Timothy Matlack

Timothy Matlack (painting by Charles Willson Peale )

Timothy Matlack (born May 28, 1736 in Haddonfield , Province of New Jersey , †  April 14, 1829 in Holmesburg , Pennsylvania ) was an American politician . In 1780 he was a delegate for Pennsylvania to the Continental Congress .

Career

Timothy Matlack attended Quaker schools in Haddonfield and Philadelphia . After that he was not very successful in trading and went bankrupt several times. Eventually he got into the beer business. First he sold bottled beer, then he opened his own brewery. In the 1770s he joined the revolutionary movement. From the beginning he was an avid supporter of the idea of ​​independence from Great Britain and became a member of several local revolutionary bodies such as the Provincial Conference in Philadelphia or the Security Committee of his homeland. He was secretary to the Continental Congress and wrote the rough draft of the United States' Declaration of Independence . However, one has to note that he only wrote the draft, but did not write it. The main authors were Thomas Jefferson and John Adams . In the meantime, Matlack also held the office of Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In 1777 he was the keeper of this state's seal. During the War of Independence he was part of the militia in his home country as a colonel. In 1780 he represented Pennsylvania in the Continental Congress.

In 1781, Timothy Matlack was one of the founders of the Society of Free Quakers religious society . He was also a staunch opponent of slavery . Since 1779 he was a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania . He later moved to Lancaster and then to Philadelphia for good. Between 1800 and 1809 he held the post of Master of the Rolls of Pennsylvania . In Philadelphia, he served for several years as a prothonotary in the district court. From 1813 to 1818 he sat on the local city council. He died on April 14, 1829 in Holmesburg, now part of Philadelphia.

Web links

• Timothy Matlack in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• 16365624 Timothy Matlack in the database of Find a Grave (English)
• Biography at the University of Pennsylvania

Remarks

1. ↑ according to other data in 1730 in Camden County