Category Archives: New Jersey

John Witherspoon, the only clergyman to sign the Declaration of Independence, was born in Yester, Scotland on 5 Feb 1722 or 1723. This is the same day, just the difference between the Julian and Gregorian calendars. His parents were James … Continue reading →

Judge Richard Stockton was the only signer to be put in irons, starved and imprisoned under brutal conditions by the British four months after signing the Declaration of Independence. He paid the supreme price for placing his signature on the … Continue reading →

Francis Hopkinson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on 21 September 1737 (o.s.), the eldest of the eight children born to Thomas Hopkinson and Mary Baldwin Johnson. His father died when the lad was only 14 years of age, but his … Continue reading →

While the actual date of John Hart’s birth is unknown, biographers have put it in the year of 1713, in Hopewell Township, NJ. His grandfather, for whom he was named, was a carpenter, who came from Newtown, Long Island. His … Continue reading →

In the early hours of July 4, 1776, Abraham Clark wrote his friend Elias Dayton, the Colonel of a battalion of Jersey troops at German Flatts, from his lodging in Philadelphia. . . . Our Congress Resolved to Declare the … Continue reading →