Overview
Lyman Hall was a lawyer and politician born in Connecticut who immigrated to Georgia, where he became a key figure in the Patriot Cause as a leader of the “Liberty Society.” His leadership led St. John’s Parish to elect him as Georgia’s first delegate to the Continental Congress, where he voted for independence and signed the Declaration of Independence. Following the war, he was elected as the Governor of Georgia and helped establish the University of Georgia.
Personal Facts
- Born: April 12, 1724, in Wallingford, Connecticut.
- Parents: John Hall (father) and Mary Street (mother).
- Spouse: Abitail Burr (1752), Mary Osborne (1753).
- Died: October 19, 1790, at Shell Bluff Landing, Georgia. 66 years old.
- Buried: Courthouse Grounds, Augusta, Georgia.
- Part of:. Signers of the Declaration of Independence.
Significance
Lyman Hall is important to American History because he signed the Declaration of Independence, making him one of the nation’s Founding Fathers.
Biography
Early Life
Lyman Hall, born on April 12, 1724, in Wallingford, Connecticut, was the son of John and Mary Street Hall. His family traced its roots to John Hall, who arrived in Boston in 1633, moved to New Haven, and settled in Wallingford around 1670.
Hall attended Yale College and graduated on January 1, 1747. Afterward, he studied theology with his uncle, Reverend Samuel Hall. He started preaching in Bridgeport, Connecticut, in June 1749 and was ordained three months later by the Fairfield West Consociation. He struggled with his congregation from the start and was dismissed in June 1751 after he was accused of immoral conduct. He admitted to the charges, and church leaders restored him to good standing because they believed his repentance was sincere. He continued to preach in vacant pulpits for two years before leaving the ministry.
During this time, he studied medicine, left the ministry, and started a medical practice in Wallingford.
Hall was married twice:
- He married Abigail Burr in 1752, but she died the following year.
- He married Mary Osborne in 1753. They had one child, a son named John.
Move to Georgia
While living in Wallingford, Hall became involved with a group of New England Congregationalists (Puritans) whose families had migrated to South Carolina in 1697 and settled near Charleston in a place they called Dorchester. Hall moved to Dorechester around 1754.
Between 1752 and 1756, the entire community relocated to the Midway District on Georgia’s coast and founded the town of Sunbury in 1758. Georgia organized local government through parishes, and the Sunbury settlement became the central community in St. John’s Parish.
- Hall moved to Dorchester in 1757.
- He moved to St. John’s Parish after the Sunbury was established.
The area was unhealthy because homes and plantation buildings were built near swampy land where malaria spread easily. This provided Hall with many opportunities to use his medical training. His education, expertise, and exposure to the populace through his medical skills helped him become a leading figure in the region.
- Hall’s home was known as “Hall’s Knoll.”
Support for the Patriot Cause
In the early stages of the American Revolution, most of Georgia remained hesitant, but St. John’s Parish became a strong center of resistance.
Governor James Wright noted that the unrest in the parish was caused by the community’s “descendants of New England people of the Puritan independent sect.” Hall was considered to be the leading supporter of the Patriot Cause, along with Button Gwinnett. They led a faction known as the “Liberty Society.”
Delegate to the Continental Congress
Governor Wright maintained control of Georgia and blocked the election of delegates to the First Continental Congress. When the Provincial Congress refused to cooperate with the other colonies, St. John’s Parish, guided by Hall, held its own convention and elected Hall as its delegate in March 1775. He arrived in Philadelphia on May 13, 1775, where Congress accepted his credentials as a representative of St. John’s Parish. Although he participated in the debates, he did not cast any votes. He traveled back to Georgia and returned with the other delegates in August.
AHC Notes
- On July 24, 1775, Holt’s Journal reported: “By authentic accounts from South Carolina, we are informed that the colony of Georgia has appointed delegates to the Continental Congress now in Philadelphia, where they may be expected daily to arrive.”
- On August 14, 1775, the Pennsylvania Packet reported that the Georgia delegates arrived in Philadelphia on August 13. The delegates arrived on a ship called the Georgia Packet. They were: Hall, John Houston, Archibald Bullock, Noble Wimberly Jones, and John J. Zubley.
Signer of the Declaration of Independence
When Georgia finally decided to elect delegates to the Second Continental Congress, Hall kept his seat. On July 2, 1776, he voted in favor of independence and, along with Georgia’s other delegates, Button Gwinnett and George Walton, signed the Declaration of Independence on August 2.
AHC Notes
- Button Gwinnett (c. 1735–1777) — Gwinnett was a Georgia merchant, planter, and politician who rose to prominence during the American Revolution. He was a delegate to the Second Continental Congress and signed the Declaration of Independence. He was mortally wounded in a duel in 1777.
- George Walton (1741–1804) — Walton was a lawyer and politician who rose to prominence in Savannah during the American Revolution. He served in the Continental Congress, held two terms as Governor of Georgia, served as the Chief Justice of Georgia, and served as a United States Senator. He helped shape Georgia’s political structure, negotiated treaties with Native American Indian nations, promoted education, and played a significant role in Georgia’s development.
The Gwinnett-McIntosh Duel
General Lachlan McIntosh strongly opposed Hall’s close associate, Button Gwinnett. The situation intensified after Gwinnett ordered the arrest of McIntosh’s brother on suspicion of treason.
A failed Georgia expedition against British forces in East Florida in the spring of 1777 led the Georgia Assembly to investigate whether Gwinnett or General McIntosh was at fault. The inquiry cleared Gwinnett of blame, but McIntosh, upset at the outcome, publicly called him a “scoundrel and a lying rascal” in a session of the General Assembly.
The next morning, May 16, the two men met in a duel on the outskirts of Savannah. Both were wounded, and Gwinnett died three days later, on May 19. McIntosh was also wounded in the duel, but survived.
Hall and other supporters of Gwinnett tried to have McIntosh charged with murder, but he was transferred north to the army under General George Washington and left Georgia.
AHC Notes
- Lachlan McIntosh (1725–1806) — McIntosh was a politician and a General in the Continental Army who is most well-known for killing Button Gwinnett in a duel and leading troops during the failed Siege of Savannah (1779).
Flight from Savannah
After British forces overran Georgia’s coast in 1778, Hall’s home in Savannah and his rice plantation were destroyed. He moved his family to safety in Charleston. When British forces threatened Charleston, he moved them to Connecticut until the war ended.
University of Georgia
After the war, he returned to Savannah and resumed his medical practice. On January 1, 1783, he was elected as Governor of Georgia. Soon after, he approached Abraham Baldwin about helping him establish a public education system in Georgia. Baldwin agreed, which helped begin his career in public service in Georgia.
On July 8, 1783, Hall urged the General Assembly to set aside land to support a public college. His proposal led to the founding of the University of Georgia, one of America’s first state-supported universities.
After completing his brief term as Governor, he returned to medical practice, served in the Georgia Assembly, and served as a judge for the Inferior Court of Chatham County.
AHC Notes
- Abraham Baldwin (1754–1807) — Baldwin was a Founding Father of the United States. He is most well-known for signing the United States Constitution and supporting smaller states during the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which contributed to the Great Compromise.
Later Years and Death
In 1790, Hall moved to Burke County, Georgia, where he purchased a plantation. He died there a few months later.
