| By: CHRISTIAN IMBESI |
| JOHN WITHERSPOON |
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| John Witherspoon was born in Gifford, Haddingtonshire, Scotland on February 5,1722. Witherspoon finished school and graduated from Edinburgh University in 1739. In Edinburgh he studied theology. |
| In 1743 he was licensed, and he was ordained minister of the parish of Beith in 1745. Witherspoon was the author of various pamphlets dealing with controversial religious subjects. On June 16 1757 he was installed pastor at Paisley. He declined the presidency of the college of New Jersey, now Princeton University, in 1766. He accepted the second invitation of that institution and was inaugurated as president August 17, 1768. He later be came a leader of Presbyterians in America |
| Witherspoon was member of many things. He was part of the committee on correspondence from Somerset County July 28, 1775. He was part of the Provincial Congress of New Jersey from June 10 to June 22, 1776. He was a member of the Continental Congress from June 22, 1776, to December 1, 1779, from December 1, 1780, to December 1, 1781, and from May 20 to November 5, 1782. Something that will allow his name to live on forever is that he is a signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was also the member of the secret committee of the Congress on the conduct of the war and member of the board of war in 1778. He took part in the State council in 1780. He served in the State general assembly in 1783 and 1789. After the war was over he returned to Princeton to continue his duties as president along with his interest in public affairs. |
| Sadly John Witherspoon became blind in 1792. Throughout his life he was a prolific writer. After his death, on his farm near Princeton, NJ, November 15, 1794, his works of writing were collected and published. |
| 1722- 1794 |
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