Published July 04, 2000
Men of character, intelligence, wealth and position, risked it all for independence. Fifty-six brave Colonists, devoted lovers of freedom, defied their own British ruling government by signing the Declaration of Independence.
On July 4, 1776, a new nation was born by an honorable fabric of men we know today as our founding fathers. Without exception, each and every one earned our respect and gratitude.
George Washington, of them all, demonstrated this best. His keen mind and discipline of his men turned a near crushing defeat of the Americans by the British and won independence. His courage, wisdom, decency and morality inspired the loyalty of his army through unimaginable physical and personal hardships. In this compelling statement of that year Washington wrote:
“The fate of unborn millions will now depend upon God, on the courage and conduct of this army. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice of brave resistance, or the most abject submission. We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die.”
What became of these 56 men? All of them fought in the Revolutionary War; nine died from their wounds. Five of the signers were captured, tortured and killed as traitors by the British; two others lost their sons. The homes of twelve were ransacked and burned.
Great was their sacrifice. All of them knowingly accepted the grave possibilities of severe personal loss, unanimously attesting their determination: “For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance upon the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.” The last of these most assuredly was regarded as the greater value.
The signers were exemplary men in remarkable times. Many of them were exceedingly wealthy, educated and of social position. Some were self-made men from humble beginnings and the others born into leading families. They all had the greatest to loose, and many did.
Their professions and backgrounds were very diverse. Twenty-four were lawyers, although supplemented their earnings in other pursuits. Nine were farmers and large plantation owners. Eleven were merchants. The others included shippers, land or securities speculators, retirees, scientists, and ministers.
Carter Braxton of Virginia lost his ships and other properties to the British and died penniless. Thomas McKeam was forced to continually move his family to evade the British assaults upon them. He served in the Congress without pay; his possessions were seized, and he was financially ruined.
British General Cornwallis confiscate the personal residence of Thomas Nelson, Jr. as his military headquarters. At the battle of Yorktown, Nelson reluctantly urged General George Washington to attack, and his home was destroyed. Nelson died bankrupt.
Soldiers and vandals looted the properties of Clymer, Dillery, Gwinnett, Hall, Heyward, Middleton, Ruttledge and Walton. Francis Lewis’s home and all properties were destroyed; his wife died in a British jail.
John Hart, his wife and 13 children were driven from their home and separated. He eked out an existence in the forests and caves for more than a year. Exhausted and distraught, Hart returned home to find his wife dead and children had vanished. He died weeks later. Livingston and Norris suffered similarly.
Prominent in their communities, states and national affairs, 55 delegates attended the Constitutional Convention. Twenty-nine had served as commanders in the Continental forces.
Eight men (Clymer, Franklin, Gerry, Robert Morris, Read, Sherman, Wilson, and Wythe) who signed the Constitution had also signed the Declaration of Independence. Six (Carroll, Dickinson, Gerry, Gouverneur Morris, Robert Morris, and Sherman) had also signed the Articles of Confederation. But only two, Robert Morris and Sherman, recorded their names on all three of the nation’s preeminent documents.
The signers of the Declaration of Independence were soft-spoken, intelligent and committed men of means and position. They possessed security but valued liberty more.