Paper Money of the United States: 1891 $1000 Dollar Marcy Silver Certificate, William L. Marcy
Obverse: Bust of William L. Marcy, 1786-1857, Governor of New York, US. Senator, Secretary of War under President Polk and Secretary of State under President Pierce. Peace cradles sword to her chest with 1000 counter on shield at left.Signatures: (as depicted) James Fount Tillman, 8th Register of the Treasury and Daniel Nash Morgan, 19th Treasurer of the United States.
Inscriptions: Series 1891 - Silver Certificate - Act of February 28th 1878 - Engraved & Printed at the Bureau of Engraving & Printing - Register Of The Treasury - Treasurer Of The United States - Assistant Treasurer U.S. - This Certifies That There Have Been Deposited With The Treasurer Of U.S. At Payable At His Office To The Bearer On Demand One Thousand Silver Dollars - United States Silver Certificate - Amer Septent Sigil Thesaur - This Certificate Is Receivable For Customs, Taxes and All Public Dues, And When So Received May Be Reissued
United States 1891 1000 Dollar Bill Marcy Silver Certificate
William L. Marcy
William Learned Marcy (December 12, 1786 – July 4, 1857) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge who served as U.S. Senator, Governor of New York, U.S. Secretary of War and U.S. Secretary of State. In the latter office, he negotiated the Gadsden Purchase, the last major acquisition of land in the continental United States.
Born in Southbridge, Massachusetts, Marcy established a legal practice in Troy, New York after graduating from Brown University. He fought in the War of 1812, serving as a captain of volunteers. Politically, he aligned with the Bucktail faction of the Democratic-Republican Party and became a leading member of the Albany Regency. As the Democratic-Republicans fractured in the 1820s, he became a member of the Democratic Party. Between 1821 and 1831, he successively served as Adjutant General of New York, New York State Comptroller, and as an associate justice on the New York Supreme Court. In 1831, the New York legislature elected Marcy to the U.S. Senate, and he held that position until 1833, when he became the Governor of New York. He served three terms as governor until his defeat in 1838 by the Whig nominee, William Seward.
He served as Secretary of War under James K. Polk from 1845 to 1849, overseeing the Mexican-American War. After leaving the Polk administration, he resumed the practice of law and became a leader of the "Soft" Hunker faction of the New York Democratic Party. He returned to the Cabinet in 1853, serving as Secretary of State under Franklin Pierce. In this role, he resolved a dispute about the status of U.S. immigrants abroad and directed U.S. diplomats to dress in the plain style of an ordinary American rather than the court-dress many had adopted from Europe. He also negotiated a reciprocity treaty with British North America and the Gadsden purchase with Mexico, acquiring territory in present-day Arizona and New Mexico. He left office in 1857 and died shortly thereafter.
Early life
William Learned Marcy was born in Southbridge, Massachusetts. He graduated from Brown University in 1808, taught school in Dedham, Massachusetts and in Newport, Rhode Island. He read the law and was admitted to the bar in 1811. He moved to Troy, New York, where he began a practice, across the river from the state capital of Albany. Marcy served in the War of 1812, serving first as a lieutenant and afterwards as a captain of volunteers. On October 22, 1812 he took part in the storming of the British post at St. Regis, Canada.
Afterward he served as Recorder of Troy for several years. As he sided with the Anti-Clinton faction of the Democratic-Republican Party, known as the Bucktails, he was removed from office in 1818 by his political opponents. He was the editor of the Troy Budget newspaper.
On April 28, 1824, he married Cornelia Knower (1801–1889, daughter of Benjamin Knower) at the Knower House in Guilderland, New York. They had two surviving children Edmund Marcy (b. ca. 1833) and Cornelia Marcy (1834–1888).
State politics
Marcy became the leading member of the Albany Regency, a group of Democratic politicians who controlled State politics between 1821 and 1838. He was Adjutant General of New York from 1821 to 1823, New York State Comptroller from 1823 to 1829, and an associate justice of the New York Supreme Court from 1829 to 1831.
In 1831, he was elected U.S. Senator from New York by the state legislature as a Jacksonian Democrat, and served from March 4, 1831, to January 1, 1833. He resigned upon taking office as governor, to which position he was elected in 1832. He sat on the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary in the 22nd Congress. Defending Jackson's nomination of Martin Van Buren as minister to the United Kingdom in 1832, Marcy used the phrase "'to the victor belong the spoils," from which the term spoils system is derived to refer to patronage political appointments.
Marcy was elected as Governor of New York for three terms, from 1833 until 1838. In 1838, he was defeated by Whig William H. Seward, which led to a radical change in state politics and then ended the Regency. To the abolitionists who questioned the candidates for governor, Marcy was considered a "doughface," a man with Southern sympathies. He was well aware of the importance of Southern cotton and trade for New York state, both as a major part of exports from New York City, and to the textile mills of upstate that processed cotton from the Deep South.
Marcy was appointed as a member of the Mexican Claims Commission, serving from 1839 to 1842. Later he was recognized as one of the leaders of the Hunkers, the conservative, office-seeking, and pro-compromise-on-slavery faction of the Democratic Party in New York.
Federal politics
Marcy served as United States Secretary of War in the Cabinet of President James K. Polk from 1845 until 1849, when he resumed the practice of law in New York. After 1849, Marcy led the "Soft" faction of the Hunkers that supported reconciliation with the Barnburners. He sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 1852 but was unsuccessful, in part by "Hard" opposition led by Daniel S. Dickinson.
Marcy returned to public life in 1853 to serve as United States Secretary of State under President Franklin Pierce. On June 1 of that year, he issued a circular to American diplomatic agents abroad, recommending that whenever practicable, they should appear in the simple dress of an American citizen. This directive created much discussion in Europe, where diplomats typically wore court dress. In 1867, Marcy's recommendation was enacted into law by the US Congress.
Marcy resolved the Koszta Affair (1853), related to detention of an unnaturalized American resident by Austria, gaining his freedom. He negotiated the Gadsden Purchase from Mexico in the Southwest, the last major land acquisition by the United States within its continental territory. It added land to what are now the states of New Mexico and Arizona. With a southern route of territory all under United States control, southerners worked to promote a railroad from Texas to San Diego but were not successful.
Other affairs that demanded Marcy's attention were a Canadian reciprocity treaty, Commodore Matthew C. Perry's negotiations for naval and trade access with Japan, a British fishery dispute, and the Ostend Manifesto.
Marcy died at Ballston Spa, New York on July 4, 1857. He was buried at the Rural Cemetery in Albany, New York.
Legacy and honors
- The United States Revenue Cutter William L. Marcy, launched in 1853, was named in his honor.
- His portrait appeared on American paper currency, the U.S. $1000 Dollar Silver Certificate, issued between 1878 and 1891.
- Mount Marcy in Essex County, at 1629 meters the highest peak in New York, was named for him.
- The Town of Marcy in Oneida County was named for him.
- The Marcy Projects, public housing in Brooklyn, New York, were named for him.