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Joshua FisherAmerican Quaker, merchant
Country:
 USA |
Content:
- Joshua Fisher: American Quaker and Merchant
- Early Life and Family
- Business Ventures and Trade
- Move to Philadelphia and Merchant Success
- Contribution to Navigation and Legacy
- Challenges during the Revolution
- Later Years and Legacy
Joshua Fisher: American Quaker and Merchant
Joshua Fisher was an American Quaker and prominent merchant from Philadelphia. He was not only involved in transatlantic trade but also contributed to the creation of navigational maps. It was Fisher who owned the first ships that made regular voyages between Philadelphia and London. He was also the first to compile maps of the Delaware River and Delaware Bay.
Early Life and Family
Joshua Fisher was born in 1707 in Sussex County, Delaware, to a Quaker family. His father, Thomas Fisher, passed away when Joshua was six years old, and his upbringing was taken care of by his mother, Margery Maud Fisher. Margery was the adopted daughter of Dr. Thomas Wynne, the personal physician of William Penn, one of the founding fathers of America. The state of Pennsylvania was named after Penn. Joshua's paternal grandfather, John Fisher, also arrived in America on the ship "Welcome" with Penn.
Business Ventures and Trade
Joshua Fisher grew up to be an enterprising individual and self-taught in mathematics and mechanics. In July 1733, he married Sarah Rowland, the daughter of a neighbor. Fisher settled in Lewes, Delaware, where he established a thriving hat-making business and engaged in active trade with the local Native Americans, who supplied him with animal skins. He sent a significant portion of his merchandise to England, where he gained many clients. In Lewes, Fisher opened a large inn and store frequented by ship captains, as Lewes was the first port at the mouth of Delaware Bay. Fisher provided navigational advice to pilots and captains on how to navigate the bay's numerous shoals.
Move to Philadelphia and Merchant Success
In 1746, Fisher sold his store and house in Lewes and moved his wife and six children to Philadelphia. Initially settling in the northern part of the city, he later built a house on Front Street and moved there. Outside the city, Fisher purchased land on which he built a mansion called "The Cliffs" in 1753, named after his family's ancestral home in Yorkshire, England. The family spent many summers there.
In close proximity to his home, Fisher constructed warehouses and established a profitable trading enterprise known as "Joshua Fisher & Sons." The store offered a wide range of goods, and buyers could order items from a detailed catalog, from chests of drawers to porcelain, with delivery within a few weeks. Fisher's services were primarily utilized by wholesale traders, eliminating the need for newspaper advertisements. The Fisher family still possesses antique chairs brought to Philadelphia on the first ships of this cargo line.
Contribution to Navigation and Legacy
While managing his business, Joshua Fisher continued to study navigation. Over a span of 20 years, with the help of his son-in-law Samuel Rowland and other seafarers, he compiled a detailed map of Delaware Bay, incorporating information about ports, harbors, shoals, and channels. The map was first printed in Philadelphia in 1756, then in 1775, and finally in 1776, it was printed in London. The map was used by sailors for approximately 100 years.
Challenges during the Revolution
During the American Revolution, the Fisher family suffered significant losses. A large portion of Joshua Fisher's property was seized by the military, and he never received compensation for it. In 1779, his son Thomas and one of his slaves were taken as hostages by the British, and Fisher had to pay a ransom of a hundred cattle. Like many other pacifist Quakers, Fisher maintained neutrality during the revolution. As a result, three of his sons and other Quakers from the community were exiled to Winchester, Virginia, for a year for refusing to cooperate with and swear allegiance to the fledgling nation. The conditions were harsh, and they were treated poorly, but Fisher's sons eventually returned home, unlike his son-in-law.
Later Years and Legacy
Joshua Fisher passed away on February 1, 1783. His sons continued his business, and the family's prosperity grew over time. Today, the Fisher family still retains the wealth accumulated by their ancestor. Joshua Fisher's contributions to trade and navigation played a significant role in the development of Philadelphia as a major trading hub during the colonial period.
