Early Life
James was born in Boston and had his preparatory education at the Boston Latin School. His father, John Lovell (1710–1778) was the school's headmaster from 1738 until 1775. James attended Harvard and graduated in 1756. He then joined his father and taught at the Latin School, while continuing his own studies. He received an MA (Master of Arts) degree from Harvard in 1759. Father and son continued their work in the Latin School until it was closed on April, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the American Revolutionary War.
While the school produced a number of revolutionary leaders, including John Hancock and Samuel Adams, the approaching revolution split father and son. John wrote and endorsed loyalist or Tory positions, while James became aligned with the Whigs and associated growing rebel sentiment. Following the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775, the new military Governor William Howe, ordered the arrest of likely dissidents in Boston. James Lovell was picked up in the sweep, and transported as a prisoner to Halifax (former city), Nova Scotia.
The following year, his father also came to Halifax, but as a refugee. The elder Lovell left Boston in March 1776 as part of the general exodus of Loyalists when British forces abandoned the city. In November 1776, James was exchanged for Colonel Philip Skene. When he got back to Boston in December, he was elected to be a delegate to the Continental Congress. He would serve in Congress until 1782.
Read more about this topic: James Lovell (Continental Congress)
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