Thomas Lynch Jr.

Early life

He was born in Hopseewee Plantation in Prince George Parish, Winyah, in what is now Georgetown, South Carolina, the son of Thomas Lynch and his wife, Elizabeth 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 his mother’s death in 1755, his father remarried Hannah Motte, the sister of Isaac Motte. In this marriage, they gave birth to a daughter named Elizabeth in 1755. Lynch Jr.'s family originally emigrated from Austria to Kent, England. From there, they moved to Ireland and continued to South Carolina. His father was a prominent figure in South Carolina politics which contributed to access of opportunity in high education and wealth.

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. 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.

After eight years away from the 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 Elizabeth Shubrick were married on May 14, 1772. Following their marriage, the couple lived at Peach Tree Plantation which was located in close proximity to his homeland plantation. Lynch Jr. enjoyed cultivating the land and remained active in political dialogue in his community.

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

Career

He 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 Pickney, John Rutledge, Charles Pinckney, Henry Laurens, Christopher Gadsden, Rawlins Lowndes, Arthur Middleton, Henry Middleton, Thomas Bee, Thomas Heyward, Jr. in the Provincial Congress. 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.

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. 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. In hope that he could manage his father's illness, he asked his commanding officer, Colonel Christopher Gadsden if he could travel to Philadelphia. 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 Lynch to the Continental Congress as a sixth delegate. 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. Lynch Jr. signed the Declaration of Independence along with Arthur Middleton, Thomas Heyward Jr., Edward Rutledge. He was the second youngest delegate in the Continental Congress and filled in his father's place due to illness. The youngest signer, South Carolinian Edward Rutledge was younger by three months. Thomas Lynch Jr. risked his life with this signature which stood against the country where he received his education.

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. Thomas Lynch Jr. retired in early 1777.

Legacy

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. 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 fathered no children, died at sea in 1779. 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 the heirs of his female relatives much change their last name to Lynch in order to inherit his family estate. His sister, Sabina responded by changing her name. Her and her husband owned and managed the property until their son was of age. Their son, John Bowman Lynch and his wife had three male children but all died in the American Civil War.

Thomas Lynch Jr. is one of the rarest signers of the Declaration of Independence due to the scarcity of his original signatures. His time in Congress lasted less than a year and much of this time was spent in poor health. Only a singular letter has survived along with a few signatures on historical documents. This is because many of his autographs have scattered and others were lost in a fire. Today, Lynch's autograph sells as much as $200,000–$250,000.

His legacy is greatly respected. As Rev. Charles A Goodrich said in the book, Lives of the Signers to the Declaration of Independence, "Although the life of Mr. Lynch was thus terminated, at an early age, he had lived sufficiently long to render eminent services to his country, and to establish his character as a man of exalted views and exalted moral worth. Few men possessed a more absolute control over the passions of the heart, and few evinced in a greater degree the virtues which adorn the human mind. 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. That a man of so much excellence, of such ability and integrity, such firmness and patriotism, so useful to his country, so tender and assiduous in all the obligations of life, should have been thus cut off, in the midst of his course, and in a manner so painful to his friends, is one of those awful dispensations of Him whose way is in the great deep, and whose judgments are past finding out."