Overview
William Hooper was originally from Massachusetts, but migrated to North Carolina, where he became active in colonial politics before turning his support to the Patriot Cause. Although his family in Massachusetts remained loyal to the Crown, Hooper played a significant role in North Carolina’s Patriot government, as a member of the Committee of Correspondence and the North Carolina Provincial Congress. He served as a delegate to the First Continental Congress, where he signed the Articles of Association, and the Second Continental Congress, where he signed the Declaration of Independence.
Personal Facts
- Born: June 17, 1742, in Boston, Massachusetts.
- Parents: William Hooper (father) and Mary Dennie (mother).
- Spouse: Anne Clark (1767).
- Died: October 14, 1790, at Hillsborough, North Carolina. 48 years old.
- Buried: Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, Greensboro, North Carolina.
- Nickname: Prophet of Independence.
- Part of: Signers of the Declaration of Independence.
Biography
Early Life and Career
William Hooper was born on June 17, 1742, in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the eldest child of Reverend William Hooper and Mary Dennie Hooper.
- The Hoopers were Scottish immigrants.
- Reverend Hooper was a Congregationalist who converted to the Anglican Church.
As a boy, Hooper studied to become a minister and spent seven years at the Boston Latin School. Because of this, he was able to enroll at Harvard College as a sophomore in 1757 and graduated in 1760.
In 1761, he started studying the law under James Otis, an influential Founding Father, which created a rift with his father. Otis’s ideas likely shaped Hooper’s, deepening the rift with his family, who remained loyal to the Crown. Hooper was compelled to move to North Carolina, in part, due to disagreements with his father over politics.
AHC Notes
- James Otis (1725–1783) — Otis was a Founding Father and a successful lawyer from Boston, Massachusetts, who significantly influenced the ideology of the American Revolution. He is most famous for his opposition to Writs of Assistance, the Sugar Act, and the Townshend Acts.
After joining the bar, Hooper moved to Wilmington, North Carolina, around 1764. There, he found a community that supported strong liberal views. Known for his charm, intelligence, and polished manners, Hooper became well known among local planters and lawyers. In 1767, he married Anne Clark, the daughter of Thomas Clark, an early Wilmington settler.
- The Hoopers had two sons and a daughter.
- Hooper had a residence in Wilmington and another on Masonboro Sound, eight miles outside of town, which he called “Finian.”
North Carolina Politics
Hooper was appointed Deputy Attorney General in 1770, at the height of the Regulator Movement. He angered the Regulators, who treated him roughly for enforcing the law. In 1771, he joined Governor William Tryon’s military expedition against them. In 1773, voters from Campbellton elected Hooper to the Assembly. He later represented New Hanover County and kept his seat until the fall of the Royal Government.
AHC Notes
- North Carolina Regulator Movement (1766–1771) — A backcountry protest movement in North Carolina from 1766 to 1771, in which farmers challenged corrupt local officials, high court fees, unfair tax practices, and laws favoring creditors. Led early by Herman Husband and the Sandy Creek Association, the Regulators used petitions, lawsuits, and extralegal actions to demand reform. The movement ended when Governor William Tryon’s militia defeated the Regulators at the Battle of Alamance in 1771.
- William Tryon (1729–1788) — Tryon served as the Royal Governor of North Carolina and then New York during the American Revolution. Despite personally opposing Parliament’s policy of Taxation Without Representation, he still enforced the laws. Tryon was also an officer in the British Army and defeated the Regulators at Alamance in 1771. During the American Revolutionary War, he organized Loyalist forces and led destructive raids in Connecticut. He returned to England in 1780.
- Battle of Alamance (1771) — A confrontation on May 16, 1771, in Guilford County, North Carolina, between about 1,500 colonial militiamen led by Royal Governor William Tryon and 2,000 to 3,000 backcountry farmers known as Regulators protesting corruption by local officials. The poorly organized Regulators were defeated after militia artillery fire dispersed them. The battle ended the Regulator Movement and reinforced royal authority in North Carolina.
American Revolution
Despite his connection to the Royal Government, Hooper broke away over a disagreement about the North Carolina Court System.
- The court system act was expiring, and the North Carolina Assembly wanted to add a clause allowing the colony to confiscate American property owned by foreign debtors, including those in Britain.
- When the Governor blocked the bill, it sparked a four-year struggle for control of the colony. During this time, Hooper supported the Assembly.
- He lost his income as a lawyer and was forced to rely on his wife’s modest fortune.
Hooper emerged as a leader of the Patriot Cause. After Parliament passed the Boston Port Bill, he led the effort to send relief to Boston’s inhabitants.
On April 26, 1774, he wrote a letter to a friend, James Iredell. In it, he predicted the coming conflict with Britain, saying, “They [the colonies] are striding fast to independence, and ere long will build an empire upon the ruins of Great Britain.” This earned him the nickname, “Prophet of Independence.”
As tensions between Governor Josiah Martin and the Assembly increased, Martin dissolved the Assembly. Hooper and others responded by organizing a meeting that led to the establishment of the North Carolina Provincial Congress. Hooper presided over this meeting.
- He was elected to all five sessions of the North Carolina Provincial Congress.
- Hooper is said to have played an active role while in attendance.
- He was also involved with the North Carolina Committee of Correspondence.
The First Provincial Congress met at New Bern on August 25, 1774, and elected Hooper to represent North Carolina in the First Continental Congress, along with Richard Caswell and Joseph Hewes.
AHC Notes
- Richard Caswell (1729–1789) — Caswell was a prominent North Carolina Patriot who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress, presided over the 1776 North Carolina Provincial Congress that drafted the state constitution, and became the first Governor of North Carolina.
- Joseph Hewes (1730–1779) — Hewes was a North Carolina merchant and political leader who became a key figure in the Patriot Cause. He served in the colonial assembly, all five Provincial Congresses, and the Continental Congress, where he supported non-importation, helped draft major policy documents, and became the leading force in creating the early United States Navy. His shift toward supporting independence reflected growing public sentiment, and his intense workload during the war led to his death in Philadelphia in 1779.
Hooper remained in the Continental Congress until 1777, serving on key committees and participating in major debates. John Adams described him as an orator equal to Richard Henry Lee and Patrick Henry. He was absent when Congress voted for independence, but he returned in time to sign the Declaration of Independence on August 2, 1776.
- From 1774 to 1777, Hooper split his time between the Continental Congress and the North Carolina Provincial Congress.
- He helped organize North Carolina’s first state government.
Later Service and Final Years
On April 29, 1777, Hooper resigned from the Continental Congress and returned to Finian to be closer to his family, hoping rebuild the fortune he had lost through public service. He resumed his law practice and also served as a representative in the House of Commons for most of the years from 1777 to 1786.
When British forces threatened Wilmington in 1780, he fled to avoid putting his family in danger, though this period brought him severe physical and emotional strain.
- Hooper moved his family from Finian to Wilmington for safety.
- In January 1781, while he was away on business, the British captured the city.
- Hooper was unable to be with his family during the British occupation, which lasted for more than 10 months.
During this time, Hooper relied on friends in Edenton and other areas for food and shelterand food. When he became ill with malaria, James Iredell’s wife took care of him and nursed him back to health.
- After the British evacuated Wilmington in November 1781, Hooper returned to find most of his property, including Finian, destroyed.
- In 1782, he reunited with his wife and children, who had fled to Hillsborough.
- He lived in Hillsborough for the rest of his life.
As a member of the House of Commons, he supported the fair treatment of Loyalists and opposed the rise of ideas of democracy among the people.
- Hooper had an aristocratic nature and tended to look down on the general public.
- As a result, his popularity decreased.
Hooper supported the Constitution, and though he failed to win a seat at the Hillsboro Convention, he lived to see it approved.
Hooper never became a popular leader due to his distant manner, which kept him apart from the public. An aristocrat by nature, he was refined, brave, and close only to those he trusted. Struggling with declining health and hard personal losses, he died on October 14, 1790.
- Hooper was buried in the Hillsborough Town Cemetery.
- In 1894, his remains were moved to Guilford Courthouse National Military Park near Greensboro.
