Burr, Aaron 1756-1836
US politician

Born in Newark, New Jersey, he was a graduate of Princeton, and was called to the Bar in 1782. After serving as a US senator from New York (1791-97), he tied with Thomas Jefferson in the presidential election of 1800, and by decision of the House of Representatives became Vice-President (1801-05) under Jefferson. For 20 years he carried on a personal and political rivalry with Alexander Hamilton, and his defeat in a contest for the governorship of New York prompted him to force a duel (1804) with Hamilton, whom he mortally wounded. Burr fled to South Carolina, and though indicted for murder, returned and completed his term as Vice-President. He then devised a secret plan to establish an independent nation in the south-west. When rumours of this scheme leaked out, his enemies claimed that his goal was to dismember the Union, and he was arrested and tried for treason (1807). Acquitted, he spent some years in Europe, and in 1812 resumed his law practice in New York but was shunned by society.

Bibliography: Milton Lomask, Aaron Burr (2 vols, 1977-82)