William Whipple

Tough minded and aggressive, a fortune he estab-

lished.  Yet Whipple turned toward public duties, for it was freedom that he had-wished.

                 Writing from Philadelphia to Josiah Bartlett on January 7, 1776, William Whipple said:

This year, my Friend, is big with mighty events. Nothing less than the fate of America depends on the virtue of her sons, and if they have not virtue enough to support the most Glorious Cause ever human beings were engaged in, they don't deserve the blessings of Freedom.

       William had followed the sea from fourteen years old until he retired in order to enter the mercantile business in Portsmouth with his brother.  He had come to command his own ship and managed to amass a considerable fortune in the West India trade.  The mercantile venture at Portsmouth was also prosperous and Captain Whipple continued it until 1775 when he closed out all his business interests in order to devote himself entirely to public affairs.  Although his early education was limited, he was easily recognized as a genius.

      Captain Whipple was elected to the Continental Congress of 1775 and again in 1776.  In 1777 he was made Brigadier General of the New Hampshire Militia.  General Whipple lead men in the successful expedition against General Burgoyne at the battles of Stillwater and Saratoga. 

       When appointed to conduct the surrendered army to Winter Hill, General Whipple was boonfellowed by a black slave named Prince, a native of Africa.  "Prince," said Whipple, "we may be called into action, in which case, I trust you will behave like a man of courage, and fight bravely for the country."  Prince replied, "Sir, I have no wish to fight and no inducement, but had I my liberty, I would fight in defense of the country to the last; drop of my blood."   Whipple responded, " Prince, from this moment you are free."

        He co-operated with General Sullivan at the siege of Newport in 1778; returned to Congress again in 1778 and 1779; was financial receiver of New Hampshire in 1782 and 1783, and Judge of the Superior Court in 1784-85 until his death.  His wife, Catharine Moffat Whipple, daughter of Hon. John and Catharine Cutt Moffat, survived him many years.  They left no descendants.

      He was identified as a Congregationalist by The Congregationalist Library.   Ian Dorion, "Table of the Religious Affiliations of American Founders," 1997.    

    His house still stands on Market Street overlooking the river at Portsmouth.

    A memorial which overlooks the South Mill Pond at the base of Haven Park is inscribed:

A Memorial to Gen. William Whipple (1730-1785) Signer of the Declaration of Independence, soldier, statesman, jurist. Given by Gov. Charles M. Dale. Sponsored by the NH Society Sons of the American Revolution.

Above quote from: A Biography of General William Whipple, by Dorothy Mansfield Vaughan
Read by the author at a meeting of The National Society of The Colonial Dames in the State of New Hampshire
February 26, 1964 © 1964 by Dorothy Mansfield Vaughan         http://bioguide.congress.gov/biosearch/biosearch.aspSee:  http://www.whipple.org/william/index.html   http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/signers/whipple.htm 

     Wives of the Signers: The Women Behind the Declaration of Independence, by Harry Clinton Green and Mary Wolcott Green, A.B. (Aledo, TX: Wallbuilder Press, 1997). Orignally published in 1912 as volume 3 of The Pioneer Mothers of America: A Record of the More Notable Women of the Early Days of the Country, and Particularly of the Colonial and Revolutionary Periods (New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons). Pages 14-16.

You can make many plans, but the Lord's purpose will prevail.    

Proverbs 19:21