Pulitzer-prize winning historian Alan Taylor in Liberty Men and the Great Proprietors. The "House of Seven Gables" source -- a past Maine State Historian -- is footnoted and is a compelling and well documented case. Also, Knox's "grasping" behavior in Maine was consistent with other actions in his later life, including the formation of the Society of the Cincinnatti, which many of his contemporaries regarded as an effort to create an American aristocracy. Vincent pearse (talk) 19:03, 9 November 2009 (UTC)

Ox Knox

I heard an amusing anecdote in the audio book "Don't know much about History", in which Gen. George Washington told "Ox" Knox "Shift your ass Knox, but do it gently or you'll swamp the boat." The fact this was his nickname is not mentioned in the article. 67.78.162.234 (talk) 19:44, 28 December 2009 (UTC)