Sir William Pepperrell

Sir William Pepperrell 1696-1759, American colonial military commander, b. Kittery Point, Maine (then part of Massachusetts). A wealthy merchant, landowner, and businessman, he became a colonel in the colonial militia, was a delegate to the Massachusetts General Court and a member of the governor's council, and was appointed chief justice in 1730. In 1745, in King George's War (see French and Indian Wars ), he commanded the land forces that, with a British fleet under Sir Peter Warren, captured the French fortress Louisburg , on Cape Breton, Canada. In recognition of this service, he was the first Native American to be created baronet (1746). Sir William also commanded a regiment in the last of the French and Indian Wars, and as president of the council he briefly governed (1756-57) Massachusetts. His journal of the Louisburg expedition was published by the American Antiquarian Society in its Proceedings, Vol. XX (1911).

Bibliography: See J. F. Sprague, Three Men from Maine (1924); study by B. Fairchild (1954).

Pepperrell, William (1696–1759) soldier and merchant. Born in Maine to a prosperous and socially prominent family, Pepperrell entered the family business and also became active in the local militia. His most noted exploit was the 1745 expedition he led against the French fort at Louisbourg, Cape Breton Island, which had been used as a base to interfere with Massachusetts shipping; after a month-long siege, the fort surrendered. Pepperrell commanded the Eastern Frontier during the Seven Years War (1756-63) and in 1759 was named a brigadier general in the British army, although poor health kept him from field service.