1726- Born in Elizabeth City County, Virginia
- birth of the American statesman, lawyer, and judges
1746 - admitted to the bar
- served in the Virginia House of Burgesses
1764
- drafted a Virginia protest against the proposed Stamp Act
1775-1776
- served in the Continental Congress and revised Virginia’s laws with Thomas Jefferson and Edmund Pendleton
- year 1776, signer of the Declaration of Independence
1779 - became chair of law at the College of William and Mary, the first such chair in America, until 1790
1788 -Helped secure Virginia’s ratification of the Constitution.
1806- the outstanding jurist died