Thomas Law (1756–1834)

Law decided to leave England and go to the United States. In 1794, he emigrated to the United States, taking his eldest sons, George and John, with him He left his youngest son Edmund, then four, with an aunt for a few years until he got settled and the boy was older. Law first went to New York, where he met James Greenleaf who told him of speculative and development opportunities in Washington, DC, which had been designated as the national capital in 1790. Law invested large portions of his fortune in buying land there and helping develop the new capital. There was much speculation in real estate. He invested in property with the Greenleaf Syndicate, which went bankrupt in 1797.

Law continued to care for his sons and arranged for their education. Following a trip to England about 1802-1803, he returned to the United States with Edmund. John attended Harvard College [Class of 1804] and Edmund attended Yale College.[6]

Elizabeth Parke Custis, portait by Gilbert Stuart

In 1796 Law married Elizabeth Parke Custis (d. 1832), the eldest granddaughter of Martha Washington and step-granddaughter of George Washington.[10] Soon after their marriage, Law and Elizabeth moved temporarily into a new house built on 6th Street SW as part of development in that area. The Federal-style house became known as "Honeymoon House"; the Laws lived there from about March through August 1796. They next moved to the house they had built for them.[10]

Due to differences, Law and his wife separated in 1804, and they were divorced on 18 January 1811.[10] The couple had one daughter who survived infancy, Elizabeth Law (19 January 1797 – 9 August 1822). She married Nicholas Lloyd Rogers (known as Lloyd N. Rogers) of Druid Hill, Baltimore on 5 April 1817.[11][12]

When Law and his wife, known as Eliza P. C. Law, separated, he made a deed of certain real estate as jointure, to provide an annuity to her during her life of $1,500, for her own separate use and benefit. At her death, the said real estate was to be reconveyed to Thomas Law and his heirs, clear of encumbrances by the annuity administrators.[12] Eliza P. C. Law acquired a residence in Alexandria, Virginia, and continued to be active in Washington, DC society.

Their daughter Elizabeth Law (19 January 1797 – 9 August 1822) had three children with her husband Lloyd N. Rogers: Edmund Law (1816-1865), Eliza, and Eleanor Rogers. Elizabeth Law Rogers was survived by her husband and children, and both her parents, who at her death had been divorced for more than a decade.[12]

Law built several buildings in DC, including a hotel and other properties along New Jersey Avenue, SE, and invested in others. He bought land down to Buzzard's Point, an area along the East Branch of the Potomac, and established some commercial businesses there, including a sugar mill.[7] Because of his commercial background, he thought that area along the waterfront would rapidly develop. But early development in the city was concentrated around the White House and Capitol, the center of its political life.

Over time, Law assumed a prominent role in the city's social, political, and economic life, becoming known as an energetic, if somewhat eccentric, promoter of his adopted country. He published poetry, and moral philosophy. He helped found the first theater in the nation's capital, a dancing society, and a learned society called the Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences.

After the War of 1812, in which Washington had suffered burning by the British, Law led an effort to retain the national capital there. He directed construction of a temporary Capitol, so Congress would have a place to meet.[7] He continued to invest in real estate holdings in the Southwest and Southeast parts of the city.

His son John Law served with United States forces in the War of 1812;[7] he had become a lawyer. John Law also served as a local legislator.[6] Both sons became involved in business affairs with their father.[6] John Law also went out to the Illinois Territory to work for a period, scouting for land and development opportunities.[7]

The senior Law also worked tirelessly to gather support to build a canal through the city to facilitate trade. He publicly advocated the creation of a national paper currency to improve the country's economic development.

In 1817 he bought a plantation, known as the Retreat or Tusculum, in Prince George's County, Maryland, from which he could see the East Branch of the Potomac and the city. He was elected as president of the county agricultural society. While he did use it as a retreat, he also entertained large parties, reportedly including President Monroe and top-ranking officials.[7]

Privately Law supported the abolition of slavery, as well as the colonization of free blacks outside the bounds of the United States. The American Colonization Society was active in this period in supporting relocation of free blacks to the colony of Liberia (originally separate settlements were established by state colonization societies, including one in Maryland).

At the time of his death in 1834, Law had earned the support and friendship of such important national figures as presidents Thomas Jefferson, John Quincy Adams, John C. Calhoun, and Henry Clay, as well as the esteem of many ordinary citizens. Law's life and career provide a concrete link between Britain's Second Empire in India and its First Empire in North America.[13][5][7]

Law had invested most of his fortune in property in Washington, DC, at a time of speculation as the capital was being moved to this new city. He bought some property from the Greenleaf Syndicate, which at one time owned one-third of the saleable property, and went bankrupt in 1797.[10] Law was repeatedly on the verge of bankruptcy. Property values fell, for instance, after the 1814 invasion and destruction by the British during the War of 1812.