Signers of the Declaration of Independence: New Jersey, Part 1

View Online Signers of the Declaration of Independence: New Jersey, Part 1 Oct. 9, 2026 | By David Vergun Delegates to the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. The 56 delegates who signed the formal break from Britain are all considered Founding Fathers.   New Jersey had five delegates. This week's article features Abraham Clark, John Hart and Francis Hopkinson. Abraham Clark Clark was born Feb. 15, 1726, in Elizabethtown, New Jersey. He was the only child of Thomas Clark, a farmer, and Hannah Winans. Because of his frail health as a child, Clark did not work on the farm; instead, he focused on academics and received private tutoring in mathematics and surveying. He studied law independently and learned enough to establish a practice to aid those who could not afford a lawyer. This earned him the moniker "poor man's counselor." Clark married Sarah Hatfield in 1749, and they had 10 children. Two of their sons, Aaron and Thomas, served as captains during the Revolutionary War and were captured by the British. He was appointed clerk of the colonial New Jersey Assembly in 1752 and served in that capacity until 1766. Later, he served as high sheriff of Essex County, New Jersey, until 1775. Clark encouraged constituents to petition legislators to enact laws that favored ordinary people. He championed reducing the cost of courtroom proceedings and economic fairness for the populace, advocating for democracy and populism. On June 21, 1776, Clark was appointed to the Second Continental Congress to replace delegates who opposed independence. He promptly voted for the measure and signed the Declaration of Independence. He served until 1778. During the Revolutionary War, his sons were held as prisoners of war aboard the HMS Jersey, a ship notorious for brutal conditions. The British offered to release them if Clark recanted his support for independence, but he refused. Clark was elected to the New Jersey Legislative Council, the state's upper legislative chamber at the time, representing Essex County. He held other state legislative offices in the upper and lower chambers of the New Jersey General Assembly throughout the 1780s, during which he worked on reforms that reflected his populist views. After the war, Clark participated in the Annapolis Convention in 1786, where delegates from several states met to address issues of interstate commerce under the Articles of Confederation. This meeting would eventually lead to the Constitutional Convention in 1787. Because of his populist stance, Clark initially opposed the U.S. Constitution, considering it a consolidation of government power and potentially oppressive. He eventually supported it, contingent on the addition of the Bill of Rights to protect individual liberties, a concern shared by many anti-federalists of the time. Clark was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1791 and served until his death Sept. 15, 1794, from sunstroke. He was buried in Rahway Cemetery in Rahway, New Jersey. His wife died June 2, 1804, and she was buried alongside Clark. Clark Township, New Jersey, and Abraham Clark High School in Roselle, New Jersey, bear his name. The World War II Liberty ship SS Abraham Clark was named for him. Clark's original farmhouse in Roselle, built in 1705, was destroyed by fire in 1900 and rebuilt in 1941 by his descendants to preserve the site's historic legacy. Today, the Abraham Clark Memorial House is the headquarters of the New Jersey Society of the Sons of the American Revolution and includes a small museum featuring historical artifacts from the American Revolution, the 18th century, the Civil War, World War I and local history. A monument to Abraham Clark is located outside of the house. John Hart Hart was born in Stonington, Connecticut, in 1713, and his family moved to Hopewell Township, New Jersey, shortly after his birth. He was the eldest son of Edward Hart, a farmer, justice of the peace and militia leader during the French and Indian War, and Martha Furman; he had four siblings. Despite having a limited formal education, Hart became a skilled farmer and acquired several mills and a large property, making him one of the wealthiest men in his area. Hart married Deborah Scudder, and they had 13 children. Their sons Nathaniel and Edward served in the New Jersey militia during the Revolutionary War. On Jan. 10, 1742, Hart and his family moved to a 193-acre homestead in Hopewell Township. Over time, he expanded his holdings, eventually becoming one of the largest landowners in Hopewell by the 1770s. Hart began a long career in public service in 1750, when he was elected to the Hunterdon County, New Jersey, Board of Chosen Freeholders, the group that managed the county's finances and infrastructure. His work on the board led to his appointment as justice of the peace by the colonial governor in 1755, a position he held for some time before his election to the New Jersey Colonial Assembly in 1761. Later, in 1768, he served as a judge on the Court of Common Pleas until the outbreak of the Revolutionary War in 1775, when he became involved in revolutionary activities and was elected to the New Jersey Provincial Congress, which became the New Jersey General Assembly July 2, 1776. The Provincial Congress elected Hart to replace a delegate in the Second Continental Congress. The entire New Jersey delegation was replaced because of their opposition to independence. After signing the Declaration of Independence, Hart returned to New Jersey in August 1776 and was elected speaker of the newly established New Jersey General Assembly, where he served until 1778, when poor health forced him to retire. Hart faced personal risk from the British as speaker. In December 1776, he was forced to hide in the Sourland Mountains to avoid capture, and his farm was raided. Although he was in danger, Hart continued to support the Revolutionary cause, even hosting Gen. George Washington and 12,000 Continental soldiers on his farm in June 1778. Hart died May 11, 1779, and was buried at the Hopewell Old School Baptist Meeting House Cemetery in Hopewell, near where his wife, who died Oct. 8, 1776, was buried. The cemetery is on land that Hart donated to the local Baptists in 1747. The John Hart Homestead is part of the Hopewell Historic District, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in December 1985. The oldest portion of the homestead is the original family home; it is now part of a larger structure expanded in 1805. It remains a private residence. The World War II Liberty ship SS John Hart was named for him. Francis Hopkinson Hopkinson was born in 1737 in Philadelphia. He was the eldest of eight children of Thomas Hopkinson, a judge, and Mary Johnson. Shortly after his father died in 1751, Hopkinson attended the Academy of Philadelphia, which later became the College of Philadelphia, and eventually became part of the University of Pennsylvania. Hart was a member of the first College of Philadelphia's graduating class in 1757. He continued his studies and was awarded a master's degree in 1760. He studied law under Benjamin Chew, a prominent attorney, was admitted to the Pennsylvania Bar in 1761, and established a legal practice in Philadelphia. On Sept. 1, 1768, he married Ann Borden, and they had nine children. Hopkinson held various public service positions, including customs collector in Salem, New Jersey, and New Castle, Delaware, responsible for enforcing British trade regulations. He was appointed to the governor's council under the British colonial government of New Jersey in 1774. As the call for independence grew and he aligned with the patriot cause, Hopkinson resigned all of his royal positions in early 1776. He was elected as a New Jersey delegate to the Second Continental Congress in June 1776, voted for independence and signed the Declaration of Independence Aug. 2, 1776. In 1779, Hopkinson was appointed judge of the Admiralty Court of Pennsylvania, during which he faced an impeachment trial over allegations of misconduct but was acquitted and continued in office until 1789. His judicial career culminated when President George Washington appointed him as the first judge of the United States District Court for the District of Pennsylvania, a position he held until his death May 9, 1791. Hopkinson was buried at Christ Church Burial Ground in Philadelphia. His wife, who died Aug. 12, 1827, is also buried there. Throughout his life, Hopkinson composed music and poems. He designed the Great Seal of New Jersey with assistance from Pierre Eugene du Simitiere, a Swiss-born artist and heraldic expert. He also made contributions to the designs of the Great Seal of the United States, the Admiralty Board Seal, the seal of the American Philosophical Society and the University of Pennsylvania Orrery Seal. Historians believe Hopkinson had a significant role in designing the original American flag, for national symbolism and naval use; in historical accounts, the flag is frequently referred to as the Hopkinson Flag. The Francis Hopkinson Home in Bordentown was built in 1750; Hopkinson and his family moved into the house in 1774, and he lived there until his death. The house was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1971. This is the 19th installment in a series of articles about the men who signed the Declaration of Independence. The 56 delegates to the Second Continental Congress, representing the 13 colonies, are all considered Founding Fathers.

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