Haym Solomon (Salomon) was born in Poland about 1740

Haym Solomon (Salomon) was born in Poland about 1740. At the beginning of America’s Revolution, Mr. Solomon was operating a financial brokerage in New York City. He immediately sided with the Sons of Liberty, and in 1776, was arrested by the British as a spy, and was required to serve them as a German interpreter for Hessian soldiers. However, at the same time he was helping prisoners of the British to escape and encouraging German soldiers to desert. When this was discovered in 1778, the British sentenced him to death. He was able to escape to Philadelphia, which was controlled by the American rebels, and there he resumed his brokerage enterprises.

Solomon was an influential member of the Mikveh Israel congregation, founded in 1740, in Philadelphia and he was a leader in the fight to overturn restrictive Pennsylvania laws barring non-Christians from holding public office. He married Rachel Franks in 1777, and they had four children together.

Haym Solomon performed patriotic service to his adopted land in both New York and Pennsylvania by helping to finance the war. He loaned and contributed large sums of money to the cause of liberty during the American Revolution. He lived at both New York City and Philadelphia and died in that latter city on 6 January 1785, penniless, probably as a result of his loans to the American government. His descendants were never successful in obtaining compensation from Congress for his financial sacrifices.

The remains of Haym Solomon now repose at Mikveh Israel Cemetery. From the photograph, it appears that his grave or place of burial was marked by the Haym Solomon Masonic Lodge in 1976. In the past 100+ years numerous of his female descendants have joined the Daughters of the American Revolution on his service.