Aaron Lopez

Aaron Lopez was a prominent figure in colonial-era Rhode Island. Born Duarte Lopez in Lisbon to a family of conversos, Lopez changed his given name to Aaron after immigrating to North America, where he began living openly as a Jew. He settled in Newport and built a fortune on the trade of spermaceti, a wax derived from whale oil, though he had a range of mercantile interests, including involvement in the slave trade. When Lopez was denied citizenship of the colony of Rhode Island, he relocated for a time to Massachusetts, where his application for citizenship was successful. Though his fortunes were severely damaged during the Revolutionary War, Lopez supported the war effort. He was buried in the Jewish cemetery in Newport.