John Glover was a fisherman, merchant, and military leader from Marblehead, Massachusetts, who served as a Brigadier General in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Glover was born in Salem, Massachusetts on 5 November 1732 (baptized 26 November 1732), the son of Jonathan and Tabitha (Bacon) Glover. His father died when he was four years old, and shortly thereafter his family moved to the nearby town of Marblehead. As a young man, Glover became a cordwainer and rum trader and eventually a ship owner and merchant.

He first married Hannah Gale of Marblehead (baptized 17 June 1733; died 13 Nov 1778), daughter of John and Susan(na) (Dennis) Gale, on 30 October 1754. They were married by the Rev. Simon Bradstreet.

John and Hannah had eleven children, all born in Marblehead: John, baptized 23 March 1755; Hannah, baptized 15 May 1757; Daniel, baptized 8 April 1759; Hannah, baptized 19 April 1761; Samuel, baptized 19 December 1762; Jonas, baptized 1 April 1764; Tabitha, baptized 8 December 1765; Susannah, baptized 28 March 1767; Mary, 8 January 1769; Sarah, baptized 10 March 1771; and Jonathan, baptized 9 May 1773.

Glover was active in the militia for many years before the Revolution, with his earliest service dating back to 1759. In 1775 he was elected lieutenant colonel of the 21st Massachusetts Regiment from Marblehead, and became commander of the unit after the death of Colonel Jeremiah Lee in April 1775. Glover marched his regiment to join the siege of Boston in June 1775. The Marblehead militia or "Glover's Regiment" became the 14th Continental Regiment. This regiment became known as the "amphibious regiment" for their vital nautical skills. It was composed almost entirely of fishermen.

In 1776 Glover went home to tend to his sick wife and look to business affairs. He turned down a promotion to brigadier general in February 1777, but rejoined the war after a personal appeal from General Washington. He served in the successful Saratoga campaign in 1777 and the failed Battle of Rhode Island in 1778. He was stationed along the Hudson River for the remainder of the war, guarding against British moves up the river from New York City. After his first wife's death in 1778, Glover married Mrs. Frances (Hichborn) Fosdick of Boston, the widow of Thomas Fosdick, on 1 March 1781.

He retired from the Army in 1782 in poor health. Failing to secure a job with the U.S. federal government, he served in various local offices in his remaining years. He died on 30 January 1797 at age 64 in Marblehead, Massachusetts, after contracting hepatitis and was buried in Old Burial Hill (Marblehead, Massachusetts).