Who was the oldest signer of the United States Constitution?

Benjamin Franklin was the oldest signer of the United States Constitution.

Franklin was 81 when he signed the Constitution on September 17, 1787. He represented Pennsylvania at the Constitutional Convention and served as its oldest delegate. His reputation as a statesman, scientist, printer, and diplomat made him one of the most recognizable figures in the assembly.

George Washington presided over the convention and signed the document first, but he was younger than Franklin. James Madison was also a major constitutional thinker and convention participant, yet he was only 36 in 1787 and did not sign as the oldest delegate.

Franklin supported the final Constitution despite reservations about some of its compromises. His presence connected the new constitutional government with the revolutionary generation that had declared independence eleven years earlier.