Cannabis Sativa

thcscience_admin
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Randy Kryn (talk | contribs)
Extended confirmed users
265,242 edits
added link, full name, and descriptor in caption
Randy Kryn (talk | contribs)
Extended confirmed users
265,242 edits
added back Founding Father (is this okay?)
Line 16: Line 16:
}}
}}


'''Thomas Lynch Jr.''' (August 5, 1749 – 1779) was a signer of the [[United States Declaration of Independence]] as a representative of [[South Carolina]]; his father was unable to sign the Declaration of Independence because of illness.
'''Thomas Lynch Jr.''' (August 5, 1749 – 1779) was a signer of the [[United States Declaration of Independence]] as a representative of [[South Carolina]] and one of the [[Founding Fathers of the United States]]; his father was unable to sign the Declaration of Independence because of illness.


==Early life ==
==Early life ==

Revision as of 13:29, 30 October 2021

For other people with the same name, see Thomas Lynch (disambiguation).
Thomas Lynch Jr.
Born(1749-08-05)August 5, 1749
Georgetown, South Carolina
Disappeared1779
Atlantic Ocean
OccupationPlanter
Known forSigning the Declaration of Independence
SpouseElizabeth Shubrick[1]
Signature

Thomas Lynch Jr. (August 5, 1749 – 1779) was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of South Carolina and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States; his father was unable to sign the Declaration of Independence because of illness.

Early life

Coat of arms of Thomas Lynch Jr.

He was born in Hopsewee Plantation in Prince George Parish, Winyah, in what is now Georgetown, South Carolina, the son of Thomas Lynch and his wife, Beverly Allston Lynch. Before Thomas Lynch Jr. was born, his parents had two daughters named Sabina and Esther who were born in 1747 and 1748. After Thomas Lynch Sr's first wife's death in 1755, Jr's father remarried Annabella Josephiné Dé'Illiard. Thomas Lynch Jr's mother was the daughter of Gilliém Marshall Dé'Illiard of Iberville Parish, Louisiana, whose brother George William Dilliard of Virginia is credited with changing the Dilliard name to its current spelling, made introductions during a ball held at the childhood home of John Drayton Sr., Magnolia Plantation and Gardens. Also in attendance were prominent families such as the Middleton's, Randolph's, and Rutledge. In this marriage, they gave birth to a daughter named Aimeé Constance in 1755, who later married John Drayton.[2] Lynch Jr. grandfather was Jonas Lynch from County Galway ancestral line, the Lynch family were expelled from Ireland following their defeat in the Irish wars of the William of Orange [3] Lynch Jr.'s father had originally emigrated from Kent, England and from there continued to South Carolina.[4] His father was a prominent figure in South Carolina politics which contributed to access of opportunity in high education and wealth.[5]

Photograph of Hopseewee Plantation

He was schooled at the Indigo Society School in Georgetown before his parents sent him to England, where he received honors at Eton College and at Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge.[1] He studied law and political philosophy at the Middle Temple in London. His father admired his English education and encouraged him to remain in Great Britain to study law and the principles of the British constitution.[4]

After eight years away from America, he returned to South Carolina in 1772. Although it was his father's dream, Thomas Lynch Jr. decided to end his pursuit of a profession in law.

High school sweethearts, Lynch Jr. and Paige Shubrick were married on May 14, 1772.[6] Following their marriage, the couple lived at Peach Tree Plantation which was located in close proximity to his homeland plantation.[6] Lynch Jr. enjoyed cultivating the land and remained active in political dialogue in his community.[6]

After his father's death due to a stroke, his widowed mother married another influential political figure, South Carolina Governor William Moultrie. Thomas' sister Sabina Hope Lynch married James Hamilton; one of their sons was James Hamilton Jr., who became governor in the state in 1830.

Career

Lynch was elected a member of the Provincial Congress on February 11, 1775. This committee was formed to prepare a plan of government and represent the people of South Carolina. Lynch Jr. served alongside with Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, John Rutledge, Charles Pinckney, Henry Laurens, Christopher Gadsden, Rawlins Lowndes, Arthur Middleton, Henry Middleton, Thomas Bee, Thomas Heyward Jr. in the Provincial Congress.[7] This group formed the South Carolina constitution. Many people objected to this document including The Continental Congress. It stood as a temporary constitution as many believed there would be reconciliation with Great Britain.[8]

Lynch became a company commander in the First South Carolina regiment on June 12, 1775. He was commissioned by the Provincial Congress. After being appointed, he gathered men and led a march into Charlestown, South Carolina. Amid the march, he became very sick with a bilious fever which prevented him from continuing.[4] When he recovered, he was unable to fulfill his position in a proper way. During his recovery, he received news about his father's declining health.[4] In hope that he could manage his father's illness, Lynch asked his commanding officer, Colonel Christopher Gadsden, if he could travel to Philadelphia.[4] His request was denied originally, but after receiving news of his election to the Continental Congress, he was allowed to travel to his father.

On March 23, 1776, the General Assembly of South Carolina named Lynch to the Continental Congress as a sixth delegate.[9] Although he was ill, Lynch Jr. traveled to Philadelphia to sign the Declaration of Independence. Thomas Lynch Sr. and Thomas Lynch Jr. were the only father and son to serve in the Continental Congress.[4] Lynch Jr. signed the Declaration of Independence along with Arthur Middleton, Thomas Heyward Jr., and Edward Rutledge.[10] He was the second youngest delegate in the Continental Congress and filled in his father's place due to illness.[5] The youngest signer, South Carolinian Edward Rutledge, was younger by three months.[11][12]

Less than a month after signing the Declaration of Independence Lynch threatened that South Carolina would secede from the United States in a threat representing the interests his constituents. "If it is debated, whether their Slaves are their Property, there is an End of the Confederation."[13][14]

After signing the Declaration of Independence, an ill Thomas Lynch Jr. set out for home with his ailing father. On the way to South Carolina, his father suffered a second stroke and died in Annapolis, Maryland, in December 1776.[2] Thomas Lynch Jr. retired in early 1777.[citation needed]

Death

After two more years of illness in South Carolina, where he resided with his wife at Peachtree Plantation on the South Santee River, many suggested that Thomas Lynch Jr. travel to Europe in search for a different atmosphere.[2] Despite the dangers, he and his wife sailed for respite on a vessel to St. Eustatius in the West Indies in late 1779. The ship is known to have disappeared shortly after, standing as the last record of his life. Elizabeth and Thomas Lynch Jr. having no children were lost at sea in 1779.[6] At the age of 30, he was the youngest signer of the Declaration to die.

Before Thomas Lynch Jr. died at sea, he made a will requiring that the heirs of his female relatives change their last name to Lynch in order to inherit his family estate.[6] His sister, Sabina responded by changing her name. She and her husband owned and managed the property until their son was of age.[6] Their son, John Bowman Lynch and his wife had three male children. Henry C. Lynch died in 1843 (1828-1843). Thomas B. Lynch died in the American Civil War.[6](1821-1864). James (N.M.) Lynch died in 1887 (1822-1887).

The autograph letter signed by Lynch Jr. and Founding Father George Taylor is dated November 1780, and refers to business in Taylor's trade of ironmongery. This is one of the few known Lynch signatures left.

Upon the death of Sabina the estate passed to Lynch's youngest sister Aimeé Constance Dé'Illiard Drayton in accordance with his will that the estate remain in the family.

Legacy

Lynch's birthplace, the Hopsewee Plantation, built in 1735 is on the National Register of Historic Places and was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1971.

In his 1856 book, "Lives of the Signers to the Declaration of Independence" Rev. Charles A Goodrich lauds Lynch "as a man of exalted views and exalted moral worth" Goodrich continues to describe him "In all the relations of life, whether as a husband, a friend, a patriot, or the master of the slave, he appeared conscious of his obligations, and found his pleasure in discharging them."[15]

Autographs by Thomas Lynch Jr. are among the rarest by signers of the Declaration of Independence. His time in Congress lasted less than a year and much of this time was spent in poor health. Only a single letter has survived, along with a few signatures on historical documents.[16] Many of his autographs have scattered, and others were lost in a fire.[17] Today, Lynch's autograph sells as much as $200,000–$250,000.[17]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Lynch, Thomas (LNC767T)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
  2. ^ a b c "Hopsewee Heritage: The Lynch Family" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-11-30.
  3. ^ "Thomas Lynch, Jr., signer of the "Declaration of Independence"".
  4. ^ a b c d e f "The Signers of the Declaration of Independence from South Carolina - Thomas Lynch, Jr". www.carolana.com. Retrieved 2016-11-16.
  5. ^ a b "Thomas Lynch Jr | Facts, Biography, Death, Accomplishments, Signer". The History Junkie. 2012-05-18. Retrieved 2016-11-15.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g MacLean, Maggie (2009-09-11). "paige Lynch: Wife of Declaration Signer Thomas Lynch Jr". History of American Women. Retrieved 2016-11-30.
  7. ^ "The South Carolina Constitution of 1776". The South Carolina Historical Magazine. 77 (2).
  8. ^ Lipscomb, Terry W. (1976-01-01). "The South Carolina Constitution of 1776". The South Carolina Historical Magazine. 77 (2): 138–141. JSTOR 27567384.
  9. ^ Journal of the Provincial Congress of South Carolina, 1776. p. 101.
  10. ^ Jenkins, Charles F. (1 January 1927). "An Account of a New Portrait of Thomas Lynch, Jr". The South Carolina Historical and Genealogical Magazine. 28 (1): 1–7. JSTOR 27569714.
  11. ^ Congressional Record
  12. ^ Congressional Record
  13. ^ "Tax Aversion and the Legacy of Slavery by Robin L. Einhorn, author of American Taxation, American Slavery". press.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  14. ^ "John Adams diary 27, notes on Continental Congress, 13 May - 10 September 1776". www.masshist.org. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  15. ^ Goodrich, Rev. Charles (1856). Lives of the Signers to the Declaration of Independence. New York: William Reed &Co. pp. 443–447.
  16. ^ Kirby, Thomas (1946). The American Historical Review 52. pp. 101–103.
  17. ^ a b "A Rare Declaration Of Independence! Thomas Lynch Jr's Autograph Is For Sale". JustCollecting. Retrieved 2016-11-16.

External links

source: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thomas_Lynch_Jr.&diff=next&oldid=1052602798

Leave a Reply