Alexander Martin (October 17, 1740 – November 2, 1807) was a Founding Father of the United States, framer of the U.S. Constitution, fourth and seventh Governor of North Carolina, and an infantry officer in the American Revolutionary War. In private life, Martin was a lawyer, merchant, planter, and slave owner.
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Early life and education
Born in Hunterdon County in the Province of New Jersey in 1740 to James Hugh Martin and Jane Hunter of Ireland, Governor Alexander Martin was a North Carolinian politician and delegate to the Federal Constitutional Convention. Aside from his role in the Constitutional Convention, Martin witnessed several significant chapters in colonial and early U.S. history, including the Regulator Rebellion, the Revolutionary War, and the North Carolina ratification debates.
Martin held bachelor's and master's degrees from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), making him one of the most erudite delegates to the Constitutional Convention. After graduating from Princeton, Martin moved to Salisbury, North Carolina. There he worked first as a merchant and later as an attorney. As his legal career took shape, the Regulator Rebellion began. On September 24, 1770, angry Regulators took over the Hillsboro Court. When their demonstration spilled onto the streets of Hillsboro, several lawyers, including Martin, who likely was serving as a justice of the peace, were whipped and beaten.