George Ross portrait
Permanent ID:
14052
Image Description:
Portrait of George Ross. From the David McNeely Stauffer collection on Westcott's History of Philadelphia [1095]. Ross was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Pennsylvania. He was also the uncle of the man who married Betsy Griscom in 1773, giving her her famous married name: Betsy Ross. He was born in New Castle, Delaware, and educated at home. He studied law at his brother John's law office, the common practice in those days, and was admitted to the bar in Philadelphia. Initially a Tory, he served as Crown Prosecutor for 12 years and was elected to the provincial legislature in 1768. There, his sympathies began to change, and he became a strong supporter of the colonial assemblies in their disputes with Parliament. He was a member of the Committee of Safety, and was elected to the Continental Congress. He was a colonel in the Pennsylvania militia (1775–1776), and vice-president of the first constitutional convention for Pennsylvania. He resigned from the Continental Congress in 1777 because of poor health, and was appointed to the Pennsylvania Court of Admiralty where he died at age 49.
Inscription:
Engraved by J.W. Steel from the original picture.
Format:
Prints
