Ask any Marine where their branch started, and they’ll point you to a bar. It's a classic bit of military lore. But honestly, if you're looking for one single name to answer the question of who founded the usmc, things get a little messy. It wasn't just one guy with a quill pen and a dream. It was a committee, a recruiter, and a whole lot of desperate necessity during the winter of 1775.
The Continental Congress technically gets the credit for the paperwork. On November 10, 1775, they passed a resolution stating that "two battalions of Marines be raised." That's the official birth certificate. But a resolution doesn't put boots on a ship. For that, you need a leader. You need Samuel Nicholas.
Nicholas is widely regarded as the first officer of the Marines. He wasn't some career soldier with a chest full of medals. He was an innkeeper. A Philadelphian. A guy who knew how to talk to people. This is where the story of the Marine Corps separates itself from the more "buttoned-up" histories of the Army or Navy. It started in a pub called Tun Tavern.
The Continental Congress and the November Resolution
We have to look at the Second Continental Congress to understand the "why" before the "who." By late 1775, the colonies were in a bad spot. Washington’s army was struggling, and the British Royal Navy owned the coastline. The Americans needed a way to fight back on the water, but they didn't just need sailors. They needed sharpshooters who could climb the rigging and clear the decks of enemy ships. They needed an amphibious force.
John Adams was a massive driver behind this. He’s often called the "Father of the American Navy," but his fingerprints are all over the Marine Corps resolution too. He was the one pushing the Naval Committee to get moving. On that snowy November day in Philadelphia, the Congress didn't just say "let's have Marines." They specified that these men needed to be "good seamen, or so acquainted with maritime affairs as to be able to serve to advantage by sea when required."
This wasn't about parade grounds. It was about raw utility.
Samuel Nicholas: The First Traditional Commandant
While Congress wrote the laws, Samuel Nicholas did the legwork. He was commissioned as a Captain of Marines just weeks after the resolution passed. Why him? Well, his family was well-connected in Philadelphia, and he was a member of the Schuylkill Fishing Company—a social club for the elite. More importantly, he had the charisma to recruit.
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Nicholas set up his recruiting headquarters at Tun Tavern. The owner, Robert Mullan, was actually appointed as a fellow Marine captain. Think about that for a second. The guy serving the beer was also the guy handing you the enlistment papers. It was a brilliant, if slightly unorthodox, way to build a fighting force from scratch.
You’ve probably heard people argue over whether Nicholas was the first Commandant. Officially, the title "Commandant" didn't exist yet. But in every practical sense, he was the guy in charge. He led the first landing at New Providence in the Bahamas in 1776. They captured much-needed gunpowder and cannons without firing a single shot. It was the first "ship-to-shore" movement in the history of the Corps. Nicholas was the architect of the early Marine identity: rugged, versatile, and slightly separate from the rest of the military hierarchy.
The Tun Tavern Connection
Tun Tavern isn't just a fun piece of trivia. It’s foundational. In the 1770s, taverns weren't just places to get drunk; they were the hubs of political and social life. They were the "offices" of the revolution.
Robert Mullan’s role as the chief recruiter shouldn't be overlooked. While Nicholas was the face of the operation, Mullan was the engine. Together, they gathered the first "leathernecks." The term supposedly came from the high leather collars they wore to protect their necks from cutlass swings and to keep their heads erect.
The first recruits were a motley crew. They were laborers, sailors, and adventurers. They weren't trained in fancy academies. They were trained on the docks. This "everyman" origin story is exactly why the USMC maintains such a distinct culture today. It wasn't founded by generals in a war room; it was founded by a tavern owner and an innkeeper in a smoke-filled room in Philadelphia.
What Happened After the Revolution?
Here is a weird fact that most people forget: the Marine Corps actually died for a bit.
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After the Treaty of Paris in 1783, the Continental Marines were disbanded. They literally didn't exist for fifteen years. The ships were sold, and the men went back to their lives. So, when people ask who founded the usmc, they are sometimes talking about the "re-founding" in 1798.
As tensions with France rose during the "Quasi-War," President John Adams signed the Act establishing and organizing a Marine Corps on July 11, 1798. This is when the Corps became a permanent fixture of the U.S. military. This second "founding" gave us William Ward Burrows. He was the first person to actually hold the official title of Commandant.
Burrows was a different kind of leader than Nicholas. He moved the Marine barracks to Washington D.C. He started the Marine Corps Band (The President’s Own). He helped create the professional image we recognize now. If Nicholas gave the Corps its soul, Burrows gave it its structure.
Key Figures in the Early Days
- John Adams: The political muscle who pushed the legislation through Congress.
- Samuel Nicholas: The first officer and "traditional" founder who led the first missions.
- Robert Mullan: The recruiter and tavern owner who basically built the first battalions.
- William Ward Burrows: The first official Commandant who professionalized the force in 1798.
- Archibald Henderson: Known as the "Grand Old Man of the Marine Corps," he served as Commandant for 38 years. While he didn't "found" it, he’s the reason it survived the 19th century.
Common Misconceptions About the Founding
People often get confused about the dates. Is it November 10th or July 11th?
The Marine Corps celebrates November 10th because that’s the date of the Continental Congress resolution. It’s a matter of heritage. Even though there was a gap where the Marines didn't exist, the lineage is traced back to that 1775 start.
Another big myth is that the Marines were just a sub-branch of the Navy from day one. In reality, the 1798 Act established them as a separate service under the Secretary of the Navy. This "separate but related" status has been a point of pride (and occasionally friction) for over two centuries.
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Why the "Founder" Identity Matters Today
The reason we care about who founded the usmc isn't just for history exams. It’s about the "warrior-scholar" ethos. The Corps started as a small, specialized group tasked with doing the jobs nobody else could do. They were the original "multi-domain" force.
When you look at the founding, you see a pattern of adaptability. Samuel Nicholas had to figure out how to storm a fort in the Bahamas with men who had never seen combat. That spirit of improvisation is baked into the DNA of every Marine today. It’s why they still talk about Tun Tavern. It reminds them that they come from humble, gritty beginnings.
Steps for History Buffs and Future Marines
If you're looking to dive deeper into the origins of the Corps or want to honor that history, here's how you can actually engage with it:
- Visit Philadelphia: You can’t go to the original Tun Tavern (it burned down in 1781), but there’s a commemorative marker at the site near Front Street and Sansom Walk. It’s a bit of a pilgrimage for Marines.
- Read the "Marine Corps Gazette": For those who want to see how the modern Corps interprets its founding principles in today’s geopolitics, this is the gold standard for professional reading.
- Check out the National Museum of the Marine Corps: Located in Triangle, Virginia, this place is incredible. They have an entire section dedicated to the Revolutionary War era that puts Nicholas and the Continental Marines in context.
- Verify the Records: The "Journals of the Continental Congress" are digitized and available through the Library of Congress. You can read the actual text of the November 10, 1775, resolution yourself. It’s surprisingly brief for something that started a 250-year legacy.
The founding of the Marine Corps wasn't a singular event. It was a process. It took a visionary politician like Adams, a charismatic leader like Nicholas, and a group of tough-as-nails volunteers in a Philadelphia tavern to make it happen. They weren't trying to build the world's premier amphibious force—they were just trying to win a war. In doing so, they created something that has outlasted every one of them by centuries.
Whether you count the "founder" as the men in the tavern or the men in the halls of Congress, the result is the same: a branch of service that views its history not as a set of dates, but as a living, breathing identity.
Next Steps for Research:
Check the official USMC History Division archives for primary source documents regarding the commissioning of Samuel Nicholas. If you are interested in the evolution of Marine tactics, look into the 1776 raid on Nassau to see how Nicholas applied the congressional mandate in real-time. For a modern perspective on how these traditions are maintained, the Commandants' Reading List offers a curated selection of books that bridge the gap between 1775 and today's operational environment.