Biography:

Jacob Graff, III (usually referred to as Jacob Graff, Jr.) was born in 1751 and died in 1793 of yellow fever.  He was a bricklayer and builder.  He married Maria Shinkle (1758-1806), the daughter of Frederick Shinkle who was in partnership with Jacob II for awhile.  Their children included Frederick (1774 or 1775-1847), Charles (b.1779), and Maria (d.1839).  Shortly after their marriage, Jacob III built a house on the corner of High Street [later Market] and Seventh Street; in 1776 he rented two rooms to Thomas Jefferson, and it was in the Graff house that Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence.  (The house was later torn down.)  Evidence in some of his papers indicate that Jacob III may have been in business with Christian Groves.  Jacob’s son Frederick became an engineer; he worked with Benjamin Latrobe.  His best known work was the Philadelphia Waterworks at Fairmount Park.  Son Charles was probably the Charles Graff who was a merchant in Philadelphia.