John Morton was the first Signer of the Declaration of Independence to die. He died on April 1, 1777, not even a year after the Declaration of Independence was signed. Even though that seems to be what he is most known for, he did quite a bit to help the cause of Independence. More @Wikipedia
Hover over any link to get a description of the article. Please note that search keywords are sometimes hidden within the full article and don't appear in the description or title.