Tryon, William

Tryon, William,

1729–88, English colonial governor in North America. After a distinguished army career he was appointed (1764) lieutenant governor of North Carolina and succeeded (1765) Arthur Dobbs as governor. Tryon was an able administrator but became unpopular with the colonists because of his rigorous suppression (1771) of the Regulator movementRegulator movement,
designation for two groups, one in South Carolina, the other in North Carolina, that tried to effect governmental changes in the 1760s. In South Carolina, the Regulator movement was an organized effort by backcountry settlers to restore law and order and
..... Click the link for more information. . In 1771 he was appointed governor of New York, and at the outbreak of the American Revolution he was forced to remain on a British ship in the harbor. Tryon returned to power when William Howe took the city (1776), and later (1777, 1779) he led Tory raids in Connecticut.

Bibliography

See M. D. Haywood, Governor William Tryon and the Administration of the Province of North Carolina (1903).

Tryon, William

(1729–88) colonial governor, Loyalist; born in Surrey, England. He served as governor of North Carolina (1765–71) and of New York (1771–75). Later, he led Loyalist attacks on Connecticut (1780). Although a capable administrator, he was too prone to use force.