George Ross (delegate)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

George Ross. 1873 oil painting by Philip F. Wharton after Benjamin West.

George Ross (May 10, 1730–July 14, 1779), was a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Pennsylvania.

John Trumbull's famous painting is usually incorrectly identified as a depiction of the signing of the Declaration. What the painting actually depicts is the five-man drafting committee presenting their work to the Congress. Trumbull's painting can also be found on the back of the U.S. $2 bill.^[1]

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 twelve 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 Continental Army, 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, in which office he died.