Actress Reese Witherspoon Invited to Attend Plaza Opening

Candace Braun

While John Witherspoon is well known to many Princetonians as a past president of Princeton University and a signer of the Declaration of Independence, what is less known is that he is Hollywood actress Reese Witherspoon's ancestor.

Sheldon Sturges, co-chair of Princeton Future, has contacted Ms. Witherspoon's agent in Hollywood to see if the star would be willing to attend the opening of the Princeton Public Library's new plaza on Saturday, October 30.

Mr. Sturges has not heard back as to whether or not the actress will attend the ceremony, but Ms. Witherspoon's agent has confirmed that she is indeed a direct descendent of John Witherspoon.

While a name has not yet been selected for the plaza, Mr. Sturges said the consensus is that it will be named Witherspoon Square.

Borough Council will vote on the plaza's name at a meeting prior to the October 30 opening, said Mayor Joe O'Neill. Other suggested names include James Madison Square, E = MC Square, and Einstein's Theory of Relativity.

If Council chooses to use the name of the Witherspoon family, Ms. Witherspoon would be the ideal speaker for the plaza's opening ceremony, said Mr. Sturges.

In addition, Ms. Witherspoon's role in Legally Blonde, in which she played a ditzy blonde law student who had a keen fashion sense and a constant desire to shop, could lend itself to Princeton's "Buy Local Month," which is scheduled for the month of October, said Mr. Sturges.

Laura Jean Reese Witherspoon's career first took off with her role in The Man in the Moon in 1991. Other notable films include Pleasantville, Sweet Home Alabama, and Cruel Intentions. Ms. Witherspoon is married to actor Ryan Phillippe. They and their two children live together in California.

Reese's Ancestor

Born in 1722 in Scotland, John Witherspoon was the first of the Witherspoons to immigrate to the United States. Following in his father's footsteps, he was an ordained minister at a parish in Scotland before coming here.

After declining the position two years earlier due to his wife's desire to stay in Scotland, Mr. Witherspoon moved to the United States in 1768 to become president of the Princeton College in the Colonies, now Princeton University. A member of the Continental Congress, he cast an affirmative vote for independence on July 2, 1776, and signed the Declaration of Independence two days later. He was the only member of the clergy to do so.

Mr. Witherspoon's name is reflected throughout Princeton, including Witherspoon Street, John Witherspoon Middle School, The Witherspoon House, and a statue commemorating him at the University.