America's 250th Anniversary A Smithsonian magazine special report Matthias Aspden spent his time abroad yearning for his “native country.” His heirs later took the government to court, arguing that the estate had been confiscated unjustly A Benjamin West painting of the reception of American loyalists by Great Britain in 1783 Public domain via Wikimedia Commons On the eve of the American Revolution, Matthias Aspden made a decision that would change the trajectory of his life. A wealthy merchant from Philadelphia, Aspden carefully prepared to leave his home in March 1776 as rumors of war circulated. He drafted a will and appointed trusted friends to manage his property while he traveled to England. As someone who wanted to remain loyal to the crown and the British Empire, Aspden hoped that the war would be brief. Historians estimate that at the beginning of the conflict, as many as one-third of all American colonists identified as loyalists . Aspden believed his departure would be temporary.…