Thomas Lynch Jr. was a scholar, legislator, farmer, soldier, and patriot who gave his life and family to the cause of American independence. He was the second-youngest signer of the Declaration of Independence and did not live to see the end of the Revolution.

Born on August 5, 1749, in Prince George’s Parish, South Carolina, Lynch was the son of a wealthy rice planter. He was educated in England, where he attended Eton College, Cambridge University, and later studied law at Middle Temple in London.

After returning to South Carolina, Lynch became a planter and married Elizabeth Shubrick. Following his father into revolutionary politics, he became a vocal advocate for independence and served in South Carolina’s first and second provincial congresses, helping draft the state’s first constitution.

He also served as a Captain in the South Carolina regiment, raising a company of troops before illness forced him to step down. While recovering, Lynch learned his father had suffered a severe stroke while serving in the Continental Congress. Lynch traveled to Philadelphia to assist and assume his father’s seat, making them the only father and son to serve concurrently in the Congress.

Lynch signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and reportedly left space on the parchment for his father, who died en route home.

Lynch’s health continued to decline, forcing him to withdraw from public life. In 1779, he and his wife sailed abroad seeking treatment but were never seen again—presumed lost in a shipwreck. He was 30 years old, the youngest signer of the Declaration to die.