Person Detail: Thomas Paine

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General Information:
Full Name: Thomas Paine
Biography: (1737-1809) Political theorist and writer. Wrote pamphlet "Common Sense" (1776), which encouraged independence from Great Britain and also wrote pamphlet series "The Crisis" (1776-83), encouraging the patriot cause during the Revolutionary War. After the war, Paine lived in New Rochelle until 1787, when he left for England. There, he wrote "The Rights of Man" (1791-1792), and was persecuted for treasonous attacks on British institutions. Paine fled to France, and after playing a significant role in French affairs, he became imprisoned during the Reign of Terror in 1793. It was in prison that he wrote his most famous work, "The Age of Reason" (1794-95). Paine returned to the United States again in 1802 and lived there for seven years in poverty. Paine lived in New York at the end of his life, spending the last month at 59 Grove St. at 7th Ave. There is a plaque on the replacement house. Paine was a founding member of New York City's first literary club, eventually called Bread and Cheese, once a formal collective. Members: Charles Wiley, WILLIAM DUNLAP, Henry Brevroot, Gulian Verplanck, city's leading poet Fitz-Greene Halleck, and James Kent. (WASHINGTON IRVING, abroad, was made an honorary member). Later inductees include WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT and Samuel F. B. Morse, the inventor of the telegraph.
Author's Timeline:
1737		(Unknown) County Paine was born in Thetford, England.
1809		(Unknown) County Paine died in New York City.
1776		(Unknown) County "Common Sense" Paine wrote pamphlet "Common Sense" (1776), which encouraged independence from Great Britain.
1776		(Unknown) County "The Crisis" Paine wrote pamphlet series "The Crisis" (1776-83), encouraging the patriot cause during the Revolutionary War.
1791		(Unknown) County "The Rights of Man"
1794		(Unknown) County "The Age of Reason"
?		Westchester County Lived in New Rochelle, NY until 1787
?		New York County Lived in New York City, NY