Samuel Vaughan

Born in Ireland as the youngest of twelve children of Benjamin Vaughan, Samuel was a successful merchant in Atlantic trade and planter in Jamaica. During his stay in Jamaica between 1736 and 1752 Samuel emerged as one of the wealthiest landowners on the island with the estates in St. James and Trelawny in his possession. Along with his family he left Jamaica after 1752 and set up a merchant-banking business in London.

During his brief journey in United States, Vaughan created one of the most important public gardens at the time; the State House Garden (1784-1785) renamed in Independence Square in 1826, and completed one of the best-known historic plans of the garden at Mount Vernon (1787), which he presented to George Washington as a gift.

By the end of 1787, Vaughan sailed from Philadelphia to Jamaica where lived until he permanently returned home to England in 1790.