Alexander Gillon

Alexander Gillon (* 1741 in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, † October 6, 1794 in Orangeburg County, South Carolina ) was an American politician. Between 1793 and 1794 he represented the state of South Carolina in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Career

After a good primary education Alexander Gillon moved to London in England. There he was engaged in trade with the American colonies of England as a ship's captain. In 1766 he settled in Charleston in the then British colony of South Carolina down. He became a successful businessman in his new home.

Gillon joined in the American Revolution. In the years 1775 and 1776 he was a delegate to the second Provincial Congress. 1776, he was elected to the House of Representatives from South Carolina. At the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, he was in 1775 appointed captain of a consisting of German unity. Three years later he became commander of the naval forces of South Carolina. In this capacity, he was sent to France to acquire new ships. In 1782, Gillon has been involved with the Spanish fleet at the taking of the Bahamas.

1784 Alexander Gillon was elected to the Continental Congress, whose meetings he did not attend. In 1788 he was a delegate to the Assembly, which ratified the Constitution of the United States of South Carolina. He belonged to the anti - Administration Group, which stood in opposition to the federal government under President George Washington. In the congressional elections of 1792 he was elected the fifth constituency of South Carolina in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he became the successor of Thomas Tudor Tucker on March 4, 1793. Alexander Gillon could not finish his runs until March 3, 1795 tenure in Congress. He died on October 6, 1794 at his plantation " Gillons Retreat " in Orangeburg County. He was married to Mary Cripps.