STOCKTON, Richard, (father of Richard Stockton [1764-1828], grandfather of Richard Stockton Field and Robert Field Stockton, and great-grandfather of John Potter Stockton), a Delegate from New Jersey; born at “Morven,” near Princeton, Somerset County, N.J., October 1, 1730; attended Nottingham Academy in Cecil County, Md., and was graduated in the first class from Princeton College, in 1748; studied law; was admitted to the bar in 1754 and commenced practice in Princeton, N.J.; member of the executive council of New Jersey from November 2, 1768, to June 17, 1776; associate justice of the state supreme court from February 28, 1774, to June 17, 1776; Member of the Continental Congress in 1776; a signer of the Declaration of Independence; unsuccessful candidate for governor of New Jersey on August 31, 1776; elected chief justice of the state supreme court on August 31, 1776, but declined the office; resumed the practice of law; died at “Morven,” near Princeton, N.J., February 28, 1781; interment in Stoney Brook Meeting House Burial Ground near Princeton, N.J.