Hello, Friends of Freedom. I hope your summer is amazing! Let’s continue our look at the Declaration’s signers. Richard Stockton was the first signer of the Declaration of Independence from New Jersey and was perhaps the one who suffered the most for doing so. He was captured by the British and tortured severely in prison.
He was born into affluence in New Jersey, where his father founded the College of New Jersey.
He had a brilliant intellect. After graduating from Samuel Finley’s Academy of Nottingham, he studied law under David Ogden, the most prominent lawyer of his time.
He received the degree of Sergeant of Law ( the highest law degree of his era).
He married the poet Ann Boudinot and had six children.
He was a trustee at Princeton University for 26 years. He was not known to like politics and shied away from involvement until he requested some time away from Princeton and made a trip to Europe. While in England, he engaged King George III on behalf of the University regarding the Stamp Act. The King liked him a lot, as did other Parliament Leaders who at the time were not hostile to the Colonies.
We want to thank Pastor Allen Cook for this Contribution – Please direct yours to Steve@GraniteGrok.com.
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After returning home, his reputation only enlarged, and he was regarded as a man of immense wisdom and sound advice.
He also became very outspoken about the British and their treatment of the citizens of the Colonies of America, and as a result, he was asked to be a delegate to the Continental Congress.
He was captured by the British while visiting friends as he was on his way home from Philadelphia after signing the Declaration of Independence.
He was deprived of food ( intentional starvation) and subjected to freezing cold.
He was offered a pardon, and some say that it was in exchange for recanting his signing of the Declaration of Independence. There is no factual evidence of this recanting, and other scholars believe that George Washington was involved in negotiating his release.
He had an incredible faith, as is exemplified by his knowledge of and reference to the scriptures in so many of his writings.
A few faith statements are as follows:
I subscribe to the entire belief of the great leading doctrines of the Christian religion, such as:
*the being of God: (Genesis 1:1)
*the universal defection and depravity of human nature: (Romans 3:23)
*the Divinity of the person (John 1:14) and the completeness of the redemption purchased by the blessed Savior (Ephesians 1:7)
*I exhort and charge my children that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10)
*The way of life that is held up in the Christian system is calculated for the most complete happiness that can be enjoyed in this mortal state and that all occasions of vice and immorality is injurious either immediately or consequentially in this life.
He was a founding father who lost everything of earthly value but maintained his faith! *****(thanks again to Dave Barton’s info of his quotes out of his great book, The American Story.)
Until next time….
