Thomas Cushing

Thomas Cushing
Acting Governor of Massachusetts
In office February 17, 1785 – May 27, 1785
Lieutenant	Himself
Preceded by	John Hancock
Succeeded by	James Bowdoin
1st Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
In office November 4, 1780 – February 28, 1788
Governor	John Hancock (1780–1785) Himself (1785) James Bowdoin (1785–1788)
Preceded by	Thomas Oliver (as Lieutenant Governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay)
Succeeded by	Benjamin Lincoln
Speaker of the General Court
In office May 28, 1766 – October 1774
Preceded by	James Otis Jr.
Succeeded by	John Hancock (as Congress President)
President of the Massachusetts Senate
In office October 25, 1780 – November 4, 1780
Preceded by	office established
Succeeded by	Jeremiah Powell
Member of the Massachusetts Senate
In office October 25, 1780 – November 4, 1780
Member of the General Court for Boston
In office 1731–1747
In office 1761–1774
Member of the Boston Board of Selectmen
In office 1753–1763
Personal details
Born	(1725-03-24)March 24, 1725 Boston, Province of Massachusetts Bay
Died	February 28, 1788(1788-02-28) (aged 62) Boston, Massachusetts
Spouse	Deborah Fletcher ​ ​ (m. 1747; died 1788)​
Education	Boston Latin School
Alma mater	Harvard College
Occupation	Merchant, Lawyer
Signature

Thomas Cushing III (March 24, 1725 – February 28, 1788) was an American lawyer, merchant, and statesman from Boston, Massachusetts. Active in Boston politics, he represented the city in the provincial assembly from 1761 to its dissolution in 1774, serving as the lower house's speaker for most of those years. Because of his role as speaker, his signature was affixed to many documents protesting British policies, leading officials in London to consider him a dangerous radical. He engaged in extended communications with Benjamin Franklin who at times lobbied on behalf of the legislature's interests in London, seeking ways to reduce the rising tensions of the American Revolution.

Cushing represented Massachusetts in the First (during which he signed the Continental Association) and Second Continental Congresses but was voted out when he opposed independence. Despite this, he remained politically active after independence, continuing to serve in the state government. During the Revolutionary War, he was a commissary responsible for provisioning the military, a position he used to enrich the family merchant business. He was elected the state's first lieutenant governor in 1780. Politically associated with fellow merchant Governor John Hancock, he remained lieutenant governor until his death in 1788, briefly serving as acting governor in 1785 between the resignation of Hancock and the election of James Bowdoin.