Jonathan Dickinson Sergeant (1746 – October 8, 1793) was an American lawyer from
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a municipality with a borough form of government in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It was established on January 1, 2013, through the consolidation of the Borough of Princeton and Princeton Township, both of w ...
. He represented
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...
in the
Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress was a late-18th-century meeting of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that united in support of the American Revolutionary War. The Congress was creating a new country it first named "United Colonies" and in 1 ...
in 1776 and 1777. He later served as Attorney General for the state of
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
.
Life and career
Sergeant was born in 1746 in
Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat, seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County and the second largest city within the New Yo ...
, the son of Abigail (Dickinson) and Jonathan Sergeant. He moved with his parents to Princeton. He completed his initial studies and attended the College of New Jersey (now
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...
), receiving his degree in 1762. His maternal grandfather,
Jonathan Dickinson
Jonathan Dickinson (1663–1722) was a merchant from Port Royal, Jamaica who was shipwrecked on the southeast coast of Florida in 1696, along with his family and the other passengers and crew members of the ship.
The party was held captive by Job ...
, had been the first president of the college at its founding in 1747. After Sergeant's graduation from the College of Philadelphia (now the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest- ...
) in 1763 with an A.B. degree, he read for the law and entered practice in Princeton in 1767.
From 1774 to 1776 he was a member of the revolutionary
New Jersey Provincial Congress. In early 1776 he went as a delegate to the Continental Congress, but he resigned in June to return home and serve on the committee that drafted
New Jersey's first constitution. In November he returned again to the national congress.
In September 1777 he resigned from Congress a second time, this time to accept office as the attorney general of Pennsylvania. He permanently moved to
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
and opened a law practice there on his return to private life in 1780. In 1784, he was elected a member of the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
.
Sergeant died in Philadelphia in 1793 and was originally buried in the Old Presbyterian Churchyard at Fourth and Pine Streets. In 1878, he was re-interred in the
Laurel Hill Cemetery.
His son
John Sergeant later represented Pennsylvania in the
U.S. Congress. Another son,
Thomas Sergeant
Thomas Sergeant (January 14, 1782 – May 8, 1860) was a Pennsylvania lawyer, judge, and politician. He served as Secretary of State, Attorney General, and as an associate justice of the state Supreme Court.
Biography and career
Sergeant and ...
, served as Pennsylvania secretary of state, attorney general and on the state Supreme Court.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sergeant, Jonathan
1746 births
1793 deaths
People of colonial New Jersey
Politicians from Newark, New Jersey
Lawyers from Philadelphia
People from Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton University alumni
University of Pennsylvania alumni
Continental Congressmen from New Jersey
18th-century American politicians
New Jersey lawyers
Pennsylvania lawyers
Burials at Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia)
Lawyers from Newark, New Jersey