1706-74, lieutenant governor of colonial Massachusetts (1771-73), b. Boston. Oliver was elected to the provincial council in 1746 and later served as secretary of the province. His acceptance of the post of stamp officer after the passage of the Stamp Act led to violent demonstrations against him, which forced him to resign the office. He became lieutenant governor in 1771, but popular indignation against him broke out again in 1773 as the result of the discovery of private letters he and Gov. Thomas Hutchinson had written to England criticizing the colonists and recommending coercive measures.
