John Vaughan was a Philadelphia merchant of English heritage. John was one of the eleven children of Samuel Vaughan, of London, and his wife Sarah Hallowell, of Boston, MA. Samuel Vaughan was a merchant who had lived in Philadelphia from in 1783-1790. John's brother Benjamin was a member of Parliament for some time, and afterward lived in America, where he was acquainted with Benjamin Franklin, publishing some of the latter's essays in 1779. John's brother William pursued a life in commerce, with particular interest in the ports of England; in 1783 he was elected as a Director of the Royal Exchange Assurance Corporation. John Vaughan ordered a replica of Gilbert Stuart's portrait of George Washington from the artist; the painting was a gift to his father Samuel, an admirer of Washington. After Samuel's death, the portrait passed to William. It is now in the collection of the NGA (1942.8.27).