Gouverneur Morris – 1752-1816

Morris was a man of contradictions. Highly conservative (he was an extreme Federalist, who believed in the strongest possible central government, including presidential tenure for life and presidential appointment of senators), he was nevertheless a zealous champion of independence during the American Revolution and a strong advocate of unlimited religious freedom. Under the Articles of Confederation, Morris formulated the decimal coinage system that became the basis of the U.S. monetary system. A key delegate to the Constitutional Convention, he was a principal drafter of the document.