Our nation holds its founders in very high esteem. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams are revered for their roles in gaining Independence from Great Britain and for creating the structure of our national government that survives to this day. George Washington’s leadership qualities and his command of the Continental Army during the American Revolution as well as his service as the first President of the United States set him apart as the quintessential founder, but Jefferson’s, Adams’s, and Franklin’s diplomatic services and skills played equally important roles in the birth of our nation.

However, what often goes amiss is the idea that these few men were solely responsible for our freedom and the founding of our nation. Frequently left out of the narrative are countless others whose direct contributions either match or exceed those of the men we routinely honor. While this list is quite extensive and includes many women and minorities as well as those we traditionally refer to as “Founding Fathers,” one of the most prominent members is William Livingston. Throughout colonial unrest, revolution, war, and the creation of our national government, Livingston consistently played essential roles in shaping and leading the fledgling United States.

In earlier years, Livingston openly opposed and argued against the Anglican Episcopacy of New York, a move which sullied his legal career and ultimately led to his retirement from law and New York to retreat to his country home in Elizabethtown, New Jersey (what is today part of Union Township). Even in his “retirement,” Livingston continued to be a leader, accepting the invitation to serve as a New Jersey delegate to both the First and Second Continental Congresses. Being recalled from this duty just prior to the Summer of 1776, William Livinngston was then appointed Brigadier General of thee New Jersey Militia, a role he served in throughout the first summer of the American Revolution until his nomination and appointment by the New Jersey Legislature as the first elected Governor of New Jersey. William Livingston would remain in this office throughout the remainder of the war and up until his death in 1790.

During this time, Livingston was in constant communication with George Washington, coordinating troop movements and New Jersey militia support for the Continental Army. During this time, Livingston also fought to challenge loyalist support in New Jersey and throughout the states. When both New York and Philadelphia fell to British and Loyalist control, Livingston petitioned for the publication of the New Jersey Gazette, and contributed many of his own writings to the paper to garner support for the cause of Independence. William Livingston often forewent seeing his own family and his own home to fulfill his duties to the State and the Nation.

Livingston’s public service did not end there either. In 1787, William Livingston once again served as New Jersey delegate, however, this time it was as delegate to the Federal Convention at Philadelphia, or more commonly known as the Constitutional Convention. While not being very vocal during the convention sessions, Livingston chaired two of the most significant committees: the committee to assess the assumption of state war debt by the national government and the international slave trade committee. Livingston not only participated in the convention and affixed his name to the document as a signer of the Constitution of the United States (see Livingston featured in “Scene at the Signing of the Constitution” under the center window, leaning over the desk to the left), but he also supported the ratification of the Constitution by all of the states.¹

Livingston was also initially considered as a candidate for Vice President of the United States under George Washington and was later offered a post as United States Minister to the Netherlands by the Congress of the United States but turned the position down. While William Livingston will never occupy the same place in the minds of Americans as George Washington, he is easily one of the most important and influential founders of our nation along with many other who were part of William Livingston’s World.