In today's Quick Fact Friday, the Historical Commission wishes a happy 270th birthday to founding father Edward Rutledge.  Edward, the youngest brother of John Rutledge, who was the subject of a recent Quick Fact Friday, was born on November 23, 1749 and died January 23, 1800. Edward was born to Dr. John Rutledge and Sarah Hext Rutledge in Christ Church Parish. His father was an Irish immigrant and one of the first to practice medicine in the parish. His mother was a member of the prestigious Boone family. Thus, Edward Rutledge was a great-grandson of Major John Boone and Elizabeth Patey Boone who founded Boone Hall Plantation. His parents lived on a plantation in the vicinity of today's Laurel Hill Plantation on Route 41 in Mount Pleasant. Most notably, at 26 years of age, Edward Rutledge was the youngest delegate to sign the Declaration of Independence. As a gifted attorney and orator, he proved himself a persuasive force within the South Carolina delegation.