Constitution Signer

JONATHAN DAYTON

Jonathan Dayton, born on 16 October 1760 in Elizabethtown, was a politician from New Jersey and a captain in the Revolutionary War. Dayton was the youngest signer of the US Constitution and served as the 4^th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Dayton served with his father and uncle in the Revolutionary War.  Eight years of service in the Continental Army provided him with first-hand evidence of the consequences of weak political leadership.  He left war-time convinced that a professional army was needed but that it could only operate through a strong central government.  After the war, he assumed responsibility for the family’s mercantile business and studied law and his career was spent in land speculation, law and politics.

Dayton assumed the delegate position to the Constitutional Convention originally offered to his father, Elias Dayton in 1787.  One of the youngest members of the Convention, he supported the initiatives of senior delegates, thus enhancing his political reputation at home. A Federalist, he worked closely with Alexander Hamilton, a former schoolmate, on financial policy.  Dayton was instrumental in organizing Congress’ response to the threat posed by the 1794 Whiskey Rebellion and he spent his last four years in Congress as Speaker of the House. 

Wealthy from land investments in the Ohio region, he loaned money to another old classmate, Aaron Burr. When Burr’s illegal activities were disclosed in 1807, Dayton suffered from guilt by association and he largely devoted his remaining life to business and farming.  The city of Dayton, Ohio, was named for him after his death on 9 October 1824 at Elizabethtown, New Jersey.eath: 9 September 1806, New York. associate justice of the Supreme Courth (1793-1806)rsey.  ral court system. 

http://www.history.army.mil/books/revwar/ss/dayton.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Dayton