Who was the oldest signer of the Declaration of Independence?

Benjamin Franklin was the oldest signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Franklin was 70 years old in 1776, making him the oldest of the Declaration’s signers. Born in Boston in 1706, he had already built an extraordinary career as a printer, publisher, scientist, inventor, diplomat, and public official before joining the independence movement.

Franklin served on the five-member committee that prepared the Declaration’s draft, although Thomas Jefferson wrote the main text. Franklin’s experience and reputation were especially valuable because he later helped secure French support for the American cause. His signature became one of the best-known on the parchment document.

The oldest signer is not the same as the longest-lived signer. Charles Carroll of Carrollton survived until 1832 and died at 95, making him the last surviving signer and the longest-lived. Franklin died in Philadelphia in 1790 at age 84.