Francis Hopkinson
Signer of the Declaration of Independence
Biography
Francis Hopkinson (September 21, 1737 – May 9, 1791), an American author, was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence as a delegate from New Jersey. He later served as a federal judge in Pennsylvania. He played a key role in the design of the first American flag.
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This Day In History 222 Years Ago
May 9, 1791
Patriot Politician And Composer Francis Hopkinson Dies
Patriot Politician And Composer Francis Hopkinson Dies
On this day in 1791, Francis Hopkinson, signer of the Declaration of Independence and the first American secular composer, dies suddenly of a seizure in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Hopkinson was born to an elite family in Philadelphia and graduated from the College of Philadelphia in 1757; he became an attorney four years later. Hopkinson then spent two years studying under his mother's relative, the bishop of Worcester, in London, before returning to the colonies with a lucrative royal appointment as the collector of customs for Salem, New Jersey, in 1763. He added New Castle, Delaware, to his responsibilities in 1772. In 1774, Hopkinson's revolutionary sentiments caused him to resign his post and return to private legal practice in Bordentown, New Jersey. He was elected as one of New Jersey's delegates to the Continental Congress in 1776 and soon after signed his name to the Declaration of Independence.
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