Caesar RODNEY, Congress, DE (1728-1784)

RODNEY, Caesar, (brother of Thomas Rodney, uncle of Caesar Augustus Rodney, and cousin of George Brydges Rodney), a Delegate from Delaware; born in Dover, Del., October 7, 1728; completed preparatory studies; engaged in agricultural pursuits; high sheriff of Kent County 1755-1758; justice of the peace; judge of all lower courts; captain in the Kent County Militia in 1756; superintendent of the printing of Delaware currency in 1759; member of the state assembly 1762-1769; superintendent of the loan office in 1769; associate justice of the Delaware Supreme Court 1769-1777; Member of the Continental Congress 1774-1776; a signer of the Declaration of Independence; served in the Revolutionary Army as a brigadier general; elected President of Delaware and served from 1778 to 1782; elected to the Continental Congress in 1782 and 1783 but did not serve; died in Dover, Del., June 26, 1784; interment on his farm, “Byfield,“ near Dover; reinterment in Christ Churchyard, Dover, Del.

Bibliography

Frank, William and Harold Hancock. “Caesar Rodney's Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary: An Evaluation.“ Delaware History 18 (Fall-Winter 1976): 63-76; Rodney, Caesar. Letters To and From Caesar Rodney, 1756-1784. Edited by George Ryden. 1933. Reprint, New York: DaCapo Press, 1970.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present