Beatty, John, 1749-1826

John Beatty (December 10, 1749 – May 30, 1826) was an American slave owner, physician, and statesman from Princeton, New Jersey.

Born in Neshaminy in the Province of Pennsylvania (now part of Warrington Township), Beatty graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), studied medicine in Philadelphia under Founding Father Benjamin Rush, and practiced in Hartsville, Pennsylania. He rose to the rank of major in the 6th Pennsylvania Regiment of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. By the end of the war he had become a resident of New Jersey, serving as a member of the New Jersey Legislative Council (now the New Jersey Senate) from 1781 to 1783, representing Middlesex County, and delegate from that state to the Continental Congress in 1784 and 1785. Beatty was the speaker of the New Jersey General Assembly from 1789 to 1790, and a member of the U.S. House of Representatives in the Third Congress from 1793 to 1795. He later served as Secretary of State of New Jersey from 1795 to 1805.

Beatty served as president of the Trenton Banking Company from 1815 to 1826; he died in Trenton, New Jersey and was buried in the First Presbyterian Church Cemetery there.