Stephen Moylan letter to Nathaniel Green

Stephen Moylan was born in Cork, Ireland, in 1737 to a wealthy family. He had at least two brothers, Francis (later Bishop of Cork) and John. He was educated in England or Paris before moving to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1768 to run a shipping business. He was also the first president of the Friendly Sons of Saint Patrick in Philadelphia.

Moylan joined the Continental Army in 1775 and, possibly through connections with John Dickinson of Philadelphia, became secretary to George Washington before being appointed Quartermaster General in the American Continental Army on 5 June 1776. After some difficulty in this post, he resigned on 28 September 1776 but remained in the Army, commanding a company of light dragoons with distinction. He was brevetted to brigadier general on 3 November 1783.

In 1778 Moylan married Mary Ricketts Van Horne and they had a daughter, Elizabeth. The family lived in Philadelphia, where Moylan was Commissioner of Loans. He died on 11 April 1811 and was buried at St. Mary's Church in Philadelphia.

John Moylan served as Clothier General of the United States. He was probably born in Ireland and moved to America at an unknown date.

Nathanael Greene was born 7 August 1742 in Warwick, Rhode Island. His father was a Quaker preacher. He educated himself, particularly in military studies, in spite of a conflict between his interest in the study of war and his Quaker beliefs.

Greene helped organize a militia in 1774 and joined the Continental Army in 1775. He was rapidly promoted from private to Brigadier General, and served with George Washington in operations throughout New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. He was appointed Quartermaster General 2 March 1778, and remained so until August 1780, continuing to command troops throughout. He later commanded troops throughout the South, and was instrumental in a number of important battles including the Battle of Guilford Court House in North Carolina.

After the war, Greene refused the post of Secretary of War and eventually settled in Georgia, near Savannah. He married Catharine Littlefield of Rhode Island in 1774 and was president of the Rhode Island Society of Cincinnati from 1783 until his death. Greene died of sunstroke in 1786.