Chief artillery officer of the Continental Army and later the 1st U.S. Secretary of War.
"We want great men who, when fortune frowns, will not be discouraged."
He was a book seller in Boston who joined the army and fought through the whole American Revolutionary War. He was a lifelong friend of George Washington. His initial fame came from hauling cannon in dead of winter from Fort Ticanderoga to Boston during the Siege of Boston at the start of the war. (The U.S. cabinet post which was originally called the Secretary of War is now called the Secretary of Defense.)
