William Whipple (1730-1785) - Find a Grave Memorial

Declaration of Independence Signer. Born in Kittery, Maine, he went to sea in his teens, and by the time he was 21, he was Captain of his own ship. Whipple would sail to many ports in Europe, Africa, and the West Indies, making a good living transporting slaves, sugar and rum in what became known as the Triangle Trade. At age 29, he gave up the seafaring life, selling his boat, and moving to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where he worked as a merchant for his brother. In 1767, he married his cousin Catherine Moffatt, and went to live with her family in Portsmouth. Their only child died in infancy. A leading advocate for independence, Whipple served as a delegate to the provincial congress in 1775, and to the Continental Congress in 1775 to 1776, and again in 1778. Once independence was declared, Whipple wanted to fight, despite a heart condition that occasionally caused him to faint, and he joined the New Hampshire Militia. One of sixteen signers who served as soldiers during the war, he rose to the rank of Brigadier General and took part in campaigns in New York, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. He served in the state assembly from 1780 to 1784. From 1782, he was an associate justice of the superior court until his death in 1785. Just two years after the war was won, Whipple died from his heart condition at his home in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, at the age of 55.

Bio by: Kit and Morgan Benson

Inscription

Here are deposited the remains of the Honourable William Whipple, who departed this Life on the 28th day of November, 1785, in the 55th Year of his Age. He was often elected and thrice attended the Continental Congress, as Delegate for the State of New Hampshire, particularly in that memorable Year in which America declared itself independent of Great Britain. He was also at the Time of his decease a Judge of the Supreme Court of Judicature. In Him a firm and ardent Patriotism, was united with universal benevolence, and every social Virtue.