Gertrude Ross Read

                    Gertrude Ross was born about 1732 in New Castle, New Castle County, Delaware.  She was the daughter of Reverend George Ross, rector of Immanuel Church, and his second wife, Anna Catherine Van Gezel.  She was part of a large family, and she was educated at home along with her siblings.  "Gertrude's education surpassed that of most girls of her day.  Her brother, George Ross, went on to become a distinguished lawyer with the Philadelphia bar, and like George Read, signed the Declaration of Independence."

                    Gertrude married Captain Thomas Till, the son of William Till, on June 18, 1752, in New Castle, New Castle, Delaware.  He was Captain of a Sussex County, Delaware, Regiment in 1756 and 1758.  He died before 1763.

                    Gertrude Ross Till was a young widow when she married George W. Read Sr. on January 11, 1763, in New Castle, New Castle, Delaware.  Gertrude and George became the parents of four children:  George Jr., (1765; US District Attorney for Delaware); William (1767; Consul-General for Naples in Philadelphia); John (1769; prominent member of the Philadelphia bar); and Mary (1770; married Matthew Pearce of Maryland).

                    "Gifted with the necessary personality and strength to be the wife of a public-spirited patriot, Gertrude was a great support to George.  Through the course of the Revolution, the couple was separated a good bit of the time.  While in Congress, George wrote to Gertrude on a continual basis, informing her of public affairs and domestic concerns.  She never complained, but instead supported her husband in a cheerful manner with encouraging words.  During this time, she was kept busy having to flee the British at a moment's notice on numerous occasions.  Delaware's location kept the small colony on constant alert for the British Army in Delaware Bay.

                    "Horticulture was a favorite hobby for Gertrude.  The grounds surrounding their home in Newcastle were a testament to her love for gardening when a profusion of flowers arrived each spring.  Tulips were her favorite and she spent a great deal of time enjoying her hobby, with the exception of the Revolutionary War years."  (All quotes can be found here.)  

                    Gertrude Ross Till Read died on September 2, 1802, in New Castle, New Castle, Delaware, at age 70.  She is buried in the Immanuel Protestant Episcopal Church Cemetery in New Castle, New Castle County, Delaware.

Gertrude Ross Read

Gertrude Ross, daughter of Reverend George Ross, was the young widow of Thomas Till in 1763 when she married George Read, a prominent attorney in Newcastle, Delaware, and future signer of the Declaration of the Independence. She was also a sister to George Ross, who later signed the Declaration of Independence, and a half-sister to John Ross, a successful attorney in Philadelphia.

Gertrude received a good education under the direction of her father. He "carefully cultivated" her "naturally strong" understanding "beyond the common lot of most girls of her days, even in educated families. She was described as being "beautiful" with "elegant" manners, and exemplary "piety."

Even though she was "constantly separated from her husband," "suffered considerable hardship," and often had to "fly from her home at a moment's notice" with her "infant family," she never complained. Instead, she "encouraged her husband in every possible way" by her words and her "cheerful manner" in bearing her burdens.

Gertrude lived a "troubled" life during the Revolution because the enemy prowled along the "maritime border of Delaware and kept the little Province in a continuous state of alarm by predatory incursions." The British Army sometimes occupied parts of Delaware or simply marched across it; in either case, their presence necessitated frequent moves for Gertrude and her family.

Gertrude was well-known for her love and ability to grow flowers, especially tulips, and had an "extensive garden of the old-fashioned mansion" in Newcastle. She spent most of her life in this home except when she was forced to flee to Wilmington or Philadelphia.

Gertrude and George were parents of five children, four sons and one daughter: John Read (died in infancy); George Read, Jr. (born in 1765, married his cousin Mary Thompson, and was U.S. District Attorney for Delaware for thirty years); William (born in 1767, married Ann McCall, and was Consul-General for Naples at Philadelphia for many years); John (born in 1769, married Martha Meredith, and became Judge of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania); and Mary Howell (married Matthew Pearce of Maryland).

Facts and quotes are from Wives of the Signers: The Women behind the Declaration of Independence, pp. 209-215.