John Witherspoon (February 15, 1723–November 15, 1794), was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of New Jersey. He was the only clergyman to sign the Declaration.

He was born in Gifford, Scotland and obtained a Master of Arts at Edinburgh, and went on to divinity school . He became a Presbyterian minister at Beith, where he married and wrote three well-known works on theology. He was awarded a Doctorate of Divinity from the University of St. Andrews. During the Jacobite rising of 1745, he was briefly imprisoned at Doune castle, which had a longterm impact on his health.

At the urging of Benjamin Rush and Richard Stockton, he and his wife emigrated to New Jersey in 1768, where he took up the position of President of the College of New Jersey (which was later to become Princeton University). He instituted a number of reforms, and was firm but good-humored in his leadership. Witherspoon was very popular among both faculty and students, among them James Madison and Aaron Burr. As the College's primary occupation at the time was training ministers, Witherspoon was a major leader of the early Presbyterian church in America. At Princeton today, a dormitory built in 1877 and a street running north from the University's main gate bear his name. A statue of Witherspoon stands beside East Pyne hall.

As a native Scotsman long wary of the power of the British Crown, he soon came to support the Revolution, joining the Committee of Correspondence and Safety in early 1776. He was elected to the Continental Congress and, in July 1776, voted for the Resolution for Independence. In answer to an objection that the country was not yet ready for independence, he replied that it "was not only ripe for the measure, but in danger of rotting for the want of it." He was praised by George Washington, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin for his devotion to the Revolutionary cause. For the same reason, he was denounced with unusual vehemence by the British press.

In November, 1778, as British forces neared, he closed and evacuated the College of New Jersey. The buildings were nearly destroyed, and Witherspoon was responsible for its rebuilding after the war, which caused him great personal and financial difficulty. He also served twice in the New Jersey Legislature, and strongly supported the adoption of the United States Constitution during the New Jersey ratification debates.

He suffered a series of eye injuries and was blind when he died on his farm "Tusculum," just outside of Princeton.

External links

• Princeton Companion entry