Moses Michael Hays

Hays was born in New York City in 1739 to Dutch Jewish immigrants Judah Hays and Rebecca Michaels. They were Sephardic, descended from Jews who had left Spain and Portugal. Judah Hays took his son into his shipping and retail business, and upon his death in 1764, left him the business and largest share of his assets. Moses continued his father’s commitment to Congregation Shearith Israel, serving as second parnas (vice-president) in 1766 and parnas in 1767.

In 1766, Hays married Rachel Myers, younger sister of Myer Myers, a famed New York silversmith. The couple moved to Newport, Rhode Island in 1769, where Hays continued his shipping business. Business reverses landed him in debtor’s prison but he was set free when he liquidated his assets and repaid his creditors. He immediately reestablished himself in the trans-Atlantic trade.

In 1775, seventy-six men in Newport were asked to sign a declaration of loyalty to the American colonies that included the phrase "upon the true faith of a Christian." Hays publicly objected to the phrase and refused to sign, standing firm on the philosophy of "all men created equal". Instead he offered a letter affirming his belief that the Revolution was a just cause. Hays signed when the Christian portion of the oath was omitted.

Silver Cream Jug by Paul Revere specially crafted for banker and philanthropist Moses Michael Hays. Stamped "REVERE". Circa 1783

The Hays family left Newport for Boston ahead of the British occupation in 1776. He opened a shipping office in Boston and was among the first merchants there to underwrite shipbuilding, trade and insurance to newly opened Far Eastern markets. In 1784, Hays became a founder and the first depositor of the Massachusetts Bank, still doing business today as part of the Bank of America.

In 1783, Rabbi Isaac de Abraham Touro, husband to Hays' sister Reyna, died in Jamaica. Reyna had three children: Abraham, Judah and Rebecca. Moses Hays brought Reyna and her family to Massachusetts and raised her children as his own.

Hays also helped to establish the New England Masonic movement. When Hays was accepted into the Massachusetts Lodge in November 1782, he was the only Jew. (There were numerous Jewish men among founders of lodges in Charleston, South Carolina and cities in other Southern states.)[2][3]

In 1792, the lodge members elected Hays as their Grand Master, with Paul Revere as his Deputy. Hays provided financial support to beautify Boston Common, establish theaters, and endow Harvard College. Hays descendants helped found the Boston Athenæum and the Massachusetts General Hospital, and remain prominent in Boston public life to this day.

Hays died in 1805 and is buried at The Colonial Jewish Burying Ground in Newport.[4] His story was used for an episode of Liberty's Kids.[5]