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Henry Knox (born July 25, 1750, Boston, Massachusetts [U.S.]β€”died October 25, 1806, Thomaston, Maine, U.S.) was an American general in the American Revolution (1775–83) and the first secretary of war under the U.S. Constitution. Forced by family circumstances to leave school at age nine, Knox worked in a Boston bookstore and by age 21 had acquired his own store. He became active in the colonial militia and in 1775 joined the Continental Army at Cambridge,...