William Legge P.C., 2nd Earl of Dartmouth (June 20,1731 - July 7,1801) was a British statesman who is most remembered for his part in the government before and during the American Revolution. For King George III, Legge was the 2nd Secretary of State for the Colonies, serving from 1772 to 1775. He was a large donor to and the leading trustee for the English trust which would finance the establishment of Dartmouth College, formed to educate the children of the natives and of 'English youth' in the New Hampshire wilderness. It is named in his honor.

In London, the Earl of Dartmouth was a supporter of the new Foundling Hospital, a charitable institution for the care and maintenance of the city's abandoned children. He served as a vice president of the organization from 1755 until his death. The famous painter Sir Joshua Reynolds painted the earl's portrait and donated it to the hospital. The portrait is still in the Foundling Hospital Collection and can be seen at the Foundling Museum in London.

The Dartmouth family lived at Sandwell Hall (since demolished) in the Sandwell Valley.

Bibliography

• R.H. Nichols and F A. Wray, The History of the Foundling Hospital (London: Oxford University Press, 1935).
• His role in Black Country Methodism is mentioned in David Hallam's book Eliza Asbury, the mother of Bishop Francis Asbury.

1731 births | 1801 deaths

British Secretaries of State | Dartmouth College | Earls in the Peerage of Great Britain | Lords Privy Seal | Methodists | British officials in the American Revolution