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[Illustration: Independence Hall in 1776. Here the Continental Congress
adopted and signed the Declaration of Independence.]




_Signers of the Declaration_

[Illustration: John Trumbull’s “The Declaration of Independence” hangs
in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol. Depicting the drafting committee
presenting the document to the Continental Congress, the painting
commemorates the signers.]




  THE NATIONAL SURVEY OF HISTORIC SITES AND BUILDINGS • VOLUME XVIII


  _Signers_
  OF THE DECLARATION

  Historic Places Commemorating the Signing
  of the Declaration of Independence

  ROBERT G. FERRIS
  Series Editor


  [Illustration]

  UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
  NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

  Washington, D.C. 1973




  ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
  Ernest A. Connally

  OFFICE OF ARCHEOLOGY AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION
  Robert M. Utley, _Director_

  DIVISION OF HISTORY
  A. Russell Mortensen, _Chief_

  HISTORIC SITES SURVEY
  Horace J. Sheely, Jr., _Chief_


This volume incorporates a comprehensive survey of sites and buildings
associated with the signers accomplished by Charles W. Snell and the
late John O. Littleton. Also utilized were survey and evaluation
reports authored by the following individuals: S. Sydney Bradford,
Charles E. Hatch, Jr., W. Brown Morton III, Denys Peter Myers, John
D. R. Platt, Frank B. Sarles, Jr., Charles E. Shedd, Jr., Horace J.
Sheely, Jr., and Martin I. Yoelson. These surveys and reports were
reviewed by the Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites,
Buildings, and Monuments. Members of this group are listed in the
Acknowledgments. Directly involved in all aspects of the preparation
of this book were Assistant Editor Richard E. Morris and Editorial
Assistant James H. Charleton. It was designed by Gary Gore.


THIS BOOK IS ISSUED AS PART OF THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE OBSERVANCE OF
OUR NATION’S BICENTENNIAL.


As the Nation’s principal conservation agency, the Department of
the Interior has basic responsibilities for water, fish, wildlife,
mineral, land, park, and recreational resources. Indian and Territorial
affairs are other major concerns of America’s “Department of Natural
Resources.” The Department works to assure the wisest choice in
managing all our resources so each will make its full contribution to a
better United States—now and in the future.


LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOG CARD NUMBER: 73-600028

  For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing
  Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 · Price $5.65
  Stock Number 2405-00496




_Foreword_


As we approach the two hundredth anniversary of the signing of the
Declaration of Independence, each of us is stirred by the memory of
those who framed the future of our country.

In the coming years we will have many opportunities to refresh our
understanding of what America means, but none can mean more than
personal visits to the sites where freedom was forged and our founding
fathers actually made the decisions which have stood the severest tests
of time.

I remember my reactions, for example, when I visited Independence Hall
in Philadelphia in 1972 to sign the new revenue sharing legislation.
Walking into the building where that small group of patriots gathered
some two centuries ago, I thought back to what it must have been
like when the giants of our American heritage solemnly committed
themselves and their children to liberty. The dilemmas they faced, the
uncertainties they felt, the ideals they cherished—all seemed more
alive to me than ever before, and I came away with an even stronger
appreciation for their courage and their vision.

As people from all over the world visit the places described in this
valuable book, they, too, will feel the excitement of history and
relive in their minds the beginnings of a great Nation.

I commend this book to your attention and encourage all people,
Americans and foreigners alike, to make a special effort to visit our
historic sites during these Bicentennial years.

            _The White House_
            _Washington, D.C._

[Illustration: Richard Nixon (signature)]




_Preface_


Nearly two hundred years have passed since America proclaimed her
independence. Yet this action and the beliefs and hopes motivating
those responsible for it are as central to us as a people today as
they were to Abraham Lincoln, whose words still remind us that “...
our fathers brought forth upon this continent, a new nation, conceived
in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created
equal....”

To understand what we have become, we must know what we have been.
This volume illuminates the role of those who framed the Declaration
of Independence and took the bold risk of putting their signatures to
it, thus bringing into being a new Nation on a new model of stated
principle. It will stimulate our visual memory of the persons and
events that cast this Nation upon its course, and I commend it to all
who would more fully appreciate that heritage.

            ROGERS C. B. MORTON
            _Secretary of the Interior_


It is my hope that this volume will not only increase popular knowledge
of the Declaration of Independence and its signers, but that it will
also undergird the efforts of historic preservationists to protect
sites and buildings associated with them. Written records alone cannot
convey the appreciation and understanding that come from personal
acquaintance with historic places. Thus, while we preserve and study
the documents of the American Revolution, we must also save and
experience what physical evidences remain to illustrate the lives of
those who so boldly brought it about. With the assistance of this
book, many more Americans may come to know the sites and structures
frequented by the signers of the Declaration, to visit them personally,
and to appreciate more deeply the importance of their preservation.

Credit for the preparation of this volume is shared widely by persons
both in and out of the National Park Service. The historic preservation
activities of the Service have particularly benefited from the
assistance of the National Trust for Historic Preservation in the
United States, cosponsor of the National Survey of Historic Sites and
Buildings. The Survey is authorized by the Historic Sites Act of 1935.

            RONALD H. WALKER
            _Director_
            _National Park Service_




Contents


  Part I

  Signers of the Declaration:
  Historical Background                                                1


  Part II

  Signers of the Declaration:
  Biographical Sketches                                               25

      John Adams • _Massachusetts_                              33
      Samuel Adams • _Massachusetts_                            36
      Josiah Bartlett • _New Hampshire_                         39
      Carter Braxton • _Virginia_                               41
      Charles Carroll • _Maryland_                              43
      Samuel Chase • _Maryland_                                 45
      Abraham Clark • _New Jersey_                              47
      George Clymer • _Pennsylvania_                            49
      William Ellery • _Rhode Island_                           51
      William Floyd • _New York_                                53
      Benjamin Franklin • _Pennsylvania_                        55
      Elbridge Gerry • _Massachusetts_                          59
      Button Gwinnett • _Georgia_                               62
      Lyman Hall • _Georgia_                                    65
      John Hancock • _Massachusetts_                            67
      Benjamin Harrison • _Virginia_                            70
      John Hart • _New Jersey_                                  71
      Joseph Hewes • _North Carolina_                           73
      Thomas Heyward, Jr. • _South Carolina_                    75
      William Hooper • _North Carolina_                         77
      Stephen Hopkins • _Rhode Island_                          79
      Francis Hopkinson • _New Jersey_                          81
      Samuel Huntington • _Connecticut_                         83
      Thomas Jefferson • _Virginia_                             85
      Francis Lightfoot Lee • _Virginia_                        90
      Richard Henry Lee • _Virginia_                            92
      Francis Lewis • _New York_                                94
      Philip Livingston • _New York_                            96
      Thomas Lynch, Jr. • _South Carolina_                      99
      Thomas McKean • _Delaware_                               100
      Arthur Middleton • _South Carolina_                      103
      Lewis Morris • _New York_                                104
      Robert Morris • _Pennsylvania_                           106
      John Morton • _Pennsylvania_                             109
      Thomas Nelson, Jr. • _Virginia_                          110
      William Paca • _Maryland_                                113
      Robert Treat Paine • _Massachusetts_                     115
      John Penn • _North Carolina_                             116
      George Read • _Delaware_                                 118
      Caesar Rodney • _Delaware_                               120
      George Ross • _Pennsylvania_                             122
      Benjamin Rush • _Pennsylvania_                           123
      Edward Rutledge • _South Carolina_                       127
      Roger Sherman • _Connecticut_                            129
      James Smith • _Pennsylvania_                             132
      Richard Stockton • _New Jersey_                          133
      Thomas Stone • _Maryland_                                135
      George Taylor • _Pennsylvania_                           137
      Matthew Thornton • _New Hampshire_                       139
      George Walton • _Georgia_                                140
      William Whipple • _New Hampshire_                        142
      William Williams • _Connecticut_                         144
      James Wilson • _Pennsylvania_                            145
      John Witherspoon • _New Jersey_                          149
      Oliver Wolcott • _Connecticut_                           152
      George Wythe • _Virginia_                                154


  Part III

  Signers of the Declaration:
  Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings                             157

      Huntington Birthplace, Conn.                             164
      Huntington House, Conn.                                  165
      Williams Birthplace, Conn.                               166
      Williams House, Conn.                                    168
      Wolcott House, Conn.                                     169

      The White House, D.C.                                    170

      College Hill, Ga.                                        173
      Meadow Garden, Ga.                                       175
      Tabby Cottage, Ga.                                       176

      Whipple Birthplace, Maine                                177

      Carroll Mansion, Md.                                     179
      Carrollton Manor, Md.                                    180
      Chase-Lloyd House, Md.                                   181
      Deshon-Caton-Carroll House, Md.                          183
      Doughoregan Manor, Md.                                   185
      Habre-de-Venture, Md.                                    186
      Paca House, Md.                                          188
      Peggy Stewart House, Md.                                 189

      Adams (John) Birthplace, Mass.                           191
      Adams (John Quincy) Birthplace, Mass.                    192
      Adams National Historic Site, Mass.                      193
      Elmwood, Mass.                                           195
      Gerry Birthplace, Mass.                                  197
      Hancock-Clarke House, Mass.                              198

      Bartlett House, N.H.                                     199
      Moffatt-Ladd House, N.H.                                 201
      Thornton House, N.H.                                     203

      Hopkinson House, N.J.                                    204
      Maybury Hill, N.J.                                       206
      Morven, N.J.                                             207
      President’s House, N.J.                                  208
      Tusculum, N.J.                                           209

      Floyd Birthplace (Fire Island National Seashore), N.Y.   210
      General Floyd House, N.Y.                                212

      Iredell House, N.C.                                      213
      Nash-Hooper House, N.C.                                  214

      Independence National Historical Park, Pa.               216
      Parsons-Taylor House, Pa.                                226
      Shippen-Wistar House, Pa.                                228
      Summerseat, Pa.                                          229
      Taylor House, Pa.                                        230

      Governor Hopkins House, R.I.                             231

      Heyward-Washington House, S.C.                           233
      Hopsewee-on-the-Santee, S.C.                             234
      Middleton Place, S.C.                                    236
      Rutledge House, S.C.                                     237

      Berkeley, Va.                                            239
      Elsing Green, Va.                                        240
      Menokin, Va.                                             242
      Monticello, Va.                                          243
      Mount Airy, Va.                                          246
      Nelson House (Colonial National
      Historical Park), Va.                                    247
      Poplar Forest, Va.                                       249
      Stratford Hall, Va.                                      251
      Tuckahoe, Va.                                            253
      Wythe House, Va.                                         255


  Appendix

  The Declaration and Its History                                    257

      Text of the Declaration                                  259
      History of the Document                                  262


  Suggested Reading                                                  268

  Criteria for Selection of Historic Sites of National Significance  270

  Acknowledgments                                                    272

  Art and Picture Credits                                            274

  Index                                                              281


  Map: Signers of the Declaration—Historic Sites of National
    Significance                                                 162–163


  _All photographs are indexed._




Part One

Signers of the Declaration:

Historical Background


At Philadelphia in the summer of 1776, the Delegates to the Continental
Congress courageously signed a document declaring the independence of
the Thirteen American Colonies from Great Britain. Not only did the
Declaration of Independence create a Nation, but it also pronounced
timeless democratic principles. Enshrined today in the National
Archives Building at Washington, D.C., it memorializes the founding of
the United States and symbolizes the eternal freedom and dignity of Man.

       *       *       *       *       *

By the time the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration in July
1776, the War for Independence had been underway for more than a year.
Failing to obtain satisfactory redress from the mother country for
their economic and political grievances during the previous decade, the
colonists had finally resorted to armed conflict. These grievances had
come to a head shortly after the French and Indian War (1754–63). Long
and costly, the war depleted the royal treasury and added the financial
burden of administering the vast territory acquired from France.
Britain levied new, direct taxes in the Colonies and tightened customs
controls.

The colonists, accustomed to considerable economic freedom, resented
these measures. A number of Americans also felt that some sort
of conspiracy existed in England to destroy their liberties and
self-government. They believed that the mission of the large force of
redcoats assigned to the Colonies actually was internal suppression
rather than protection from a nonexistent external threat, especially
since the French had been expelled. Particularly aggravating was the
realization that the new tax levies supported the force. Some of the
discontent was regional in nature. Indebtedness to British creditors
irritated Southern planters. Commercial interests in the Middle
Colonies disliked the prohibition on manufacturing certain products.
Frontier settlers and speculators were irked at restrictions on
westward expansion and the Indian trade.

[Illustration: George III, King of England during the War for
Independence, was the focus of colonial hatred.]

[Illustration: The Revolutionaries utilized this exaggerated version
of the Boston Massacre (1770) by Paul Revere to nourish resentment of
British troops.]

[Illustration: “The Bostonians Paying the Excise-Man or Tarring &
Feathering,” a British cartoon satirizing colonial methods of protest.]

In various places, peaceful protest and harassment of tax and customs
collectors gave way to rioting and mob violence. In New York and
Massachusetts, clashes with British troops culminated in bloodshed.
Realizing that some of these disturbances stemmed from agitation in
the colonial assemblies, which had enjoyed wide autonomy, the Crown
tightened its control over them. Disputes between legislators and
the King’s officials, once spasmodic, became commonplace. In some
instances, notably in Virginia and Massachusetts, the Royal Governors
dissolved the assemblies. In these and a few other provinces the Whigs
separated from their Tory, or Loyalist, colleagues, met extralegally,
and adopted retaliatory measures. Nearly all the Colonies formed
special “committees of correspondence” to communicate with each
other—the first step toward unified action.

[Illustration: In retaliation for the Boston Tea Party (1773), the
Crown imposed rigid limitations on the freedom of Massachusetts
citizens.]

In May 1774, in retaliation for the “Boston Tea Party,” Parliament
closed the port of Boston and virtually abolished provincial
self-government in Massachusetts. These actions stimulated resistance
across the land. That summer, the Massachusetts lower house, through
the committees of correspondence, secretly invited all 13 Colonies
to attend a convention. In response, on the fifth of September, 55
Delegates representing 12 Colonies, Georgia excepted, assembled at
Philadelphia. They convened at Carpenters’ Hall and organized the First
Continental Congress.

[Illustration: A rare contemporary engraving of the British-American
clash in 1775 at North Bridge, near Concord, Mass.]

Sharing though they did common complaints against the Crown, the
Delegates propounded a wide variety of political opinions. Most of them
agreed that Parliament had no right to control the internal affairs
of the Colonies. Moderates, stressing trade benefits with the mother
country, believed Parliament should continue to regulate commerce.
Others questioned the extent of its authority. A handful of Delegates
felt the answer to the problem lay in parliamentary representation.
Most suggested legislative autonomy for the Colonies. Reluctant to
sever ties of blood, language, trade, and cultural heritage, none yet
openly entertained the idea of complete independence from Great Britain.

After weeks of debate and compromise, Congress adopted two significant
measures. The first declared that the American colonists were
entitled to the same rights as Englishmen everywhere and denounced any
infringement of those rights. The second, the Continental Association,
provided for an embargo on all trade with Britain. To enforce the
embargo and punish violators, at the behest of Congress counties,
cities, and towns formed councils, or committees, of safety—many of
which later became wartime governing or administrative bodies. When
Congress adjourned in late October, the Delegates resolved to reconvene
in May 1775 if the Crown had not responded by then.

[Illustration: Headlines of a broadside showing American alarm over the
Battle of Concord. The two rows of coffins at the top represent slain
militiamen.]

In a sense the Continental Congress acted with restraint, for while
it was in session the situation in Massachusetts verged on war. In
September, just before Congress met, British troops from Boston had
seized ordnance supplies at Charlestown and Cambridge and almost
clashed with the local militia. The next month, Massachusetts patriots,
openly defying royal authority, organized a Revolutionary provincial
assembly as well as a military defense committee. Whigs in three other
colonies—Maryland, Virginia, and New Hampshire—had earlier that year
formed governments. By the end of the year, all the Colonies except
Georgia and New York had either set up new ones or taken control
of those already in existence. During the winter of 1774–75, while
Parliament mulled over conciliatory measures, colonial militia units
prepared for war.

[Illustration: Continental Army recruiting poster.]

The crisis came in the spring of 1775, predictably in Massachusetts.
Late on the night of April 18 the Royal Governor, Gen. Thomas Gage,
alarmed at the militancy of the rebels, dispatched 600 troops from
Boston to seize a major supply depot at Concord. Almost simultaneously
the Boston council of safety, aware of Gage’s intentions, directed
Paul Revere and William Dawes to ride ahead to warn militia units and
citizens along the way of the British approach, as well as John Hancock
and Samuel Adams, who were staying at nearby Lexington. Forewarned, the
two men went into hiding.

[Illustration: Title page of _Common Sense_, the anonymously written
and widely distributed pamphlet that converted thousands of colonists
to the Revolutionary cause.]

About 77 militiamen confronted the redcoats when they plodded into
Lexington at dawn. After some tense moments, as the sorely outnumbered
colonials were dispersing, blood was shed. More flowed at Concord and
much more along the route of the British as they retreated to Boston,
harassed most of the way by an aroused citizenry. What had once been
merely protest had evolved into open warfare; the War for Independence
had begun.

[Illustration: Thomas Paine, author of _Common Sense_, did not emigrate
to America from England until 1774, but he became an ardent patriot.]

[Illustration: Sir William Howe, British commander in chief in America
from 1776 until 1778.]

The Second Continental Congress convened in the Pennsylvania State
House at Philadelphia on May 10, 1775. Burdened by wartime realities
and the need to prepare a unified defense, it created a Continental
Army, unanimously elected George Washington as commander in chief,
appointed other generals, and tackled problems of military finance and
supply. Yet, despite these warlike actions, many Delegates still hoped
for a peaceful reconciliation.

[Illustration: Robert R. Livingston of New York, the most conservative
member of the drafting committee, neither voted on independence nor
signed the Declaration.]

In July Congress adopted the Olive Branch Petition, a final attempt
to achieve an understanding with the Crown. The petition appealed
directly to King George III to cease hostilities and restore harmony.
But, unwilling to challenge the supremacy of Parliament, he refused to
acknowledge the plea and proclaimed the Colonies to be in a state of
rebellion.

During the winter of 1775–76, as the war intensified, all chance for
accommodation vanished. Congress, for the first time representing all
Thirteen Colonies because Georgia had sent Delegates in the fall,
disclaimed allegiance to Parliament, created a navy, and appointed a
committee of foreign affairs. Nevertheless the patriots, despite their
mounting influence in the provincial assemblies, felt they needed more
public support and hesitated to urge a final break with the Crown.

The turning point came in January 1776 with publication in Philadelphia
of the pamphlet _Common Sense_, authored anonymously by the recent
English immigrant Thomas Paine. Attacking the “myth” of an evil
Parliament and a benevolent King, he denounced George III for creating
the Colonies’ miseries, condemned the British constitution as well
as monarchy in general, and exhorted his fellow Americans to declare
independence immediately. The pamphlet, widely reprinted, was purchased
by many thousands of people and read by thousands more. It created a
furor. From Georgia to New Hampshire, independence became the major
topic of discussion and debate. The Revolutionaries won thousands of
converts.

In May Congress took a bold step toward political freedom by
authorizing the Colonies to form permanent governments. Those that had
not done so began to oust Crown officials and draft constitutions.
Independence, though not yet officially declared, was for all practical
purposes a reality.

       *       *       *       *       *

The official movement for independence took root in the provincial
assemblies. The North Carolina assembly in April 1776 instructed its
congressional Delegates to vote for the issue should it be proposed.
The next month, on May 4, Rhode Island announced its independence
publicly—the first colony to do so. But it was Virginia that prodded
Congress to action. On May 15 a Williamsburg convention declared
Virginia independent and authorized its delegation at Philadelphia to
propose a similar course for the Colonies. On June 7 the delegation’s
leader, Richard Henry Lee, introduced the following resolution:

    That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and
    independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance
    to the British Crown, and that all political connection between
    them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally
    dissolved.

The resolution also incorporated proposals to form foreign alliances;
and to devise a plan for confederation, which would be submitted to the
Colonies for their approval.

Despite the enthusiastic response of many Delegates, some of them,
though they foresaw the inevitability of independence, objected to the
timing. They believed the decision should reflect the desires of the
people as expressed through the provincial assemblies and pointed out
that the Middle Colonies, not yet ripe for freedom, needed more time
for deliberation. On June 10 the moderates obtained a postponement of
consideration of the Lee resolution until July 1.

On June 11 the Revolutionaries, undaunted by the delay and convinced of
their ultimate victory, persuaded Congress to appoint a committee to
draft a declaration of independence. Three of its five members, John
Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson, were Revolutionaries.
Roger Sherman disliked extremism but had recently backed the
independence movement. The most unlikely member, Robert R. Livingston,
had stood in the front ranks of opposition to Lee’s resolution.
Possibly he was appointed to exert a moderating effect on its
supporters or, conversely, in the hope that his membership would help
swing over the conservative New York delegation.

At the time Lee had introduced his resolution, seven of the
Colonies—New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut,
Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia—favored independence. New York,
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, South Carolina, and Maryland were
either opposed or undecided. Throughout the month, Revolutionaries in
those provinces labored to gain control of the assemblies. Delaware
and Pennsylvania, unable to reach a decision, instructed their
representatives to vote in their colonies’ “best interests.” New
Jersey issued similar directions, but also elected an entirely new
and Whig-oriented slate of Delegates. The Maryland assembly, largely
through the persuasion of Samuel Chase, Charles Carroll of Carrollton,
and William Paca, voted unanimously for independence and so charged
its Delegates. The South Carolinians, though they had been authorized
months before to cast their lot with the majority, vacillated. The New
Yorkers impatiently awaited instructions.

[Illustration: First page of Jefferson’s rough draft of the
Declaration.]

July 1 was the day of decision. The Revolutionaries, overconfident from
their progress of the preceding month, anticipated an almost unanimous
vote for independence. They were disappointed. Following congressional
procedure, each colony balloted as a unit, determined by the majority
of Delegate opinion. Only nine of the Colonies voted affirmatively;
Pennsylvania and South Carolina, negatively; New York abstained; and
the two Delegates present from Delaware deadlocked. Technically the
resolution had carried, but the solidarity desirable for such a vital
decision was missing. Edward Rutledge of South Carolina, hinting his
colony might change sides, moved that the vote be retaken the next day.

That day proved to be one of the most dramatic in the history of
the Continental Congress. John Adams of Massachusetts exerted an
overwhelming influence. South Carolina, its Delegates swayed by
Rutledge, reversed its position. Two conservatives among the seven
Pennsylvanians, Robert Morris and John Dickinson, though unwilling to
make a personal commitment to independence, cooperated by purposely
absenting themselves; the remaining Delegates voted three to two
in favor. The most exciting moment of the day occurred when Caesar
Rodney, Delaware’s third Delegate, galloped up to the statehouse after
a harrowing 80-mile night ride from Dover through a thunderstorm and
broke the Delaware tie. Home on a military assignment, the evening
before he had received an urgent plea from Thomas McKean, the
Delawarean who had voted for independence, to rush to Philadelphia. In
the final vote, 12 Colonies approved Lee’s resolution, New York again
abstaining. Congress declared the resolution to be in effect.

       *       *       *       *       *

For the remainder of July 2 and continuing until the 4th, Congress
weighed and debated the content of the Declaration of Independence,
which the drafting committee had submitted on June 28. Its author was
young Thomas Jefferson, who had been in Congress about a year. The
committee had chosen him for the task because he was from Virginia, the
colony responsible for the independence resolution, and because of his
reputation as an excellent writer and man of talent and action.

[Illustration: Facsimile of the Declaration of Independence, engraved
in 1823 while the document was still in relatively good condition.]

Laboring in his rented rooms on the second floor of a private home at
the corner of Seventh and Market Streets, Jefferson had completed a
rough draft in about 2 weeks. Apparently Franklin and Adams made some
minor changes, and Livingston and Sherman expressed no reservations
so far as is known. To Jefferson’s irritation, however, Congress
altered the final draft considerably. Most of the changes consisted of
refinements in phraseology. Two major passages, however, were deleted.
The first, a censure of the people of Great Britain, seemed harsh
and needless to most of the Delegates. The second, an impassioned
condemnation of the slave trade, offended Southern planters as well as
New England shippers, many of whom were as culpable as the British in
the trade.

       *       *       *       *       *

The first official document of the American Republic and one of the
most influential in human history, the Declaration expressed the spirit
of human freedom and affirmed Man’s universal rights. Jefferson’s goal
in drafting it was not, he said, to invent “new ideas” but to compose
“an expression of the American mind” in a tone and spirit suitable
for the momentous occasion. Stylistically, the Declaration resembled
his own preamble to the Virginia constitution and contained an almost
identical list of grievances. Its political philosophy, reflecting
the Lockean concepts espoused by many intellectuals of the day, was
certainly not new. Jefferson himself had touched on the basic points in
previous writings, and in essence he echoed George Mason’s “Declaration
of Rights,” which some of the Philadelphia newspapers had published
early in June. In other words, the Declaration assimilated existing
concepts into a concise statement of national doctrine.

Jefferson began the preamble with the oft-quoted and stirring words,
“When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one
people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with
another....” He then listed a series of “self-evident” truths—that “all
men are created equal” and that they are “endowed by their creator
with certain unalienable rights,” particularly “life, liberty, and
the pursuit of happiness.” Governments, “deriving their just powers
from the consent of the governed,” are instituted by men to insure
these rights. When they fail to do so, it is the “right of the people
to alter or to abolish” them and to institute new governments. Men
should not carelessly change governments, but should only take such
action after a long series of abuses and usurpations lead to “absolute
despotism.” Then it becomes their duty to do so. The longest portion
of the Declaration is a list of colonial grievances and examples of
the King’s tyranny. The final section includes a restatement of Lee’s
resolution and a pledge by the signers of their lives, their fortunes,
and their sacred honor to the cause of independence.

[Illustration: The Declaration first appeared in newspapers on July 9,
the day after the official announcement in Philadelphia.]

[Illustration: The New York City Sons of Liberty celebrated
independence by pulling down a statue of George III, which they later
melted and molded into bullets.]

       *       *       *       *       *

On July 4 all the Colonies except New York voted to adopt the
Declaration. Congress ordered it printed and distributed to colonial
officials, military units, and the press. John Hancock and Charles
Thomson, President and Secretary of Congress respectively, were
the only signers of this broadside copy. On July 8, outside the
Pennsylvania State House, the document was first read to the public.
During the ensuing celebration, people cheered, bells rang out, and
soldiers paraded. At other cities, similar celebrations soon took
place. Yet many citizens—the Loyalists, or Tories—could not accept
independence now that it had been declared any more than previously
when it had been merely a concept. Some of them would continue to
dream of reconciliation. Others would flee from or be driven out of
the country. In addition, another sizable group of citizens remained
noncommittal, neither supporting nor opposing independence.

[Illustration: Artist’s rendition of the Battle of Germantown (October
1777).]

Four days after obtaining New York’s approval of the Declaration on
July 15, Congress ordered it engrossed on parchment for signature.
At this time, indicative of unanimity, the title was changed from “A
Declaration by the Representatives of the United States of America
in General Congress Assembled” to “The Unanimous Declaration of the
Thirteen United States of America.”

       *       *       *       *       *

Contrary to a widespread misconception, the 56 signers did not sign
as a group and did not do so on July 4, 1776. The official event
occurred on August 2, 1776, when 50 men probably took part. Later
that year, five more apparently signed separately and one added his
name in a subsequent year. Not until January 18, 1777, in the wake of
Washington’s victories at Trenton and Princeton, did Congress, which
had sought to protect the signers from British retaliation for as long
as possible, authorize printing of the Declaration with all their names
listed. At this time, Thomas McKean had not yet penned his name.

The most impressive signature is that of John Hancock, President of
Congress, centered over the others. According to tradition, Hancock
wrote boldly and defiantly so that King George III would not need
spectacles to identify him as a “traitor” and double the reward for
his head. The other Delegates signed in six columns, which ran from
right to left. They utilized the standard congressional voting order,
by colony generally from north to south: New Hampshire, Massachusetts,
Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and
Georgia.

Those who signed on August 2 undoubtedly did not realize that
others would follow them and thus allowed no room to accommodate
the signatures of the later six men. Two of them, George Wythe and
Richard Henry Lee, found ample room above their fellow Virginians.
One, Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts, crowded his name into the
space between the Massachusetts and Rhode Island groups. Two of the
others—Thomas McKean and Oliver Wolcott—signed at the bottom of columns
following their State delegations. Only Matthew Thornton of New
Hampshire needed to add his name separately from his colleagues—at the
bottom of the first column on the right at the end of the Connecticut
group.

       *       *       *       *       *

Independence had been declared; it still had to be won on the field of
battle. The War for Independence was already underway, but 5 more years
of struggle and bloody campaigning lay ahead. In 1781 the Colonies
achieved military victory, and 2 years later Britain in the Treaty of
Paris officially recognized the independence they had proclaimed in
1776. The building of the Nation could begin.




Part Two

Signers of the Declaration:

Biographical Sketches




Liberally endowed as a whole with courage and sense of purpose,
the signers consisted of a distinguished group of individuals.
Although heterogeneous in background, education, experience, and
accomplishments, at the time of the signing they were practically all
men of means and represented an elite cross section of 18th-century
American leadership. Every one of them had achieved prominence in his
colony, but only a few enjoyed a national reputation.

The signers were those individuals who happened to be Delegates to
Congress at the time. Such men of stature in the Nation as George
Washington and Patrick Henry were not then even serving in the body.
On the other hand, Jefferson, the two Adamses, Richard Henry Lee, and
Benjamin Rush ranked among the outstanding people in the Colonies; and
Franklin had already acquired international fame. Some of the signers
had not taken a stand for or against independence in the final vote
on July 2. For example, Robert Morris of Pennsylvania had purposely
absented himself. Others had not yet been elected to Congress or
were away on business or military matters. Some were last-minute
replacements for opponents of independence. The only signer who
actually voted negatively on July 2 was George Read of Delaware.

       *       *       *       *       *

The signers possessed many basic similarities. Most were American-born
and of Anglo-Saxon origin. The eight foreign-born—Button Gwinnett,
Francis Lewis, Robert Morris, James Smith, George Taylor, Matthew
Thornton, James Wilson, and John Witherspoon—were all natives of the
British Isles. Except for Charles Carroll, a Roman Catholic, and a
few Deists, every one subscribed to Protestantism. For the most part
basically political nonextremists, many at first had hesitated at
separation let alone rebellion. A few signed only reluctantly.

[Illustration: Fervid Revolutionary Patrick Henry numbered among those
patriots of national reputation who were not Members of Congress at the
time of the signing of the Declaration.]

The majority were well educated and prosperous. More than half the
southerners belonged to the planter class and owned slaves, though
Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson, and others heartily opposed the
institution of slavery, as did also several of the signers from the
North. On the other hand, William Whipple, as a sea captain early in
his career, had likely sometimes carried slaves on his ship.

Although the signers ranged in age at the time from 26 (Edward
Rutledge) to 70 (Benjamin Franklin), the bulk of them were in their
thirties or forties. Probably as a result of their favored economic
position, an amazingly large number attained an age that far exceeded
the life expectancy of their time; 38 of the 56 lived into their
sixties or beyond and 14 into the eighties and nineties.

[Illustration: George Washington inspecting his troops at Valley Forge.
Busy serving as commander in chief of the Continental Army, he did not
sign the Declaration.]

With few exceptions, those who subscribed to the Declaration continued
in public service under the new Federal and State Governments. John
Adams and Thomas Jefferson became President; they and Elbridge Gerry,
Vice President. Samuel Chase and James Wilson won appointment to the
Supreme Court. Others served as Congressmen, diplomats, Governors, and
judges. Six of the signers—George Clymer, Benjamin Franklin, Robert
Morris, George Read, Roger Sherman, and James Wilson—also signed the
Constitution. Sixteen of them underwrote the Articles of Confederation.
Only two, Roger Sherman and Robert Morris, affixed their signatures to
the Declaration, Constitution, and Articles.

Caesar Rodney and Joseph Hewes were the only bachelors in the group.
All but five fathered children. Carter Braxton sired no fewer than
18, but 10 others each had at least 10 offspring. The average number
was about six. Some of the sons of the signers attained national
distinction. John Adams’ son John Quincy became President; the son of
Benjamin Harrison, William Henry, won the same office, as did also
Benjamin’s great-grandson with the same name. Other male progeny of the
signers served as U.S. Congressmen, Governors, and State legislators.

       *       *       *       *       *

Yet the group manifested diversity. Each man tended to reflect the
particular attitudes and interests of his own region and colony.
Fourteen represented New England; 21, the Middle Colonies; and 21, the
South. The largest number, nine, came from Pennsylvania; the least,
two, from Rhode Island. All those from three Colonies (Georgia, New
Hampshire, and North Carolina) were born elsewhere. About half of the
men received their higher education in colonial colleges or abroad;
most of the others studied at home, in local schools or private
academies, or with tutors. A few were almost entirely self-taught.

[Illustration: Harvard College, about 1725. Indicative of the favored
economic circumstances of the signers, about half of them enjoyed
a higher education. Eight, including all five from Massachusetts,
attended Harvard.]

In wealth, the signers ranged from Charles Carroll, one of the
wealthiest men in the Colonies, to Samuel Adams, whose friends supplied
money and clothes so he could attend Congress. About one-third were
born into wealth; most of the others acquired it on their own. Some
were self-made men. A few were of humble origin; one, George Taylor,
had come to America as an indentured servant.

Many pursued more than one vocation. More than half were trained in
the law, but not all of them practiced it. Some won a livelihood as
merchants and shippers. Roughly a quarter of the group earned their
living from agriculture, usually as wealthy planters or landed gentry,
but just a few could be called farmers. Four—Josiah Bartlett, Benjamin
Rush, Lyman Hall, and Matthew Thornton—were doctors. Oliver Wolcott
also studied medicine for awhile, but never entered the profession.
George Taylor’s occupation was ironmaster. Of the four trained as
ministers—Lyman Hall, William Hooper, Robert Treat Paine, and John
Witherspoon—only the latter made it his lifetime vocation. William
Williams received some theological training. Samuel Adams followed no
real occupation other than politics.

       *       *       *       *       *

For their dedication to the cause of independence, the signers risked
loss of fortune, imprisonment, and death for treason. Although none
died directly at the hands of the British, the wife of one, Mrs.
Francis Lewis, succumbed as a result of harsh prison treatment. About
one-third of the group served as militia officers, most seeing wartime
action. Four of these men (Thomas Heyward, Jr., Arthur Middleton,
Edward Rutledge, and George Walton), as well as Richard Stockton,
were taken captive. The homes of nearly one-third of the signers were
destroyed or damaged, and the families of a few were scattered when the
British pillaged or confiscated their estates.

Nearly all of the group emerged poorer for their years of public
service and neglect of personal affairs. Although a couple of the
merchants and shippers among them profited from the war, the businesses
of most of them deteriorated as a result of embargoes on trade with
Britain and heavy financial losses when their ships were confiscated or
destroyed at sea. Several forfeited to the Government precious specie
for virtually worthless Continental currency or made donations or
loans, usually unrepaid, to their colonies or the Government. Some even
sold their personal property to help finance the war.

Certainly most of the signers had little or nothing to gain materially
and practically all to lose when they subscribed to the Declaration of
Independence. By doing so, they earned a niche of honor in the annals
of the United States. Whatever other heights they reached or whatever
else they contributed to history, the act of signing insured them
immortality.

       *       *       *       *       *

_The following biographical sketches are arranged alphabetically by
last name. Readers interested in signers for a certain State should
consult the Index under the appropriate State._




John Adams

MASSACHUSETTS

[Illustration]

      Few men contributed more to U.S. Independence than John
      Adams, the “Atlas of American Independence” in the eyes of
      fellow signer Richard Stockton. A giant among the Founding
      Fathers, Adams was one of the coterie of leaders who
      generated the American Revolution, for which his prolific
      writings provided many of the politico-philosophical
      foundations. Not only did he help draft the Declaration,
      but he also steered it through the Continental Congress.


The subsequent career of Adams—as a diplomat and first Vice President
and second President of the United States—overshadows those of all the
other signers except Jefferson. Adams was also the progenitor of a
distinguished family. His son John Quincy gained renown as diplomat,
Congressman, Secretary of State, and President. John’s grandson
Charles Francis and great-grandsons John Quincy II, Charles Francis,
Jr., Henry, and Brooks excelled in politics, diplomacy, literature,
historiography, and public service.

Adams, descended from a long line of yeomen farmers, was born in 1735
at Braintree (later Quincy), Mass. He graduated from Harvard College
in 1755, and for a short time taught school at Worcester, Mass. At
that time, he considered entering the ministry, but decided instead
to follow the law and began its study with a local lawyer. Adams was
admitted to the bar at Boston in 1758 and began to practice in his
hometown. Six years later, he married Abigail Smith, who was to bear
three sons and a daughter. She was also the first mistress of the
White House and the only woman in U.S. history to be the wife of one
President and the mother of another.

Adams, like many others, was propelled into the Revolutionary camp by
the Stamp Act. In 1765 he wrote a protest for Braintree that scores of
other Massachusetts towns adopted. Three years later, he temporarily
left his family behind and moved to Boston. He advanced in the law,
but devoted more and more of his time to the patriot cause. In 1768 he
achieved recognition throughout the Colonies for his defense of John
Hancock, whom British customs officials had charged with smuggling.
Adams later yielded to a stern sense of legal duty but incurred some
public hostility by representing the British soldiers charged with
murder in the Boston Massacre (1770). Ill health forced him to return
to Braintree following a term in the colonial legislature (1770–71),
and for the next few years he divided his time between there and Boston.

A 3-year stint in the Continental Congress (1774–77), punctuated by
short recuperative leaves and service in the colonial legislature in
1774–75, brought Adams national fame. Because he was sharply attuned
to the temper of Congress and aware that many Members resented
Massachusetts extremism, he at first acceded to conciliatory efforts
with Britain and restrained himself publicly. When Congress opted for
independence, he became its foremost advocate, eschewing conciliation
and urging a colonial confederation.

Adams was a master of workable compromise and meaningful debate,
though he was sometimes impatient. He chaired 25 of the more than 90
committees on which he sat, the most important of which dealt with
military and naval affairs. He played an instrumental part in obtaining
Washington’s appointment as commander in chief of the Continental Army.
Adams was a member of the five-man committee charged with drafting the
Declaration in June of 1776, though he probably made no major changes
in Jefferson’s draft. But, more directly involved, he defended it from
its congressional detractors, advocated it to the wavering, and guided
it to passage.

The independence battle won, exhausted by the incessant toil and strain
and worried about his finances and family, Adams in November 1777
retired from Congress—never to return. He headed back to Braintree
intending to resume his law practice. But, before the month expired,
Congress appointed him to a diplomatic post in Europe—a phase of his
career that consumed more than a decade (1777–88).

Adams served in France during the period 1778–85, interrupted only
by a visit to the United States in the summer of 1779, during
which he attended the Massachusetts constitutional convention.
Independent-minded and forthright, as well as somewhat jealous of the
fame and accomplishments of others, he frequently found himself at
odds with fellow diplomats Benjamin Franklin and Arthur Lee, as well
as French officials, whose policies toward the Colonies he mistrusted.
He joined Franklin and John Jay, however, in negotiating the Treaty
of Paris (1783), by which Britain recognized the independence of the
United States.

Meanwhile, during the preceding 3 years, Adams had persuaded the Dutch
to recognize the Colonies as an independent Nation, grant a series of
loans, and negotiate a treaty of alliance. As the first American Envoy
to Great Britain (1785–88), he strove to resolve questions arising from
the Treaty of Paris and to calm the harsh feelings between the two
countries.

Back in the United States, Adams was soon elected as the first Vice
President (1789–97), an office he considered insignificant but in which
he emerged as a leader of the Federalist Party. During his stormy but
statesmanlike Presidency (1797–1801), he inherited the deep political
discord between the Hamiltonians and Jeffersonians that had taken root
during Washington’s administration. Adams pursued a neutral course
without abandoning his principles. He kept the United States out of a
declared war with France and achieved an amicable peace. But he proved
unable to unite his party, divided by Hamilton’s machinations and the
ramifications of the French Revolution.

The Jeffersonians drove the Federalists out of office in 1800, and
Adams retired to Quincy, where he spent his later years quietly. The
death of his wife in 1818 saddened him, but he never lost interest in
public affairs and lived to see his son John Quincy become President.
John died at the age of 90 just a few hours after Jefferson, on July 4,
1826—dramatically enough the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the
Declaration. Except for Charles Carroll, who was to live until 1832,
Adams and Jefferson were the last two surviving signers. The remains of
John and Abigail Adams are interred in a basement crypt at the United
First Parish Church in Quincy.




Samuel Adams

MASSACHUSETTS

[Illustration]

      “Firebrand of the Revolution,” Samuel Adams probably more
      than almost any other individual instigated and organized
      colonial resistance to the Crown. A talented polemicist and
      agitator-propagandist who relied more on his facile pen
      than the podium in behind-the-scenes manipulation of men
      and events, he religiously believed in the righteousness
      of his political causes, to which he persistently tried
      to convert others. He failed in business, neglected
      his family, gained a reputation as an eccentric, and
      demonstrated as much indifference to his own welfare as
      he did solicitousness for that of the public. His second
      cousin John Adams, more of a statesman, eclipsed him in
      the Continental Congress, though Samuel signed both the
      Declaration and the Articles of Confederation. In his later
      years, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts bestowed on him
      many high offices, capped by the governorship.


Adams was one of 12 offspring of a prosperous and politically active
brewer and landowner. He was born at Boston in 1722 and enjoyed an
excellent education at the Boston Latin School and Harvard College.
Upon his graduation in 1740, he first demonstrated his lifelong
aversion to normal employment. He studied law for awhile and then
skipped from job to job, working for a time in his father’s brewery
as well as in a counting house and dissipating a paternal loan in an
unsuccessful business venture.

When his father died in 1748 and his mother soon afterwards, Adams
inherited a sizable estate, including the family home and brewery.
By 1764, when the colonial quarrel with Britain began, he had long
since lost the latter. And, during the previous 8 years as city tax
collector, he had fallen in arrears about £8,000 in his collections.
At the age of 42, unable to support a new wife and two children from
his first marriage and residing in his rundown birthplace, he was
destitute and besieged by creditors. He subsisted mainly on gifts and
donations from loyal friends and neighbors.

Adams was a failure by most standards, but he had long before found the
only meaningful “occupation” he ever pursued. For almost two decades he
had been active in local political clubs, where he earned a reputation
as a writer and emerged as leader of the “popular” party that opposed
the powerful conservative aristocracy controlling the Massachusetts
government. As clerk in the colonial legislature (1765–74), he drafted
most of the body’s official papers and quickly seized the tools of
power. He pounced on the taxation issue raised by the Sugar and Stamp
Acts (1764–65), and within a year he and his party fanned popular
hatred of the conservatives and gained control of the legislature.
He also spurred organization of the militant Boston Sons of Liberty,
a secret society. As time went on, the stridency of his anti-British
harangues escalated and sometimes became shrill enough to distress John
Hancock and John Adams.

The Townshend Acts (1767), imposing a series of taxes on imports,
provided Adams with a new cause for dissent. He urged merchants not
to purchase goods from Britain, fomented opposition toward customs
officials, inflamed the resentment toward British troops stationed
in the colony that led to the Boston Massacre (1770), and humiliated
the Royal Governor so much that he was recalled. Adams also authored
a circular letter protesting British taxation and advocating united
opposition. When, in 1768, the Massachusetts legislature sent it to
the 12 other colonial assemblies, the Royal Governor dissolved the
legislature, soon a common British practice in America. All these
activities, coupled with authorship of scores of newspaper articles and
extensive correspondence with prominent persons in the Colonies and
England, brought Adams fame.

The conservative reaction on the part of merchants, the legislature,
and the populace that surfaced after the repeal of practically all the
Townshend Acts in 1770 failed to stifle Adams, though his popularity
and influence declined. Relentlessly, in perhaps his chief contribution
to the Revolution, he kept the controversy alive by filling the columns
of the Boston newspapers with reports of British transgressions and
warnings of more to come. Furthermore, in 1772 he began constructing
the framework of a Revolutionary organization in Massachusetts.
Drawing on a similar scheme he had proposed for all the Colonies 2
years earlier but which had come to naught, he convinced Boston and
other towns to create committees of correspondence. The next year, he
was appointed to the Massachusetts committee, formed in response to a
call from the Virginia House of Burgesses.

Passage of the Tea Act (1773) provided the spark Adams was seeking
to rekindle the flame of rebellion. He helped to incite and probably
participated in the “Boston Tea Party,” which engendered a series of
rebellious incidents throughout the Colonies and pushed them closer to
war. Parliament retaliated the next spring by passing a series of acts
designed to punish Massachusetts.

Adams, recognizing that the other Colonies would only adopt
non-intercourse measures in concert, urged an intercolonial congress
to discuss mutual grievances and plan a united course of action.
Subsequently, in June, the Massachusetts house of representatives,
meeting behind locked doors to prevent interference by the Royal
Governor, resolved to invite the other 12 Colonies to send
representatives to Philadelphia in September and also appointed five
Delegates, including Adams. That same day, the Royal Governor disbanded
the legislature for the last time. Before heading for Philadelphia,
outfitted in new clothes supplied by friends, Adams helped organize the
convention that adopted the Suffolk Resolves, which in effect declared
Massachusetts to be in a state of rebellion.

Adams served in the Continental Congress until 1781, longer than most
other Delegates, but his role was less conspicuous than his preceding
career augured. In the early sessions, most of the time he shrewdly
stayed in the background with his fellow Massachusetts Delegates,
whose radicalism offended most of their colleagues. And, throughout
the Congress, he walked in the shadow of John Adams, who dominated the
proceedings.

But nothing in the latter’s career could match the drama of an
episode involving Samuel in the interim between the First and Second
Continental Congresses. Back at Lexington, Mass., one night in April
1775, he and Hancock had barely escaped the British force seeking to
capture the colonial supply depot at Concord. The outbreak of armed
conflict the next dawn—a “glorious morning” for Adams—marked the
beginning of the War for Independence.

While still in Congress, in 1779–80 Adams participated in the
Massachusetts constitutional convention. He returned to Boston for
good the next year and entered the State senate (1781–88), over which
he presided. He refused to attend the Constitutional Convention of
1787 because of his objection to a stronger National Government, and
the following year unenthusiastically took part in the Massachusetts
ratifying convention. A lifetime of public service culminated in his
election as Lieutenant Governor (1789–93), interim Governor in the
latter year upon Hancock’s death, and Governor (1794–97). Still living
in “honest poverty,” he died at Boston in 1803 at the age of 81 and was
buried in the Old Granary Burying Ground.




Josiah Bartlett

NEW HAMPSHIRE

[Illustration]

      Thanks to the voting order in the Continental Congress,
      Josiah Bartlett of New Hampshire was probably the first
      Delegate to vote for independence, the second to sign
      the Declaration (after President John Hancock), and the
      first to ballot for and pen his name to the Articles of
      Confederation. He also has the distinction of being one
      of several physician signers. His State service, more
      extensive than the National, included the governorship.


Bartlett was born in 1729 at Amesbury, Mass. At the age of 16, equipped
with a common school education and some knowledge of Latin and Greek,
he began to study medicine in the office of a relative. Five years
later, in 1750, he hung out his shingle at nearby Kingston, N.H. He
quickly won a name not only as a general practitioner but also as an
experimenter and innovator in diagnosis and treatment. Marrying in
1754, he fathered 12 children.

During the decade or so preceding the outbreak of the War for
Independence, Bartlett held the offices of justice of the peace,
militia colonel, and legislator. In 1774 he cast his lot with the
Revolutionaries. He became a member of the New Hampshire committee
of correspondence and the first provincial congress, which came into
being when the Royal Governor disbanded the colonial assembly. Bartlett
was elected that same year to the Continental Congress, but tragedy
intervened and kept him at home. Arsonists, possibly Loyalists, burned
his house to the ground. Discouraged but undeterred, he immediately
constructed a new one on the very same site.

While in Congress (1775–76), Bartlett also served on the New Hampshire
council of safety. Although he rarely participated in congressional
debates, whose seeming futility vexed him, he sat on various
committees. He was reelected in 1777, but was too exhausted to attend.
He nevertheless managed in August to lend his medical skills to Gen.
John Stark’s force of New Hampshire militia and Continental troops.
They defeated a predominantly German element of Gen. John Burgoyne’s
command in the Battle of Bennington, N.Y.—one of the reverses that
helped force him to surrender 2 months later at Saratoga, N.Y.
Bartlett’s last tour in Congress was in 1778–79, after which he refused
reelection because of fatigue.

Bartlett spent the remainder of his life on the State scene. Despite
his lack of legal training, he sat first as chief justice of the
court of common pleas (1779–82), then as associate (1782–88) and
chief (1788–90) justice of the Superior Court. Meantime, in 1788,
he had taken part in the State convention that ratified the Federal
Constitution, which he strongly favored. The next year, probably on
account of his age and the weight of his judicial duties, he declined
election to the U.S. Senate. The following year, he became chief
executive, or president, of the State. He held that title for 2 years,
in 1793–94 being named the first Governor, as the newly amended
constitution redesignated the position.

Despite all his political activities, Bartlett had never lost interest
in the field of medicine. In 1790 Dartmouth College conferred on him an
honorary degree of Doctor of Medicine. The next year, he founded the
New Hampshire Medical Society and became its first president. In 1794,
the year before he died in Kingston at the age of 65, ill health forced
his retirement from public life. His remains lie in the yard of the
Universalist Church in Kingston.




Carter Braxton

VIRGINIA

[Illustration]

      Carter Braxton, an aristocratic planter and probably the
      most conservative of the seven Virginia signers, originally
      opposed independence but later changed his mind and signed
      the Declaration. His tour in the Continental Congress
      lasted less than a year, but he held State office for most
      of his life. His two wives bore him 18 children, more than
      any other signer fathered.


Braxton was born in 1736 at Newington Plantation, on the Mattaponi
River, in King and Queen County, Va. His father was a wealthy and
politically influential planter. His mother, who died at his birth,
was the daughter of Robert “King” Carter, a prominent landowner and
politician.

In 1755, the same year Braxton graduated from the College of William
and Mary, he married. His bride died in childbirth 2 years later. The
following year, he left for an extended visit to England. He returned
to Virginia in 1760 and moved into Elsing Green, an estate overlooking
the Pamunkey River, in King William County, that his brother George had
apparently built for him in 1758 during his absence. At the age of 25,
in 1761, Carter remarried and entered the House of Burgesses. He served
there, except for a term as county sheriff in 1772–73, until 1775.
Meantime, in 1767, he had erected a new home, Chericoke, a couple of
miles northwest of Elsing Green.

When the trouble with Great Britain erupted, Braxton, like many
other conservatives, sided with the patriots, though he did not
condone violence. In 1769 he signed the Virginia Resolves, a document
protesting parliamentary regulation of the colony’s affairs, and the
Virginia Association, a nonimportation agreement. During the period
1774–76, he attended various Revolutionary conventions. In 1775, upon
dissolution of the royal government, he accepted a position on the
council of safety, the temporary governing body.

In the spring of that year, Braxton was instrumental in preventing the
outbreak of war in Virginia. On April 20, the day after the clashes
at Lexington and Concord, Royal Governor Lord John M. Dunmore seized
the gunpowder in the Williamsburg magazine. Several colonial militia
units prepared to retaliate, but moderate leaders such as George
Washington and Peyton Randolph restrained them. Patrick Henry, however,
refusing to be pacified, led a group of the Hanover County militia
into Williamsburg and demanded the return of the gunpowder or payment
for it. Before any hostilities occurred, Braxton, as spokesman for
Henry, met with crown official Richard Corbin, his father-in-law, and
convinced him to pay for the powder.

In the fall of 1775 Braxton was selected to fill a vacancy in Congress
caused by the death of Peyton Randolph. Arriving at Philadelphia early
in 1776, he at first sharply criticized the independence movement,
but eventually yielded to the majority and backed the Declaration.
That same year, apparently both in writing and in a speech at a
Virginia convention, he urged adoption of a conservative form of State
government and expressed such a mistrust of popular government that he
lost his congressional appointment. The conservatives, however, elected
him to the new State legislature, in which he sat for the rest of his
life. For many years, he was also a member of the Governor’s executive
council.

The War for Independence brought financial hardships to Braxton. At
its beginning, he had invested heavily in shipping, but the British
captured most of his vessels and ravaged some of his plantations and
extensive landholdings. Commercial setbacks in later years ruined him.
In 1786, though he retained Chericoke, he moved to Richmond, where he
died in 1797 at the age of 61. He was buried in the family cemetery
adjacent to Chericoke.




Charles Carroll

MARYLAND

[Illustration]

      As one of the wealthiest men in America, Charles Carroll
      III of Carrollton risked his fortune as well as his life
      when he joined the Revolutionaries. Possessing one of the
      most cultivated minds of any of the signers, he achieved
      remarkable success as planter, businessman, and politician.
      He was the only Roman Catholic signer, the last to survive,
      and the longest lived.


Of Irish descent, Carroll was born in 1737 at his father’s townhouse,
Carroll Mansion in Annapolis. Jesuits educated him until he reached
about 11 years of age. He then voyaged to Europe and studied the
liberal arts and civil law at various schools and universities in
Paris, elsewhere in France, and in London.

Carroll sailed home in 1765 at the age of 28, and built a home at
Carrollton Manor, a 10,000-acre estate in Frederick County newly deeded
to him by his father. At that time, he added “of Carrollton” to his
name to distinguish himself from relatives of the same name. For most
of his life, however, he preferred for his country residence the family
ancestral home, Doughoregan Manor, in Howard County; when in Annapolis,
he usually resided at his birthplace. For almost a decade after his
return from Europe, barred from public life by his religion, he lived
quietly. During that time, in 1768, he married. His offspring numbered
seven, three of whom lived to maturity.

In 1773 Carroll became a champion of the patriots through his newspaper
attacks on the Proprietary Governor. The latter was opposing
reforms in officers’ fees and stipends for Anglican clergy that the
lower house of the legislature had proposed. From then on, Carroll
took a prominent part in provincial affairs. In the years 1774–76
he supported nonimportation measures, attended the first Maryland
Revolutionary convention, and served on local and provincial committees
of correspondence and the council of safety. In 1776 he and his cousin
John, a priest—chosen because of their religion and knowledge of
French—traveled to Canada with Benjamin Franklin and Samuel Chase on a
congressionally appointed committee that sought but failed to obtain a
union of Canada with the Colonies.

Carroll and Chase arrived back in Philadelphia on June 11 that same
year, the day after Congress had postponed the vote on Richard Henry
Lee’s independence resolution (June 7) until July 1. Maryland had
refused to commit herself. Carroll and Chase rushed to Annapolis,
recruited William Paca’s aid, and conducted a whirlwind campaign that
persuaded the provincial convention to pass a unanimous independence
resolution. It reached Congress just in time to put the colony in
the affirmative column on July 1, the day of the first vote. Three
days later, Carroll himself became a Delegate and functioned in that
capacity until 1778.

Two years before, Carroll had also been elected to the State senate, a
seat he retained until just after the turn of the century. Along with
fellow signers Chase and Paca, he was a member of the committee that in
1776 drafted Maryland’s constitution. Elected to but not attending the
Constitutional Convention of 1787, he nevertheless allied himself with
the Federalists and helped bring about his State’s ratification of the
Constitution. In the years 1789–92, while also in the State senate, he
served as a U.S. Senator, one of Maryland’s first two.

Not reelected to the State senate in 1804, the 67-year-old Carroll
retired from public life and concentrated on managing his landholdings,
consisting of about 80,000 acres in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New
York, and his business interests. The latter included investments in
the Patowmack (Potowmack) Company, which established a canal system in
the Potomac and Shenandoah Valleys, and its successor the Chesapeake
and Ohio Canal Company. Carroll was also a member of the first board of
directors of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.

In his final years, revered by the Nation as the last surviving signer
of the Declaration, Carroll spent most of his time at Doughoregan
Manor. But he passed the winters in the home of his youngest daughter
and her husband in Baltimore. There, in 1832, he died at the age of 95.
His body was interred in the family chapel at Doughoregan Manor.




Samuel Chase

MARYLAND

[Illustration]

      Fervid Revolutionary Samuel Chase led the campaign that
      crushed conservative opposition and alined his colony
      with the others in the independence struggle. Labeled
      the “Demosthenes of Maryland” for his fancy albeit
      effective oratory, he also demonstrated skill as a writer.
      But his independent attitude, stormy disposition, and
      outspokenness diluted his political effectiveness. As an
      Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, he became a
      controversial figure.


Chase was the son of an Anglican clergyman. He was born in 1741 at the
farmhouse of his mother’s parents on Maryland’s Eastern Shore near
the city of Princess Anne. His mother had come there from her home
at nearby Allen for a visit. She died at or soon after the birth.
Likely Chase’s grandparents cared for him at least a few years, until
about the time his father took over a parish in Baltimore. The latter
provided the youth with his initial education, mainly in the classics.

Between the ages of 18 and 20, Chase read law with an Annapolis firm
and joined the bar in 1761. The next year, he married; his wife bore
at least two sons and two daughters. Two years after his marriage, he
entered the colonial/State legislature and retained membership for two
decades. From the beginning, he opposed the royal government. Annapolis
officials denounced him for his participation in the violent protests
of the Sons of Liberty in 1765 against the Stamp Act. In 1774–75 he
took part in the Maryland committee of correspondence, council of
safety, and the provincial convention.

In the former year, Chase had joined the Continental Congress. He
advocated an embargo on trade with Britain, showed special interest
in diplomatic matters, early urged a confederation of the Colonies,
defended George Washington from his congressional detractors, and in
1776 journeyed to Montreal with a commission that tried but failed to
achieve a union with Canada. When he returned to Philadelphia around
the middle of June, Congress had just postponed the vote on the Lee
independence resolution. Realizing that Maryland was straddling the
fence on the issue, Chase rushed home. Along with Charles Carroll
of Carrollton and William Paca, he labored for 2 weeks to overcome
opposition and won a committal to independence from the convention. The
Maryland Delegates registered it in time for the first congressional
vote, on July 1. In 1778 Chase lost his office because of adverse
publicity generated by the advantage he had taken of knowledge gained
in Congress to engage in a profiteering scheme.

In 1783–84 Chase traveled to London as a State emissary on an
unfruitful mission to recover Maryland stock in the Bank of England
from two fugitive Loyalists. Upon his return apparently, his first
wife having died, he remarried; resumed his law practice; and engaged
in various unsuccessful business enterprises that led to bankruptcy in
1789. Meantime, he had reentered politics. In 1785 he had represented
Maryland at the Mount Vernon (Va.) Conference, forerunner of the
Annapolis Convention. The next year, he moved his family from Annapolis
to Baltimore, where he soon became chief judge of the Baltimore County
criminal court (1788–95). As a delegate to the Maryland ratifying
convention in 1788, he strongly opposed the Constitution, though he
later became a staunch Federalist. From 1791 until 1794, while still
a county judge, he also held the position of chief justice of the
Maryland Superior Court.

Chase achieved his greatest fame as an Associate Justice of the
U.S. Supreme Court (1796–1811). He was one of the ablest jurists
in the body prior to Chief Justice John Marshall (1801–35), and
delivered many influential opinions. His inability to control his
political partisanship while on the bench—a trait he shared with some
other judges of his time—led to various judicial improprieties and
impeachment proceedings against him in 1805. But Congress acquitted him.

Still a Justice, Chase died in Baltimore 2 months after he celebrated
his 70th birthday. His grave is in St. Paul’s Cemetery.




Abraham Clark

NEW JERSEY

[Illustration]

      Abraham Clark—farmer, surveyor, self-taught lawyer, and
      politician—typifies those signers who dedicated most of
      their lives to public service but never gained national
      renown.


An only child, Clark was born in 1726 at his father’s farm in what is
now Roselle, N.J. In his boyhood, he was too frail for farmwork. He
received only a minimum of formal education, but in his independent
study demonstrated a bent for mathematics. When he reached manhood,
besides farming his father’s land, he took up surveying and informally
read law to aid in mediating land disputes. Although probably never
admitted to the bar, he gained a reputation as the “poor man’s
counselor” for his willingness to dispense free legal advice or accept
produce or merchandise in lieu of a fee. He married in 1749, and
fathered 10 children.

Clark followed his father’s example by taking an active part in civic
affairs. For many years, he served the Crown as high sheriff of Essex
County and as clerk in the colonial legislature. The exact date of his
entry into the patriot ranks is not known, but in the period 1774–76
he became a member and secretary of the New Jersey council of safety,
attended several Revolutionary conventions, and won election to the
provincial assembly. In June of the latter year, he and four other
men replaced the existing congressional Delegates, who were opposing
independence.

Despite poor health and deep concern for the welfare of his family
and the safety of his home, located not far from an area of British
occupation, Clark stayed in Congress throughout the War for
Independence and sometimes sat concurrently in the State legislature.
He suffered additional anxiety when the British captured his two
soldier sons and incarcerated them for a time on the prison ship
_Jersey_, where hundreds of captives perished.

[Illustration: Thousands of American soldiers, including two of Abraham
Clark’s sons, endured the agonies of captivity on the British prison
ship _Jersey_.]

At the end of the war in 1783, Clark resumed his life back in
New Jersey. The next year he began a 3-year tour in the State
legislature, which he represented at the Annapolis Convention (1786).
The following year, ill health prevented his attendance at the
Constitutional Convention. He subsequently opposed the Constitution
until it incorporated the Bill of Rights. In 1787–89 he returned
to the Continental Congress, but in 1789–90 remained in New Jersey
as commissioner to settle his State’s accounts with the Federal
Government. In 1791–94 he climaxed a long career of alternating
State-National service as a Representative in the Second and Third
Congresses.

Clark was stricken with a sunstroke in 1794 at his birthplace in
Roselle, where he had lived all his life except when political duty
called him away. He died a few hours later, at the age of 68, in
the nearby town of Rahway and was buried there in the Presbyterian
Cemetery.




George Clymer

PENNSYLVANIA

[Illustration]

      George Clymer, a leading Philadelphia merchant, rendered
      long years of service to his city, State, and Nation. He
      signed the Constitution as well as the Declaration, and
      applied his commercial acumen to the financial problems of
      the Colonies and the Confederation.


Clymer was orphaned in 1740, only a year after his birth in
Philadelphia. A wealthy uncle reared and informally educated him and
advanced him from clerk to a full-fledged partner in his mercantile
firm, which on his death he bequeathed to his ward. Later, Clymer
merged operations with the Merediths, prominent businessmen, and
cemented the relationship by marrying his senior partner’s daughter.

Motivated at least partly by the impact of British economic
restrictions on his business, Clymer early adopted the Revolutionary
cause and was one of the first to recommend independence. He attended
patriotic meetings, served on the Pennsylvania council of safety, and
in 1773 headed a committee that forced the resignation of Philadelphia
tea consignees appointed by Britain under the Tea Act. Inevitably,
in light of his economic background, he channeled his energies into
financial matters. In 1775–76 he acted as one of the first two
Continental treasurers, even personally underwriting the war by
exchanging all his own specie for Continental currency.

In the Continental Congress (1776–77 and 1780–82) the quiet and
unassuming Clymer rarely spoke in debate but made his mark in committee
efforts, especially those pertaining to commerce, finance, and
military affairs. During and between his two congressional tours, he
also served on a series of commissions that conducted important field
investigations. In December 1776, when Congress fled from Philadelphia
to Baltimore, he and fellow signers George Walton and Robert Morris
remained behind to carry on congressional business. Within a year,
after their victory at the Battle of Brandywine, Pa. (Sept. 11, 1777),
British troops advancing on Philadelphia detoured for the purpose of
vandalizing Clymer’s home in Chester County, about 25 miles outside the
city, while his wife and children hid nearby in the woods.

[Illustration: George Clymer lived in this Philadelphia townhouse
during the Revolutionary period.]

After a brief retirement following his last tour in the Continental
Congress, Clymer was reelected in the years 1784–88 to the Pennsylvania
legislature, where he had also served part time in 1780–82 while still
in Congress. As a State legislator, he advocated reform of the penal
code, opposed capital punishment, and represented Pennsylvania in
the Constitutional Convention (1787). The next phase of his career
consisted of service as a U.S. Representative in the First Congress
(1789–91), followed by appointment as collector of excise taxes on
alcoholic beverages in Pennsylvania (1791–94). In 1795–96 he sat on a
Presidential commission that negotiated a treaty with the Indians in
Georgia.

During his retirement, Clymer advanced various community projects,
including the Philadelphia Agricultural Society, the Philadelphia
Academy of Fine Arts, and the Philadelphia Bank. At the age of 73, in
1813, he died at Summerseat, an estate a few miles outside Philadelphia
at Morrisville that he had purchased and moved to in 1806. His grave is
in the Friends Meeting House Cemetery at Trenton, N.J.




William Ellery

RHODE ISLAND

[Illustration]

      One of a small group of lesser known signers whose
      achievements were comparatively modest, William Ellery
      gained little fame beyond his hometown—in sharp contrast
      to fellow Rhode Island signer Stephen Hopkins. The office
      of Delegate to the Continental Congress was the only
      significant position, State or National, to which Ellery
      ever won election, but he occupied it for a far longer
      period than most other Members.


The second son in a family of four, Ellery was born in 1727 at Newport,
his lifelong residence. He followed in the footsteps of his father,
a rich merchant and political leader, by attending Harvard. On his
graduation in 1747, he returned home. During the following two decades
or so, he tried his hand at several occupations, eventually taking up
the study of law, which he began practicing in 1770. Meantime, he had
married twice and was to rear two sons and three daughters. Among his
grandchildren were William Ellery Channing, influential theologian and
apostle of Unitarianism, and Richard Henry Dana, Sr., noted poet and
essayist.

By May 1776, when the colonial legislature sent Ellery to the
Continental Congress, he had already earned a reputation for his work
on local patriotic committees. Tradition records that, at the formal
signing of the Declaration on August 2, he placed himself beside the
Secretary and observed “undaunted resolution” on every face as the
Delegates subscribed to their “death warrant.” The next year, Rhode
Island initiated popular election of congressional Delegates, and
Ellery’s Newport constituency maintained him in office until 1786
except for the years 1780 and 1782. In 1780 he remained in Philadelphia
as an ex officio member of the board of admiralty, on which he had
been sitting. His other committee assignments included those dealing
with commercial and naval affairs. On occasion, to entertain himself
and others, he wrote witty epigrams about various speakers. In 1785 he
turned down the chief justiceship of the Rhode Island Superior Court to
remain in Congress, where he had attained commanding seniority.

The very next year, Ellery terminated his congressional career
to accept an appointment as commissioner of the Continental Loan
Office for Rhode Island (1786–90). Probably the need to straighten
out his finances compelled him to accept. British troops in 1778,
during their 3-year occupation of Newport, had destroyed his home
and property, and he had been too busy to rebuild his fortune. In
1790 President Washington appointed Ellery as customs collector
for the district of Newport, a position he held for three decades.
Although he was a Federalist, he managed to retain office during
the Democratic-Republican administrations, probably because of his
Revolutionary record and competence.

In his later years, Ellery prospered. He kept active in public affairs
and spent many hours in scholarly pursuits and correspondence. Living
to 92, a more advanced age than all the signers except Charles Carroll,
he died in 1820 at Newport. His remains rest there in the Common Ground
Cemetery.




William Floyd

NEW YORK

[Illustration]

      William Floyd, a wealthy landowner-farmer, belongs to the
      category of signers who played only a peripheral part in
      the Revolution. Nevertheless, he suffered anguish when
      British troops and Loyalists ravaged his estate during
      the war and drove his family into a 7-year exile in
      Connecticut. He also climbed to the rank of major general
      in the State militia, and served in the U.S. First Congress.


Floyd was born in 1734 at present Mastic, Long Island, N.Y., in
Brookhaven Township. He was the second child and eldest of two sons in
a family of nine. His father, a prosperous farmer of Welsh ancestry,
kept the youth busy with chores. As a result, his education consisted
only of informal instruction at home. When Floyd reached his 20th
year, his father and mother died within 2 months of each other, and he
inherited a large estate along with the responsibility of caring for
his brothers and sisters. Six years later, he married. His bride helped
care for the family and assisted in managing the farm, for which slaves
supplied most of the labor. A community stalwart, Floyd also devoted
considerable time to the affairs of the Brookhaven church, occupied the
position of town trustee (1769–71), and moved up in the ranks of the
Suffolk County militia to a colonelcy in 1775.

The Revolutionary movement in New York was much less fervent
and started later than that in the other Colonies. The spirited
Massachusetts opposition to the Tea Act in the later half of 1773
and in 1774 created the first major ferment in New York. One of the
scattered focal points was eastern Long Island, where Floyd lived. He
and many of his neighbors attended meetings that extended sympathy and
aid to Massachusetts and protested the closing of the port of Boston
by the British. Despite such local outbursts, by the end of 1774 New
York was one of only two Colonies, Georgia being the other, in which
the patriots did not control the government. For this reason, the
Revolutionaries operated mainly on a county basis.

In 1774 Suffolk County sent Floyd to the Continental Congress. He
remained there until 1777, returned in the period 1779–83, and in
the interim served in the State senate and on the council of safety.
Yielding the floor of Congress to the other New York Delegates, he
labored without special distinction on a few committees. But worry
about the welfare of his family presented a major distraction. In
1776, when British forces occupied Long Island, his wife, son, and
two daughters fled northward across the sound and took refuge in
Middletown, Conn. His wife died there in 1781. To make matters worse,
the redcoats used his home at Mastic for a barracks, and Loyalists
plundered his lands and belongings. When he brought his children back
in 1783, he found the fields and timber stripped, the fences destroyed,
and the house damaged.

After the war, Floyd sat for several terms in the State senate,
attended the constitutional convention of 1801, supported the Federal
Constitution, won election in the years 1789–91 as a Representative in
the First Congress, served as presidential elector on four occasions,
and became a major general in the New York militia. His second wife,
whom he had married in 1784, bore him two daughters.

About this time, Floyd acquired an interest in western lands. The
year of his marriage, he purchased a tract in central New York at the
headwaters of the Mohawk River in the environs of present Rome; he
supplemented this 3 years later by obtaining a State grant of more than
10,000 acres in the area. He spent most of his summers visiting and
developing the acreage.

In 1803, in his late sixties, at a time when most men possess lesser
ambitions, Floyd deeded his Long Island home and farm to his son
Nicoll, and set out with the rest of his family to make a new life
on the frontier. During the first year, he built a home at present
Westernville, N.Y. There he succumbed, at the age of 86 in 1821, and
was buried in the Presbyterian Cemetery.




Benjamin Franklin

PENNSYLVANIA

[Illustration]

      Benjamin Franklin, elder statesman of the Revolution
      and oldest signer of both the Declaration and the
      Constitution, sat on the committee that drafted the
      Declaration, attended the Constitutional Convention, and
      distinguished himself as a diplomat. But he was a self-made
      and self-educated intellectual colossus whose interests
      far transcended politics. He won international renown
      as a printer-publisher, author, philosopher, scientist,
      inventor, and philanthropist. On both sides of the Atlantic
      he mingled with the social elite, whom he impressed with
      his sagacity, wit, and zest for life.


Franklin was born in 1706 at Boston. He was the tenth son of a soap-
and candle-maker. He received some formal education but was principally
self-taught. After serving an apprenticeship to his father between
the ages of 10 and 12, he went to work for his half-brother James, a
printer. In 1721 the latter founded the _New England Courant_, the
fourth newspaper in the Colonies. Benjamin secretly contributed to it
14 essays, his first published writings.

In 1723, because of dissension with his half-brother, Franklin moved to
Philadelphia. He spent only a year there, and then sailed to London for
two more years. Back in Philadelphia, he rose rapidly in the printing
industry. He published _The Pennsylvania Gazette_ (1730–48), which had
been founded by another man in 1728, but his most successful venture
was annual _Poor Richard’s Almanac_ (1733–58). It won a popularity in
the Colonies second only to the Bible, and its fame eventually spread
to Europe.

Meantime, in 1730 Franklin had taken a common-law wife, who was to
bear him a son and a daughter, as was another woman out of wedlock.
By 1748 he had achieved financial independence and gained recognition
for his philanthropy and the stimulus he provided to such worthwhile
civic causes as libraries, educational institutions, and hospitals.
Energetic and tireless, he also found time to pursue his deep interest
in science, as well as enter politics.

Franklin served as clerk (1736–51) and member (1751–64) of the colonial
legislature, and as deputy postmaster of Philadelphia (1737–53) and
deputy postmaster general of the Colonies (1753–74). In addition, he
represented Pennsylvania at the Albany Congress (1754), called to unite
the Colonies during the French and Indian War. The congress adopted his
“Plan of Union,” but the colonial assemblies rejected it because it
encroached on their powers.

During the years 1757–62 and 1764–75, Franklin resided in England,
originally in the capacity of agent for Pennsylvania and later for
Georgia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. During the latter period, which
coincided with the growth of colonial unrest, he underwent a political
metamorphosis. Until then a contented Englishman in outlook, primarily
concerned with Pennsylvania provincial politics, he distrusted popular
movements and saw little purpose to be served in carrying principle to
extremes. Until the issue of parliamentary taxation undermined the old
alliances, he led the conservative Quaker party in its attack on the
Anglican proprietary party and its Presbyterian frontier cohorts. His
purpose throughout the years at London in fact had been displacement of
the Penn family administration by royal authority—the conversion of the
province from a proprietary to a royal colony.

It was during the Stamp Act crisis that Franklin evolved from leader
of a shattered provincial party’s faction to celebrated spokesman at
London for American rights. Although as agent for Pennsylvania he
opposed by every conceivable persuasive means enactment of the bill
in 1765, he did not at first realize the depth of colonial hostility.
He regarded passage as unavoidable and preferred to submit to it
while actually working for its repeal. His nomination of a friend and
political ally as stamp distributor in Pennsylvania, coupled with
his apparent acceptance of the legislation, armed his proprietary
opponents with explosive issues. Their energetic exploitation of
them endangered his reputation at home until reliable information
was published demonstrating his unabated opposition. For a time, mob
resentment threatened his family and new home in Philadelphia until his
tradesmen supporters rallied. Subsequently, Franklin’s defense of the
American position in the House of Commons during the debates over the
Stamp Act’s repeal restored his prestige at home.

[Illustration: Benjamin Franklin being arraigned in 1774 by a committee
of Lords of Parliament for disloyalty to the Crown. The following day,
he was dismissed as deputy postmaster general of the Colonies.]

Franklin returned to Philadelphia in May 1775, and immediately
became a Member of the Continental Congress. Thirteen months later,
he served on the committee that drafted the Declaration. According
to a traditional anecdote, when he finished signing he declared,
“Gentlemen, we must now all hang together, or we shall most assuredly
all hang separately,” He subsequently contributed to the Government
in other important ways, and took over the duties of president of the
Pennsylvania constitutional convention.

But, within less than a year and a half after his return, the aged
statesman set sail once again for Europe, beginning a career as
diplomat that would occupy him for most of the rest of his life. In
1776–79, one of three commissioners, he directed the negotiations that
led to treaties of commerce and alliance with France, where the people
adulated him, but he and the other commissioners squabbled constantly.
While he was sole commissioner to France (1779–85), he and John Jay and
John Adams negotiated the Treaty of Paris (1783), which ended the War
for Independence.

Back in the United States, in 1785–87 Franklin became president of
the Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania. At the Constitutional
Convention (May 1787), though he did not approve of many aspects
of the finished document, he lent his prestige, soothed passions,
and compromised disputes. In his twilight years, working on his
_Autobiography_, he could look back on a fruitful life as the toast of
two continents. Active nearly to the last, in 1787 he was elected as
first president of the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition
of Slavery—a cause to which he had committed himself as early as
the 1730’s. His final public act was signing a memorial to Congress
recommending dissolution of the slavery system. Shortly thereafter, in
1790 at the age of 84, Franklin passed away in Philadelphia and was
buried in Christ Church Burial Ground.




Elbridge Gerry

MASSACHUSETTS

[Illustration]

      During an extended and controversial career, Elbridge Gerry
      experienced many triumphs and disappointments. A prosperous
      merchant who worked alongside the two Adamses and John
      Hancock in the cause of independence, he integrated
      personal interests with public service and translated them
      into wartime profits. In the course of his long tenure in
      the Continental Congress, he signed both the Declaration
      and Articles of Confederation. But throughout his years
      in office, which crested in the U.S. Vice-Presidency, his
      inconsistencies, ambivalence, and truculence stirred up
      animosity among his colleagues—though he usually managed to
      muster enough party and popular support to win reelection.


Gerry was born in 1744 at Marblehead, Mass., the third of 12 children.
His mother was the daughter of a Boston merchant; his father, a
wealthy and politically active merchant-shipper who had once been a
sea captain. Upon graduating from Harvard in 1762, Gerry joined his
father and two brothers in the family business, which consisted of
exporting dried codfish to Barbados and Spain. In 1772–74 he entered
the colonial legislature, where he came under the influence of Samuel
Adams, and took part in the Marblehead and Massachusetts committees
of correspondence. In June of the latter year, when Parliament closed
Boston Harbor and Marblehead became a major port of entry for supplies
donated by patriots throughout the Colonies to relieve the Bostonians,
he aided in the transshipment.

Between 1774 and 1776, Gerry attended the first and second provincial
congresses; served with Samuel Adams and John Hancock on the council
of safety, which prepared the colony for war; and, as chairman of the
committee of supply, a job for which his merchant background ideally
suited him, raised troops and dealt with military logistics. During the
night of April 18, 1775, he barely eluded capture by the British troops
marching on Lexington and Concord. Following the adjournment of a
meeting of the council of safety at an inn in Menotomy (Arlington), on
the road from Cambridge to Lexington, he had retired for the night but
responded to the alarm and fled.

Gerry entered the Continental Congress in 1776 and voted for
independence in July, but his absence at the formal ceremonies on
August 2 necessitated his signing the Declaration later in the year.
His congressional specialties were military and financial matters, in
both of which he demonstrated a duality of attitude that was to become
his political trademark. He earned the nickname “soldiers’ friend”
for his advocacy of better pay and equipment, yet he vacillated on
the issue of pensions. Despite his disapproval of standing armies, he
recommended long-term enlistments. Although mistrustful of military
officials, he befriended both George Washington and Thomas Conway, two
generals who were implacable enemies.

Until 1779 Gerry sat on and sometimes presided over the congressional
treasury board, which regulated Continental finances. An Army
procurement agent as well as a merchant-supplier, he utilized
information he obtained in Congress to benefit his lucrative business.
On the other hand, he denounced profiteering and personally adhered to
a fair-price schedule. In 1780, as wartime financial problems mounted,
however, the Delegates resolved to revise the schedule. Gerry’s
vehement objections led to a quarrel, and he stormed out of Congress.
Although nominally a Member, he did not reappear for 3 years. During
the interim, he engaged in trade and privateering and saw duty in the
lower house of the State legislature.

Back in Congress in 1783–85, Gerry numbered among those Representatives
who had possessed talent as Revolutionary agitators and wartime
leaders but who could not effectually cope with the painstaking
task of stabilizing the National Government. He was experienced and
conscientious, but created many enemies with his lack of humor,
suspicion of the motives of others, and obsessive fear of political and
military tyranny. In 1786, the year after leaving Congress, his fortune
well established, he retired from business, married, and took a seat
in the State legislature. The next year, he moved from Marblehead to
Cambridge and purchased a confiscated Loyalist estate, where he was to
reside for the rest of his life.

Gerry was one of the most vocal of the delegates at the Constitutional
Convention of 1787. He antagonized practically everyone by his
inconsistency and, according to a colleague, “objected to everything he
did not propose.” At first he advocated a strong Central Government,
but ultimately rejected and refused to sign the Constitution,
especially because it lacked a bill of rights and because he deemed
it a threat to republicanism. He led the drive against ratification
in Massachusetts. In 1789, when he changed his mind and announced his
intention to support the Constitution, he was elected to the First
Congress, where to the chagrin of the Antifederalists he championed
Federalist policies.

Gerry left Congress for the last time in 1793 and retired for 4 years.
During this time, he came to mistrust the aims of the Federalists,
particularly their attempts to nurture an alliance with Britain, and
sided with the pro-French Democratic-Republicans. In 1797 President
John Adams appointed him as the only non-Federalist member of a
three-man commission charged with negotiating a reconciliation with
France, on the brink of war with the United States. During the ensuing
XYZ affair (1797–98), Gerry tarnished his reputation. The French
foreign minister duped him into believing that his presence in France
would prevent war, and he lingered on long after the departure of the
other disgusted commissioners. Finally, the embarrassed Adams recalled
him, amid Federalist vituperation.

In 1800–03 Gerry, never very popular among the Massachusetts electorate
because of his aristocratic haughtiness, met defeat in four bids for
the Massachusetts governorship, but finally triumphed in 1810–12.
Near the end of his two terms, scarred by partisan controversy, the
Democratic-Republicans passed a devious redistricting measure to insure
their domination of the State senate. In response, the Federalists
heaped ridicule on Gerry and punningly coined the term “gerrymander” to
describe the salamander-like shape of one of the redistricted areas.

Despite his advanced age, frail health, and the threat of poverty
brought on by neglect of personal affairs, in 1813 Gerry accepted
the Vice-Presidency in James Madison’s Democratic-Republican
administration. In the fall of 1814, the 70-year-old politician was
stricken fatally while on the way to the Senate. He left his wife, who
was to live until 1849, the last surviving widow of a signer, as well
as three sons and four daughters. Gerry is buried in Congressional
Cemetery at Washington, D.C.




Button Gwinnett

GEORGIA

[Illustration]

      Tempestuousness and ill-fortune marked the destiny of
      uniquely named Button Gwinnett, whose forename is that
      of a branch of his mother’s family. The second signer
      to die, he met a tragic end in a duel while only in his
      forties. The only highlight of his brief tour in the
      Continental Congress was signing the Declaration. Even
      in Georgia, where he rose to the acting governorship,
      controversy and failure usually dogged him. Financial
      misfortunes were continual distractions, and he found that
      his paltry rewards as a merchant and planter matched his
      disappointments in politics.


Gwinnett was likely born in 1735, at the village of Down Hatherly,
Gloucestershire, England. The second male in a family numbering at
least seven, he was the son of an Anglican vicar of Welsh ancestry
and a mother with English ties. He probably learned trade and finance
from an uncle, a Bristol merchant, and in 1757 moved to Wolverhampton,
Staffordshire. He married a grocer’s daughter, who was to bear three
girls, and for a time he joined her father in a partnership. In 1759,
however, Gwinnett entered the export shipping business and built up an
extensive trade with the American Colonies, possibly sometimes visiting
them himself.

The date of Gwinnett’s emigration to Savannah, Ga., is not known but
in 1765 he purchased a store there. Later that same year, for some
reason, he sold it and abruptly switched vocation. Apparently dazzled
by visions of a planter’s life on a great estate but undeterred by
his lack of capital, experience, and training, he borrowed £3,000
and purchased large St. Catherine’s Island. It was located off the
Georgia coast not far from the busy mainland port of Sunbury, a rival
of Savannah. At this time, he probably erected a home on the island.
Before long, though already deep in debt, he also purchased some
coastal lands on credit and received grants of others from the colony;
and bought large numbers of slaves to work his holdings. Poachers
aggravated his problems by raiding the island’s livestock.

[Illustration: Fanciful depiction of Button Gwinnett’s duel with Gen.
Lachlan McIntosh in 1777 that resulted in the former’s death.]

Gwinnett’s land, slaves, and other possessions were soon gobbled up by
creditors. Finally, in 1773, they took over the island, but allowed
Gwinnett to maintain his home there. He did so for the rest of his
life. During the war, however, the approach of British vessels, who
replenished their food supplies from the livestock on the exposed
island, sometimes forced him and his family to scurry over in their
boat to Sunbury for temporary refuge.

Meantime, Gwinnett had long since entered politics. In 1768–69 he had
been designated as one of His Majesty’s justices of the peace and as
a local pilotage commissioner. In the years 1769–71 the voters of St.
John’s Parish elected him to the colonial assembly at Savannah, but he
attended only spasmodically because of his financial woes. When they
worsened, he left public office for 5 years.

Gwinnett returned on the national level. Unlike the other two Georgia
signers, Lyman Hall and George Walton, he belatedly joined the patriot
side—apparently held back for some time by his English birth and close
family connections in England. His friend Hall, a Sunbury resident and
fellow member of the Midway Congregational Church, swung him over,
probably beginning in the summer of 1775. The next February, the
provincial congress named Gwinnett to the Continental Congress, though
he did not arrive in Philadelphia until May. He attended for only about
10 weeks. Right after he signed the Declaration on August 2, he trekked
back to Georgia, where he hoped but failed to win at least an Army
colonelcy in one of the units the State was forming.

In October Gwinnett was reelected to the Continental Congress, but
chose not to attend. Instead, during the next 5 months, he played a
key role in drafting the State’s first constitution, in the course of
which he helped thwart a proposed union of South Carolina and Georgia.
Upon the death of the Governor, or president of the Executive Council,
in March 1777 the council commissioned Gwinnett as Acting Governor for
2 months, but he failed to achieve reelection. Before leaving office,
he had clashed with controversial Gen. Lachlan McIntosh, an old rival.
The result was a pistol duel in May just outside Savannah. Both men
suffered wounds, but Gwinnett died a few days later of a gangrenous
infection in his leg. Colonial Park Cemetery in Savannah contains a
grave reputed to be his.




Lyman Hall

GEORGIA

[Illustration]

      Lyman Hall was one of the four signers originally trained
      as ministers. He eventually found his pulpit in politics,
      though he had to preach vigorously to inspire the
      “congregation” of Georgia. He enthusiastically sparked the
      slow-developing independence movement there with George
      Walton and recruited Button Gwinnett, the third Georgia
      signer. Somehow Hall also managed to pursue careers as
      doctor, planter, and Governor.


A native of Wallingford, Conn., Hall was born in 1724. He graduated
from Yale College in 1747 at the age of 23, returned home, and heeded a
family call to the Congregational ministry. An uncle, Rev. Samuel Hall,
trained him in theology. In 1749 he began preaching in Bridgeport and
adjacent towns. Young and immature, he probably entrapped himself in
the middle of a liberal-conservative schism and in some way alienated
his congregation, but repentance brought quick reinstatement from
dismissal in 1751, and for a couple of years he temporarily filled
vacant pulpits.

During this period, in 1752, Hall married, but his wife lived only
a year; about 2 years later he remarried, a union that was to
bring forth a son. Meantime, Hall had become disillusioned by his
ministerial experiences. He studied medicine with a local doctor,
partially supporting himself by teaching. When his medical training was
completed, he moved back to Wallingford and hung out his shingle.

In 1757 the 33-year-old Hall, seeking brighter fields, emigrated to
Dorchester, S.C., a settlement of New England Puritans not far from
Charleston. Within a few months, he joined some of the residents in
a relocation that had been underway since 1752. They were pushing
southward to Georgia’s coastal Midway District, in St. John’s Parish
(present Liberty County). This area provided more land and a healthier
climate.

In 1758 the colonists finished their emigration and founded Sunbury. It
evolved into the thriving seaport-hub of the surrounding slave-based,
rice-indigo economy. Like many other planters, Hall maintained a home
there, where it was healthier than inland, as well as at Hall’s Knoll,
the plantation just north of the present town of Midway that he had
purchased shortly after arriving in the area. Because its plantations
skirted malarial swamps, Hall kept busy providing medical treatment, as
well as managing his estate.

St. John’s Parish became the wealthiest in Georgia. This was not its
only uniqueness, for the populace was steeped in the New England
tradition of independence. When the trouble with Britain erupted in the
mid-1760’s the parish, guided by Hall, stood apart in its opposition
from virtually all the rest of the colony except for another cluster of
Revolutionaries at Savannah led by George Walton and others. Georgia,
which was to be the last of the Colonies to join the Continental
Association, was the youngest, most remote, and most sparsely settled.
Also the poorest, it felt less the impact of British economic
restrictions. The Loyalist ruling aristocracy of Georgia, regarding the
tiny band of Revolutionaries with contempt, resisted their every move.

Hall was appalled by the poor representation of the parishes as a
whole and the indecisiveness of Revolutionary conventions he attended
at Savannah in the summer of 1774 and the next January, especially
by their failure to send Delegates to the Continental Congress. He
dejectedly returned to St. John’s Parish. It was ready to secede from
the colony, and proposed an alliance to South Carolina, which refused.
Not to be denied, in March 1775 the parish held its own convention and
sent Hall as its own “delegate” to the Continental Congress.

Two months later, Congress admitted Hall as a nonvoting member. In
July, Georgia, finally coming into the fold, sanctioned Hall’s presence
in Congress and appointed four other Delegates. Hall served until 1780.
Two years earlier, he had moved his family somewhere to the north just
before British troops ravaged and conquered the Georgia coast. In the
process, they destroyed Hall’s Knoll and Hall’s Sunbury residence and
confiscated his property.

When the British evacuated Savannah in 1782, Hall settled there and
resumed his medical practice to mend his fortune. The next January,
St. John’s Parish, where he had maintained ties, elected him to the
State legislature. That body, in turn, awarded him the governorship
(1783–84). His reconstruction-oriented administration, though marred by
his purchase of and speculation in lands confiscated from Loyalists,
rehabilitated the wartorn State and laid foundations for future growth.

In Hall’s final years he acted for a time as a judge of the inferior
court of Chatham County and as a trustee of a proposed State university
(to be called first Franklin College and later the University of
Georgia). But his duties as executor of Button Gwinnett’s tangled
estate required years of legal wrangling. In 1785 he sold his Hall’s
Knoll land. Five years later, he moved from Savannah to Burke County
and purchased Shell Bluff Plantation, on the Savannah River about 25
miles below Augusta. A few months hence he died and was buried there.
His remains are now interred at the Signers’ Monument in Augusta.




John Hancock

MASSACHUSETTS

[Illustration]

      One of the fathers of U.S. independence, John Hancock
      helped spearhead the pivotal revolt in Massachusetts,
      presided as President of Congress during the voting for
      independence and adoption of the Declaration, and boldly
      penned the first signature on the document. Subsequently
      he served as the first and longtime Governor of his
      Commonwealth. Despite all these achievements and the
      persistent loyalty of his constituents, whom he wooed
      with lavish expenditures for public projects, his vanity,
      ostentation, and regal way of life irked many of his
      professional associates.


Hancock, born in 1737 at Braintree (present Quincy), Mass., lost
his father, a Congregational pastor, at the age of 7. He spent the
next 6 years with his grandparents at Lexington before joining his
guardian, Thomas Hancock, a childless uncle who was one of the richest
merchant-shippers in Boston. After studying at Boston Latin School
and graduating from Harvard College in 1754, John began working as
a clerk in his uncle’s business and learned it rapidly. In 1760–61,
while visiting London to observe the English side of the business, he
attended the funeral of George II and the coronation of George III,
who apparently granted him an audience. In 1763 he became a partner of
his uncle, who died the next year and willed him the firm, a fortune
that was probably the greatest in New England, and a luxurious house on
Beacon Street.

Hancock allied with other merchants in protesting the Stamp Act (1765),
and the next year inaugurated a long legislative career. But he did not
strongly identify with the patriots until 2 years later. At that time,
British customs officials, their courage bolstered by the arrival of a
warship in Boston Harbor, charged him with smuggling and seized one of
his ships. During the ensuing riots, the terrified customs officials
fled to an island in the harbor. A few months later, the first major
contingent of British troops sailed into port and created a tense
situation that resulted in the Boston Massacre (1770). John Adams ably
defended Hancock in court until the British dropped the smuggling
charge, but the episode made him a hero throughout the Colonies.

Other factors tied Hancock to the patriots. Samuel and John Adams,
shrewdly perceiving the advantages of such a rich and well-known
affiliate, welcomed him into their ranks, encouraged his idolatry by
the populace, and pushed him upward in the Revolutionary hierarchy.
When the first provincial congress met at Salem and Concord in 1774,
he acted as its president as well as chairman of the vital council of
safety. The second provincial congress, convening the next year at
Cambridge and Concord, elected him to the Continental Congress.

On April 18, only 3 days after the provincial congress adjourned,
British troops marched from Boston to seize rebel stores at Concord.
Warned of their approach during the night by Paul Revere, Hancock and
Samuel Adams, who were visiting at nearby Lexington, escaped. But the
British-American clashes at Lexington and Concord marked the outbreak
of war. The two men avoided Boston and hid at various places for 2
weeks before proceeding to Philadelphia. Later that summer, Hancock
married, siring a daughter who died in infancy and a son, John George
Washington Hancock, who lived but 9 years.

From 1775 until 1777 Hancock presided over the Continental Congress.
The very first year, his egotism, which regularly aroused the antipathy
of many Members, created personal embitterment as well. Blind to his
own limitations, particularly his lack of military experience, he
unrealistically entertained the hope that he, instead of Washington,
would be appointed as commander in chief of the Continental Army.
Hancock also provoked ill will among his fellow New Englanders,
especially Samuel Adams, by courting moderates such as John Dickinson
and Benjamin Harrison. Hancock believed that Samuel Adams was
responsible in 1777 for blocking a congressional vote of thanks for his
services and never forgave him.

Only Hancock and Charles Thomson, the President and Secretary of
Congress, signed the broadside copy of the Declaration, printed the
night of its adoption, July 4, 1776, and disseminated to the public the
following day. At the formal signing of the parchment copy on August 2,
tradition holds that Hancock wrote his name in large letters so that
the King would not need spectacles to recognize him as a “traitor.”
After resigning as presiding officer in 1777, he remained a Member
of Congress until 1780, though he spent much of his time in Boston
and for the rest of his life solidified his political position in
Massachusetts. In 1778, as a major general in the militia, he commanded
an expedition that failed to recapture Newport, R.I., from the
British. He made a more tangible contribution to the war by accepting
Continental currency from his debtors, even though his fortune had
already been dented by wartime-induced reverses.

In 1780, the same year Hancock gave up his seat in Congress and
attended his Commonwealth’s constitutional convention, he was
overwhelmingly elected as first Governor (1780–85). He won reelection
in 1787–93. In the interim (1785–86), he once again sat in Congress.
In 1788 he chaired the Massachusetts convention that ratified the U.S.
Constitution, which he favored.

While still Governor, in 1793 at the age of 56, Hancock died at Boston.
His funeral, one of the most impressive ever held in New England,
culminated in burial at Old Granary Burying Ground.




Benjamin Harrison

VIRGINIA

[Illustration]

      Benjamin Harrison, the most conservative of the Virginia
      signers except for Carter Braxton, was a member of one of
      the most prominent planter families in the South and was
      the fifth in a line of active politicians bearing the same
      name. Because of his rotundity, joviality, love of good
      foods and wines, and fondness for luxury, he acquired the
      nickname “Falstaff of Congress.” His son, William Henry,
      and his great-grandson, Benjamin, served as the ninth and
      23d Presidents of the United States.


Harrison was born in 1726 at his father’s estate, Berkeley, in Charles
City County, Va. He matriculated at the College of William and Mary,
but left before graduating in 1745 upon the death of his father in
order to assume management of the family plantation. Shortly thereafter
he married; seven of his children were to survive infancy. In time, his
landholdings grew to include eight plantations and other properties,
and he also expanded into shipping and shipbuilding. Following the
precedent set by his forebears, about 1749 he gained admission to the
House of Burgesses. He sat there, frequently as speaker, until 1774,
when the Royal Governor disbanded the body.

Harrison’s conservatism manifested itself early in the Revolutionary
movement. In 1764 the burgesses, learning about the Stamp Act,
impending in Parliament, named a committee to draw up a protest. As
one of the committeemen, Harrison helped pen the document. The very
next year, however, when the act went into effect, he refused to
endorse Patrick Henry’s resolutions urging civil disobedience as a
countermeasure. Forced to take a stand as the rift with the Crown
widened, Harrison cast his lot with the patriots. Between 1773 and
1776, he shared in the tasks of the Revolutionary conventions, the
committee of correspondence, and the provincial congresses.

Meantime, in 1774, Harrison had been appointed to the First
Continental Congress. Although usually silent on the floor, he made
valuable contributions on the foreign affairs, marine, military,
and financial committees. As chairman of the committee of the whole
(1776–77), he chaired the deliberations leading up to the adoption
of the Declaration and the early debates on the proposed Articles of
Confederation.

In 1777, the same year Harrison withdrew from Congress, he entered
the lower house of the Virginia legislature, where he presided as
speaker in the years 1778–81. His three terms as Governor (1781–84)
reflected the ascendancy in Virginia of the conservatives, who included
in addition to Harrison and Braxton such former extremists as Patrick
Henry and Richard Henry Lee. Succeeded by Henry, Harrison rejoined the
legislature (1784–91), holding the speakership part of the time. In
1788 at the Virginia ratifying convention he objected to the Federal
Constitution because it lacked a bill of rights. Once ratification had
occurred, however, he supported the new Government. Three years later,
Harrison died in his mid-sixties at Berkeley and was buried there in
the family cemetery.




John Hart

NEW JERSEY

[Illustration]

      Signing the Declaration represented John Hart’s one
      significant act during an ephemeral tour in the Continental
      Congress, his only role in national politics. Yet, like
      most of the signers, he was dominant in community and
      State affairs. And he and his family directly experienced
      the tragedy of the war. Unfortunately, he died before the
      attainment of victory.

The year after Hart’s birth in 1711 at Stonington, Conn., his parents
emigrated to New Jersey and settled on a farm in the Hopewell vicinity.
Hart was to live there and till the soil all his life. In 1740 he
married and began raising a family of 13. In time, while gaining the
sobriquet “Honest John,” he acquired considerable property, including
grist, saw, and fulling mills, and emerged as a civic leader. From the
1750’s until the outbreak of the War for Independence in 1775, despite
a paucity of education, he worked his way up the political ladder in
Hunterdon County and the State. He held the offices of justice of the
peace, county judge, colonial legislator (1761–71), and judge of the
New Jersey court of common pleas.

In the legislature’s dispute with the Royal Governor, Hart opposed
parliamentary taxation and the stationing of British troops in the
colony. During the years 1774–76, he attended the New Jersey provincial
congresses, where he achieved the vice-presidency, and won appointment
to the council of safety and the committee of correspondence. In June
1776 he and four other Delegates were chosen to replace the incumbent
conservatives in the Continental Congress. The new delegation arrived
at Philadelphia just a few days before the votes for independence on
July 1 and 2 and cast affirmative ballots.

In August 1776, just after Hart signed the Declaration, he departed
to accept the speakership in the lower house of the New Jersey
legislature. That winter, during the British invasion of the province,
the redcoats wreaked havoc on his farm and mills and drove him into
hiding among the hills surrounding the Sourland Mountains. When he
ended his exile in the wake of the American victories at Princeton and
Trenton, he discovered that his wife, ill at the time of the attack,
had died and his family scattered. In 1777–78 he sat again on the
council of safety, but failing health forced his retirement. He died
the next year, at the age of 69, on his Hopewell farm. He is buried in
the yard of the First Baptist Church at Hopewell.




Joseph Hewes

NORTH CAROLINA

[Illustration]

      Even in an age and land of such unlimited opportunities
      as 18th-century America, few men attained such success
      as merchant Joseph Hewes. He was rarely thwarted in his
      ambitions and enjoyed wealth and social prestige, reflected
      in political conservatism.


Born in 1730 at Maybury Hill, an estate on the outskirts of Princeton,
N.J., Hewes was the son of a pious and well-to-do Quaker farmer. He
received a strict religious upbringing, and studied at a local school.
After learning trade from a Philadelphia merchant, he entered business
for himself. About 1760, anxious to expand his modest fortune, he moved
to the thriving seaport town of Edenton, N.C. There, where he was to
reside for the rest of his life, he founded a profitable mercantile and
shipping firm and gained prominence. Only one fateful event marred his
life. A few days before his intended wedding date, his fiancée suddenly
died. Hewes remained a bachelor for the rest of his life.

As a member of the North Carolina assembly (1766–75), the committee
of correspondence (1773), and the provincial assemblies (1774–75),
Hewes helped the Whigs overthrow the royal government. Elected
to the Continental Congress in 1774, he vigorously supported
nonimportation measures even though it meant personal financial
loss. By the time of the outbreak of the War for Independence, the
next year, anathema to the pacifistic Quakers, he had rejected the
faith altogether—culminating a trend that had been evolving because
of his love of dancing and other social pleasures, as well as his
Revolutionary activities.

[Illustration: Joseph Hewes sponsored the American career of his friend
John Paul Jones, who became the most famous naval officer of the
Revolution.]

Hewes was one of those who originally opposed separation from Great
Britain. Thus it was a disagreeable task for him, in May 1776, to
present the Halifax Resolves to the Continental Congress. Enacted the
month before by the provincial assembly, they instructed the North
Carolina Delegates to vote for independence should it be proposed.
Hewes, who considered the resolves premature, ignored his State’s
commitment and at first opposed Richard Henry Lee’s June 7 independence
resolution. According to John Adams, however, at one point during
debate a transformation came over Hewes. “He started suddenly upright,”
reported Adams, “and lifting up both his hands to Heaven, as if he had
been in a trance, cried out, ‘It is done! and I will abide by it.’”

One episode involving Hewes illustrates the recurring problem of
sectional rivalries among the Delegates. As key members of the marine
committee, Hewes and John Adams were instrumental in establishing the
Continental Navy. When the time came to appoint the Nation’s first
naval captains, the two men clashed. For one of the positions, Hewes
nominated his friend John Paul Jones, an experienced seaman who had
recently emigrated to Virginia from Scotland. Adams, maintaining that
all the captaincies should be filled by New Englanders, stubbornly
protested. New England had yielded to the South in the selection of a
commander in chief of the Continental Army and Adams had fostered the
selection of the able Virginian George Washington, so he was not now
about to make a concession on the Navy. Hewes, sensing the futility
of argument, reluctantly submitted. Jones, who was to become the most
honored naval hero of the Revolution, received only a lieutenant’s
commission.

In 1777 Hewes lost his bid for reelection to Congress, one of the few
failures in his life, and in 1778–79 he found solace in the State
legislature. In the latter year, despite health problems, he accepted
reelection to the Continental Congress. A few months after arriving
back in Philadelphia and not long before his 50th birthday, overworked
and fatigued, he died. His grave is in Christ Church Burial Ground
there.




Thomas Heyward, Jr.

SOUTH CAROLINA

[Illustration]

      An aristocratic planter, lawyer, and jurist, Thomas
      Heyward, Jr., sat in the State legislature and the
      Continental Congress and commanded a militia battalion.
      He was one of three South Carolina signers captured and
      imprisoned by the British.


The eldest son of one of the wealthiest planters in South Carolina,
Heyward was born in 1746 at Old House Plantation, in St. Helena’s
Parish (later St. Luke’s Parish and present Jasper County) near the
Georgia border about 25 miles northeast of Savannah. In 1771, following
5 years of study in London, he began practicing law. The next year,
his parish sent him to the colonial legislature (1772–75), which was
feuding with the Royal Governor over parliamentary taxation. During
that period, in 1773, he married and settled down at White Hall
Plantation, only a couple of miles from the residence of his father.

While a legislator, Heyward apparently joined the Revolutionaries, for
in the summer of 1774 he attended a provincial convention that chose
Delegates to the Continental Congress. During 1775–76 he was active in
the first and second provincial congresses and on the council of safety
and the committee that drafted a State constitution. In the Continental
Congress (1776–78), he signed the Articles of Confederation as well as
the Declaration. At the end of his tour, he journeyed to Charleston and
took up residence in the townhouse he had inherited from his father the
year before. He became a circuit court judge; represented Charleston in
the State legislature, which convened in the city; and held a militia
captaincy.

In 1779 Heyward was wounded during Brig. Gen. William Moultrie’s
repulse of a British attack on Port Royal Island, along the South
Carolina coast near Heyward’s home. The following year, the British
plundered White Hall and carried off all the slaves. When they took
Charleston, they captured Heyward, who was helping defend the city. He
was imprisoned at St. Augustine, Fla., until July 1781. Shortly before
his release, he celebrated Independence Day by setting patriotic verses
to the British national anthem. “God save the King” became “God save
the thirteen States,” a rendition that soon echoed from New Hampshire
to Georgia.

From 1782 until 1789 Heyward resumed his position of circuit court
judge, concurrently serving two terms in the State legislature
(1782–84). In 1785 he helped found and became the first president of
the Agricultural Society of South Carolina. The following year, his
wife passed away and he remarried; apparently only one child from his
two marriages reached maturity. He devoted most of his remaining days,
except for attendance in 1790 at the State constitutional convention,
to managing his plantation; he sold his Charleston townhouse in 1794.
The last to survive among the South Carolina signers, he died in 1809
at the age of 62 and was interred in the family cemetery at Old House
Plantation.




William Hooper

NORTH CAROLINA

[Illustration]

      The ambivalence of William Hooper’s convictions prevented
      him from ever carving a solid niche in the field of
      politics. His youthful choice of occupation and political
      affiliation brought estrangement from his family and
      emigration from Massachusetts to far-off North Carolina.
      Motivated sometimes by self-interest and sometimes by
      intense patriotism, he flourished in law and politics.
      He originally supported the royal government, but became
      a Whig leader during the Revolution. After the war, his
      aristocratic leanings caused him to lose favor among the
      electorate.


Hooper was born in Boston, Mass., in 1742, the first child of William
Hooper, a Scotch immigrant and Congregationalist clergyman who 5 years
later was to transfer to the Anglican Church. Groomed for the ministry
in his youth, Hooper undertook 7 years of preparatory education at
Boston Latin School. This qualified him in 1757 to enter Harvard
College in the sophomore class. He graduated 3 years later, but much
to the chagrin of his father rejected the ministry as a profession.
The next year, he further alienated his Loyalist father and isolated
himself from his family by taking up the study of law under James Otis,
a brilliant but radical lawyer.

Partly to ameliorate family strife and partly to better his legal
opportunities, about 1764 Hooper sought his fortune at Wilmington, N.C.
Three years later, he married the daughter of an early settler, by whom
he was to have two sons and a daughter. He resided either in Wilmington
or at his nearby estate, Finian, about 8 miles away on Masonboro Sound,
rode the circuit from court to court, and built up a clientele among
the wealthy planters of the lower Cape Fear region. Ambitious, he
harbored political aspirations and by 1770–71 had obtained the position
of deputy attorney general of North Carolina.

In this capacity, protecting his own economic interests and political
goals, Hooper sided with Royal Governor William Tryon in a conflict
between the government and a group of North Carolina frontiersmen
known as the Regulators. They were rebelling against governmental
corruption and oppression and high legal and other fees. Hooper urged
the use of force to quell the rebellion, and in 1771 accompanied the
government forces that defeated the rebels in the Battle of Alamance.

Within a few years, Hooper’s allegiance to the royal government waned.
At the time of his election to the colonial assembly (1773–75), the
act providing for the colony’s court system was about to expire. The
assembly attempted to attach to the new court act a clause by which the
colony could confiscate American property owned by foreign debtors,
including inhabitants of Great Britain. When the Royal Governor blocked
the bill, a 4-year struggle for control of the colony ensued. Hooper,
though deprived of a source of income as a lawyer and dependent upon
his wife’s small fortune for subsistence, championed the cause of the
assembly.

Hooper rose to a position of leadership among the Whigs, though
he disapproved of extremism. In a letter dated April 1774 to his
friend James Iredell, he prophesized the Colonies’ break with Great
Britain—the earliest known prediction of independence, which won for
Hooper the epithet “Prophet of Independence.” In the summer, after
the Royal Governor had dissolved the colonial assembly, he helped
organize and presided over an extralegal conference at Wilmington. It
voted to convene a provincial assembly, which met in August at New
Bern and elected Delegates, one of whom was Hooper, to the Continental
Congress. Later that same year, he became a member of the committee of
correspondence.

During the period 1774–77, Hooper divided his time between Congress,
where he gained a reputation as an orator, and the North Carolina
provincial assembly, in which he labored to set up a State government.
In 1777, however, the financial difficulties with his law practice and
a desire to be near his family prompted him to resign from Congress
and return to Wilmington. He was immediately elected to the State
legislature and served there almost continuously until 1786.

In 1780 the British invaded North Carolina. Hooper moved his family
from Finian into Wilmington for safety, but in January 1781, while he
was away on business, the city fell to the enemy. Separated from his
loved ones for more than 10 months and often destitute, he depended
upon friends in Edenton and vicinity for shelter and food. On one
occasion, taken violently ill with malaria, he was nursed back to
health by Iredell’s wife. Upon the British evacuation of the Wilmington
area, in November, Hooper returned to find most of his property,
including Finian, in ruins. Shortly thereafter he rejoined his wife and
children, who had fled to Hillsborough, which he made his home for the
rest of his life.

During the aftermath of the Revolution, Hooper, despite continuing
political aspirations, lost favor with the public. Unable to adjust
to the rise of republicanism in the State, he adopted a conservative
stance. His aristocratic pretensions, forgiving attitude toward
Loyalists, and lack of faith in the common people undermined his
popularity. In 1788 he strenuously campaigned for State ratification of
the Federal Constitution, which occurred early the next year. By this
time, he was in ill health and despondent, but lingered on for nearly 2
years. He died in 1790 in his late forties. His remains, moved from the
Hillsborough town cemetery in 1894, rest today at Guilford Courthouse
National Military Park near Greensboro.




Stephen Hopkins

RHODE ISLAND

[Illustration]

      This signer, the second oldest next to Benjamin Franklin,
      is noted for his tremulous signature. Aged 69 and afflicted
      with palsy, according to tradition he declared, “My hand
      trembles, but my heart does not!” Before, during, and after
      a comparatively brief stretch of congressional service, he
      occupied Rhode Island’s highest offices and fostered the
      cultural and economic growth of Providence.


Hopkins attained success purely by his own efforts. Born in 1707 at
Providence and equipped with but a modicum of basic education, he grew
up in the adjacent agricultural community of Scituate, earned his
living as a farmer and surveyor, and married at the age of 19. Five
years later, in 1731, when Scituate Township separated from Providence,
he plunged into politics. During the next decade, he held the following
elective or appointive offices: moderator of the first town meeting,
town clerk, president of the town council, justice of the peace,
justice and clerk of the Providence County court of common pleas,
legislator, and speaker of the house.

In 1742, about 2 years after he and his brother Esek founded a
mercantile-shipping firm, Stephen moved back to Providence. For the
next three decades, he built up his business and would probably have
acquired a fortune had he not at the same time supported a variety of
civic enterprises and broadened his political activities. He continued
in the legislature, served as assistant and chief justice of the
Superior Court and ten-time Governor, and represented Rhode Island
at various intercolonial meetings. At the Albany Congress (1754), he
cultivated a friendship with Franklin and assisted him in framing
a plan of colonial union that the congress passed but the Colonies
rejected. The next year, 2 years after the demise of his first wife,
who had given birth to five sons and two daughters, he remarried.

About this time, Hopkins took over leadership of the colony’s radical
faction, supported by Providence merchants. For more than a decade,
it bitterly fought for political supremacy in Rhode Island with a
conservative group in Newport, led by Samuel Ward, a political enemy of
Hopkins.

Hopkins was a man of broad interests, including humanitarianism,
education, and science, and exerted his talents in many fields. About
1754 he helped set up a public subscription library in Providence.
He acted as first chancellor of Rhode Island College (later Brown
University), founded in 1764 at Warren, and 6 years later was
instrumental in relocating it to Providence. He also held membership
in the Philosophical Society of Newport. Strongly opposing slavery,
in 1774 he authored a bill enacted by the Rhode Island legislature
that prohibited the importation of slaves into the colony—one of the
earliest antislavery laws in the United States.

Long before, Hopkins had sided with the Revolutionaries. In 1762 he
helped found the influential _Providence Gazette and Country Journal_.
Two years later, he contributed to it an article entitled “The Rights
of the Colonies Examined,” which criticized parliamentary taxation and
recommended colonial home rule. Issued as a pamphlet the next year,
it circulated widely throughout the Colonies and Great Britain and
established Hopkins as one of the earliest of the patriot leaders. He
also sat on the Rhode Island committee of correspondence and carried on
with his duties in the legislature and Superior Court while a Member of
the Continental Congress (1774–76). He served on the committees that
prepared the Articles of Confederation and that created the Continental
Navy and appointed Esek Hopkins as its commander in chief. Ill health
compelled Stephen to retire in September 1776, a month after he signed
the Declaration.

Hopkins declined subsequent reelections to Congress, but sat in the
State legislature for a time and took part in several New England
political conventions. He withdrew from public service about 1780 and
died 5 years later in Providence at the age of 78. He was interred in
the North Burial Ground.




Francis Hopkinson

NEW JERSEY

[Illustration]

      The literary and artistic talents of this versatile signer
      brought him more acclaim than his political and legal
      activities. Although a lawyer and judge by profession, he
      achieved more eminence as an essayist, poet, artist, and
      musician. His verse and satirical essays rank among the
      better literary efforts of the Revolutionary and early
      Federal periods, and he was one of America’s first native
      composers. His eldest son, Joseph (1770–1842), wrote “Hail
      Columbia” and won distinction as a lawyer, jurist, U.S.
      Congressman, and patron of the arts.

Hopkinson was born at Philadelphia in 1737, the eldest of eight
children. His father, who died when he was 14, was a prominent
lawyer-jurist, politician, and civic leader. Upon graduation from the
College of Philadelphia (later part of the University of Pennsylvania)
in 1757, young Hopkinson studied law under Benjamin Chew, attorney
general of the province, and 4 years later joined the bar. In 1763
he obtained the position of customs collector at Salem, N.J. Three
years hence, after failing in business, he sailed to England to seek
an appointment as colonial customs collector through the influence of
friends and relatives. During his yearlong stay, though unsuccessful
in his vocational quest, he visited Benjamin Franklin, Lord North, and
other prominent people, and may have studied under artist Benjamin West.

Back in Philadelphia, Hopkinson operated a store and married in 1768.
Four years later he became the customs collector at New Castle, Del.
About 1774 he took up residence at the home of his father-in-law
in Bordentown, N.J., practiced law, and began a 2-year tour in the
legislature. As a Member of the Continental Congress for only a few
months in 1776, he relieved his ennui by drawing caricatures of
his colleagues. His later offices included: chairman (1777–78) of
Philadelphia’s Continental Navy Board, treasurer of loans (1778–81),
judge of the admiralty court of Pennsylvania (1779), and Federal
circuit judge for the eastern district of the State (1789–91).

During his busy public career, the ambitious Hopkinson managed to
leave his stamp on the fields of music, art, and literature. His “My
Days Have Been So Wondrous Free” (1759) probably represents the first
American composition of secular music; his “Temple of Minerva” (1781),
the first American attempt at opera. In art, he was noted particularly
for his crayon portraits and his work on heraldic emblems. But his
literary attainments surpassed all his others.

Between 1757 and 1773, Hopkinson contributed numerous poems and essays,
many of them in a humorous and satirical vein, to various periodicals.
The following year, he began advancing the patriot cause. A profusion
of widely read and influential pamphlets, essays, and letters, often
presented in an allegorical style, derided and ridiculed the British
and the Loyalists, outlined colonial grievances, and encouraged the
colonists. _The Prophecy_, written in 1776 before the adoption of the
Declaration of Independence, predicted that event. After the war,
Hopkinson continued to treat political and social themes, and became
one of the best known writers in the United States.

While a Federal circuit judge, Hopkinson died in Philadelphia at
the age of 53. He was laid to rest in Christ Church Burial Ground.
Surviving him were his widow and five children.




Samuel Huntington

CONNECTICUT

[Illustration]

      Several of the signers were self-made men. One of the most
      successful of them was Samuel Huntington. Reared amid
      humble surroundings, he educated himself in the law and,
      despite recurring health problems, climbed to the pinnacles
      of the State and National Governments.


Born into a large family in 1731 at Windham (present Scotland), Conn.,
Huntington grew up on a farm, received a limited education, and at the
age of 16 began work as a cooper. But his ambition soon pushed him
onward. He independently studied borrowed legal tomes, won admittance
to the bar about 1758, and set up practice. Two years later, he moved
to nearby Norwich. The next year, he married; he and his wife, who were
to be childless, later adopted three children. As time went on, he
prospered in the law and became a community leader.

In 1764 Huntington began his public career, in the Connecticut
legislature. The next year, he was appointed as King’s Attorney of the
colony and won election as justice of the peace for New London County.
He occupied these positions for practically the entire decade or so
prior to the outbreak of the War for Independence, in 1775. Meantime,
2 years earlier, the colonial legislature had named him as a judge of
the Connecticut Superior Court, an appointment renewed annually for a
decade.

In 1774 Huntington, registering his growing sympathy for the Colonies
in their struggle against the Crown, resigned as King’s Attorney and
joined the front ranks of the Revolutionaries. The next year, he
became a member of the upper house of the legislature (1775–84), and
entered national politics when he became a Delegate to the Continental
Congress. His committee assignments included those dealing with
Indian affairs, ordnance supply, and marine matters. In the fall of
1776, fatigue and health worries caused him to return to Connecticut.
Between then and 1783, plagued with spells of illness, he attended
congressional sessions intermittently (1778, 1779–81, 1783), often
returning home to recuperate. Despite this burden, he assumed the heavy
responsibilities of President of Congress (1779–81), presiding on March
1, 1781, when the Articles of Confederation were adopted.

Huntington’s well-earned “retirement” when he returned to Connecticut
in 1783, after 8 years of service to the Nation, turned out to involve
12 years of vigorous activity—despite his waning health. Even while he
had been in Congress, he had served his State in various other ways,
and all his legislative and other positions had been held open for him.
A succession of appointive and elective offices followed: chief justice
of the Superior Court (1784), Lieutenant Governor (1785), and Governor
(1786–96). In the latter capacity, he led the battle for Connecticut’s
ratification of the Federal Constitution and improved the educational
system. As one of Connecticut’s seven first presidential electors, in
1789 he won two “favorite son” votes for the Presidency.

Ever interested in education, despite his own lack of a college degree,
in the 1780’s Huntington received honorary degrees from Princeton,
Yale, and Dartmouth; and was appointed one of the original trustees of
Plainfield (Conn.) Academy. Before that time, he had acted as adviser
to the president of Yale.

In 1796 at the age of 65, still Governor, he died at his home in
Norwich and was interred in the Old Burial Ground.




Thomas Jefferson

VIRGINIA

[Illustration]

      An intellectual and political titan who ranked among
      the most brilliant men of his time, Thomas Jefferson
      richly contributed to his State and Nation—as statesman,
      diplomat, scientist, architect, author, and educator.
      Graced with a wide-ranging and probing mind, he also delved
      into linguistics, law, art, geography, ethnology, music,
      agriculture, paleontology, botany, meteorology, geology,
      parliamentary practice, and invention.


As author of the Declaration of Independence, influential political
theorist, cofounder of the Democratic-Republican Party, Virginia
legislator and Governor, first U.S. Secretary of State, second Vice
President, and third President, Jefferson has left an indelible
impression on our political system and philosophy. Beyond that, he laid
the basis for the westward expansion of the Nation; and two of his
disciples, Madison and Monroe, followed him into the White House.

Like most successful politicians, however, Jefferson created his
share of enemies and felt the sting of failure. Inability to
reconcile his contradictory traits of idealism and pragmatism
resulted in inconsistencies that rendered him vulnerable. He lacked
the aggressiveness and charisma of many leaders. To compensate for
his basic shyness and his deficiencies as a speaker, he mastered
written expression and learned to exercise administrative power. His
governorship ended ignominiously. And his vision of an agricultural
America, peopled by well-educated and politically astute yeomen
farmers was never to be realized. Yet none of these factors diminishes
his stature or undermines his achievements.

The eldest of two sons in a family of ten, Jefferson was born in 1743
at Shadwell, a frontier plantation in Goochland (present Albemarle)
County, Va. But 2 years later his father, Peter, a self-made
surveyor-magistrate-planter who had married into the distinguished
Randolphs, moved his family eastward to Tuckahoe Plantation, near
Richmond. His reason for doing so was a promise he had made to his
wife’s newly deceased first cousin, William Randolph, to act as
guardian of his son, Thomas Mann Randolph. Young Jefferson passed most
of his boyhood in the Randolph home, beginning his elementary education
with private tutors. In 1752, when he was about 9 years old, the family
returned to Shadwell. His father died 5 years later and bequeathed him
almost 3,000 acres.

In 1760, at the age of 17, Jefferson matriculated at the College of
William and Mary, in Williamsburg. An incidental benefit was the chance
to observe the operation of practical politics in the colonial capital.
Jefferson graduated in 1762, studied law locally under the noted
teacher George Wythe, and in 1767 was admitted to the bar.

At Shadwell, Jefferson assumed the civic responsibilities and
prominence his father had enjoyed. In 1770, when fire consumed the
structure, he moved to his nearby estate Monticello, where he had
already begun building a home. In 1772 he married Martha Wayles
Skelton, a widow. During their decade of life together, she was to bear
six children, but only two daughters reached maturity.

Meanwhile, in 1769 at the age of 26, Jefferson had been elected to
the House of Burgesses in Williamsburg. He was a member continuously
until 1775, and alined himself with the anti-British group. Unlike his
smooth-tongued confreres Patrick Henry and Richard Henry Lee, Jefferson
concentrated his efforts in committee work rather than in debate.
A literary stylist, he drafted many of the Revolutionary documents
adopted by the House of Burgesses. His _A Summary View of the Rights of
British America_ (1774), one of the most influential essays of the era,
disavowed parliamentary control of the Colonies and contended that they
were tied to the King only by their own volition and recognition of
mutual benefits.

[Illustration: First page of Thomas Jefferson’s pamphlet _A Summary
View_ (1774), one of the earliest and most influential Revolutionary
tracts.]

Jefferson utilized the same working methods in the Continental Congress
(1775–76), where his decisiveness in committee contrasted markedly
with his silence on the floor. His colleagues, however, rejected
several of the documents he drafted his first year because of their
extreme anti-British tone. But, by the time he returned the following
May, after spending the winter in Virginia, the temper of Congress had
changed drastically. The very next month, though only 33 years old, he
was assigned to the five-man committee chosen to draft the Declaration
of Independence, a task his colleagues assigned to him. In September,
not long after Congress had adopted the draft with modifications and
most of the Delegates signed it, Jefferson returned to Virginia—anxious
to be nearer home and feeling he could make a deeper political mark
there.

A notable career in the House of Delegates (1776–79), the lower house
of the legislature, followed. There Jefferson took over leadership of
the “progressive” party from Patrick Henry, who relinquished it to
become Governor. Highlights of this service included revision of the
State laws (1776–79), in which Jefferson collaborated with George Wythe
and Edmund Pendleton; and authorship of a bill for the establishment of
religious freedom in Virginia, introduced in 1779 but not passed until
7 years later.

Although hampered as Governor (1779–81) by wartime conditions and
constitutional limitations, Jefferson proved to be a weak executive,
even in emergencies hesitating to wield his authority. When the British
invaded the State in the spring of 1781, the situation became chaotic.
On June 3, while the legislature was meeting in Charlottesville
because the redcoats held Richmond, Jefferson recommended the
combining of civil and military agencies under Gen. Thomas Nelson,
Jr., and virtually abdicated office. The next day, British raiders
almost captured him and a group of legislators he was entertaining at
Monticello. Although later formally vindicated for his abandonment of
the governorship, the action fostered a conservative takeover of the
government and his reputation remained clouded for some time.

Jefferson stayed out of the limelight for 2 years, during which time
his wife died. In 1783 he reentered Congress, which the next year
sent him to Paris to aid Benjamin Franklin and John Adams in their
attempts to negotiate commercial treaties with European nations. During
his 5-year stay, Jefferson succeeded Franklin as Minister to France
(1785–89), gained various commercial concessions from and strengthened
relations with the French, visited England and Italy, absorbed
European culture, and observed the beginnings of the French Revolution.

[Illustration: The University of Virginia in 1826, the year of the
death of founder Jefferson.]

In the years that followed, interspersed with pleasant interludes
at Monticello, Jefferson filled the highest offices in the land:
Secretary of State (1790–93), Vice President (1797–1801), and two-term
President (1801–9). Ever averse to political strife, he occupied these
positions as much out of a sense of civic and party duty as personal
ambition. Aggravating normal burdens and pressures were his bitter
feuds with Alexander Hamilton on most aspects of national policy, and
the vindictiveness of Federalist attacks. Jefferson took considerable
satisfaction, however, from his many accomplishments. Among these was
the cofounding with James Madison of the Democratic-Republican Party,
which in time drove the Federalists out of power.

Physically and mentally exhausted, in 1809 Jefferson retired for the
final time to Monticello. He retained his health and varied interests
and corresponded with and entertained statesmen, politicians,
scientists, explorers, scholars, and Indian chiefs. When the pace of
life grew too hectic, he found haven at Poplar Forest, a retreat near
Lynchburg he had designed and built in 1806–19. His pet project during
most of his last decade was founding the University of Virginia (1819),
in Charlottesville.

Painfully distressing to Jefferson, however, was the woeful state of
his finances. His small salary in public office, the attendant neglect
of his fortune and estate, general economic conditions, and debts he
inherited from his wife had taken a heavy toll. He lived more frugally
than was his custom in an attempt to stave off disaster and sold off as
many of his lands and slaves as he could. But when a friend defaulted
on a note for a large sum, Jefferson fell hopelessly into debt and was
forced to sell his library to the Government. It became the nucleus of
the Library of Congress.

Jefferson died only a few hours before John Adams at the age of 83
on July 4, 1826, the fiftieth anniversary of the adoption of the
Declaration of Independence. For his tombstone at Monticello, ignoring
his many high offices and multitudes of other achievements, he chose
three accomplishments that he wanted to be remembered for: authorship
of the Declaration of Independence and the Virginia Statute for
Religious Freedom and the founding of the University of Virginia.




Francis Lightfoot Lee

VIRGINIA

[Illustration]

      No less a patriot than his dynamic elder brother Richard
      Henry and his gifted younger brothers Arthur and William,
      Francis Lightfoot Lee preferred the uneventful life of a
      country squire to the public spotlight and chose to follow
      rather than to lead. Despite his shyness and weakness as
      a speaker, he exercised extensive political influence,
      took an active part in the Revolution, and signed both the
      Declaration and the Articles of Confederation.


Lee, a member of one of the most famous families in Virginia and U.S.
history and the sixth son and eighth child of planter Thomas Lee, was
born in 1734 at the family estate, Stratford Hall, in Westmoreland
County, Va. He was educated by a private tutor and never attended
college. In 1750, upon the death of his father, he inherited Coton,
an estate in Fairfax County. Seven years later, newly created Loudoun
County absorbed Coton. At that time, the colonial legislature nominated
him as Loudoun lieutenant. The next year, he moved to Coton and became
trustee of the newly incorporated village of Leesburg, named after
him or his brother Philip Ludwell, both local landowners. For the
next decade, Francis Lightfoot represented the county in the House of
Burgesses.

In 1769 Lee married socialite Rebecca Tayloe of Richmond County. The
newlyweds resided at Mount Airy estate with Rebecca’s parents for a
few months until Menokin, a new home that Colonel Tayloe was building
nearby for them, was completed. From then until 1774, Lee sat again
with the burgesses.

Lee had joined the Revolutionary movement at an early date. From the
time of the Stamp Act (1765) until the outbreak of war a decade later,
he participated in most of the Virginia protests and assemblies. He
rarely debated on the floor in Congress (1775–79), but often opposed
the position of his brother Richard Henry, and served on the military
and marine committees as well as that charged with drafting the
Articles of Confederation.

In 1779, weary of office and longing for the peace and quiet of
Menokin, Lee left Congress. Except for a few years in the State
legislature, he abandoned public service altogether and lived quietly.
In 1797, only a few months after the death of his childless wife, at
the age of 62 he succumbed. Burial took place in the Tayloe family
graveyard at Mount Airy.




Richard Henry Lee

VIRGINIA

[Illustration]

      Richard Henry Lee, brilliant orator and fiery Revolutionary
      leader, introduced the independence resolution in
      the Continental Congress, served for awhile as its
      President, and later became a U.S. Senator. Fearing undue
      centralization of power, he fought against the Constitution
      and led the campaign that brought inclusion of the Bill of
      Rights. Throughout his life, he strenuously opposed the
      institution of slavery. He and Francis Lightfoot Lee were
      the only brothers among the signers.


Fifth son and seventh of 11 children, Lee was born in 1732 along the
Potomac shore at Stratford Hall. His initial tutorial education was
supplemented by extensive study at Wakefield Academy, in Yorkshire,
England, and a tour of northern Europe. He sailed home about 1751 at
the age of 19, the year after his father’s death, and resided with
his eldest brother Philip Ludwell at Stratford Hall. In 1757 Richard
Henry married. About this time, he began building and soon occupied
Chantilly, about 3 miles to the east on land leased from his brother.
In 1768 Richard Henry’s wife died, leaving four children; the next
year, he remarried, a union that yielded five more offspring.

Lee meantime, following family tradition, had committed himself to
politics. In 1757, at the age of 25, he became justice of the peace
for Westmoreland County. The following year, he moved up to the House
of Burgesses and sat there until 1775. One of the first to oppose
Britain, he early allied with Patrick Henry. As a protest against the
Stamp Act (1765), Lee drew up the Westmoreland Association (1766), a
nonimportation agreement signed by some of the citizens of his county.
The next year, he denounced the Townshend Acts. And a year later
he proposed in a letter to John Dickinson of Pennsylvania that the
individual colonies set up committees to correspond with each other—an
idea that did not come to fruition for 5 years.

In 1769, when Lee and Henry penned an address to the King protesting
several actions of Parliament, the Royal Governor disbanded the House
of Burgesses. Lee thereupon met with other patriots at Raleigh’s Tavern
and helped frame the Virginia Association, a nonimportation agreement.
Many other colonies formed similar associations, but in 1770 Parliament
repealed most of the duties and the protest spirit subsided.

In March 1773, when anti-British feeling flared once again, Lee,
Henry, and Jefferson, who had entered the House of Burgesses in 1769,
organized a Virginia committee of correspondence and invited the other
colonies to do likewise. Learning of the British closing of Boston
Harbor in May 1774, they persuaded their colleagues to declare, as
a protest, a day of fasting and prayer. The Royal Governor again
dissolved the burgesses. The Revolutionaries reconvened at Raleigh’s
Tavern, drew up a new nonimportation agreement, and resolved to appeal
to the other colonies for an intercolonial congress. But, before
such action could be taken, Virginia received an invitation from
Massachusetts to send representatives to a congress to be held in
September at Philadelphia—the First Continental Congress. Virginia’s
first provincial assembly met in August and designated seven Delegates,
including Lee and Henry.

Lee’s outstanding congressional act was the introduction on June 7,
1776, of the resolution for independence from Britain, seconded by
John Adams. This document, Lee’s condensed redraft of one forwarded
him by a convention that had met in Williamsburg on May 15, proposed
severing relations with Britain, the forming of foreign alliances, and
preparation of a plan for confederation. On June 13, or 2 days after a
committee was appointed to draft the Declaration, Lee journeyed back
to Virginia, apparently because of illness in the family. He did not
return and sign the Declaration until sometime subsequent to the formal
ceremony on August 2. Like his brother Francis Lightfoot, in 1777 he
also subscribed to the Articles of Confederation. After 1776, however,
his influence in Congress waned, and 3 years later ill health forced
his resignation.

As a State legislator (1780–84) Lee joined the conservative faction,
which represented the interests of the large planters. A Member of
Congress again in the period 1784–89, he served in 1784–85 as its
President. In 1787, though elected to the Constitutional Convention, he
refused to attend and led congressional opposition to the Constitution,
especially because of the absence of a bill of rights. Although he
was well aware of the deficiencies of the Articles of Confederation,
he and others feared a stronger Central Government. Lee’s “Letters of
the Federal Farmer to the Republican,” the collective title for two
pamphlets outlining his objections to the Constitution, epitomized
antifederalist sentiment.

In 1789 Lee entered the U.S. Senate, but because of failing health
resigned in 1792, the year after the Bill of Rights was incorporated
into the Constitution. He died in 1794, aged 62, at Chantilly. His
grave is in the Lee family cemetery near Hague, Virginia.




Francis Lewis

NEW YORK

[Illustration]

      Few other signers felt the tragedy of the War for
      Independence more directly than Francis Lewis, whose wife
      died as a result of British imprisonment. To further the
      cause, he also expended a considerable portion of the
      fortune he had acquired as a merchant.


Lewis was the only child of a minister. He was born in 1713 at
Llandaff, Glamorganshire, Wales. Orphaned at an early age and raised
by relatives, he studied at Westminster School in London and then took
employment with a local firm. In 1738, deciding to go into business for
himself, he set up branches in New York and Philadelphia and for a few
years shuttled between those cities and northern European ports. In
1745 he married a New York girl, his partner’s sister.

During the French and Indian War, in 1756, while functioning as a
clothing contractor for British troops at Fort Oswego, in present New
York, Lewis was taken captive and sent to France for imprisonment. Upon
his release, apparently in 1763, as a recompense the British Government
awarded him a large land grant in America. He returned to New York
City, reentered business, and quickly earned a fortune. In 1765 he
retired to the village of Whitestone (now part of Flushing), on Long
Island, but in 1771 he temporarily returned to New York City to help
his son enter the business world, even probably making a voyage to
England with him.

Back home, Lewis devoted most of his energies to the Revolutionary
movement, which he had joined in 1765 by attending the Stamp Act
Congress. He was also likely one of the leaders of the New York Sons
of Liberty. In 1774 he became a member of the New York Revolutionary
committees of fifty-one and sixty, the next year attended the
provincial convention, and subsequently helped set up the State
government.

In the Continental Congress (1775–79), Lewis rarely took the floor but
served on the marine, foreign affairs, and commerce committees, as
well as sitting on the Board of Admiralty and engaging in troop supply
matters. He defended Gen. George Washington from the attacks of the
Conway Cabal. Because of Tory dominance in New York, Lewis and the
other Delegates were instructed not to vote for independence on July 1
and 2, 1776, but Lewis signed the Declaration on August 2.

That same year, when the British invaded Long Island, they destroyed
Lewis’ home in Whitestone and took his wife into custody. She was
eventually released in an exchange for wives of British officials, but
the hardships she had endured ruined her health and brought about her
death in 1779. The grief-stricken Lewis immediately left Congress,
but remained on the Board of Admiralty until 1781, at which time he
abandoned politics altogether. He lived in retirement with his sons,
and died in 1802 at the age of 89 in New York City. He was buried there
in an unmarked grave in the yard of Trinity Church.




Philip Livingston

NEW YORK

[Illustration]

      A member of the landed gentry, merchant Philip
      Livingston lived a princely life and devoted much energy
      to civic affairs and philanthropic enterprises. He
      was a conservative in politics, and at first opposed
      independence. On the other hand, despite wartime business
      reverses, he contributed generously to the Revolutionary
      effort and continued in public service until the day he
      died.


Livingston was the fifth son of Philip Livingston, second lord of
Livingston Manor, of Scotch descent, and Catherine Van Brugh, of Dutch
lineage. Young Livingston was born in 1716 at his father’s townhouse in
Albany and spent most of his childhood there or at the family manor at
Linlithgo, about 30 miles to the south.

Upon receiving a degree from Yale in 1737, Livingston entered the
import business in New York City. Three years later, he married and
moved into a townhouse on Duke Street in Manhattan; he was to sire
five sons and four daughters. As time went on, he built up a fortune,
particularly as a trader-privateer during the French and Indian War
(1754–63). In 1764, though retaining his Duke Street home, he acquired
a 40-acre estate on Brooklyn Heights overlooking the East River and New
York Harbor.

While prospering as a merchant, Livingston devoted many of his energies
to humanitarian and philanthropic endeavors. Among the organizations he
fostered, financially aided, or helped administer were King’s College
(later Columbia University), the New York Society Library, St. Andrew’s
Society, the New York Chamber of Commerce, and New York Hospital.

Livingston was also a proponent of political and religious freedom.
As a New York City alderman (1754–63), he identified with the popular
party that opposed the aristocratic ruling class of the colony. In
a decade of service (1759–69) in the colonial legislature, he stood
behind the Whigs in their quarrel with the Royal Governor and attended
the Stamp Act Congress in 1765. But, a believer in the sort of
dignified protests mounted by lawyers and merchants, he resented the
riotous behavior of such groups as the Sons of Liberty.

[Illustration: The Brooklyn home of Philip Livingston from 1764 until
his death in 1778. When the British occupied New York, they used it as
a hospital. In 1811 fire destroyed it.]

In the 1769 elections the Tories gained control of the legislature. In
his bid for reelection, Livingston, fearful of the rise of extremism
among the populace, attempted to unite the moderate factions. Defeated
in New York City, which from then on was Tory-dominated, he managed to
obtain reelection from the Livingston Manor district. The new assembly,
claiming he could not represent an area in which he did not reside,
unseated him.

In 1774 Livingston became a member of the committee of fifty-one,
an extralegal group that selected New York City Delegates to the
Continental Congress, one of whom was Livingston. He also served on
the committee of sixty, formed to enforce congressional enactments.
The next year, he won election to the committee of one hundred, which
governed New York City temporarily until the first provincial congress
of the colony met later that year.

Between 1774 and 1778 Livingston divided his time between the
Continental Congress and the New York provincial assembly/legislature.
In Congress he sat on committees dealing with marine, commerce,
finance, military, and Indian matters. He was absent on July 1–2,
1776, perhaps on purpose even though the New York Delegates abstained
from voting on the independence issue, but on August 2 he signed the
Declaration.

After their defeat in the Battle of Long Island (August 27, 1776),
Washington and his officers met at Livingston’s residence in Brooklyn
Heights and decided to evacuate the island. Subsequent to the ill-fated
peace negotiations at Staten Island in September between Admiral Lord
Richard Howe and three representatives of the Continental Congress, the
British occupied New York City. They utilized Livingston’s Duke Street
home as a barracks and his Brooklyn Heights residence as a Royal Navy
hospital, as well as confiscating his business interests. He later
sold some of his remaining property to sustain public credit. With the
advance of the British, Livingston and his family had fled to Esopus
(later Kingston), N.Y., where the State capital was temporarily located
before moving to nearby Poughkeepsie.

Livingston passed away at the age of 62 in 1778, the third earliest
signer to die (after John Morton and Button Gwinnett). At the time,
though in poor health, he was still in Congress, then meeting at York,
Pa. He is buried in Prospect Hill Cemetery in that city.




Thomas Lynch, Jr.

SOUTH CAROLINA

[Illustration]

      Like two of the three other South Carolina signers, Heyward
      and Middleton, Thomas Lynch, Jr., was an aristocratic
      planter. But, despite his wealth and social position,
      he experienced one of the most tragic lives of all the
      signers. He was stricken by illness in the midst of his
      political and military labors for his State, never fully
      recovered his health, and perished at sea in his 30th year.
      He died at a younger age than any other signer, though a
      couple succumbed at an earlier date. He was also the second
      youngest in the group, next to fellow South Carolinian
      Edward Rutledge.


The only son of Thomas Lynch, Sr., a rich rice planter, Lynch was born
in 1749 at Hopsewee Plantation, located at Winyaw on the North Santee
River in Prince George’s Parish (present Georgetown County), S.C.
After attending the Indigo Society School at nearby Georgetown, from
1764 until 1772 he studied abroad at Eton and Cambridge and read law
in London. Upon his return home, deciding not to engage in the law, he
married and settled at Peach Tree Plantation. A gift from his father,
it was situated in St. James Parish (present Charleston County) on the
South Santee River about 4 miles south of Hopsewee.

As the heir of one of the most fervent Revolutionaries and influential
men in the colony, Lynch naturally took a deep interest in politics and
enjoyed strong support from the electorate. During the years 1774–76,
while his father served in the Continental Congress, he labored on
the home front, attending the first and second provincial congresses
as well as the first State legislature and sitting on the State
constitutional committee.

In 1775, however, fate dealt Lynch a cruel blow. He accepted a
captaincy in the First South Carolina Regiment of Continentals—to the
dismay of his father who had hoped to use his position to obtain a
higher rank for him. On a recruiting trip to North Carolina, young
Lynch contracted bilious fever. This ended his military days and
rendered him a partial invalid for his few remaining years.

Early in 1776 at Philadelphia the elder Lynch suffered a stroke that
virtually incapacitated him for further public service. In the spring,
his concerned colleagues in South Carolina elected his son to the
Continental Congress, probably so that he could care for his father
and act officially on his behalf. Although ill himself, Lynch made the
onerous trip to Philadelphia. He stayed there throughout the summer,
long enough to vote for and sign, at the age of 27, the Declaration
of Independence. His father was unable to take part in the ceremony.
The two were the only father-son team that served concurrently in the
Continental Congress.

By the end of the year, the failing health of both men compelled them
to start homeward. En route, at Annapolis, Md., a second stroke took
the life of the senior Lynch. His son, broken in spirit and physically
unable to continue in politics, retired to Peach Tree. Late in 1779 he
and his wife, heading for southern France in an attempt to regain his
health, boarded a ship bound for the West Indies that foundered. The
couple died childless.




Thomas McKean

DELAWARE

[Illustration]

      Lawyer-jurist Thomas McKean stands out from the other
      signers in a variety of ways. He was the last to pen his
      signature to the Declaration, sometime after January 18,
      1777. Although many Delegates simultaneously took part in
      State affairs, none did so as extensively as McKean—and he
      figured prominently in not one but two States, Delaware and
      Pennsylvania. He was also the only signer to be the chief
      executive of and concurrent officeholder in two States.
      Furthermore, he numbered among those who also subscribed to
      the Articles of Confederation, and he served a long tour in
      Congress.


Of Scotch-Irish ancestry, McKean was born in 1734. He was the second
son of a farmer-tavernkeeper who lived in New London Township, in
Chester County, Pa., near the New Jersey and Delaware boundaries. After
studying for 7 years at Rev. Francis Alison’s academy at nearby New
London, McKean read law with a cousin at New Castle, Del. In 1754, at
the age of 20, he was admitted to the Delaware bar and soon expanded
his practice into Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

During the next two and a half decades, McKean occupied an array of
appointive and elective offices in Delaware, some simultaneously: high
sheriff of Kent County; militia captain; trustee of the loan office
of New Castle County; customs collector and judge at New Castle;
deputy attorney general of Sussex County; chief notary officer for the
province; and clerk (1757–59) and member (1762–79) of the legislature,
including the speakership of the lower house (1772–73). In 1762, he had
also helped compile the colony’s laws.

McKean’s Revolutionary tendencies had first revealed themselves
during the Stamp Act (1765) controversy. He was one of the most
vociferous of the delegates at the Stamp Act Congress. In 1774, a year
after the death of his wife, whom he had wed in 1763, he remarried
and established his home in Philadelphia. He nevertheless retained
membership in the Delaware legislature, which that same year elected
him to the Continental Congress. Except for the period December
1776-January 1778, when conservative opposition unseated him, he stayed
there until 1783 and served as President for a few months in 1781.
He played a key role in the Revolutionary program, at the same time
fostering the establishment of governments in Delaware and Pennsylvania.

Furthermore, it was McKean who was responsible for breaking the
Delaware tie in the congressional vote for independence. On July
1, 1776, date of the first vote, the two Delaware representatives
present, McKean and George Read, deadlocked. McKean, who had balloted
affirmatively, dispatched an urgent message to the third Delegate,
Caesar Rodney, who was at his home near Dover, Del., on military
matters, to rush to Philadelphia. Rodney, making an 80-mile horseback
ride through a storm, arrived just in time to swing Delaware over to
independence on July 2.

During the hiatus in his congressional career, from late 1776 until
early in 1778, McKean had remained in the lower house of the Delaware
legislature, of which he became speaker once again. In that capacity,
in September-November 1777, he temporarily replaced the president of
Delaware, whom the British had captured. In vain they also pursued
McKean, who was forced to move his family several times. Meantime, in
July, he had been appointed chief justice of the Pennsylvania Superior
Court, a position he was to hold for 22 years.

After 1783, when his congressional service ended, McKean focused his
political activities in Pennsylvania. As a Federalist, in 1787 he was
instrumental in that State’s ratification of the U.S. Constitution. In
the State constitutional convention of 1789–90 he demonstrated mistrust
of popular government. During the 1790’s, disenchanted with Federalist
foreign policy, he switched to the Democratic-Republicans.

While Governor for three terms (1799–1808), McKean was the storm
center of violent partisan warfare. Although he exercised strong
leadership and advanced education and internal improvements, his
imperiousness infuriated the Federalists, alienated many members of
his own party, and resulted in an attempt to impeach him. Especially
controversial were his rigid employment of the spoils system, including
the appointment of friends and relatives, and his refusal to call a
convention to revise the constitution. As a result, he won reelection
only with the support of members of both parties who opposed the
revision.

McKean lived out his life quietly in Philadelphia. He died in 1817 at
the age of 83, survived by his second wife and four of the 11 children
from his two marriages. He was buried in Laurel Hill Cemetery. His
substantial estate consisted of stocks, bonds, and huge tracts of land
in Pennsylvania.




Arthur Middleton

SOUTH CAROLINA

[Illustration]

      Despite long years of study in England, exceptional wealth,
      and social eminence, Arthur Middleton evolved into an avid
      Revolutionary. Because of preoccupation with State matters,
      particularly military defense, his attendance in Congress
      was spasmodic. The British captured him during their attack
      on Charleston and ravished his estate.


Middleton was born in 1742 at Middleton Place, the family estate on
the Ashley River near Charleston. His father, who owned a score of
plantations comprising 50,000 acres and employing some 800 slaves,
ranked among the wealthiest and most politically active men in the
province. While still a young boy, Arthur sailed to England for an
education. He attended Hackney School, graduated from Cambridge
University, and studied law in London. In 1764, the year after his
return, he wed the woman who was to bear him nine children, and
embarked on a career as justice of the peace and colonial legislator.
In the years 1768–71, however, he and his wife made an extended tour of
Europe.

Reelected the next year to the legislature, Middleton joined the
Revolutionaries in their campaign against the Royal Governor. While
sitting in the first and second provincial assemblies (1775–76),
Middleton aided in organizing a night raid on public arms stores at
Charleston before the Governor could seize them, raised money for
armed resistance, recommended defense measures for Charleston Harbor,
served on the council of safety, and urged tight enforcement of the
Continental Association. An extremist, he advocated the tarring and
feathering of Loyalists and confiscation of the estates of those who
had fled the country.

In 1776, while engaged in helping draft a State constitution, Middleton
was chosen to replace his more conservative father in the Continental
Congress. Two years later, when young Middleton declined reelection,
he also rejected an offer of the governorship of South Carolina by the
legislature, which had enacted a new constitution that he opposed. In
1779 and 1780, though reelected to the Continental Congress, Middleton
failed to attend, probably because of concern over the British threat
to his State. While serving in the militia during the siege of
Charleston in 1780, along with fellow signers Heyward and Rutledge he
was captured by the British and imprisoned at St. Augustine, Fla.,
until July 1781.

Two months later, Middleton returned to Congress and served throughout
1782. He then retired to Middleton Place, which had been ravaged by
the British. He rehabilitated it, resumed his life as a planter, sat
intermittently in the State legislature, and accepted assignment as one
of the original trustees of the College of Charleston. He died in 1787
at the age of 44. His remains rest at Middleton Place.




Lewis Morris

NEW YORK

[Illustration]

      Although Lewis Morris was a wealthy landowner who enjoyed
      the prestige of the social elite, he represented the
      patriot element in Tory-dominated New York. The British
      sacked his estate during the war, and his three eldest sons
      fought under Washington.


Born in 1726, Morris was the eldest son of the second lord of the vast
manor of Morrisania, in Westchester (present Bronx) County, N.Y. Upon
graduating from Yale College in 1746, he helped manage the estate.
Three years later, he married, siring 10 children. In 1762, when his
father died, he inherited Morrisania and became its third lord. About
this time, he gained an interest in local politics, and in 1769 served
a term in the colonial legislature.

As time went on, though residing in a pro-Loyalist county, Morris
became increasingly critical of British policy. In 1775 he helped
organize a meeting at White Plains that overcame strong opposition and
chose county delegates, including Morris as chairman, to New York’s
first provincial convention. It elected him to the Continental Congress
(1775–77), where he specialized in military and Indian affairs. For
most of 1776, he was absent from Philadelphia, serving as a brigadier
general in the Westchester County militia. During the British invasion
of New York that year, the redcoats ravaged Morrisania, and forced
Morris’ family to flee.

When his career in Congress ended, Morris rose to the rank of major
general in the militia and became a county judge (1777–78) and State
senator (1777–81 and 1784–88). After war’s end in 1783, when he
was able to return to Morrisania, he devoted much of his time to
rehabilitating it. In 1784 he sat on the first board of regents of
the University of New York. And 4 years later, at the State ratifying
convention in Poughkeepsie, he strongly supported Alexander Hamilton’s
successful drive for approval of the U.S. Constitution.

Morris died in 1798 at Morrisania at the age of 71. His grave is in the
family vault in the yard of St. Ann’s Church in the Bronx.




Robbert Morris

PENNSYLVANIA

[Illustration]

      Merchant Robert Morris was a man of many distinctions.
      One of the wealthiest individuals in the Colonies and an
      economic wizard, he won the accolade “Financier of the
      Revolution,” yet died penniless and forgotten. He and Roger
      Sherman were the only signers of all three of the Nation’s
      basic documents: the Declaration of Independence, Articles
      of Confederation, and Constitution. Morris, who turned down
      appointment as the first Secretary of the Treasury, also
      served as a Senator in the First Congress.


Morris was born in or near Liverpool, England, in 1734. At the age of
13, he emigrated to Maryland to join his father, a tobacco exporter at
Oxford, Md. After brief schooling at Philadelphia, the youth obtained
employment with Thomas and Charles Willing’s well-known shipping firm.
In 1754 he became a partner, and for almost four decades was one of the
company’s directors as well as one of Philadelphia’s most influential
citizens. Marrying in 1769 at the age of 35, he fathered five sons and
two daughters.

During the Stamp Act turmoil in 1765, Morris had joined other merchants
in protest, but not until the outbreak of hostilities a decade hence
did he fully commit himself to the Revolution. In 1775 the Continental
Congress contracted with his firm to import arms and ammunition; and
he was elected to the Pennsylvania council of safety (1775–76), the
committee of correspondence, the provincial assembly (1775–76), the
State legislature (1776–78), and the Continental Congress (1775–78). In
the latter body, on July 1, 1776, he voted against independence, which
he personally considered premature, but the next day purposely absented
himself to facilitate an affirmative ballot by his State.

Morris, a key Member of Congress, specialized in financial affairs and
military procurement. Although he and his firm profited handsomely,
had it not been for his assiduous labors the Continental Army would
probably have needed to demobilize. He worked closely with General
Washington, wheedled money and supplies from the States, borrowed
money in the face of overwhelming difficulties, and on occasion
even obtained personal loans to further the war cause. Immediately
following his congressional service, Morris sat for two more terms in
the Pennsylvania legislature in the period 1778–81. During this time,
Thomas Paine and others attacked him for profiteering in Congress,
which investigated his accounts and vindicated him. Nevertheless, his
reputation slipped.

[Illustration: In 1794 Robert Morris began building this palatial
townhouse in Philadelphia. After his imprisonment for debt in 1798, the
unfinished house came to be known as “Morris’ Folly.” It stood until
1800.]

Morris embarked on the most dramatic phase of his career by accepting
the office of Superintendent of Finance (1781–84) under the Articles of
Confederation. Congress, recognizing the perilous state of the Nation’s
finances and its impotence to remedy it, granted him dictatorial
powers and acquiesced to his condition that he be allowed to continue
his private commercial enterprises. He slashed all governmental and
military expenditures, personally purchased Army and Navy supplies,
tightened accounting procedures, prodded the States to fulfill quotas
of money and supplies, and when necessary strained his personal credit
by issuing notes over his own signature or borrowing from friends.

To finance Washington’s Yorktown campaign in 1781, in addition to
the above techniques Morris obtained a sizable loan from France. He
used part of it, along with some of his own fortune, to organize
the Bank of North America, chartered that December. The first
Government-incorporated bank in the United States, it aided war
financing.

Although Morris was reelected to the Pennsylvania legislature in
1785–86, his private commercial ventures consumed most of his time.
In the latter year, he attended the Annapolis Convention, and the
following year the Constitutional Convention, where he sympathized with
the Federalists. In 1789, declining Washington’s offer of appointment
as the first Secretary of the Treasury, he took instead a senatorial
seat in Congress (1789–95).

During the later years of his public life, Morris speculated wildly,
often on overextended credit, in lands in the West and at the site
of Washington, D.C. To compound his difficulties, in 1794 he began
constructing on Philadelphia’s Chestnut Street a palatial townhouse
designed by Maj. Pierre Charles L’Enfant. Not long thereafter, Morris
attempted to escape creditors by retreating to The Hills, the country
estate along the Schuylkill River on the edge of Philadelphia that he
had acquired in 1770.

Arrested at the behest of creditors in 1798 and forced to abandon
completion of the townhouse, henceforth known in its unfinished state
as “Morris’ Folly,” Morris was thrown into the Philadelphia debtors’
prison, where he was well treated. Nevertheless, by the time he was
released in 1801, under a Federal bankruptcy law, his property and
fortune had vanished, his health deteriorated, and his spirit been
broken. He lingered on amid poverty and obscurity, living in a simple
Philadelphia home on an annuity Gouverneur Morris had obtained for his
wife. He died in 1806 in his 72d year. He was buried in the yard of
Christ Church.




John Morton

PENNSYLVANIA

[Illustration]

      John Morton, one of the nine signers from Pennsylvania,
      is better known there than in the Nation, but he rendered
      meritorious service to both. He cast the decisive ballot
      that swung his State over to an affirmative vote for
      independence in the Continental Congress. He was the first
      signer to die.


Morton was born of Finnish-Swedish descent in 1725, shortly after the
death of his father, on a farm in Ridley Township, Chester (present
Delaware) County. John Sketchley, an Englishman who subsequently
married the widowed mother of the youth, reared and educated him. Their
relationship was apparently close, for Morton later named his eldest
son Sketchley. The stepfather, learned in mathematics, taught the boy
the three R’s as well as surveying. He practiced that profession on and
off all his life, as well as farming, politics, and jurisprudence. He
married in his early 20’s, in 1748 or 1749, and fathered five daughters
and four sons.

At the age of 30, Morton entered politics, which from then on absorbed
most of his energies. From 1756 until a few months before he died in
1777, he served 18 terms in the colonial/State legislature (1756–66
and 1769–76), which he presided over during the last year and a half.
In 1774 he won appointment as an associate justice of the Pennsylvania
Supreme Court.

Meantime, despite his rise in State circles, Morton had always
maintained strong ties with his own county. He resided there all his
life, remained active in civic and church affairs, and stayed close
to the people. Between terms of office as county justice of the peace
(1757–64 and 1770–74), he worked in a tour as sheriff (1766–69).

Morton’s service to the Nation began in 1765, while he was a member of
the Pennsylvania legislature. He and two colleagues represented the
colony at the Stamp Act Congress in New York. His most dramatic act as
Delegate to the Continental Congress (1774–77), in which he numbered
among the moderates, was his sudden and crucial switch on July 1, 1776,
to the side of his friend Benjamin Franklin and James Wilson in the
vote for national independence. On the final vote the next day, these
three ballots outweighed those of Thomas Willing and Charles Humphreys.
Robert Morris and John Dickinson being purposely absent, Pennsylvania
registered a “yea.” Less glamorously, Morton was a member of many
committees, in 1777 chairing the committee of the whole on the adoption
of the Articles of Confederation, finally ratified after his death.

Within a year of signing the Declaration, in the spring of 1777, Morton
fell ill and died on his farm at the age of 51. A few months earlier,
he had bequeathed his land and property, including a few slaves, to
his wife and five daughters and three surviving sons. But he could not
will them security; shortly after his demise they had to flee from
their home in the face of an imminent British attack. Morton’s grave is
located in Old St. Paul’s Cemetery in Chester, Pa.




Thomas Nelson, Jr.

VIRGINIA

[Illustration]

      Thomas Nelson, Jr., a rich planter-merchant who at one
      time owned more than 400 slaves, was one of the most
      active of the Virginia patriots. Mainly because of health
      problems, however, his career in Congress was brief and
      undistinguished, though he made great financial sacrifices
      during the war and won fame as a militia commander and
      State politician.


The eldest of five sons, Nelson was born at Yorktown, Va., in 1738.
At the age of 14, he sailed to England to supplement his initial
tutorial education. In 1761, after graduating from Hackney School and
Cambridge University, he returned to Virginia to help his father manage
his plantation and mercantile business. The next year, young Nelson
married; he and his wife were to have 11 children.

In 1764 Nelson became a justice of the peace for York County and
entered the House of Burgesses. He served in the house until May 1774,
when Royal Governor Lord Dunmore, provoked at its protests over the
Boston Port Act, dissolved it. That year and the next, Nelson attended
three of the Virginia provincial assemblies, where he worked closely
with Patrick Henry. The last assembly elected Nelson to the Continental
Congress, at which time he resigned his colonelcy in the Virginia
militia.

In Congress, Nelson was outspoken in his desire to sever the bonds
with England. He journeyed to Virginia in the spring of 1776. At a
convention held in Williamsburg in May, he introduced and won approval
for a resolution recommending national independence, drafted by
Edmund Pendleton. Nelson carried it to Philadelphia and presented it
to Richard Henry Lee, who redrafted and condensed it into his June
7 resolution. Not long afterward, Nelson’s health began to decline.
Subsequently, he divided his time between Philadelphia and Virginia,
and in the spring of 1777 resigned from Congress.

Back in Virginia, Nelson was awarded the rank of brigadier general in
the militia and was elected to the lower house of the legislature. In
the spring of 1778 Congress appealed to men of means in the Colonies
to form troops of light cavalry. Nelson, partially at his own expense,
raised, outfitted, and trained such a unit. In July he marched it
northward to Philadelphia. The next month, Congress decided it was not
needed and it returned home.

Nelson served in Congress again for a short time in 1779, but poor
health forced him to retire once more. Nevertheless, the next year he
obtained munitions and supplies for the militia, commanded troops,
attended the legislature, and raised money to help subsidize the
war. He was particularly effective in soliciting funds from wealthy
plantation owners, to whom he pledged to repay the loans personally if
the State should fail to do so.

When the British invaded Virginia in 1780–81, civilian control
seriously hampered Nelson’s effectiveness as a militia commander.
Consequently, in the latter year the legislature elected him as
Governor and granted him powers approaching those of a military
dictator. Although still bothered by bad health, he kept the government
intact and strengthened defenses. In September-October 1781, while
taking part in the Yorktown siege, according to family tradition he
ordered troops to shell his own mansion when he learned it was a
British headquarters. Soon after the victory at Yorktown, overwhelmed
by the burdens of office and still in poor physical condition, he
resigned the governorship.

[Illustration: This painting commemorates one of the highlights of
the siege of Yorktown (1781). Thomas Nelson, Jr., commander in chief
of Virginia troops, took an active part.]

That same year, Nelson partially retired to Offley Hoo, a modest estate
in Hanover County that his father had willed to him on his death in
1772. In financial distress from his wartime sacrifices, the younger
Nelson lacked money to renovate his Yorktown home, where he had lived
since 1767. Except for occasional tours in the legislature and visits
to Yorktown, he devoted the rest of his life to his business affairs.
He died at Offley Hoo in 1789 at the age of 50. His grave is at
Yorktown in the yard of Grace Episcopal Church.




William Paca

MARYLAND

[Illustration]

      William Paca was one of the earliest Revolutionaries in a
      conservative colony. A wealthy planter and eminent lawyer
      and judge, he held numerous State offices, including the
      governorship, but his role in national affairs was limited.


The second son of a prominent planter-landowner, Paca was born,
probably of Italian descent, in 1740 at Chilbury Hall, near Abingdon in
Harford County, Md. He received his early education from private tutors
and at the age of 15 matriculated at the College of Philadelphia (later
part of the University of Pennsylvania). Upon graduating, he studied
with an attorney in Annapolis and read law in London. In 1763, the year
before initiating his practice in the former city, he married a local
girl from a wealthy family and began building a home, completed 2 years
later. When in the country, he resided at Wye Plantation, in Queen
Annes County, which he had purchased about 1760.

In 1768 Paca won a seat in the colonial legislature, where he soon
alined himself with Samuel Chase and other Whigs in protesting the
powers of the Proprietary Governor. In the early 1770’s Paca joined
other Maryland patriots in urging governmental regulation of fees
paid to civil officers and in opposing the poll tax, used to pay the
salaries of Anglican clergy, representing the established church. In
1773 he became a member of the Maryland committee of correspondence.
The following year, along with Samuel Chase and Thomas Johnson, he
acted as counsel for fellow legislator Joseph H. Harrison, who had
been jailed for refusing to pay the poll tax. All three men also
attended the first provincial convention that same year and received
appointments to the First Continental Congress. About this time, Paca’s
wife died.

Although he sat in Congress until 1779, Paca’s most noteworthy efforts
were on the State level. In the spring and early summer of 1776, the
provincial convention, a relatively conservative body, refused to
authorize its congressional Delegates to vote for independence. Paca,
aiding Chase and Carroll, drummed up enough support on the home front
to persuade the convention to change its mind and bring Maryland into
the affirmative column in the congressional voting on July 1–2, 1776. A
few months later, he helped draft a State constitution. The next year,
he began a 2-year term in the Maryland senate and saw militia duty. In
addition, he sat on the council of safety and spent large amounts of
his own money outfitting troops.

Between the years 1778 and 1782, Paca distinguished himself first as
chief justice of the State Superior Court and then as chief judge of
the circuit court of appeals in admiralty and prize cases. During that
time, in 1780, a few months after the demise of his second wife, whom
he had married 3 years earlier, he sold his home in Annapolis and moved
permanently to Wye Plantation. In 1782 he raised funds for Washington
College, founded that same year in Chestertown as the first institution
of higher learning in Maryland, and served on its board of visitors. As
Governor of Maryland (1782–85), he concerned himself with the welfare
of war veterans and other postwar problems.

A delegate to the State convention to ratify the Federal Constitution
in 1788, Paca urged its adoption if amended and helped draw up a list
of proposed amendments. In 1789 President Washington appointed him as
Federal district judge. He held this position until 1799, the year
of his death at the age of 58, at Wye Hall, on Wye Island across the
narrows from his own home, Wye Plantation. The former was the home of
his son John, probably the only one of his five children from his two
or possibly three marriages who reached maturity. At first interred at
Wye Hall, Paca’s remains now rest in the family burial ground near Wye
Plantation.




Robert Treat Paine

MASSACHUSETTS

[Illustration]

      A clergyman turned lawyer-jurist, Robert Treat Paine spent
      only a short time in Congress but enjoyed considerable
      political prestige in Massachusetts. His second son
      (1773–1811) and great-grandson (1835–1910), both bearing
      exactly the same names as he, gained fame respectively as
      poet and businessman-philanthropist.


Among the ancestors of Paine, who was born at Boston in 1731, were
many New England religious and political leaders. His father was a
merchant who had once been a clergyman. Young Paine led his class at
Boston Latin School and graduated from Harvard in 1749. He then taught
school for a time before yielding to family tradition and entering the
ministry.

In 1755, during the French and Indian War, he served as chaplain on
a military expedition to Crown Point, N.Y. To improve his health, he
made a voyage to the Carolinas, England, Spain, and Greenland. About
this time, he decided to forsake the ministry for the law, in which he
had become interested during his theological studies. Admitted to the
Massachusetts bar in 1757, he opened an office in Portland but in 1761
moved to Taunton.

Paine, a friend of John Adams and John Hancock, early became involved
in the patriot movement. As a result, he was chosen in 1770 as one of
the prosecuting attorneys in the Boston Massacre trial and thus gained
recognition throughout the Colonies. That same year, he married, siring
eight children. Between 1773 and 1778, except in 1776, he served in the
Massachusetts legislature, in 1777 being speaker of the lower house.
He was one of the first five Delegates sent by Massachusetts to the
Continental Congress (1774–76), where he specialized in military and
Indian affairs. He gained the nickname “Objection Maker” because he
argued against so many proposals.

Although reelected to Congress in 1777, Paine chose to stay in
Massachusetts. In addition to his legislative speakership, he was
elected as the first attorney general, a position he held until 1790.
Between 1778 and 1780 he played a prominent role in drafting the
Massachusetts constitution. From 1790 until 1804, appointed by his old
friend Hancock, he sat as an associate justice of the Superior Court.

Meantime, in 1780, Paine had moved from Taunton to Boston and become
active in civic affairs. Indicative of his lifelong interest in
science, that same year he was one of the founders of the American
Academy of Arts and Sciences. In religion, he broke away from Calvinism
and embraced Unitarianism. Politically, he alined himself with the
Federalists. In 1804 increasing deafness brought about his retirement
from the Superior Court, and he died a decade later at the age of 83 in
Boston. He was buried in the Old Granary Burying Ground.




John Penn

NORTH CAROLINA

[Illustration]

      Like fellow signers Joseph Hewes and William Hooper, John
      Penn adopted North Carolina as his home. Except for a
      5-year stint in the Continental Congress and a brief career
      in State service, he passed the years peacefully as a
      country lawyer far from the clamor of the public forum.


Penn was born in 1740 or 1741 in Caroline County, Va. His father was a
well-to-do farmer, and his mother the daughter of a prominent county
judge. Despite the family’s social position, Penn received only a few
years of formal schooling. At the age of 18, when his father died, he
inherited a sizable estate. But he was dissatisfied with the prospects
it offered, and decided to continue his education. Encouraged by a
relative, Edmund Pendleton, a well-known lawyer who made available his
personal library, Penn studied law on his own and within 3 years gained
admittance to the bar. Soon thereafter he married; he and his wife
reared three children.

In 1774, at the end of more than a decade of successful law practice in
Virginia, Penn journeyed to Granville County, N.C., and made his home
near Stovall. The next year, he was elected to the provincial assembly
and only a few weeks later to the Continental Congress (1775–80).
In 1777, upon the retirement of Hewes and Hooper, he inherited the
leadership of his State’s delegation. He was one of the 16 signers of
the Declaration who also signed the Articles of Confederation.

Unobtrusive and unassuming but remarkably efficient, likeable, and
discreet, Penn quickly won the respect of his congressional colleagues.
He rarely disputed with others, but when he did his good humor and
peaceful manner saved the day. On one occasion, he feuded with
President of Congress Henry Laurens of South Carolina over a personal
matter. He accepted Laurens’ challenge to a duel, but en route to the
proposed site convinced Laurens that they should bury their differences
and drop the matter.

Late in 1780 the Governor of North Carolina recalled Penn from Congress
to sit on the emergency Board of War, created by the legislature in
September to share with the Governor responsibility for military
affairs. The three-man board, of which Penn became the leading
member, in effect soon assumed control of all military matters. The
Governor and military officials, resenting the infringement upon their
prerogatives and their loss of authority, persuaded the legislature to
abolish the board in January 1781.

His health declining, the following July Penn declined an appointment
to the Governor’s Council. With the exception of a short tour in 1784
as State tax receiver for the Confederation, he apparently devoted his
last years to his law practice. In 1788, only in his late forties,
he died at his home near Stovall. Originally buried in the family
graveyard adjacent to his home, his remains now rest in Guilford
Courthouse National Military Park near Greensboro.




George Read

DELAWARE

[Illustration]

      Conservative lawyer George Read was the only signer who
      voted against independence in the final congressional vote
      on July 2, 1776. In addition to attaining many prominent
      State offices, he attended the Constitutional Convention,
      where he defended the rights of the smaller States, and
      subsequently served as a Senator in the First Congress.


Read’s mother was the daughter of a Welsh planter, and his Dublin-born
father a landholder of means. Soon after George’s birth in 1733 near
North East in Cecil County, Md., his family moved to New Castle, Del.,
where the youth grew up. He attended school at Chester, Pa., and Rev.
Francis Alison’s academy at New London, Pa., and about the age of 15
began reading law with a Philadelphia lawyer. In 1753 he was admitted
to the bar and began to practice. The next year, he journeyed back to
New Castle, hung out his shingle, and before long enlisted a clientele
that extended into Maryland. In 1763 he wed the widowed sister of
future fellow signer George Ross, and she bore him four sons and a
daughter.

While crown attorney general (1763–74) for the Three Lower Counties
(present Delaware), Read protested against the Stamp Act. In 1765 he
began a career in the colonial legislature that extended for more than
a decade. A moderate Whig, he supported nonimportation measures and
dignified protests. His attendance in Congress (1774–77) was irregular.
Like his friend John Dickinson, he was willing to protect colonial
rights but was wary of extremism. He balloted against independence on
July 2, 1776, apparently either bowing to the strong Tory sentiment in
Delaware or believing reconciliation with Britain was still possible.

That same year, Read gave priority to State responsibilities. He
presided over the Delaware constitutional convention, in which he
chaired the drafting committee, and began a term as speaker of the
legislative council, which in effect made him vice president of the
State. When the British captured Wilmington the next fall, they
captured the president, a resident of the city. At first, because
Read was away in Congress, Thomas McKean, speaker of the lower house,
took over as acting president. But in November, after almost being
captured himself while he and his family were en route to Dover from
Philadelphia, newly captured by the British, Read assumed the office
and held it until the spring of 1778.

During 1779, in poor health, Read resigned from the legislative
council, refused reelection to Congress, and began a period of
inactivity. In the years 1782–88, he again sat on the council, and
concurrently held the position of judge of the court of appeals in
admiralty cases. Meantime, in 1784, he had served on a commission
that adjusted New York-Massachusetts land claims. In 1786 he attended
the Annapolis Convention. The next year, he participated in the
Constitutional Convention. He later led the ratification movement in
Delaware, the first State to ratify.

In the U.S. Senate (1789–93), Read’s attendance was again spasmodic,
but when present he allied with the Federalists. He resigned to accept
the post of chief justice of Delaware. He held this office until his
death at New Castle 5 years later, just 3 days after he celebrated his
65th birthday. His grave is located there in the Immanuel Episcopal
Churchyard.




Caesar Rodney

DELAWARE

[Illustration]

      Self-educated Caesar Rodney climbed to high State and
      National offices, but his military-political duties
      in Delaware spared him little time for the affairs of
      Congress. He is noted mainly for his emergency ride to
      Philadelphia that broke his State’s deadlock in the vote
      for independence, but he was also one of two bachelor
      signers and the only native of the three from Delaware.


Rodney was born in 1728 on his father’s 800-acre plantation, Byfield,
near Dover in Kent County. In 1745, as the eldest child, he inherited
the plantation. Despite a lack of formal and legal education, a decade
later he accepted the first of a series of county offices: high
sheriff, register of wills, recorder of deeds, clerk of the orphans’
court, justice of the peace, militia captain, and cotrustee of the loan
office.

On the provincial level, for most of the period 1758–76 Rodney
functioned as a justice of the Superior Court for the Three Lower
Counties (present Delaware) and as a legislator in the lower house,
including many tours as speaker. Between 1765 and 1774, he owned and
occupied a townhouse that he used while in Dover. He and Thomas McKean
compiled the colony’s laws, and they both attended the Stamp Act
Congress (1765). Three years later, the two of them and George Read,
all three later to sign the Declaration, drafted a protest to the King
concerning the Townshend Acts. In 1774, after Parliament closed Boston
Harbor, Rodney usurped the prerogative of the Proprietary Governor by
calling a special meeting of the legislature at New Castle, the first
Revolutionary convention in the State. Rodney, McKean, and Read were
sent to the First Continental Congress.

Although a congressional Member for 2 years, Rodney was often absent
in Delaware, sometimes presiding over the legislature and sometimes
meeting military responsibilities. In May 1775 he was elected a colonel
in the militia, and in September moved up to brigadier general. Late
the next June, while the independence resolution was pending in
Congress, he was investigating Loyalist agitations in Sussex County.
On the evening of July 1, after his return to Byfield, he received
McKean’s dispatch pointing out that Read had voted against independence
that day and pleading with Rodney to hurry to Philadelphia to break
the tie. Riding all night through a thunderstorm and stopping only
to change horses, he completed the 80-mile trip just in time to make
possible an affirmative vote for Delaware.

This brought down the wrath of the Kent County conservatives on
Rodney, who was not reelected to Congress nor to the legislature and
not appointed to the State constitutional convention. Out of office,
that fall and the next year he turned to military affairs, recruiting
troops and taking part in minor actions in Delaware and New Jersey.
In September 1777 acting State president McKean commissioned him as a
major general.

That spring, the legislature had designated Rodney as an admiralty
judge. In December it reelected him to the Continental Congress. The
next year, it nominated him as State president (1778–81), in which
capacity he stimulated the Delaware war effort. When he left office,
he belatedly sought medical treatment in Philadelphia for a cancerous
growth on his face, which had been bothering him for a decade and which
he had covered with a green silk veil. In 1783, though a dying man,
he entered the State senate and accepted the speakership, but passed
away the next year at the age of 55. Interred originally at Byfield
Plantation, his remains are now buried in the yard of Christ Episcopal
Church in Dover.




George Ross

PENNSYLVANIA

[Illustration]

      A few of the signers, such as George Ross, were latecomers
      to the Revolutionary cause. Like many others, he exerted
      more influence in State than national affairs.


The oldest son of an Anglican clergyman who had immigrated from
Scotland, Ross was born in 1730 at New Castle, Del. After a preliminary
classical education, he read law with his stepbrother John at
Philadelphia and in 1750 entered the bar. Settling the next year at
Lancaster, Pa., where he married and fathered two sons and a daughter,
he built up a successful law practice and served as crown prosecutor
for Cumberland County (1751–63). A member of the colonial legislature
from 1768 until 1775, he sometimes joined in its disputes with the
Proprietary Governor and demonstrated an interest in Indian affairs.

Meantime, in 1774, despite his Loyalist leanings, a provincial
convention to which Ross had been elected sent him to the Continental
Congress. The next year, by which time he had for some reason
decided to affiliate with the Revolutionaries, he also served on the
Pennsylvania council of safety and held a militia colonelcy. In 1776 he
assisted in negotiating a peace treaty with the Indians in northwestern
Pennsylvania, and acted as vice president of the State constitutional
convention, for which he helped draft a declaration of rights. Not a
Member of Congress during the voting for independence on July 1–2,
1776, he received his appointment soon enough to sign the Declaration
on August 2. He won a reputation among his colleagues for his
eloquence, wit, and conviviality, but made no noteworthy contributions
to congressional proceedings. Illness brought about his resignation in
January 1777.

In 1778, while Ross was acting as admiralty judge in Pennsylvania,
a congressional court of appeals overruled his decision in a case
involving a dispute between a citizen of Connecticut and the State
of Pennsylvania. Ross, refusing to acknowledge the authority of the
higher court to counter State decisions, initiated a dispute between
Pennsylvania and the Central Government that represented an early
manifestation of the States rights controversy and did not subside
until 1809. But Ross did not live to see the outcome, for he died in
Philadelphia in 1779 at the age of 49. He was buried in Christ Church
Burial Ground.




Benjamin Rush

PENNSYLVANIA

[Illustration]

      Doctor, medical educator, chemist, humanitarian,
      politician, author, reformer-moralist, soldier, temperance
      advocate, abolitionist—Benjamin Rush was all of these. One
      of the younger signers, only 30 years of age at the time,
      he was already a physician of note.


Rush, the fourth of seven children, was born in 1745 at Byberry (“The
Homestead”), near Philadelphia. At the age of 5, his farmer-gunsmith
father died. The youth obtained a sound education at West Nottingham
Academy, in Rising Sun, Md., operated by an uncle, and graduated from
the College of New Jersey (later Princeton University). Returning to
Philadelphia in 1760, he apparently first considered studying law
but chose medicine. In 1766, at the end of a 5-year apprenticeship
to a local physician, he sailed to Scotland, where 2 years later the
University of Edinburgh awarded him a medical degree.

While there, assisted by a fellow college alumnus and one-day fellow
signer, Richard Stockton, Rush helped overcome the objections of John
Witherspoon’s wife and persuaded Witherspoon to accept the presidency
of the College of New Jersey. In 1769, after further training in
London, where Rush made the acquaintance of Benjamin Franklin, and a
short visit to Paris, he came back to Philadelphia and set up practice.
Before the year was out, he obtained the first professorship of
chemistry in the country at the College of Philadelphia, and wrote the
first American textbook on the subject.

While prospering as a physician, Rush cultivated the friendship of such
men as Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Thomas Paine. In fact, Rush
suggested to the latter that he write his famous tract _Common Sense_
(1776), supplied the title, and aided in its publication. He also
contributed political articles to the press. That same year, he married
Stockton’s eldest daughter, Julia.

Rush’s tour in the Continental Congress was brief. In June 1776 he
attended a Pennsylvania conference of patriots and helped draft a
declaration of the colony’s support for national independence. In
recognition of these services, the following month the provincial
convention sent him to Congress—after the adoption of the Declaration.
In December, Philadelphia threatened by British invasion, the
Government fled to Baltimore. Rush apparently, however, did not spend
much time there. That same month, he relocated his wife at the home of
a relative in Cecil County, Md., and took part in General Washington’s
New Jersey campaign as a surgeon in the Philadelphia militia.

In April 1777, not reelected to Congress because of his opposition to
the Pennsylvania constitution of the previous year, Rush accepted the
position of surgeon general in the Middle Department of the Continental
Army. Abhorring the deplorable conditions prevailing in the medical
service, in a complaint to Washington he accused his superior, Dr.
William Shippen, of maladministration. Washington referred the matter
to Congress, which vindicated Shippen. In January 1778 Rush angrily
resigned. His subsequent criticisms of Washington and his participation
in the Conway Cabal, a movement to replace General Washington, ended
his military and, for a time, his political career. He resumed his
medical practice in Philadelphia.

[Illustration: Benjamin Rush long served on the staff of Philadelphia’s
Pennsylvania Hospital, shown here in 1799. Founded in 1751 and still in
use today, it is the oldest hospital in the United States.]

In 1787 Rush wrote tracts in the newspapers endorsing the U.S.
Constitution. In the Commonwealth ratifying convention that same year,
he aided James Wilson in the struggle for its adoption. In 1789–90 Rush
attended the Pennsylvania constitutional convention. From 1797 until
1813 he served as Treasurer of the U.S. Mint.

Meantime Rush, through his writings and lectures, had become probably
the best known physician and medical teacher in the land, and he
fostered Philadelphia’s ascendancy as the early medical center of
the Nation. His students, who idolized him, came from as far away
as Europe to attend his classes at the College of Philadelphia, and
its successors the University of the State of Pennsylvania and the
University of Pennsylvania (1791). He also served on the staff of the
Pennsylvania Hospital from 1783 until the end of his life, helped found
the Philadelphia College of Physicians (1787), and held office as first
president of the Philadelphia Medical Society. In 1786 he founded the
Philadelphia Dispensary, the first free medical clinic in the country.
His work among the insane at the Pennsylvania Hospital resulted in
_Medical Inquiries and Observations Upon the Diseases of the Mind_
(1812), which to some degree foreshadowed modern psychiatric techniques.

Rush won much less favor from his professional peers than he did from
his students. His critics particularly attacked his theory of bleeding
and purging for the treatment of disease. Although he was one of the
few doctors who remained in Philadelphia during the devastating yellow
fever epidemics of 1793 and 1798, his opponents criticized his methods
of treatment.

Aroused by the idealism of the Revolution as well as the plight
of the poor and sick he encountered in his medical practice, Rush
helped pioneer various humanitarian and social movements that were to
restructure U.S. life in the 19th century. These included abolition of
slavery and educational and prison reform. Rush also condemned public
and capital punishment and advocated temperance. Many of his reform
articles appeared in Essays: _Literary, Moral, and Philosophical_
(1798).

Finally, Rush helped organize and sat as a trustee of Dickinson College
(1783); aided in founding the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the
Abolition of Slavery (1787) and later served as its president; enjoyed
membership in the American Philosophical Society; and was a cofounder
and vice president of the Philadelphia Bible Society, which advocated
the use of scripture in the public schools.

A typhus epidemic claimed Rush’s life at the age of 67 in 1813.
Surviving him were six sons and three daughters of the 13 children
he had fathered. His grave is in Christ Church Burial Ground at
Philadelphia.




Edward Rutledge

SOUTH CAROLINA

[Illustration]

      Edward Rutledge, at the age of 26, was the youngest of the
      signers. Despite his youth, he had already made a name
      for himself in South Carolina as a lawyer-politician and
      had assumed leadership of his congressional delegation.
      A moderate, he at first fought against the independence
      resolution but finally submitted to the majority and voted
      for it. His later State career, which included combat
      action in the militia, culminated in the governorship.


The fifth son and youngest child of an Irish immigrant and physician,
Rutledge was born in 1749 at or near Charleston, S.C. Like Middleton,
Lynch, and Heyward, the other South Carolina signers, as a young man he
studied law in England. In 1773, during his first year of practice on
his return to Charleston, he won Whig acclaim by obtaining the release
of newspaper publisher Thomas Powell, who had been imprisoned by the
Crown for printing an article critical of the Loyalist upper house
of the colonial legislature. The next year, the grateful Whigs named
Rutledge as one of five Delegates to the First Continental Congress;
and he married Henrietta Middleton, his colleague’s sister. The
Rutledges were to have three children.

Rutledge spent his first congressional term in the shadow of the more
experienced South Carolina Delegates, among them his older brother,
John, and his father-in-law, Henry Middleton. During 1775–76, however,
both in Congress and in two South Carolina provincial assemblies, his
increasing self-confidence and maturation of judgment brought him the
esteem of his associates. In the latter year, two of the senior South
Carolina Delegates, Christopher Gadsden and Henry Middleton, retired
from Congress and Thomas Lynch, Sr., suffered an incapacitating stroke.
Rutledge, his brother absent on State business, found himself the
delegation leader.

On June 7, 1776, when Richard Henry Lee of Virginia proposed national
independence, Rutledge led the moderates in securing a delay in
the voting. He knew that independence was inevitable. In March his
colony, preceded only by New Hampshire, had adopted a constitution.
Moreover, that same month the provincial assembly had empowered its
Delegates to vote for independence if they so desired. Yet Rutledge
firmly believed that the Colonies should first confederate and nurture
foreign alliances to strengthen themselves for the perilous step they
were about to take. When the vote on independence came up on July
1, he refused to yield and South Carolina balloted negatively. But
nine of the Colonies voted affirmatively. Rutledge, realizing that
the resolution would probably carry anyway, proposed that the vote
be recast the following day. He persuaded the other South Carolina
Delegates to submit to the will of the majority for the sake of
unanimity, and South Carolina reversed its position.

Rutledge’s last important assignment occurred in September, when he
accompanied John Adams and Benjamin Franklin on a vain peace mission
to Staten Island to negotiate with British Admiral Lord Richard Howe,
who in union with his brother, Gen. William Howe, was belatedly and
idealistically trying to resolve the differences between the Colonies
and the mother country. Two months later, Rutledge departed from
Congress in order to resume his law practice in Charleston.

In 1778 Rutledge accepted a seat in the State legislature and the next
year won reelection to Congress, though military duties prevented his
attendance. As a militia captain, in February 1779 he took part in Gen.
William Moultrie’s defeat of the British at Port Royal Island, S.C. But
in May, 1780, during the siege of Charleston, the redcoats captured
Rutledge, as well as Heyward and Middleton, and imprisoned them at St.
Augustine, Fla., until July 1781.

From 1782 until 1798 Rutledge sat in the State legislature, which
on three occasions designated him as a presidential elector. During
this period, his mistrust of unbridled republicanism reinforced his
conservatism and brought him into the Federalist Party. In private
life he flourished, his wealth increasing through his law practice
and investments in plantations. In 1792 his first wife died and he
remarried. To crown his achievements, 6 years later the people of
South Carolina chose him as Governor. But, his health poor, he died at
Charleston early in 1800 at the age of 50, nearly a year before the end
of his term. The yard of St. Philip’s Episcopal Church is the site of
his grave.




Roger Sherman

CONNECTICUT

[Illustration]

      By dint of self-education, hard work, and business acumen,
      Roger Sherman soared above his humble origins to prominence
      in local, State, and National political affairs. He was
      a member of the committee that drafted the Declaration
      of Independence. He and Robert Morris were the only men
      to sign the three bulwark documents of the Republic: the
      Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, and
      Constitution. Twice married, Sherman fathered 15 children.


In 1723, when Sherman was 2 years of age, his family relocated from his
Newton, Mass., birthplace to Dorchester (present Stoughton). As a boy,
he was spurred by a desire to learn, and read widely in his spare time
to supplement his minimal education at a common school. But he spent
most of his waking hours helping his father with farming chores and
learning the cobbler’s trade from him. In 1743, or 2 years after his
father’s death, Sherman joined an elder brother who had settled at New
Milford, Conn.

Purchasing a store, becoming county surveyor, and winning a variety
of town offices, Sherman prospered and assumed leadership in the
community. Without benefit of a legal education, he was admitted to the
bar in 1754 and embarked upon a distinguished judicial and political
career. In the period 1755–61, except for a brief interval, he served
as a representative in the colonial legislature and held the offices
of justice of the peace and county judge. Somehow he also eked out
time to publish an essay on monetary theory and a series of almanacs
incorporating his own astronomical observations and verse.

In 1761, abandoning his law practice, Sherman moved to New Haven, Conn.
There he managed a store that catered to Yale students and another one
in nearby Wallingford. He also became a friend and benefactor of Yale
College, functioning for many years as its treasurer.

[Illustration: Residence of Roger Sherman, in New Haven, Conn., from
1768 until his death in 1793.]

Meanwhile, Sherman’s political career had blossomed. He rose from
justice of the peace and county judge to an associate judge of the
Connecticut Superior Court and to representative in both houses of the
colonial assembly. Although opposed to extremism, he early joined the
fight against Britain. He supported nonimportation measures and headed
the New Haven committee of correspondence.

Sherman was a longtime and influential Member of the Continental
Congress (1774–81 and 1783–84). He won membership on the committees
that drafted the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of
Confederation, as well as those concerned with Indian affairs,
national finance, and military matters. To solve economic problems,
at both the National and State levels, he advocated high taxes rather
than excessive borrowing or the issuance of paper currency. While
in Congress, Sherman remained active in State and local politics,
continuing to hold the office of judge of the Connecticut Superior
Court, as well as membership on the council of safety. In 1783 he
helped codify Connecticut’s statutory laws. The next year, he was
elected mayor of New Haven (1784–86).

Sherman could not resist the lure of national service. In 1787 he
represented his State at the Constitutional Convention, in which he
played a major role. He conceived and introduced the Connecticut,
or so-called Great, Compromise, which broke a deadlock between
the large and small States by providing for a dual legislative
system—representation by proportion of population in the lower house
and equal representation in the upper house. He was also instrumental
in Connecticut’s ratification of the Constitution.

Sherman capped his career by serving as U.S. Representative (1789–91)
and Senator (1791–93), espousing the Federalist cause. He died at
New Haven in 1793 at the age of 72 and is buried in the Grove Street
Cemetery.




James Smith

PENNSYLVANIA

[Illustration]

      James Smith, a lawyer who had emigrated from Ireland to
      the Colonies, represented the Pennsylvania back-country in
      Revolutionary conventions and the Continental Congress. He
      also helped draft the Pennsylvania constitution.


Smith, the second son in a large family, was born in northern Ireland
about 1719. When he was around 10 years old, his father emigrated to
America and settled on acreage west of the Susquehanna River in York
County, Pa. James studied surveying and classical languages at Rev.
Francis Alison’s academy in New London, Pa., and then read law in the
office of his elder brother at Lancaster. He was admitted to the bar
in 1745 and moved westward to the Shippensburg vicinity in Cumberland
County. A lack of clients and surveying work caused him about 1750 to
relocate eastward to York, where he married a decade later. Although he
was the only lawyer in town until 1769, he experienced difficulty in
recruiting clients. Probably for this reason, during the years 1771–78
he undertook iron manufacturing, but the venture failed and he lost
£5,000.

Smith early emerged as a local Whig leader. In 1774, at a provincial
convention in Philadelphia, he supported nonimportation measures
and advocated an intercolonial congress. That same year, at York
he raised a militia company, in which he served as captain and
later honorary colonel. At two provincial meetings in 1775–76, he
championed the interests of the western counties and helped formulate
resolutions calling for independence, the strengthening of defenses,
and establishment of a new provincial government. During the latter
year, he sat on the drafting committee in the State constitutional
convention. Elected to Congress (1776–78) on July 20, 1776, after the
vote on independence had been taken, he arrived in Philadelphia in time
to sign the Declaration. Among his colleagues he gained a reputation as
a wit, conversationalist, and eccentric.

During the period 1779–82 Smith held various State offices: one-term
legislator, judge of the Pennsylvania high court of errors and appeals,
brigadier general in the militia, and State counselor during the
Wyoming Valley land dispute between Pennsylvania and Connecticut. In
1785 he turned down reelection to Congress because of his age. His
major activity prior to his retirement in 1801 was the practice of law.
Smith died at about the age of 87 in 1806 at York, survived by two
of his five children. His grave is in the First Presbyterian Church
Cemetery.




Richard Stockton

NEW JERSEY

[Illustration]

      Circumstances of the times draw some men into public life
      who otherwise might avoid its burdens—and sorrows. One of
      these was Richard Stockton, whose wartime detention by the
      British contributed to his untimely death.


Stockton, son of a wealthy landowner and judge, was born in 1730 at
Morven, the family estate and his lifelong home, at Princeton, N.J.
After a preparatory education at West Nottingham Academy, in Rising
Sun, Md., he graduated in 1748 from the College of New Jersey (later
Princeton University), then in Newark but relocated 8 years hence at
Princeton. In 1754 he completed an apprenticeship with a Newark lawyer
and joined the bar. The next year, he wed poetess Annis Boudinot, by
whom he had two sons and four daughters. By the mid-1760’s he was
recognized as one of the ablest lawyers in the Middle Colonies.

Like his father a patron of the College of New Jersey, in 1766 Stockton
sailed on its behalf to Scotland to recruit Rev. John Witherspoon
for the presidency. Aiding in this endeavor, complicated by the
opposition of Witherspoon’s wife, was Benjamin Rush, a fellow alumnus
then enrolled at the University of Edinburgh. In 1768, the year after
Stockton’s departure, Witherspoon finally accepted.

Stockton resumed his law practice, spending his spare hours at Morven
breeding choice cattle and horses, collecting art objects, and
expanding his library. Yet, though he had some time before expressed
disinterest in public life, in 1768 he began a 6-year term on the
executive council of New Jersey and then sat on the provincial Supreme
Court (1774–76).

Stockton became associated with the Revolutionary movement during
its initial stages. In 1764 he advocated American representation in
Parliament, but during the Stamp Act crisis the next year questioned
its right to control the Colonies at all. By 1774, though dreading
the possibility of war, he was espousing colonial self-rule under the
Crown. Elected to Congress 2 years later, he voted for independence and
signed the Declaration. That same year, he met defeat in a bid for the
New Jersey governorship, but rejected the chance to become first chief
justice of the State Supreme Court to remain in Congress.

Late in 1776 fate turned against Stockton. In November, while
inspecting the northern Continental Army in upper New York State
with fellow Congressman George Clymer, Stockton hurried home when he
learned of the British invasion of New Jersey and removed his family
to a friend’s home in Monmouth County. While he was there, Loyalists
informed the British, who captured and imprisoned him under harsh
conditions at Perth Amboy, N.J., and later in New York. A formal
remonstrance from Congress and other efforts to obtain his exchange
resulted in his release, in poor physical condition, sometime in
1777. To add to his woes, he found that the British had pillaged and
partially burned Morven. Still an invalid, he died at Princeton in 1781
at the age of 50. He is buried at the Stony Brook Quaker Meeting House
Cemetery.




Thomas Stone

MARYLAND

[Illustration]

      By the time the Continental Congress voted for independence
      from Great Britain on July 2, 1776, only a handful of
      conservatives remained in the body. Included in this
      group were Thomas Stone of Maryland, Carter Braxton of
      Virginia, George Read of Delaware, and Edward Rutledge of
      South Carolina—erstwhile opponents of independence who,
      except for Read, submitted to the will of the majority and
      balloted for it. Stone, a rich planter-lawyer of retiring
      disposition, preferred to stay in the background during his
      long but limited political career.


Stone was born in 1743 at Poynton Manor, his father’s plantation
near the village of Welcome in Charles County, Md. He enjoyed all
the advantages that accrued to the eldest son. Following tutorial
instruction in the classics as a youth, he apprenticed himself to an
Annapolis lawyer and in 1764 joined the bar. For the first 2 years he
practiced at Frederick, Md., and then settled in his home county. He
married 2 years later. Apparently with part of his wife’s dowry, he
purchased land a few miles to the northeast of his birthplace. There,
near Port Tobacco, in 1771 he built Habre-de-Venture, his home and
principal residence for the rest of his life.

Stone entered politics in 1773 as a member of the Charles County
committee of correspondence. The next year, on behalf of the
Proprietary Governor, he helped prosecute Joseph H. Harrison, a
Maryland legislator who had refused to pay the poll tax for the support
of the Anglican clergy. This action, despite its legal ethicality,
did not endear Stone to the patriots. His opponents, counsel for
the defense, consisted of Thomas Johnson, Samuel Chase, and William
Paca—all three of whom later became his congressional colleagues.

That same year, 1774, Stone won appointment to the provincial
convention, which the following year sent him to Congress. A far less
enthusiastic Revolutionary than most Congressmen, he heartily favored
reconciliation almost up to the time of the vote on independence and
was one of the few Delegates who favored peace negotiations with
Britisher Lord Richard Howe in September 1776, some 2 months after the
adoption of the Declaration. A poor speaker, Stone rarely participated
in debates but sat on the committee that drafted the Articles of
Confederation, though he did not sign the document. He remained in
Congress until 1778.

Meantime, a couple of years earlier, Stone had begun a tour in the
State senate that was to last for practically the remainder of his
life. In 1784 he also returned to the Continental Congress, where he
served for a few days as acting President but resigned before the year
expired to resume his law practice. His last act of public service
occurred the following year, when he and two others represented
Maryland at the Mount Vernon Conference.

In 1787 Stone’s wife, whose health had been failing for more than
a decade, passed away at the age of 34. The grief-stricken Stone
abandoned his work, declined to attend the Constitutional Convention to
which he had been elected, and decided to visit England. A few months
later, though only in his mid-forties, he died suddenly while awaiting
a vessel at Alexandria, Va. Three of his children survived him. Stone
is buried in the family graveyard adjacent to Habre-de-Venture.




George Taylor

PENNSYLVANIA

[Illustration]

      Surmounting the poverty that forced him to come to the
      American Colonies from Ireland as an indentured servant
      to an ironmaster, George Taylor climbed to the top of the
      industry. In the process, merging politics with commerce,
      he gained enough distinction in county and State affairs
      to win election to the Continental Congress—his only
      service on the national level. Even then, he attended only
      a few months, just long enough to sign the Declaration. He
      contributed more directly to the cause of liberty as an
      ironmaster, producing ordnance for the Continental Army.


When Taylor was about 20 years of age, he indentured himself and
emigrated from northern Ireland, where he had been born in 1716,
to Pennsylvania. He began as a laborer and then became a clerk at
Warwick Furnace, in Chester County, and within 3 years rose to
bookkeeper-manager of nearby Coventry Forge, another enterprise of his
employer. In 1742, the year after the latter died, Taylor acquired his
business when he married his widow; she bore him a son and daughter.

In the mid-1750’s Taylor moved northeastward to Bucks County, where
he and a partner leased Durham Furnace, about 2 miles south of the
Northampton County line and 10 miles south of Easton. Apparently after
1763 Taylor lived much of the time at or near Easton and acquired
property there. In 1768 his wife died; he subsequently sired five
children by his housekeeper out of wedlock. The year of his wife’s
death, he built a home about 15 miles west of the city on a 331-acre
tract he had purchased the year before. In 1771 he leased most of the
land out as a farm, and 5 years later sold the house and land.

Taylor had begun his public life in 1747, when he took a commission
as a captain in the Chester County militia. In 1761 he was appointed
as justice of the peace for Bucks County, but devoted most of his
energies to Northampton County, which he served as justice of the peace
(1764–75) and representative in the colonial legislature (1764–70). In
1774 Taylor, a political moderate, became a member of the Northampton
County committee of correspondence. The next year, he attended a
provincial Revolutionary convention, was elected to the provincial
assembly, served on the council of safety, and became a colonel in the
Bucks and Northampton County militias.

In July 1776 the Pennsylvania assembly selected Taylor as one of its
new Delegates to the Continental Congress. His only noteworthy action
there was signing the Declaration. The next January, however, he and
fellow signer George Walton of Georgia negotiated a peace treaty with
the Six Indian Nations (Iroquois) at Easton, Pa., but Congress did not
ratify it. In March the voters of Northampton County elected Taylor to
the new Supreme Executive Assembly of Pennsylvania, but illness and
financial difficulties restricted his participation to only 6 weeks, at
the end of which he retired from public life.

By this time, Taylor’s Durham Furnace was turning out grapeshot,
cannonballs, bar shot, and cannon for the Revolutionary army—for which
Taylor was ill-compensated. In 1778 the State dispossessed him of his
lease on the Durham Furnace, owned by the Philadelphia Loyalist John
Galloway and confiscated by the State. Taylor then moved to Greenwich
Township, N.J., and leased Greenwich Forge, which he operated until his
death at the age of 65 in 1781. The year before, his health failing,
Taylor had returned to Easton and leased a home. Originally buried in
the yard of the German Evangelical Lutheran Church at Easton, his body
was later moved to the Easton Cemetery.




Matthew Thornton

NEW HAMPSHIRE

[Illustration]

      Probably six of the 56 signers belatedly penned their
      signatures, eight of them were foreign-born, and four
      were physicians. Matthew Thornton belongs in all three
      categories. Less exclusively, he ranks among the
      substantial number of signers whose national service was
      brief or relatively insignificant.


Thornton was born in Ireland about 1714. Approximately 4 years later,
his Scotch-Irish parents emigrated with their family to America,
settling first at Wiscasset, in present Maine, and then near Worcester,
Mass. Young Thornton, after attending common schools, undertook the
study of medicine with a local doctor. In 1740 he began what proved
to be a thriving practice in the Scotch-Irish town of Londonderry
(present Derry Village), N.H. Five years later, as a surgeon in the New
Hampshire militia during King George’s War (1740–48), he participated
in the British expedition from New England that captured Louisbourg,
the French fortress in Nova Scotia.

By 1758 Thornton was representing Londonderry in the colonial
legislature and stayed there until 1775. During the long interim,
about 1760 he married and began a family of five; and throughout
the period he figured prominently in New Hampshire politics and
Revolutionary activities. In 1775–76 he held the offices of president
of the provincial assembly and constitutional convention, chairman
of the council of safety, and member of the upper and lower houses of
the legislature, as well as speaker of the former. Although he did
not enter Congress until November 1776, or 3 months after the formal
signing of the Declaration, he was granted permission to affix his
signature.

About a year later, Thornton left Congress to devote his time to his
duties as associate justice of the State Superior Court. Despite a lack
of legal education, he had acquired this position in 1776. He held it
until 1782, some 2 years after he retired from his medical practice
in Londonderry and settled on a farm he purchased near Merrimack,
N.H. Later, in 1784–86, he completed a tour in the State senate. He
spent his last years farming and operating a ferry—Lutwyche’s (later
Thornton’s) Ferry—across the Merrimack River.

Thornton died in 1803 at about the age of 89 while visiting his
daughter in Newburyport, Mass. His grave is in Thornton’s Ferry
Cemetery, near the site of his Merrimack home.




George Walton

GEORGIA

[Illustration]

      Like signers Button Gwinnett and Lyman Hall a nonnative
      of Georgia, George Walton fought hard to win independence
      for his adopted State and his Nation—both in the political
      arena and on the battlefield. He was wounded in the British
      siege of Savannah late in 1778 and endured captivity for
      almost a year. He evinced the same kind of tenacity in all
      his other endeavors and conquered a string of adversities
      in his ascent from humble origins to the highest National
      and State offices.


Born sometime in the 1740’s near Farmville, Va., Walton was orphaned
early and reared by an uncle, who apprenticed him to a carpenter.
Walton supplemented extensive independent study with some formal
schooling. In 1769 he moved to Savannah, Ga., read law under a local
attorney, and 5 years later joined the bar.

That same year, Walton plunged into politics. Rallying Revolutionaries
at Savannah as did Lyman Hall in St. John’s Parish—the two Whig hotbeds
in a lukewarm colony—Walton helped organize and played a key part in
meetings at Savannah in July and August 1774 and the first provincial
congress the next January. But these meetings, to which only a few
parishes sent representatives, hardly set the dissent in motion.
The divided delegates, aware of their limited constituency, failed
to send Delegates to the Continental Congress, as had all the other
Colonies, and thus alienated St. John’s Parish. Except for creation
of a committee of correspondence, to which Walton was appointed, the
conferees for the most part substituted patriotic talk for action.
During this period, Walton, blending political activism with romance,
took a bride. She later gave birth to two sons.

By July 1775, when the second provincial congress convened and
designated Walton as secretary, apathy in the Revolutionary ranks had
given way to aggressiveness. The congress dispatched four Delegates to
the Continental Congress to join Hall, already an unofficial “delegate”
from St. John’s Parish. The next year, the third provincial congress
elected Walton, by this time chairman of the council of safety, as a
Delegate (1776–81). In this capacity, he sat on committees dealing with
western lands, national finance, and Indian affairs. His only lapse in
attendance occurred in 1778–79, when the military defense of his own
State took precedence over his congressional obligations. As a colonel
in the Georgia militia, he was wounded and captured during the siege
of Savannah in November-December 1778—the beginning of the British
invasion of the South. He was imprisoned until the following September,
when he was exchanged for a navy captain.

Right after his release, at Augusta Walton became involved in a
factional dispute between two groups of Revolutionaries. Walton’s
group, irritated because their conservative opponents had taken
advantage of the confusion generated by the British occupation of
Savannah by putting their own “governor” into office without benefit
of a general election, countered by selecting Walton as its “governor”
(November 1779-January 1780). In January the new legally elected
legislature picked a Governor, another anti-conservative. Walton
returned to the Continental Congress in 1780–81, after which he headed
back to Georgia.

Walton’s subsequent career suffered no diminution. His offices included
those of chief justice (1783–89) and justice (1790–95 and 1799–1804)
of the State Superior Court; delegate to the State constitutional
convention (1788); presidential elector (1789); Governor (1789–90); and
U.S. Senator (1795–96), filling out an unexpired term. Meantime, he
had been elected as a delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention
(1787), but did not attend. An advocate of higher education, he was
also a trustee and founder of Richmond Academy, in Augusta, and
Franklin College (later the University of Georgia), in Athens.

About 1790 while Governor, changing his residence from Savannah to
the capital of Augusta, Walton built “Meadow Garden” cottage on
the northern edge of the city on confiscated Loyalist lands he had
acquired. He lived in the cottage for 5 years, when he moved to College
Hill, a country estate he erected on the western outskirts. He died
there in 1804. Assigned first to the Rosney Cemetery in Augusta, his
remains now rest at the Signers’ Monument in that city.




William Whipple

NEW HAMPSHIRE

[Illustration]

      William Whipple, a sea captain turned merchant, retired
      from business to further the Revolution. In addition to
      sitting in Congress, he commanded New Hampshire militia in
      two major campaigns and held various State offices.


Whipple, the eldest of five children, was born in 1730, at Kittery, in
present Maine. He attended local schools and went to sea while still a
boy. In his early twenties he became a shipmaster, and later probably
sometimes engaged in the slave trade. About 1760 he gave up the sea and
founded a mercantile firm at Portsmouth, N.H., with his brother Joseph.
In 1767 he married the daughter of a wealthy merchant-sea captain;
their only child died in infancy.

By the outbreak of the Revolution, Whipple had become one of the
leading citizens of Portsmouth. In 1775, his fortune well established,
he left business to devote his time to public affairs. That year,
he represented Portsmouth in the provincial assembly at Exeter,
and served on the New Hampshire council of safety. The following
year, he won seats in the upper house of the State legislature and
in the Continental Congress. His congressional tour, interrupted
intermittently by militia duty, lasted until 1779. He concerned himself
mainly with military, marine, and financial matters. A tough-minded,
independent individual, he recommended military aggressiveness in the
war instead of diplomacy and favored severe punishment of Loyalists and
speculators.

In the fall of 1777 Whipple, a brigadier general in the New Hampshire
militia, led four regiments to upper New York State and helped encircle
and besiege the British army at Saratoga. He was present on October
17 at the surrender of Gen. John Burgoyne; signed the Convention of
Saratoga, ending the New York campaign; and helped escort the British
troops to a winter encampment near Boston to await embarkation for
England. In 1778 he led another contingent of New Hampshire militia
into Rhode Island on a campaign that sought but failed to recapture
Newport from the British.

During his last years, Whipple held the offices of State legislator
(1780–84), associate justice of the New Hampshire Superior Court
(1782–85), receiver of finances for Congress in New Hampshire
(1782–84), and in 1782 president of a commission that arbitrated the
Wyoming Valley land dispute between Connecticut and Pennsylvania. Ill
the remaining few years of his life, he passed away in 1785 at the age
of 55 at Portsmouth, where he was buried in Union Cemetery. His wife
survived him.




William Williams

CONNECTICUT

[Illustration]

      Merchant William Williams was prominent in Connecticut
      politics, but never won national fame except for signing
      the Declaration.


A Congregational pastor’s son, Williams was born in 1731 at Lebanon,
Conn., his lifelong home. After graduating from Harvard in 1751, he
began studying for the ministry under his father. Four years later,
during the French and Indian War (1754–63), he accompanied a British
expedition to Lake George, in northeastern New York, that won a
victory. Back home, he became a merchant. In 1771 he married a daughter
of Jonathan Trumbull, Royal Governor of Connecticut; they had three
children.

During his long political career, Williams held a myriad of local,
provincial, and State offices: town clerk (1752–96) and selectman
(1760–85); member, clerk, and speaker of the lower house of the
colonial legislature (1755–76); State legislator (1781–84); member of
the Governor’s council (1784–1803); judge of the Windham County court
(1776–1805); and probate judge for the Windham district (1775–1809).
He also represented Connecticut at various New England meetings, and
attended the 1788 convention that ratified the Federal Constitution, of
which he approved.

Upon the outbreak of the Revolution, Williams threw his weight behind
the cause. Besides writing tracts for the press expressing the colonial
viewpoint, he prepared Revolutionary state papers for Governor
Trumbull. Williams also raised money for and personally contributed
to the war effort. Between 1773 and 1776 he held a colonelcy in the
Connecticut militia and served on the provincial council of safety. In
Congress (1776–78 and 1783–84), he sat on the Board of War and helped
frame the Articles of Confederation, though he did not sign them.
During the winter of 1780–81, while a French regiment was stationed in
Lebanon, he moved out of his home and turned it over to the officers.

Williams died at the age of 80 in 1811. His grave is in the Trumbull
Cemetery, about a mile northeast of town.




James Wilson

PENNSYLVANIA

[Illustration]

      Brilliant yet enigmatic James Wilson possessed one of the
      most complex and contradictory personalities of all the
      signers. Never able to reconcile his strong personal drive
      for wealth and power with his political goals nor to find
      a middle road between conservatism and republicanism, he
      alternately experienced either popularity or public scorn,
      fame or obscurity, wealth or poverty. Yet his mastery of
      the law and political theory enabled him to play a leading
      role in framing the U.S. Constitution and to rise from
      frontier lawyer to Justice of the Supreme Court.


Wilson was born in 1741 or 1742 at Carskerdo, near St. Andrews,
Scotland, and educated at the universities of St. Andrews, Glasgow,
and Edinburgh. He then emigrated to America, arriving in the midst
of the Stamp Act agitations in 1765. Early the next year, he accepted
a position as Latin tutor at the College of Philadelphia, but almost
immediately abandoned it to study law under John Dickinson.

[Illustration: From 1778 until 1790 James Wilson resided in this
Philadelphia residence, which became known as “Fort Wilson” in 1779,
when a mob of citizens and militiamen attacked it.]

In 1768, the year after his admission to the bar, Wilson set up
practice at Reading, Pa. Two years later, he moved westward to the
Scotch-Irish settlement of Carlisle, and the following year took a
bride. He specialized in land law and built up a broad clientele. On
borrowed capital, he also began to speculate in land. In some way he
managed, too, to lecture for many years on English literature at the
College of Philadelphia.

Wilson also became involved in Revolutionary politics. In 1774 he
took over chairmanship of the Carlisle committee of correspondence,
attended the first provincial assembly, and completed preparation of
_Considerations on the Nature and Extent of the Legislative Authority
of the British Parliament_. This tract circulated widely in England
and America and established Wilson as a Whig leader. It denied
Parliament’s authority over the Colonies, though it did not question
their allegiance to the Crown, and recommended a reorganization of the
imperial structure similar to the later British Commonwealth of Nations.

The next year, Wilson was elected to both the provincial assembly and
the Continental Congress, where he sat mainly on military and Indian
affairs committees. In 1776, reflecting the wishes of his constituents,
he joined the moderates in voting for a 3-week delay in considering
Richard Henry Lee’s resolution of June 7. On July 1, however, Wilson
dissented from the majority of the Pennsylvania delegation and
balloted with John Morton and Benjamin Franklin for independence. On
July 2 the three men, representing a majority of the Commonwealth’s
Delegates present, voted the same. Wilson’s strenuous opposition to
the republican Pennsylvania constitution of 1776, besides indicating
a switch to conservatism on his part, led to his removal from
Congress the following year. To avoid the clamor among his frontier
constituents, he repaired to Annapolis during the winter of 1777–78,
and then took up residence in Philadelphia.

Wilson affirmed his newly assumed political stance by closely
identifying with the aristocratic and conservative republican groups,
multiplying his business interests, and accelerating his land
speculation. He also took a position as Advocate-General for France in
America (1779–83), dealing with commercial and maritime matters, and
legally defended Loyalists and their sympathizers.

In the fall of 1779, during a period of inflation and food shortages, a
mob, including many militiamen and led by radical-constitutionalists,
set out to attack the republican leadership. Wilson was a prime target.
He and some 35 of his colleagues barricaded themselves in his home at
Third and Walnut Streets, henceforth known as “Fort Wilson.” During a
brief skirmish, several people on both sides were killed or wounded.
The shock cooled sentiments and pardons were issued all around, though
major political battles over the Commonwealth constitution still lay
ahead.

During 1781 Congress appointed Wilson as one of the directors of the
Bank of North America, newly founded by Robert Morris with the legal
advice of Wilson. In 1782–83, by which time the conservatives had
regained some of their power, he was reelected to Congress, as well as
in the period 1785–87.

Wilson reached the apex of his career in the U.S. Constitutional
Convention (1787), in which he was one of the leaders, both in
the floor debates and the drafting committee. That same year,
overcoming powerful opposition, he led the drive for ratification
in Pennsylvania, the second State to ratify. The new Commonwealth
constitution, drafted in 1789–90 along the lines of the U.S.
Constitution, was also primarily Wilson’s work and represented the
climax of his 14-year fight against the constitution of 1776.

For his services in the formation of the Federal Government, though
Wilson expected to be appointed Chief Justice, in 1789 President
Washington named him as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. He
was chosen that same year as the first law professor at the College of
Philadelphia. Two years hence, he began an official digest of the laws
of Pennsylvania, a project he never completed, though he carried on for
awhile after funds ran out.

Wilson, who wrote only a few opinions, did not achieve the success
on the Supreme Court that his capabilities and experience promised.
Indeed, during those years he was the object of much criticism and
barely escaped impeachment. For one thing, he tried to influence the
enactment of legislation in Pennsylvania favorable to land speculators.
Between 1792 and 1795 he also made huge but unwise land investments in
western New York and Pennsylvania, as well as in Georgia. This did not
stop him from conceiving a grandiose but ill-fated scheme, involving
vast sums of European capital, for the recruitment of European
colonists and their settlement on western lands. Meantime, in 1793,
a widower with six children, he had remarried; the one son from this
union died in infancy.

Four years later, to avoid arrest for debt, the distraught Wilson
moved from Philadelphia to Burlington, N.J. The next year, apparently
while on Federal circuit court business, he arrived at Edenton, N.C.,
in a state of acute mental stress and was taken into the home of
James Iredell, a fellow Supreme Court Justice. He died there within a
few months. Although first buried at Hayes Plantation near Edenton,
his remains were later reinterred in the yard of Christ Church at
Philadelphia.




John Witherspoon

NEW JERSEY

[Illustration]

      Rev. John Witherspoon, the only active clergyman among
      the signers, achieved a greater reputation as a religious
      leader and educator than as a politician. Emigrating
      from Scotland to America in the midst of the controversy
      between the Colonies and the Crown, he took part in the
      Revolution, lost a son during the war, and signed the
      Articles of Confederation as well as the Declaration. He is
      better known, however, for his role in the growth of the
      Presbyterian Church and for his distinguished presidency of
      the College of New Jersey (later Princeton University).


The son of a Calvinist minister, Witherspoon was born in 1723 at the
village of Gifford, near Edinburgh. He attended grammar school at
the neighboring town of Haddington and won master of arts (1739) and
divinity (1743) degrees from the University of Edinburgh. In 1743
the Haddington Presbytery licensed him to preach. He was ordained 2
years later at Beith, where he occupied a pulpit until 1757. He then
transferred to Paisley, not far from Glasgow. Meantime, in 1748, he had
married; only five of his ten children survived childhood.

Over the years, Witherspoon attained leadership of a group of
conservative clergymen who were engaged in a prolonged struggle with a
group of their colleagues to maintain the “purity” of orthodox Church
doctrine. Witherspoon penned a stream of sermons and tracts attacking
the opposition and denouncing moral decay in Scotland. He also defended
the traditional prerogative of the people to choose their own
ministers, a right ecclesiastical authorities had taken from them.

In 1768 Witherspoon channeled his energies in a new direction. He gave
up his post at Paisley and accepted the presidency of the College of
New Jersey, after two representatives of the college had visited him
and finally at the end of 2 years of effort overcome the objections of
his wife. He sailed to America with his family. The college bloomed
under his direction. He increased the endowment, instituted new
methods of instruction, and broadened and revitalized the curriculum.
Continuing also as a minister and church leader, he patched up a major
schism in the Presbyterian Church; stimulated its expansion, especially
in the Middle Colonies; and worked closely with the Congregationalists.

[Illustration: The College of New Jersey (later Princeton University)
in 1764. Rev. John Witherspoon served as its president from 1768 until
1794. The main building, Nassau Hall, is on the left; the President’s
House, on the right.]

The Revolution fanned Witherspoon’s hatred of the English, which had
originated in Scotland. By 1770 his students were openly demonstrating
in favor of the patriot cause. In a commencement oration he advocated
resistance to the Crown, which became his favorite theme in sermons
and essays. In 1774–76 he represented his county in the New Jersey
provincial assemblies, and sat on local committees of correspondence.
In the latter year he figured prominently in the agitations that led to
the removal from office and imprisonment of the Royal Governor, and
then received an appointment to the Continental Congress.

On July 2, 1776, in a congressional speech urging independence,
Witherspoon declared that the Colonies were “not only ripe for the
measure but in danger of rotting for the want of it.” In November,
when the British invaded New Jersey, he closed the College of New
Jersey. The redcoats occupied its major building, Nassau Hall, burned
the library, and committed other acts of destruction. The next year,
Witherspoon’s son James lost his life at the Battle of Germantown, Pa.

Witherspoon stayed in Congress until 1782. His main committee
assignments dealt with military and foreign affairs. He also
participated in the debates on the Articles of Confederation, aided
in setting up the executive departments, and argued for financial
stability. Meantime, in 1779, he had moved from the President’s House
at Princeton to Tusculum, a country home he had earlier built nearby.
He left the Rev. Samuel S. Smith, his son-in-law and the college vice
president, in charge of the nearly defunct institution.

Witherspoon devoted most of his effort during the postwar years
to rebuilding the college, which never fully recovered its prewar
prosperity during his lifetime. In addition, during the years 1783–89
he sat for two terms in the State legislature, attended the New Jersey
(1787) convention that ratified the Federal Constitution, participated
in the reorganization of the Presbyterian Church, and moderated its
first general assembly (1789). In 1791, at the age of 68, Witherspoon
took a second wife, a 24-year-old widow, who bore him two daughters.
Blind his last 2 years, he died in 1794, aged 71, at Tusculum. His
remains rest in the Presidents’ Lot at Princeton Cemetery.




Oliver Wolcott

CONNECTICUT

[Illustration]

      Oliver Wolcott, as much a soldier as a politician, helped
      convert the concept of independence into reality on the
      battlefield. He also occupied many local, provincial, and
      State offices, including the governorship. One of his five
      children, Oliver, also held that position and became U.S.
      Secretary of the Treasury.


Wolcott was the youngest son in a family of 15. Sired by Roger Wolcott,
a leading Connecticut politician, he was born in 1726 at Windsor
(present South Windsor), Conn. In 1747, just graduated from Yale
College at the top of his class, he began his military career. As a
militia captain during King George’s War (1740–48), he accompanied an
unsuccessful British expedition against the French in New France. Back
home, he studied medicine for a time with his brother before deciding
to turn to law.

In 1751, when Litchfield County was organized, Wolcott moved about 30
miles westward to the town of Litchfield and immediately took over the
first of a long string of county and State offices: county sheriff
(1751–71); member of the lower house (1764, 1767–68, and 1770) and
upper house (1771–86) of the colonial and State legislatures; and
probate (1772–81) and county (1774–78) judge. By 1774 he had risen to
the rank of colonel in the militia.

The next spring, the legislature named him as a commissary for
Connecticut troops and in the summer the Continental Congress
designated him as a commissioner of Indian affairs for the northern
department. In that capacity he attended a conference that year with
the Iroquois (Six Nations) at Albany, N.Y., that temporarily gained
their neutrality in the war. Before the year was out, he also aided in
arbitrating land disputes between Pennsylvania and Connecticut and New
York and Vermont.

Wolcott sat in Congress from 1775 until 1783 except for the year 1779.
In June 1776 illness caused him to return to Connecticut. Absent at
the time of the voting for independence the next month and at the
formal signing of the Declaration in August, he added his signature
sometime after his return to Congress in October. Throughout his tour,
Wolcott devoted portions of each year to militia duty, highlighted
by participation as a brigadier general in the New York campaigns of
1776–77 that culminated in the surrender of Gen. John Burgoyne in
October of the latter year at Saratoga (Schuylerville). During 1779, as
a major general, Wolcott defended the Connecticut seacoast against the
raids of William Tryon, Royal Governor of New York.

Wolcott’s postwar career was varied. On the national level, he helped
negotiate two Indian treaties: the Second Treaty of Fort Stanwix,
N.Y. (1784), in which the Iroquois ceded to the United States some of
their lands in New York and Pennsylvania; and another (1789) with the
Wyandottes, who gave up their tract in the Western Reserve, in present
Ohio. On the State level, Wolcott continued his long period of service
in the upper house of the legislature (ended 1786); enjoyed a lengthy
stint as Lieutenant Governor (1787–96); attended the convention (1788)
that ratified the U.S. Constitution; and, like his father before him
and his son after him, held the office of Governor (1796–97).

While occupying the latter position, Wolcott died, aged 71, at East
Windsor. His remains rest in the East Cemetery at Litchfield.




George Wythe

VIRGINIA

[Illustration]

      Virginia’s George Wythe spent only about a year in the
      Continental Congress, never aspired to any other national
      office, and played a minor part in the Constitutional
      Convention. But he made a deep impress on legal education
      in the Nation and strongly influenced the government and
      jurisprudence of his State. A brilliant classical scholar
      and the first professor of law in an American college, he
      instructed scores of young lawyers. Included among them
      were Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, John Marshall, and
      Henry Clay.


Wythe was born in 1726, the second of three children, on his father’s
plantation on the Back River in Elizabeth City County, Va., within the
confines of present Hampton. He lost his parents at an early age and
grew up under the guardianship of his older brother, Thomas. George
acquired a knowledge of the classics from his well-educated mother
before her death, and he probably attended for a time a grammar school
operated by the College of William and Mary.

Wythe’s brother later sent him to Prince George County to read law
under an uncle. In 1746, at the age of 20, he joined the bar, moved
to Spotsylvania County, and became associated with a lawyer there.
In December 1747, he married his partner’s sister, but she succumbed
the next year. In 1754 Lt. Gov. Robert Dinwiddie appointed him as
acting colonial attorney general, a position he held for a few months
and which likely required that he spend some time in Williamsburg.
The next year, Wythe’s brother died and he inherited his birthplace.
He chose, however, to live in Williamsburg in the house that his new
father-in-law, an architect, designed and built for him and his
betrothed, whom he married about 1755. Their only child died in infancy.

At Williamsburg, Wythe immersed himself in further study of the
classics and the law and achieved accreditation by the colonial Supreme
Court. Like his father, he served in the House of Burgesses (mid-1750’s
until 1775), first as delegate and after 1769 as clerk. During this
period, in 1768 he held the mayorship of Williamsburg, and the next
year sat on the board of visitors of the College of William and Mary.
He also had found time during the years 1762–67 to train youthful
Thomas Jefferson in the law. The two men, at first as mentor and pupil
and later as political allies, maintained a lifetime friendship.

Wythe first exhibited Revolutionary leanings in 1764 when Parliament
hinted to the Colonies that it might impose a Stamp Tax. By then
an experienced legislator, he drafted for the House of Burgesses a
remonstrance to Parliament so strident that his fellow legislators
modified it before adoption. Wythe was one of the first to express the
concept of separate nationhood for the Colonies within the British
Empire.

Although elected to Congress in 1775–76, Wythe exerted little influence
in that body. He spent considerable time helping draft a State
constitution and design a State seal, and was not present at the time
of the formal signing of the Declaration in August 1776. Furthermore,
within a few months, Wythe, Jefferson, and Edmund Pendleton undertook
a 3-year project to revise Virginia’s legal code. In 1777 Wythe also
presided as speaker of the lower house of the legislature.

An appointment as one of the three judges of the newly created Virginia
high court of chancery followed the next year. Sitting on it for 28
years, during 13 of which he was the only chancellor, Wythe charted the
course of Virginia jurisprudence. In conjunction with these duties, he
was an ex officio member of the State Superior Court.

Wythe’s real love was teaching. In 1779 Jefferson and other officials
of the College of William and Mary created the first chair of law in
a U.S. institution of higher learning and appointed Wythe to fill
it. In that position, he educated America’s earliest college-trained
lawyers, among them John Marshall and James Monroe. To supplement his
lectures, Wythe introduced the use of moot courts and legislatures,
in which students could put their knowledge into actual practice. In
1787 he also demonstrated his love of the classics and literature
by offering free to anyone interested a class in Latin, Greek, and
English literature. That same year, he attended the U.S. Constitutional
Convention, but played an insignificant role and did not sign the
Constitution. The following year, however, he was one of the Federalist
leaders at the Virginia ratifying convention.

In 1791, the year after Wythe resigned his professorship, his chancery
duties caused him to move his home to Richmond, the State capital.
But he was reluctant to give up his teaching and opened a private law
school. One of his last and most promising pupils was a teenager named
Henry Clay.

In 1806, in his eighth decade, Wythe died at Richmond under mysterious
circumstances—probably of poison administered by his heir, a favorite
grandnephew. Reflecting a lifelong aversion to slavery, Wythe
emancipated his slaves in his will. His grave is in the yard of St.
John’s Episcopal Church at Richmond.




Part Three

Signers of the Declaration:

Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings


Over the decades that separate present-day America from the early
periods of its history, a large number of the structures commemorating
those periods have been marred or obliterated. Those relating to the
signers of the Declaration of Independence have not been spared. The
ravages of war, urbanization, fire, aging, weathering, neglect, and
vandalism have destroyed all the residences of 21 of these 56 men and
seriously impaired some of those that have survived.

Beyond those factors detrimental to all historic buildings are
two special ones that have hampered the marking and preserving of
signers’ homes and other sites. For decades following adoption of the
Declaration, these individuals were not accorded the reverence bestowed
on them in modern times. Secondly, many of them have received only
slight historical recognition because they lacked national reputations
other than as signers.

Yet among the residences and buildings that remain are many of major
significance. As a whole, they reveal much about the way of life of
the signers and illuminate the events involved in the creation of the
Declaration. Of outstanding significance is Independence National
Historical Park, Pa. Within its boundaries the document was written,
debated, approved, and signed. The National Park Service administers
the park in cooperation with the city of Philadelphia and various
private agencies. Three residences of signers are also units of the
National Park System: Adams National Historic Site, Mass.; the Floyd
House, in Fire Island National Seashore, N.Y.; and the Nelson House,
part of Colonial National Historical Park, Va.

Almost half the extant homes of the signers are owned by private
individuals, many of whom personally reside in them and a few of whom
are descendants of the signers. The rest of the residences are owned
and maintained by States, cities, and a wide variety of nongovernmental
institutions, such as patriotic-civic organizations, memorial
associations, local historical societies, foundations, universities,
churches, and corporations and business firms.

Reflecting the dedicated efforts of many of the above individuals and
agencies, a considerable number of the buildings and residences provide
fine examples of historic preservation and restoration. Unfortunately,
some structures have badly deteriorated. But the increased recent
interest in the signers has enhanced the identification, renovation,
and preservation of pertinent sites and buildings.

In addition to the preservation of sites and buildings, the subject
of this book, the signers have been honored in many other ways.
Commemoration varies widely, however, from State to State and from
signer to signer. Some have been recognized in a major way; others
hardly at all.

In the forefront of the groups that have marked extant homes and
buildings, as well as the sites of former structures and graves, or
otherwise memorialized the signers are: Daughters of the American
Revolution; Daughters of the Revolution; Colonial Dames of America;
National Society of Colonial Dames of America; Sons of the American
Revolution; Sons of the Revolution; and the Descendants of the Signers
of the Declaration of Independence, Inc., chartered by Congress in 1907.

A major share of the sites of residences with no physical remains
has been marked. The 20 signers for whom no existing homes have been
located are: Samuel Adams, Abraham Clark, William Ellery, Benjamin
Franklin, Lyman Hall, John Hart, Francis Lewis, Philip Livingston,
Thomas McKean, Lewis Morris, Robert Morris, John Morton, Robert Treat
Paine, John Penn, George Read, Caesar Rodney, George Ross, Benjamin
Rush, Roger Sherman, and James Smith. Another signer, Samuel Chase, is
represented in this volume only by a structure (Chase-Lloyd House) that
he began building but never resided in.

Monuments and memorials range from simple plaques to the Thomas
Jefferson Memorial, D.C., in the National Park System. Statues of
several signers are located in the U.S. Capitol. Special monuments
have been erected to those from two States. The Founders’ Monument,
in Augusta, Ga., is dedicated to the three signers from that State
(Gwinnett, Hall, and Walton) and contains the burial places of the
latter two. A monument to the three North Carolina signers (Hewes,
Hooper, and Penn) at Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, in
Greensboro, N.C., includes the tombs of Hooper and Penn.


Described in the following pages are the principal buildings associated
with the signers of the Declaration. They are comprised of three
categories: National Park Service Areas, National Historic Landmarks,
and Other Sites Considered.

The principal aim of the National Survey of Historic Sites and
Buildings is to identify nationally important sites that are not
_National Park Service Areas_, but no survey of historic places would
be complete without including them. This is particularly true because
many of them were designated as National Historic Landmarks before they
became part of the National Park System. Further information about
a particular area may be obtained by writing directly to the park
superintendent at the address listed immediately following the location.

_National Historic Landmarks_ are those sites judged by the Advisory
Board on National Parks, Historic Sites, Buildings, and Monuments to
meet the criteria of national significance in commemorating the history
of the United States (pp. 270–271). They have been declared by the
Secretary of the Interior to be eligible for designation as National
Historic Landmarks. Final designation occurs when the owners apply for
such status. They receive certificates and bronze plaques attesting to
the distinction.

_Other Sites Considered_ consist of those sites deemed by the Advisory
Board to possess noteworthy historical value but not national
significance. The list of sites included in this category does not
purport to be exhaustive; it is merely a representative sampling, all
that is possible because of space limitations.

Many sites in the Other Sites Considered category in all phases of
history are listed on the National Register of Historic Places,
maintained by the National Park Service’s Office of Archeology and
Historic Preservation. The register consists not only of sites in the
National Park System and National Historic Landmarks but also those of
State and local significance, nominated through appropriate channels
by the various States. It is published biennally and distributed by
the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office,
Washington, D.C., 20402. The latest volume is _The National Register of
Historic Places, 1972_, price $7.80.


[Illustration: SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION

HISTORIC SITES OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE (map)]

For the convenience of users of this volume, sites and buildings are
listed alphabetically by State. The following code indicates site
categories:

  _Site Categories_

  ☑ NATIONAL PARK SERVICE AREAS
  ∆ NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARKS
  ‎⊗ OTHER SITES CONSIDERED

NOTE: _The following descriptions indicate sites that are open to the
public. Before visiting any of them, inquiry should be made to the
owners or custodians concerning dates and hours of access and admission
costs, usually nominal. Special permission should be obtained to visit
privately owned sites._




Huntington Birthplace, Connecticut  ∆

    _Location: Windham County, on the north side of Conn. 14, about 2
    blocks west of its junction with Conn. 97, Scotland._


This plain but charming farmhouse on the bank of Merrick’s Brook was
the birthplace and home of Samuel Huntington through his boyhood and
early manhood. He lived in it from 1731 probably until 1760, the year
he moved to Norwich.

The house, built in the period 1700–22, is shaded by huge trees and
fronted by a spacious lawn. It is a large, two-story, clapboarded-frame
structure of saltbox design. The gable roof slopes steeply at the rear.
Exterior windows are topped by projecting cornices; the center door, by
a rectangular transom. A one-story kitchen wing with front porch at the
northeast end of the house along the main axis was added early in the
19th century.

[Illustration: Huntington Birthplace.]

The floor plan is typical of a central chimney New England dwelling.
Behind a short central entrance hall, which contains an L-shaped
stairway, is a large stone central chimney with three fireplaces. Two
of these heat the parlor and dining room, entered from the hall; a
huge third one serves the large original kitchen, which ranges across
the rear two-thirds of the house behind the dining room and chimney.
A small bedroom is situated back of the parlor alongside the original
kitchen, between it and the one-story new kitchen addition. Three
additional bedrooms, one of which has a fully paneled fireplace wall,
are located upstairs. Wallpaper has been added to some of the rooms,
but the fireplaces, wainscoting, and wide-board floors are original.

The privately owned house, which is in good condition and little
altered, has never been restored, though some modern conveniences have
been installed. It is not open to the public.




Huntington House, Connecticut  ‎⊗

    _Location: New London County, 34 East Town Street, Norwich._


Samuel Huntington erected this house in the years 1783–85 and lived in
it until his death in 1796. Since that time, the frame dwelling has
been extensively modified on both the exterior and interior and a major
addition made at the rear.

[Illustration: Huntington House.]

Originally the residence was a large, two-story, rectangular structure
with a gable roof, two interior chimneys, tall corner pilasters, and
triangular pediments above the first-story windows. By the middle of
the 19th century, however, the structure had been remodeled in Greek
Revival style, including the construction of a two-story portico across
the entire front, or north, side, and in the center of this facade a
central two-tiered porch. Later in the century, the portico and the two
interior chimneys were removed. Sometime during the century, a large
two-story section was added to the rear of the house, and a projecting
two-story bay on the west side.

The present two-tiered porch at the entrance is a modern replacement
whose design differs considerably from the earlier one. Four large
Doric columns support it, and a railing runs around the second-story
level. The east entranceway consists of a one-story portico with an
elliptical plan and Doric columns. Other modern features include
clapboarding and window sash.

The central hall, extending from the entranceway through the rest of
the house and rear addition, has always dominated the floor plan, which
otherwise has been completely obliterated. Interior partitions have
either been removed to create larger rooms or added to make smaller
ones. Stairs are located in the front and rear of the hall. Little, if
any, of the original interior finish remains.

The house, also known as the Governor Huntington House, in excellent
condition, is owned and occupied by a charitable organization and
is not open to the general public. Huntington’s remains rest in the
adjacent Old Burial Ground.




Williams Birthplace, Connecticut  ‎⊗

    _Location: New London County, on the west side of Conn. 87 at the
    south end of the commons, Lebanon._


William Williams was born in this house in 1731 and lived in it until
1755, when his father gave him a residence elsewhere in Lebanon.
Constructed about 1712 by Rev. Samuel Welles, a Congregational
minister, it later came into the possession of Rev. Solomon Williams,
the signer’s father, and is also known as the Welles-Williams House.
Over the years, considerable alteration has occurred.

The rectangular frame structure is two stories high with a gable roof.
Exterior louvered shutters flank the windows on both stories. The
Greek Revival architrave of the central door was added about 1830. A
one-story ell, containing a kitchen and part of the dining room, is
located at the rear southwest corner of the house. A barn has been
built on the end of the ell. A more recent one-story frame wing extends
from the southeast rear corner. The residence was recently covered with
clapboard.

[Illustration: Williams Birthplace.]

In modern times the original large central stone chimney has been
replaced by a much smaller brick one, which provides a fireplace for
the present living room. This has resulted in a major revamping of the
typical central chimney floor plan. It once consisted of two tiers of
four rooms but today is divided into large living room, dining room,
and parlor, plus a bath, and three bedrooms upstairs. Two of the latter
originally had fully paneled walls. Only one is paneled today.

The house, a private residence not accessible to the public, is in good
condition.




Williams House, Connecticut  ∆

    _Location: New London County, southeast corner of the junction of
    Conn. 207 and Conn. 87, Lebanon._


Of the two extant residences of William Williams, this house, where he
lived the greater part of his life, is less altered. His father, Rev.
Solomon Williams, acquired it in 1748 and 7 years later presented it to
William, who resided there until his death in 1811.

The dwelling is a two-story, rectangular frame building. A long,
1½-story service wing extends from the center of the rear of the
house. The original clapboard siding, covered with asbestos shingles
in the 1930’s, has recently been reexposed. The front entranceway, in
the Greek Revival style, was probably constructed about 1830. Other
exterior changes to the main house are limited to the lowering of the
two original interior chimneys on the back side of the ridge of the
gabled roof, the addition of a brick chimney at the north end, and the
insertion of a one-story bay window in the living room at the south end.

[Illustration: Williams House.]

The central hall divides each floor into two large rooms. Downstairs,
to the north of the hall, which incorporates the original stairway, is
a parlor, whose entire fireplace wall is still covered with the old
paneling; to the south of the hall is the living room. Its entranceway
from the hall has been widened and two columns inserted. Upstairs are
two bedrooms with fully paneled fireplace walls. The six original
fireplaces, except for the one in the kitchen, have been closed up,
but their mantels have been left in place. All the original wide
floorboards remain. The rear service wing contains a dining room and
kitchen on the first floor and four small bedrooms above.

The well-preserved house is today a private home and is not open to the
public.




Wolcott House, Connecticut  ∆

    _Location: Litchfield County, on the east side of South Street
    nearly opposite its intersection with Wolcott Avenue, Litchfield._


Oliver Wolcott erected and occupied this residence in 1753, some 2
years after he moved from Windsor to Litchfield, and lived in it until
he died in 1797. Except for a major rear addition, it has been only
slightly altered.

[Illustration: Wolcott House.]

The two-story, frame structure has a gable roof, a large central
chimney, and slight overhangs at the gable ends. Attached to the south
end of the house on the main axis is a small, 1½-story frame wing with
gambrel roof. A one-story porch, added by Wolcott about 1783, extends
across this wing. The roof of the porch is of the coved, or “barrow,”
type. The walls of the main house and wing are covered with clapboards,
and the windows have louvered shutters. Triangular pediments cap the
first-story windows. The center door, topped by a round arch fanlight,
is sheltered by a Federal period broken-pediment portico supported by
two fluted columns.

Later additions include small bay windows on each side of the
chimney in the south end wall of the south wing; a wide dormer in
the west, or front, upper story of the wing; and a two-story, frame,
clapboard-covered service wing, added in the 1880’s at the northeast
corner on the rear of the main house, which gave the structure its
present L-shape. The service wing, which cannot be seen from the
street, contains the present kitchen and servants’ workrooms and
bedrooms.

The floor plan of the main house is the central chimney type. To the
rear of the short central hall, which is equipped with the original
L-shaped stairway and divides this portion of the house into two tiers
of rooms, is the central chimney. On the first floor, to the north of
the hall, is the dining room; to the south, the parlor. The fireplace
walls in both rooms are fully paneled, and the floors have wide boards.
Back of the parlor, a hall leads on the south to the morning room, or
bedroom, in the south wing; and on the north, to the original kitchen,
which contains a large fireplace. Four bedrooms occupy the second story
of the main house, two of them featuring paneled overmantels, and one
bedroom is located on the second floor of the south wing.

One of Wolcott’s descendants, who acquired and restored the house about
1920, resides in it today. In excellent condition, it is the oldest
extant structure in Litchfield Historic District, a National Historic
Landmark relating primarily to colonial architecture. The house is not
accessible to the public.




The White House, District of Columbia  ∆

    _Location: 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington._


Signers John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were the first two occupants of
the White House, official residence of our Nation’s Presidents since
1800. It is a national shrine that symbolizes the honor and dignity of
the highest office in the land, and has been the scene of many historic
events and brilliant social affairs. Like the Nation itself, it bears
the influences of successive Chief Executives. Although rebuilt and
modernized, it retains the simplicity and charm of its original
appearance.

[Illustration: South facade of the White House.]

President George Washington approved the plans for the White House,
drawn by Irish-born James Hoban, winner of the prize competition.
Maj. Pierre Charles L’Enfant, the French artist-engineer, located the
mansion in his plan of the Federal City, in which it and the Capitol
were the first public buildings erected. The cornerstone was laid on
October 13, 1792. Workmen used light gray sandstone from the Aquia
Creek Quarries, in Virginia, for the exterior walls. During the course
of construction or soon thereafter, they apparently were painted
white. The building was thus unofficially termed the “White House” from
an early date, but for many years it was usually referred to as the
“President’s House” or the “President’s Palace.”

[Illustration: North facade of the White House in 1807.]

In the Palladian style of architecture, the main facade resembles
the Duke of Leinster’s mansion in Dublin. Hoban probably derived
the details of other faces and the interior arrangement from
other contemporary European mansions. He supervised the original
construction; the rebuilding after the burning by British forces, in
1814; and the erection of the north and south porticoes, some years
later. Over the course of time, however, various architects modified
Hoban’s original plans, notably Benjamin H. Latrobe during and after
the Jefferson administration.

President and Mrs. John Adams were the first occupants, in November
1800 when the Government moved from Philadelphia to Washington. The
interior had not yet been completed, and Mrs. Adams used the unfinished
East Room to dry the family wash. During Jefferson’s administration
the east and west terraces, or pavilions, were built. Jefferson, who
practiced democratic simplicity in his social life, opened the mansion
each morning to all arrivals.

During the War of 1812, British forces captured the city and set the
torch to the White House, the Capitol, and other Government buildings
in retaliation for the destruction by U.S. troops of some public
buildings in Canada. Only the partially damaged exterior walls and
interior brickwork of the White House remained in the spring of 1815
when reconstruction began. In 1817 the recently elected President,
James Monroe, was able to occupy the structure. In 1824 builders
erected the south portico; and in 1829, the large north portico over
the entrance and driveway. The west wing, including the President’s
oval office, was added during the first decade of the 20th century. The
east wing was built in 1942.

Over the years, the White House proper has been extensively renovated
and modernized on various occasions. The old sandstone walls have been
retained, however. The aim has been to keep the historical atmosphere
while providing a more livable home for the President and his family.

Located on the first floor of the main building are the East Room,
Green Room, Blue Room, Red Room, State Dining Room, and Family Dining
Room. These richly furnished rooms are open to the public on a special
schedule. The ground and second floors are restricted to the use of the
presidential family and guests. On the ground floor are the Diplomatic
Reception Room, Curator’s Office, Vermeil Room, China Room, and
Library. The second floor contains the Lincoln Bedroom, Lincoln Sitting
Room, Queens’ Bedroom (Rose Guest Room), Treaty Room, Yellow Oval Room,
and Empire Guest Room. Neither of the wings, reserved for the President
and his staff, are ordinarily accessible to the public.

The simple dignity of the White House is enhanced by the natural beauty
of its informal but carefully landscaped grounds.




College Hill, Georgia  ∆

    _Location: Richmond County, 2216 Wrightsboro Road, Augusta._


In 1795 George Walton built this house on the western outskirts of
Augusta on land that had been granted him by the State of Georgia in
1787. He lived in it until his death in 1804.

[Illustration: College Hill.]

The handsome, two-story, frame structure features weatherboarded and
clapboarded walls, a gable roof, and a brick chimney at each end.
Of special interest is the two-tiered veranda extending across the
entire main facade. At its front and sides on both levels are a series
of segmental arches supported by delicate square columns on high
pedestals. The fine balustrade is composed of delicate, sheaf-like
balusters. Central double doors are located on the front of both
stories. The doors are framed by pilasters and sidelights and topped
by segmental fanlights. The windows have exterior louvered shutters.
A one-story kitchen, added in 1898, extends from the southwest rear
corner of the house.

The central hall, which contains a U-shaped stairway, divides the main
section of the structure into two pairs of rooms. The larger front two
are equipped with fireplaces and have original mantels decorated in the
Adam style. Behind the main hall is a smaller rear hall. The hall walls
are plastered, and the board walls of the principal rooms are covered
with paper and wainscoting. Five bedrooms occupy the second floor. The
original kitchen was situated in a separate building that is no longer
extant.

Known today as the Walton-Harper House, since 1885 College Hill has
been owned by the Harper family, descendants of Walton. Little altered
but never restored, it is a private residence and is not shown publicly.




Meadow Garden, Georgia  ‎⊗

    _Location: Richmond County, 1320 Nelson Street, Augusta._


About 1790 Gov. George Walton moved from Savannah to Augusta, then the
capital. At that time, he built Meadow Garden cottage at the northern
edge of the city, on confiscated Loyalist lands in his possession. He
resided in it until 1795, the year he constructed and occupied a larger
home, College Hill, just west of Augusta. He deeded Meadow Garden under
trusteeship to Thomas Watkins, who later conveyed it to George Walton,
Jr. Over the years, it has been doubled in size and otherwise altered.

[Illustration: Meadow Garden.]

Meadow Garden was originally a modest 1½-story cottage of frame
construction built over a high brick basement. The gable roof was
pierced by two front dormers and an interior central chimney. Windows
were located in the gable ends. An entrance door and hall were situated
on the western bay of the south facade, which had three bays. Two
rooms on the first floor opened off the east of the hall, and the
basement contained two more finished rooms.

Sometime after 1800 the house was enlarged and converted into a
central hall type by a major three-bay wide extension to the west of
the side hall, which became the central hall. The gable roof of the
original building was extended over the new portion, which was also
equipped with an interior chimney. About 1903 a single dormer was
added to the extension. The two first-floor rooms in the addition,
which lacks a cellar, are about two steps lower than the two in the
original structure. The second floor of the present house contains four
bedrooms. A one-story porch, probably not original, extends across the
front, or south, side. Its Doric columns rest on square pedestals and
are linked by a light balustrade. About 1903 a one-story kitchen was
added to the rear northwest corner of the house.

Many interior features are intact, but the plaster walls are covered
with paper. The southwest room, or library, located in the 1800
addition and restored in 1969, contains an excellent late Georgian
mantel and overmantel. The building has been roofed with modern
material.

The National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution
acquired the residence in 1900, and the following year opened it to
visitors. In 1960 the National Society presented it to the State
Society. It is currently operated as a historic house museum by the
Augusta Chapter. A caretaker’s residence is located on the grounds.




Tabby Cottage, Georgia  ‎⊗

    _Location: Liberty County, on St. Catherines Island, which is
    located about 10 miles off the Georgia coast southeast of Midway
    between St. Catherines and Sapelo Sounds._


The original portion of this structure, today an eight-bedroom house
and the main building on St. Catherines Island, may have been built
by Button Gwinnett in 1765 when he purchased the island, on which he
resided until his death in 1777 at Savannah. In 1929 the owner of the
island extensively remodeled the gable-roofed building. He retained
its basic shape and preserved many of its features, including mantels,
stair rail, and wide-board, hand-pegged floors. To the rear at a right
angle on one side he added a 1½-story wing, also with gable roof, which
more than doubled the floor space. The original, or front, section of
the house, also 1½ stories in height, was constructed of “tabby,” a
mixture of lime, ground from burned oyster shells, with sand, shells,
and water. The wing is of frame with a stucco finish. Both parts of
the residence are now roofed with Ludowici tile and feature dormers,
interior chimneys, and shuttered exterior windows.

Other tabby structures on the island include seven guest cottages and
about a dozen slave quarters, all probably dating from the early 19th
century. Many of them are in ruins but some are in good condition.
Elsewhere are four present employee residences, as well as several
barns and maintenance buildings. Boundaries of old cotton and tobacco
fields are discernible, as well as dozens of Indian burial mounds. Of
special interest, between Persimmon Point and Wamassee Head, is the
undisturbed site of the Mission of Santa Catalina (1566-ca. 1684), a
Spanish mission. None of the buildings remain, but potsherds and other
surface debris are plentiful.

When this volume went to press, the National Survey of Historic Sites
and Buildings was making a further study of Tabby Cottage to determine
the exact degree of its authenticity in relation to Gwinnett. Privately
owned St. Catherines Island, not accessible to the public, has already
been accorded National Historic Landmark status because of its
associations with Spanish exploration and settlement.




Whipple Birthplace, Maine  ‎⊗

    _Location: York County, 88 Whipple Street, Kittery._


William Whipple, a signer from New Hampshire, was a native of Kittery,
now in Maine but then in Massachusetts. Born in this house in 1730, he
probably lived in it until, like many boys of the locality, he went to
sea. About 1760 he abandoned his life as a seaman and took up residence
in Portsmouth, N.H.

This handsome frame residence, the only one extant associated with a
signer in Maine, occupies a picturesque setting on a small cove along
the Piscataqua River. The two-story building has been considerably
altered and enlarged over the years, but it is in excellent condition
and rests on original foundations. It has been painted red since at
least 1873.

[Illustration: Whipple Birthplace.]

In its present form the house is Georgian in style with a central
hall plan. The exterior walls are clapboarded. On the east, or
front, elevation a round arch window on the second story sits over a
pedimented center door. The ell at the rear is a 20th-century addition.
A slight overhang on the south end of the house indicates that it may
once have been a garrison house, and that the upper story projected
over the first. This portion of the house was constructed of hemlock,
square-dovetailed at the corners. At some later date, the structure
was enlarged, and in the mid-19th century the exterior was completely
renovated.

The residence originally featured a center chimney floor plan. In the
19th century the central chimney was removed and a center hall with
stairway added, as well as two small interior chimneys with fireplaces,
one at each side of the hall. On the first floor, to the south of the
hall, is the bedroom where Whipple was born; to the north, a large
parlor. The original kitchen is located to the rear, or west, of the
center hall and parlor.

Privately occupied, the house is not open to the public.




Carroll Mansion, Maryland

    _Location: Anne Arundel County, Duke of Gloucester Street, between
    Newman and St. Marys Streets, Annapolis._


Charles Carroll III of Carrollton was born in 1737 at this townhouse,
which his father had probably built about 1735. Around the age of 11,
young Carroll traveled to Europe for an education and did not return to
Maryland until 1765. Thereafter, he lived mainly at Doughoregan Manor
but utilized his birthplace, which he inherited from his father, when
in Annapolis. In 1804, when he retired from public life, he closed it
up. In 1870 one of his granddaughters deeded the house and property to
the Redemptionist Fathers of St. Mary’s Catholic Church, which had been
built in 1858–60 on adjacent lands also donated by the Carrolls.

[Illustration: Carroll Mansion.]

Carroll Mansion, a brick rectangular structure constructed in Flemish
bond, rises 2½ stories over a basement. Belt courses mark the first-
and second-floor levels on the north and south sides. Segmental arches
head the windows. Two massive chimneys penetrate the slate-covered
gable roof. They are located at what may have been the original gable
ends. Five gabled dormers protrude from the south side of the roof;
four from the north. A wood cornice with dentils and modillions
extends along the sides and up the gables at the ends.

Exterior alterations include the addition of a one-story basement at
the east, or present rear, end of the residence and a one-story porch
and entrance at the west end. The front entrance, probably dating from
the early or mid-19th century, is highlighted by a rectangular transom
and sidelights. The original entrance was apparently located in the
center of the north side of the house, where a passageway, erected in
1858, now connects it to St. Mary’s Church.

Interior alterations have practically obliterated the original floor
plan. A stair hall occupies a central compartment at the north side,
and the stairs appear to be original. Only two major rooms retain some
of their original finish. A large one on the south side of the first
floor, now used as a chapel, has walls paneled in plaster and a plaster
cornice. Another, at the east end, features a plaster cornice, a
ceiling divided by triple panels, and a wooden mantelpiece.

The building, in fair condition, is used as a residence by the
Redemptionist Fathers and is not accessible to the public. It is part
of Colonial Annapolis Historic District.




Carrollton Manor, Maryland  ‎⊗

    _Location: Frederick County, on the south side of Manor Wood Road,
    immediately east of the East Alco Aluminum Company Plant, just west
    of Buckeystown._


In 1765 Charles Carroll, returning to Maryland after completing his
extensive education in Europe, built this home near the mouth of the
Monocacy River along Tuscarora Creek on a 10,000-acre tract of land he
had acquired from his father. Young Carroll never spent much time at
Carrollton Manor. Shortly after he had constructed it, his father died,
and he preferred to spend his time at Doughoregan Manor, the ancestral
family home in Howard County.

The rectangular manor is constructed of native limestone. It rises 2½
stories above an elevated basement. A pair of chimneys are located at
the west end of the gable roof, and a single chimney at the east end. A
later one-story addition extends from the east end. The central door,
sheltered by a one-story porch on the north, is topped by a rectangular
transom and flanked by sidelights, both probably dating from the Greek
Revival period. Dating from the same time are the two triple windows in
the first story at the rear of the house. A one-story porch that once
extended across that elevation has been removed.

[Illustration: Carrollton Manor.]

The house contains four rooms on each floor. East of the front entrance
is a stair hall and a spacious dining room; to the west, a library and
living room. Large double doors connect the living and dining rooms.
The second floor contains four bedrooms; the attic, four more.

Upon Carroll’s death, his descendants inherited the manor. In 1968 an
aluminum company bought the property and erected a large office and
plant buildings and a spur railroad track to the west of the house.
In excellent condition, though never restored, it is today used as a
company residence and is not open to visitors. A nearby chapel, erected
by Carroll, is still used as a parish church.




Chase-Lloyd House, Maryland  ∆

    _Location: Anne Arundel County, 22 Maryland Avenue, Annapolis._


Although Samuel Chase began building this house in 1769 while he was
a young lawyer, he never resided in it, for he sold it unfinished in
1771 to Edward Lloyd IV, a wealthy Maryland planter and politician.
Lloyd immediately engaged architect William Buckland, newly arrived in
Annapolis, to continue construction, completed 3 years later with the
aid of local architect William Noke.

[Illustration: Chase-Lloyd House.]

The structure, one of the first three-story Georgian townhouses erected
in the American Colonies, ranks among the finest of its type in the
United States and is one of the major attractions in Colonial Annapolis
Historic District. The house rises three full stories over a high
basement. Two massive interior chimneys protrude through the broad,
low, hip-on-hip roof. The brick walls are laid in Flemish bond and
adorned by belt courses of rubbed brick at the second- and third-floor
levels. An enriched cornice embellishes the roofline. At the front,
or east, facade the axial line features a tall, projecting central
pavilion and entranceway, an arched window on the third floor, and
crowning pediment with a small bull’s-eye window.

Of particular note is the entranceway, in essentially a Palladian
motif. The three-section composition was rarely used in Georgian houses
before the Revolution. The door is topped by a fanlight and flanked by
two panels of sidelights. The three openings are framed by two engaged
Ionic columns and two Ionic pilasters which support an entablature
that becomes an open pediment over the door. The triple windows on the
second floor over the entrance door and the arched windows in the
center of the three on the third are also unusual.

The sides of the house lack architectural distinction, but in the rear
a large Palladian window within a brick arch ornaments and lights the
interior stair landing. The only exterior alterations are a three-story
wooden screened porch and adjoining steel fire escape on the south side
of the structure near the west corner.

The floor plan is typical of the center hall type of house, with
four rooms on each floor, except that lateral halls divide the front
and rear rooms. The unusually large center hall is dominated by
a magnificent stairway and a pair of free-standing Ionic columns
bearing a full entablature. A parlor, large dining room, sitting
room, and breakfast room are located on the first floor, which has
been only slightly altered. A small back stairway is adjacent to the
breakfast room. Ornamentation of the plaster ceilings and doorways is
outstanding. The dining room, the most elaborate room, contains an
imported Italian mantelpiece that is richly decorated. The second floor
is also exquisitely ornamented.

The Lloyd family owned the house until 1847, when Chase’s descendants
acquired it. In 1888 one of them bequeathed it to the Protestant
Episcopal Church for use as a home for elderly women. It is in
excellent condition and is well maintained. The first floor is open to
visitors and contains some items that belonged to the Lloyds or to the
later Chase owners. The upper two floors are utilized for the ladies’
home.




Deshon-Caton-Carroll House, Maryland  ‎⊗

    _Location: 800 East Lombard Street, Baltimore._


This was the winter home of Charles Carroll of Carrollton during his
twilight years and the site of his death in 1832. Christopher Deshon, a
Baltimore merchant, built it in 1811–12, and in 1818 sold it to Richard
Caton, husband of Carroll’s youngest daughter, Mary. Carroll spent the
winters there with the couple until his demise. The rest of the time,
he resided at Doughoregan Manor in Howard County.

The Deshon-Caton-Carroll House, a good example of Classic Revival
architecture, is constructed of brick laid in Flemish bond. It stands
3½ stories high. Six pedimented dormers—three each at the south (front)
and north elevations—as well as a central chimney and two end chimneys
pierce the low gable roof. A belt course at the second-floor line and
dentil cornice at roof level, both of sandstone, extend across the
north and south elevations. Recessed rectangular panels of wood are
inserted between the second- and third-story windows of the south
and west elevations. A large semicircular window is located in the
west gable of the attic story. The wide-paneled center door at the
main entrance to the house is sheltered by an Ionic marble portico
surmounted by an iron railing.

[Illustration: Deshon-Caton-Carroll House.]

The central hall plan provides for four large rooms, two on each side
of the hallway on each of the first three floors. The front entrance
opens into a stair hall, in which an elegant spiral stairway rises in
an open well up through the three stories. A counting room for business
purposes, family dining room, breakfast room, and study occupy the
first floor. The second floor, once used primarily for recreation and
formal entertainment, contains a large parlor, formal dining room,
music room, and library. Bedrooms occupy the third floor, and the attic
at one time contained slave quarters.

The house remained in the Caton family until 1856. During the last
quarter of that century, a furniture store occupied the first floor,
and the owner divided the upper floors into apartments. In 1914 the
city of Baltimore acquired the building, and 3 years later put it
to use as the “Carroll Vocational School.” From about 1930 until
1956 the structure served as a recreation center. Subsequently the
house faced the threat of demolition, prevented by the efforts of
the Charles Carroll American Heritage Association, Inc. In 1963 the
mayor of Baltimore decided that the residence should be preserved.
Upon completion of restoration and renovation, in 1967, it was placed
under the Municipal Museum, a nonprofit corporation. This organization
operates it today for the city as a historic house museum.




Doughoregan Manor, Maryland  ∆

    _Location: Howard County, on the west side of Manor Lane, about 1
    mile south of Md. 144 and 8 miles west of Ellicott City._


Charles Carroll III of Carrollton preferred this manor, the ancestral
family home, over his other residences. He lived in it for most of
the period 1766–1832 rather than at Carrollton Manor or his Annapolis
townhouse. In 1717 Charles Carroll I had acquired the 10,000 acres that
originally comprised the estate. His son Charles II probably built the
main section of the mansion about a decade later. In the 1760’s Charles
III inherited it. In the 1830’s, after his death in 1832, it was
greatly enlarged. It is still owned and occupied by the Carroll family.

[Illustration: Doughoregan Manor.]

Much changed over the years, Doughoregan Manor is now an
architecturally distinguished complex of buildings united into one
long structure, about 300 feet in extent. The original manor was a
Georgian, 1½-story, brick structure with gambrel roof and two pairs of
end chimneys. A kitchen-servants’ quarters and a chapel, both probably
one-story and constructed of brick about 1780, stood detached from the
house, on the south and north respectively.

In the 1830’s Charles Carroll V undertook a comprehensive expansion
in the Greek Revival style that converted the manor to its present
five-part composition. He raised the main house to two stories and
cut off the gable roof to form a flat deck, which was balustraded and
surmounted by an octagonal cupola. At the front (east) center door
he added a one-story portico with four Doric columns. To the rear of
the residence, he attached another portico, over which he erected a
room. Along both sides of the rear portico, he constructed a covered,
one-story veranda with iron columns that extended the length of the
main house. The heights of the kitchen-servants’ quarters and the
chapel were raised and they were connected to the main house by
two-story wings, topped by unifying wooden walkways.

Inside the central part of the mansion, an oak-paneled central hall
extends from front to rear. The principal stairway is located in a
small side hall adjacent to the front of the main hall. On one side of
the main hall in the 1727 portion of the house are library and large
parlor; on the other, small parlor and dining room. The second-floor
bedrooms, remodeled in the 1830’s, were completely renovated and
redecorated about 1915. The chapel, refurbished in the 1830’s and again
after the Civil War, is in good condition and is still used as a parish
church. It is one of the few surviving private chapels in the United
States dating from the 18th century. The grave of Charles Carroll III
is located next to the altar.

The estate, comprising 2,800 acres, and mansion are well maintained.
They are not open to the public.




Habre-de-Venture, Maryland  ∆

    _Location: Charles County, on the west side of Rose Hill Road,
    which connects Md. 6 and Md. 225, about 1 mile north of Port
    Tobacco._


In 1771 Thomas Stone built this plantation house near the busy
riverport town of Port Tobacco, Md. He lived in it during his most
politically active years, and on his death in 1787 was buried in the
adjacent family graveyard.

[Illustration: Habre-de-Venture.]

A Georgian structure of brick and frame, Habre-de-Venture consists
of five parts: a central house connected to two wings by two covered
passageways, or “hyphens.” The hyphens and wings extend southward to
form a semicircle. The main building is a 1½-story structure over an
elevated basement. It has a dormered gambrel roof flanked by external
end chimneys. The brick walls are laid in Flemish bond with glazed
headers. Center doors and full-length, one-story porches are located at
the front and rear of the house.

A center hall, with stairs set against its west wall, divides the
central unit into dining and living rooms. In 1928 the Baltimore Museum
of Art removed the elaborate hand-carved paneling in the living room;
it was subsequently replaced with a replica. The fireplace wall in the
dining room protrudes out into the room, and the flue curves back to
the wall and up to the ceiling.

To the west of the central house is the kitchen wing, a low, two-story,
gable-roofed structure with brick ends and frame sides. Its second
story, added about 1820, contains two bedrooms. The connecting
hyphen, originally gabled roof and one story in height and containing
a breakfast room, was increased to 1½ stories by the addition of a
gambrel roof with dormers to provide bathrooms for the second floor
of the main house. The east wing, a gambrel-roofed, low, 1½-story
frame structure that has one room on each floor, served as Stone’s law
office. A one-story gabled brick hyphen connects it to the main house.

Except for the alterations mentioned above, Habre-de-Venture has
changed but slightly through the years. In excellent condition and
carefully restored, it now serves as a private residence and is not
shown publicly.




Paca House, Maryland  ∆

    _Location: Anne Arundel County, 186 Prince George Street,
    Annapolis._


William Paca, a young, newly married lawyer, built this townhouse in
the years 1763–65 as his principal residence and occupied it until
1780. At that time, a few months after the death of his second wife, he
sold the house and moved to Wye Plantation, a country estate in Queen
Annes County he had acquired about 1760.

[Illustration: Paca House.]

The Paca House is a large, five-part Georgian structure, today part
of Colonial Annapolis Historic District. Two brick wings (kitchen and
office) sit at right angles to the main axis of the central house, to
which they are connected by brick passageways, or hyphens. The central
unit is a gable-roofed brick structure of 2½ stories over an elevated
basement. The front facade is laid in all-header bond, and the ends in
Flemish bond. The window arches, of rubbed brick, are flat. A small,
one-story frame porch, which is pedimented and done in modified Roman
Doric style, provides access to the central entrance.

Large brick chimneys rise from both ends of the central house, and
smaller ones from the wings. Three gabled dormers are situated in the
front of the main roof and two in the rear. The 1½-story wings are also
gable-roofed. The west wing and both of the hyphens had been raised to
two stories in the 19th century, but were recently lowered to their
original height.

On each side of the center hall in the main house are two rooms. The
interior has been greatly altered over the years, and portions of the
original wood and plaster finish remain only in the center hall, the
stair hall behind it, and the parlor. The main stairway is equipped
with the original Chinese Chippendale balustrade.

In 1899 the Paca House became the Carvel Hall Hotel, enlarged in 1906
by rear additions that completely hid the back of the original house.
In 1964, when the structure faced demolition, Historic Annapolis,
Inc., purchased the Paca House portion. The next year, the State of
Maryland acquired the entire property. In 1967–69 it razed the 1906
hotel additions and restored the gardens. Presently, the Maryland
Historical Trust, a public agency, holds title to the house, but
Historic Annapolis, Inc., retains all the responsibilities and rights
of ownership and administration. When this volume went to press, the
residence was undergoing an extensive restoration program and was not
accessible to the public. Historic Annapolis, Inc., plans to utilize it
as a guesthouse for visiting dignitaries, though the first floor will
be open to visitors.




Peggy Stewart House, Maryland

    _Location: Anne Arundel County, 207 Hanover Street, Annapolis._


Thomas Stone purchased this Georgian residence in 1783 and until
his death 4 years later occupied it while in Annapolis, though he
maintained his home at Habre-de-Venture in Charles County. The Peggy
Stewart House was built sometime between 1761 and 1764 by Thomas
Rutland. Its owner in the period 1772–79 was Anthony Stewart, an
Annapolis merchant. In 1774 Revolutionaries forced him to burn his
ship, the _Peggy Stewart_, when he attempted to land a cargo of tea on
which he had paid taxes. Five years later, he fled to England.

[Illustration: Peggy Stewart House.]

Over the years, the rectangular brick house has been substantially
modified on both the exterior and interior. Its 2½ stories rest on an
elevated basement. At the time of a major alteration in 1894, the gable
roof was replaced by the present hip roof, which has a cutoff deck and
balustrade, and the chimneys were rebuilt in their current form. Two
gabled dormers are located at the front of the roof and one at each
side. Highlighting the ends of the house are central pavilions, which
have triangular pediments with round center windows. The chimneys cut
through the front corners of the pediments. A wooden box cornice with
frieze board below extends around the eaves. A large wing at the rear
is a later addition.

The front facade of the house is comprised of all-header bond and
the sides of English bond. The basement and first-story windows are
topped by segmental arches, but the second-story windows have flat
ones. The sills are of stone, and louvered shutters flank the first-
and second-floor windows. The front entranceway, sheltered by a small
wooden porch with a triangular broken pediment, has a paneled door that
is surmounted by a rectangular glazed transom.

In 1837 the house had 12 rooms, eight of which were equipped with
fireplaces. The original portion of the house, excluding the rear
addition, has a center hall floor plan. The stairs are set against the
east wall, beyond which is a large living room. A parlor and dining
room are situated to the west of the hall. Five bedrooms are located
upstairs. The interior of the house has been extensively remodeled in
recent times. Only one fireplace, in the southeast front room on the
second floor, retains its original mantel.

The Peggy Stewart House, also known as the Rutland-Peggy Stewart House
and the Rutland-Stewart-Stone House, is privately owned and is not open
to the public. It is part of Colonial Annapolis Historic District.




Adams (John) Birthplace, Massachusetts  ∆

    _Location: Norfolk County, 133 Franklin Street, Quincy._


This was the original homestead of the Adams family and the birthplace
of John Adams. Although not architecturally impressive, it is
historically notable as the place where John Adams grew to manhood. It
is adjacent to the John Quincy Adams Birthplace.

The original house, a typical New England saltbox structure of frame
construction with a massive central chimney, was probably built
about 1681. It consisted of two lower and two upper rooms. Extensive
alterations were made over the years. The rear lean-to, built at some
unknown date in the 18th century, added two downstairs rooms and two
small upper ones, separated by a large attic.

In 1720 John Adams’ father, “Deacon” John Adams, purchased the house,
where in 1735 young John was born. He lived there until his marriage
in 1764. He and his bride moved into a residence next door that he
had inherited from his father in 1761 and 6 years later was to be the
birthplace of his son John Quincy. In 1774 John bought his birthplace
home from his brother. His public duties and legal business kept him
away most of the time. By 1783, when he and his family were in Europe,
tenants resided in both the John Adams Birthplace and the John Quincy
Adams Birthplace. In 1788, when John Adams sailed home, he settled at
“Peacefield,” or the “Old House,” now Adams National Historic Site, in
another part of Quincy. In 1803 he sold both birthplaces to his son
John Quincy.

[Illustration: John Adams and John Quincy Adams Birthplaces.]

The John Adams Birthplace remained in the possession of the Adams
family until 1940, when they deeded it to the city of Quincy. In 1896
they had given the Adams Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution,
permission to restore the residence, which the next year was made
accessible to the public. When the Adams Chapter dissolved in 1950, the
Quincy Historical Society took over the administration. In excellent
condition and still owned by the city, the house is open to the public.




Adams (John Quincy) Birthplace, Massachusetts  ∆

    _Location: Norfolk County, 141 Franklin Street, Quincy._

This frame structure was John Adams’ residence and law office during
the War for Independence and the birthplace of his son John Quincy. In
1744 “Deacon” John Adams had acquired the residence, the oldest part
of which may date from 1663. In 1761 he bequeathed it to young John.
At the time of the latter’s marriage 3 years later, he moved into it
from his neighboring birthplace so that he could better accommodate his
library and set up a law office. In 1767 John Quincy was born in the
house.

Shortly thereafter, John’s growing law practice and role in public
affairs made it convenient for him to live in Boston most of the time,
but his wife and son remained in the Quincy home until after the War
for Independence. By 1783, when the family was in Europe, tenants were
occupying it. After coming back to the United States in 1788, John
Adams took up residence at “Peacefield,” or the “Old House,” now Adams
National Historic Site. In 1803 John Quincy purchased both birthplaces
from his father, and from 1805 to 1807 lived in his own birthplace.

The John Quincy Adams Birthplace is well preserved. Like the John Adams
Birthplace, it is of typical New England saltbox design, originally
comprised of two upper and two lower rooms arranged around a huge
central chimney, and has been extensively altered. John Adams added a
lean-to of two rooms at the back for use as a new kitchen during the
time he used the original kitchen as a law office-library.

In 1897 the Quincy Historical Society, aided by Adams heirs, restored
and opened the John Quincy Adams Birthplace to the public. In 1940 the
Adams family turned it over to the city of Quincy. Administered by the
Quincy Historical Society, it is accessible to the public.




Adams National Historic Site, Massachusetts ‎☑

    _Location: Norfolk County, bounded by Adams Street, Furnace Brook
    Parkway, and Newport Avenue, Quincy; address: 135 Adams Street,
    Quincy, Mass. 02169._


Featuring the Adams Mansion, this site is a memorial to four
generations of the distinguished Adams family, who resided in it from
1788 until 1927.

John Adams (1735–1826), signer of the Declaration of Independence,
diplomat, the first Vice President, and the second President,
founded a long line of men who were outstanding in politics and
intellectual life. John Quincy (1767–1848), his son, won fame as a
diplomat, U.S. Congressman, Secretary of State, and sixth President.
Charles Francis Adams (1807–86), son of John Quincy, became a U.S.
Congressman, diplomat, and author. His four sons—John Quincy II
(1833–94), Charles Francis, Jr. (1835–1915), Henry (1838–1918), and
Brooks (1848–1927)—made notable marks in politics, literature, and
historiography.

[Illustration: Adams Mansion.]

The Adams Mansion, named “Peacefield” by John Adams but known to
some as the Vassall-Adams House and later to the Adams family as
the “Old House,” was dear and close to all of them. In 1730–31 Maj.
Leonard Vassall, a wealthy West Indian sugar planter who had come
to Massachusetts some 8 years before, built the oldest part of
the building. Comprising the front western section of the present
residence, it was a 2½-story frame structure of Georgian design with
clapboarded walls and gambrel roof. The first floor contained two rooms
separated by a central stair hall; the second floor, two bedrooms
and center hall; and the dormered attic, three smaller chambers. The
kitchen and servants’ quarters were detached.

John Adams, while still Minister to Great Britain, bought the house in
September 1787 from Vassall’s grandson, Leonard Vassall Borland, and on
his return the next year took possession. At that time, he apparently
attached the 2½-story kitchen and servants’ quarters to the rear, or
northwest, corner of the main structure. In 1800, near the end of his
Presidency, he doubled the size of the residence by adding a large,
2½-story, L-shaped wing of frame at the east end. It was constructed
in the same Georgian style as the original house and contained on the
first floor a second entry hall and staircase and the “Long Room” to
the east of the hall. Adams’ large study-library was located on the
second floor.

Other additions were made in the 19th century. In 1836 John Quincy
Adams built the passage along the back, or north, side of the structure
connecting the two rear service ells. In 1869 Charles Francis added
30 feet to the kitchen ell for additional servants’ quarters; the
following year, a detached stone library overlooking the garden; and in
1873, the stone stable. Brooks constructed the present entrance gates
in 1906.

After retiring from the Presidency in 1801, John Adams lived in the
house year round until his death in 1826. Subsequently, until Brooks’
death in 1927, other family members resided in it full time or spent
their summers there. The furnishings, to which each generation
contributed, reveal the continuity of life in the residence and the
tastes of the Adams family.

In 1946 the Adams Memorial Society donated the property to the
Federal Government. Consisting of almost 5 acres, it includes the
well-maintained house, library, garden, and stables. It may be visited
from spring until the fall.




Elmwood, Massachusetts  ∆

    _Location: Middlesex County, 33 Elmwood Street, Cambridge._


This impressive 18th-century mansion, also known as the
Oliver-Gerry-Lowell House, was the residence of three men prominent
in American history: Andrew Oliver, royal Lieutenant Governor of
Massachusetts (1771–74); Elbridge Gerry, politician, diplomat, Governor
of the Commonwealth, signer of the Declaration, U.S. Representative,
and Vice President; and James Russell Lowell, author, poet, teacher,
and statesman.

In 1767 Andrew Oliver, while serving as royal secretary of
Massachusetts, erected the building. An ex-stamp tax collector and a
firm Tory, he aroused the hatred of the Whigs, who on at least one
occasion attacked his home. He died in 1774 while serving as royal
Lieutenant Governor. Some time during the War for Independence,
Oliver’s estate including the mansion, was confiscated.

[Illustration: Elmwood.]

In 1787 Elbridge Gerry, who the previous year had retired from business
in Marblehead, Mass., moved to Cambridge and purchased the estate.
He lived there for the rest of his long career in public service. In
March 1813 he took the oath of office as Vice President in his home.
Because of heavy debts, on his death in Washington, D.C., in 1814, his
Cambridge residence remained his sole real estate holding.

The mansion was also the birthplace and lifelong home of James Russell
Lowell (1819–91), one of the most distinguished men of letters of his
era, as well as a prominent U.S. diplomat. Except during the period
1877–85, when he served as Minister to Spain and Great Britain, he
lived at his birthplace, which he named “Elmwood.”

Elmwood is a large, square, clapboarded-frame structure in Georgian
style with brick-lined walls and two interior chimneys. The first- and
second-story windows are topped by cornices. Above the foreshortened
third-story windows, typical in three-story Georgian houses, runs a
boldly modillioned cornice. A balustrade encloses the low-pitched hip
roof. The most striking exterior feature, however, is the entranceway,
which is flanked by Tuscan pilasters supporting a classic entablature
decorated with a frieze. A large window rests on the entablature
parapet motif and is flanked by Ionic pilasters and topped by a
triangular pediment.

A one-story porch with balustraded roof deck on the north side of the
house, as well as a terrace on the south side, are later additions.
Located in the rear, at the northwest corner, is a two-story service
wing; in the rear, at the southwest corner, a one-story wing. Both of
them are of frame construction. All three floors in the main section
are bisected into two rooms on either side by a central hall. Portions
of the interior have been altered and modernized.

Donated to Harvard University in 1962 and now used as the presidential
residence, Elmwood is not open to the public. The house and grounds are
in fine condition.




Gerry Birthplace, Massachusetts  ‎⊗

    _Location: Essex County, 44 Washington Street, Marblehead._


Elbridge Gerry was born in this framehouse and resided in it until
1787, when he moved to Cambridge, Mass. His father, Thomas, had built
it about 1730, and it remained in possession of the Gerry family until
1820.

Architectural evidence strongly suggests that the L-shaped building was
originally a two-story Georgian structure. About 1820 the two stories
were apparently raised and a third one built underneath. Since that
time, changes have been slight. The original interior finish of the
first story is entirely 19th century, and the original paneling on the
walls of the second story is clearly 18th century.

[Illustration: Gerry Birthplace.]

Today, the exterior is clapboarded. The long arm of the ell faces north
toward the street. A central hall divides the first floor of the long
arm into two rooms, the east and west parlors, both with 19th century
mantels, fireplaces, and flanking arched alcoves. The west parlor opens
into the short arm of the ell, which extends southward to the rear and
contains the dining room. Attached to the rear of the short arm is a
small rear service wing containing an L-shaped, one-story kitchen. A
one-story open veranda runs around the east and south elevations of the
long side of the ell, and a small porch flanks the dining room on its
west side. The second story contains three bedrooms, all displaying the
original 18th-century paneling on the fireplace walls. The third floor
consists of four bedrooms.

The house and grounds, privately owned and not open to the public, are
well maintained.




Hancock-Clarke House, Massachusetts  ∆

    _Location: Middlesex County, 35 Hancock Street, Lexington._


The only extant residence associated with John Hancock, this was his
boyhood home. In 1744, upon the death of his father at Quincy, the
7-year-old boy came to live at this house with his grandfather, Rev.
John Hancock. In 1750 the lad joined his childless uncle, Thomas
Hancock, a wealthy Boston merchant who adopted him.

[Illustration: Hancock-Clarke House.]

By the time of the Revolution, Rev. Jonas Clarke, a relative by
marriage of the Hancocks, occupied the house, which had been built as
a parsonage by Rev. John Hancock. Clarke encouraged Revolutionaries to
use his home as a meetingplace and refuge. On the evening of April 18,
1775, patriot leaders Hancock and Samuel Adams were visiting there.
Around midnight, after everyone had gone to bed, Paul Revere and later
William Dawes, warning the countryside of the approach of British
troops, galloped up and informed the household. A few hours later,
Hancock and Adams fled northward to Burlington, Mass. They later moved
from place to place, staying away from Boston, until they proceeded to
Philadelphia to attend the Continental Congress, which convened the
next month.

The Hancock-Clarke House consists of two frame sections, erected by
Rev. John Hancock at different times. The original one, built in 1698,
presently forms the small rear ell, 1½ stories high with gambrel roof.
A living room-kitchen and tiny study are located downstairs and two
low-studded chambers upstairs. The 2½-story front, or main, section of
the house dates from 1734 and was financed by Thomas Hancock for his
father. It has a large central chimney and contains a short center hall
and two rooms on each of the two floors.

In 1896, when the building faced demolition, the Lexington Historical
Society acquired it and moved it from across the street to its present
location. In 1902 the society constructed a rear brick addition
containing a fireproof vault to protect its more valuable possessions.
Restored to its 18th-century appearance and well maintained, the
Hancock-Clarke House is open to the public and serves as headquarters
of the society. Recently the society purchased the original site of the
house, where foundations are visible.




Bartlett House, New Hampshire  ∆

    _Location: Rockingham County, on the west side of N.H. 111,
    opposite the town hall, Kingston._


This is the only extant structure closely associated with Josiah
Bartlett. He built it in 1774, after fire consumed his earlier home on
the same site, and lived in it until his death in 1795.

[Illustration: Bartlett House.]

The rectangular frame residence is clapboarded and two stories in
height. Two interior chimneys pierce the gabled roof. Exterior louvered
shutters border the windows. Many of the house’s existing features
date from the second third of the 19th century, when it was remodeled
in the Greek Revival style. They include the giant corner pilasters;
cornices over the first-story windows; the center door with cornice,
sidelights, and pilasters; and the one-story porch across the south end
of the structure. Another addition, at the southwest corner, was the
two-story frame ell, which gave the building its present L-shape. This
ell contains a summer kitchen and workroom on the first floor and four
bedrooms on the second.

Center halls bisect the rooms on both stories of the main house
into pairs. The downstairs hall is divided into two sections, each
containing a stairway set against the north wall. To the south of
the hall on the first floor are the living room and the dining room,
originally the kitchen. These rooms are equipped with the original
chimneys and fireplaces. North of the hall is a parlor and behind it
a bedroom. Around 1860 the chimney for these rooms and the fireplace
in the parlor were rebuilt, and two closets that flanked the parlor
fireplace were converted into the existing arched alcoves. The second
floor contains four bedrooms, two on each side of the central hall. The
original wide floorboards are still in place throughout the residence.

The house, in excellent condition, is still in the possession of
Bartlett descendants and is not open to the public. It has never
been restored, but is furnished with some original Bartlett pieces,
including a medical table and instruments.




Moffatt-Ladd House, New Hampshire  ∆

    _Location: Rockingham County, 154 Market Street, Portsmouth._


An outstanding example of a late Georgian mansion, this impressive
three-story structure was the longtime residence of William Whipple.
Ship carpenters constructed it in 1763 for John Moffatt, a sea captain
and wealthy merchant. He presented it the following year as a wedding
gift to his son, Samuel, a merchant-shipowner. In 1768, after the
latter had failed in business and fled to the West Indies to escape
creditors, Captain Moffatt reacquired it and lived in it for the rest
of his life. Whipple and his wife, Catherine, Moffatt’s daughter, moved
into the house the same year as the captain. Whipple resided there
until his death in 1785; his wife and apparently his father-in-law,
too, survived him.

[Illustration: Moffatt-Ladd House.]

The square, clapboarded building stands on a slight elevation
overlooking old Portsmouth Harbor. Noteworthy features of the elaborate
exterior include white corner quoins and richly pedimented first- and
second-floor windows. The third-story windows, smaller in size, abut
the distinctive cornice. Side windows, like those on the third-floor
front, lack pediments. Rear windows on the first two stories have flat
arches with lengthened keystones. The hip roof, flanked by three end
chimneys, is cut off to form a flat deck, or captain’s walk, which
is enclosed by an attractive balustrade with urn finials. A delicate
fence with large ornamental posts, also topped by urn finials, spans
the front of the house, which is approached by a flight of granite
steps that lead up to the portico-covered entranceway. Near the front
northeast comer of the residence is the countinghouse, or office
(1810), a small, square building with a hip roof.

The interior of the house is as highly embellished as the exterior. The
outstanding room on the first floor is the unusually spacious entrance
hall, one of the finest in New England. Its carved cornice is handsome,
and the walls are covered with rare imported French wallpaper of the
early 19th century. The beautiful and finely carved flight of stairs
is lighted by a roundheaded window in the side wall above the landing.
Except for the simple detail in the drawing room, that in other
first-floor rooms—dining room and pantry—is rich. Four bedrooms are
located on the second floor, and five additional chambers on the third.
Three of the second-floor bedrooms have richly carved overmantels.

The carefully restored house and grounds were owned by the Ladd family,
descendants of the Moffatts through marriage, until 1969. From 1913
until 1969, they leased the house to the Colonial Dames of America,
which maintained it for public display. In 1969 the Colonial Dames
acquired full title to the property. The first two floors of the house
are furnished in period pieces, and the third floor is not open.




Thornton House, New Hampshire  ∆

    _Location: Rockingham County, 2 Thornton Street, Derry Village._


Matthew Thornton lived in this residence, which has since been
considerably altered, during his medical and most of his political
career. He probably acquired it in 1740, the year he moved from
Worcester, Mass., to present Derry Village (then a part of Londonderry)
to set up his medical practice. He resided in it until about 1780, when
he retired as a doctor and moved to a farm near Merrimack, N.H.

The gable roof of the two-story frame structure, of the saltbox type,
slopes steeply to the rear, or north, and forms a one-story lean-to.
Two interior chimneys sit behind the ridge of the roof. The exterior,
remodeled in the Greek Revival style probably in the mid-19th century,
features giant pilasters on the front corners and a one-story portico
over the center door. The clapboarding is a replacement of the
original. All windows, including those in the gable ends, have exterior
louvered shutters, and flat cornices surmount those on the first floor.
A one-story frame service ell, extending from the northwest corner and
giving the house its present L-shape, contains the modernized kitchen
and what were once workrooms for servants.

[Illustration: Thornton House.]

Inside the house, a center hall bisects the rooms into two pairs and is
divided into two sections, each with its own stairway on the east wall.
To the east of the hall are the living room and modern laundry room; to
the west, dining room and present family room. The two chimneys, built
between the pairs of rooms to provide four fireplaces, one for each
room, were rebuilt on a smaller scale in the early 19th century for use
with Franklin stoves. Thus none of the original fireplaces and mantels
exist any longer, but a 19th-century mantel remains in the dining room.
The opposite fireplace in the family room, however, is modern. Features
dating from the 18th century include the framing and wide floorboards,
visible in all rooms except the family room where they are covered. The
second floor contains three bedrooms.

The Thornton House, in fair condition, is used as a private residence
and is not open to the public. Its present owner hopes to restore it.




Hopkinson House, New Jersey  ∆

    _Location: Burlington County, 101 Farnsworth Avenue, Bordentown._


Owned by the Hopkinson family for several generations, this house was
the residence of signer Francis Hopkinson from 1774 until his death in
1791. It was built in 1750 by merchant John Imlay (Emley), who used
part of it as a store. Sometime before 1768 Joseph Borden, a prominent
New Jersey citizen, acquired it. Hopkinson married his daughter at
Philadelphia in 1768, and, after a tour as customs collector at New
Castle, Del. (1772–74), moved to Bordentown and took up residence with
his father-in-law.

Upon Hopkinson’s death, his eldest son, Joseph (1770–1842), inherited
the house. He achieved fame as composer, lawyer, judge, and politician.
Among his distinguished guests were Irish poet Thomas Moore, Thomas
Paine, and Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon’s brother. The Hopkinson family
retained possession of the property until 1915; since then, it has been
owned by the Wells family.

The Hopkinson House is an L-shaped, brick and frame structure with a
gambrel, dormered roof. The main 2½-story section is constructed of
brick. The center door is topped by a rectangular transom, flanked by
sidelights, and sheltered by a segmental hood. A central hall, divided
into two sections by means of a wide folding door with an arched
fanlight above, bisects the first floor into two large rooms, living
room and library. Both of these are currently used by the Bordentown
Chamber of Commerce as an office and museum, open to the public. The
front portion of the central hall serves as an entrance hall; the rear
section, as the stair hall. A narrow hall extends from the stair hall
south across the rear of the main house. The second and third floors,
each containing four bedrooms, are used as apartments.

[Illustration: Hopkinson House.]

A two-story brick wing extends to the rear from the northeast corner
of the main section. Its first-floor dining room and the two bedrooms
comprising the second floor form an apartment unit. Attached to this
wing at the rear of the brick arm is a two-story frame wing that once
contained the kitchen and servant’s bedroom.

The exterior of the house, except for the metal roof, appears to
be little altered. Interior features are plastered walls, wide
floorboards, and 19th-century mantels. Much of the original woodwork
and trim has apparently been replaced, but the basic floor plan has not
been greatly changed. The residence is in good condition.




Maybury Hill, New Jersey  ∆

    _Location: Mercer County, 346 Snowden Lane, Princeton._


Maybury Hill, built about 1725, was the birthplace and boyhood home
of North Carolina signer Joseph Hewes. His father leased it from 1730
until 1755.

The house provides a fine example of Georgian architecture. It was
originally a small, two-story stone structure with gable roof. A short
distance away, at the northeast corner, stood a detached kitchen
building. In 1735, following a fire, the main house was rebuilt. In
1753 a major addition was made on the north side connecting it with the
kitchen building. This resulted in an L-shaped, two-story structure
with gabled roof and three end chimneys. The only alteration of
consequence since that time occurred about 1900, when the fieldstone
exterior walls were covered with concrete.

Flat brick arches top the windows. Second-story windows have exterior
louvered shutters; those on the first, paneled shutters. Today the
house has a center hall floor plan. To the south of the hall is the
large parlor, which dates from 1725. To the north are the dining and
living rooms, added in 1753. Both of them have paneled walls, shell
cabinets, and exposed ceiling beams. The kitchen, dating from 1725,
is still in the northeast corner of the building. The dining room
fireplace is faced with tile. Four bedrooms occupy the upstairs. All
the floors are constructed of wide boards.

Little-altered Maybury Hill was renovated in 1920, and is still in
excellent condition. A private residence, it is not open to visitors.

[Illustration: Maybury Hill.]




Morven, New Jersey  ∆

    _Location: Mercer County, 55 Stockton Street, Princeton._


Morven was the birthplace and lifelong home of Richard Stockton
(1730–81). In the summer of 1783 it was also the official residence
of his brother-in-law Elias Boudinot, President of the Continental
Congress, which was then meeting in Princeton. That same year, many
Revolutionary leaders gathered at the mansion to celebrate the signing
of the Treaty of Paris, which ended the War for Independence.

Between 1701 and 1709 Stockton’s grandfather, also named Richard,
built the earliest section of Morven. It grew in a series of stages
until about 1775, when its exterior appearance approximated that of
today. Because fires in 1776, set by the British during the War for
Independence, and 1821 necessitated extensive repairs, the interior
dates from the late 18th or early 19th century.

[Illustration: Morven.]

A large Georgian mansion of brick, Morven consists of three sections: a
main central, two-story section over a raised basement and two lower,
attached, two-story wings. The facade of the main section, although
basically early Georgian in style, was altered in the 19th century
by the addition of a wide, one-story, Greek Revival porch. A central
hall divides the section into a large dining room and the Gold Room.
Fireplace walls in these rooms are fully paneled. The central hall
intersects a stair hall, which runs across the rear of the main portion
of the house and connects with the two wings. On the first floor of
the east wing are two large family rooms, the Red Room and library.
This wing was partially burned by the British. The west service wing
includes the kitchen. The only recent change, in 1945–54, was the
addition of a solarium, or Green Room, at the rear of the main section;
a one-story porch was enclosed to form the new room.

Morven remained in possession of the Stockton family until 1945, when
Gov. and Mrs. Walter E. Edge acquired it. Nine years later, they
donated it to the State of New Jersey. Since that time, it has been the
official residence of the Governor. It is not accessible to the public.




President’s House, New Jersey  ∆

    _Location: Mercer County, on Nassau Street just northwest of Nassau
    Hall, on the Princeton University campus, Princeton._


From 1756 until 1879 this house was the official residence of the
president of the College of New Jersey (Princeton University after
1896). In 1768, when John Witherspoon emigrated from Scotland to
America to assume the presidency, he occupied it. While living there,
he represented New Jersey in the Continental Congress and signed the
Declaration. In 1779 he moved to his nearby farm, Tusculum. From then
until 1794 his son-in-law Samuel S. Smith, vice president of the
college, resided in the President’s House. From 1879 until 1968 it
was the home of the Dean of the Faculty and was known as the “Dean’s
House.” Since 1968, it has been called the Maclean House and has been
used by the Princeton Alumni Council.

[Illustration: President’s House.]

The Georgian building was designed and constructed in 1756 by Robert
Smith, a master carpenter of Philadelphia. Both on the exterior and
the interior, it has changed only slightly throughout the years. It
was originally a two-story brick structure, rectangular in shape, with
gable roof. A one-story polygonal bay extends westward from the rear
southwest comer. Near the same corner, a two-story service wing of
brick and stone runs southward. Above the windows of the main facade
are flat stone winged arches with keystones. Over the center door is a
fanlight surmounted by a triangular pediment. The exterior has retained
its original appearance and arrangement except that small double
dormers were later inserted in the center of the front and rear roofs
to create a third level. Additions in 1868 were a wide one-story frame
porch on the front of the residence and a one-story frame, polygonal
bay on the east side near the northeast front corner.

The center door opens into a central hall that extends through the
house to rear stairs, against the east wall. To the east of the hall
are a library and study. The fireplace wall in the library is fully
paneled. To the west of the hall are a parlor and dining room. The
second floor of the main house contains four bedrooms; the third floor,
three additional rooms. Two bedrooms are located on the second floor
of the service wing. In excellent condition, the house is open to the
public.




Tusculum, New Jersey  ‎⊗

    _Location: Mercer County, 166 Cherry Hill Road, Princeton._


John Witherspoon made this his home from 1779 until his death in 1794.
In 1773, while serving as president of the College of New Jersey (later
Princeton University), he acquired some farmland near Princeton and
built Tusculum. For several years he leased out the house and farm, but
in 1779 he moved from the President’s House to Tusculum.

The two-story Georgian structure of fieldstone with gabled roof and
two pairs of end chimneys originally had only one extension, a lower,
two-story, stone and frame wing attached to the west end of the house
along its main axis. First-story windows of both sections have exterior
paneled shutters; second-story windows, louvered shutters. In later
years, two additional wings, both of frame and two stories in height,
were added to the east and west ends of the structure. Designed in the
same style as the rest of the house, they do not seriously alter the
original appearance of the front elevation.

[Illustration: Tusculum.]

The stairway is located in an ell at the rear portion of the center
hall along the east wall. To the east of the hall lie the living room
and study; to the west, a large dining room, which occupies the entire
west half of the main house. Four bedrooms are upstairs. The finish in
two of them date from about 1825. The original service wing, on the
west side, contains a kitchen on the first floor and two bedrooms on
the second.

Tusculum has never undergone any major alterations and it is in
excellent condition. In 1924 the present owner acquired it. Under
his supervision, a Philadelphia firm restored it to its 18th-century
appearance. The major changes were the removal of 19th-century porches
at the front, or south, and elimination of a partition wall in the
dining room. The structure continues to serve as a private residence
and is not shown to visitors.




Floyd Birthplace (Fire Island National Seashore), New York  ‎☑

    _Location: Suffolk County, 20 Washington Avenue, Mastic, Long
    Island; address: Fire Island National Seashore, P.O. Box 229,
    Patchogue, N.Y. 11772._


This farmhouse, which stood on a large estate the Floyd family had
acquired in 1718, was the birthplace in 1734 of William Floyd and his
residence for the greater part of his life—though he and his family
were forced to abandon it in the period 1776–83 and flee to Middletown,
Conn. During that time, British troops and Loyalists considerably
damaged the estate. In 1803 Floyd presented the house to his son Nicoll
and moved to present Westernville, N.Y.

[Illustration: Floyd Birthplace.]

The earliest section of the large, frame Georgian building, which was
enlarged several times along its west side during the 18th century,
dates from about 1724. The structure now consists of a two-story main
section and three wings. The former, entered through a Dutch door,
is laid out in central hall fashion. To the west of the hall are a
parlor and back of that an office; to the east, a dining room, behind
which are a gunroom and pantry side by side. Interesting features on
the first floor are exposed ceiling beams and wide floorboards. Seven
bedrooms occupy the second floor.

Extending from the rear of the central hall is a two-story north
service wing, probably added about 1900. A 1½-story east service wing,
with a dormered, gable roof, dates from the 18th century. At the rear,
or to the north, of this wing, is a third service wing, 1½ stories
high. It contained the original kitchen and was once located at the
west end of the main house. Except for this relocation and the addition
of the north wing, the main house and east wing are basically unchanged
from their 18th-century appearance. The overall structure is in good
condition and is furnished with many original pieces belonging to the
Floyd family.

In 1965 Floyd descendants donated 613 acres of the estate to the U.S.
Government for inclusion in Fire Island National Seashore, but retained
use and occupational rights to 43 acres and the house for a period of
25 years. Thus the residence will not be open to the public until 1990.




General Floyd House, New York  ∆

    _Location: Oneida County, on the west side of Main Street opposite
    Gilford Hill Road, Westernville._


William Floyd lived in this home from 1803 until his death in 1821.
In 1784 he had begun purchasing frontier land near present Rome in
western New York, and 3 years later the State granted him 10,240 acres
in the same area. During the summers, he visited and developed his
tracts. In 1803, nearly 70 years of age, he deeded his residence at
present Mastic, on Long Island, N.Y., to his son Nicoll and moved the
rest of his family to present Westernville, where he constructed this
farmhouse. He spent the remainder of his life farming and improving his
wilderness lands.

[Illustration: General Floyd House.]

Constructed of frame, the Georgian-style residence consists of a large,
two-story main section with gable roof and a lower, two-story service
wing attached to the west end. A center door, flanked by a pair of
small windows, opens into a central hall that extends through the
house to another door on the north side. The stairs are set against
the west wall of the hall. To the east of the hall are two large
parlors containing cupboards and paneled fireplace walls. To the west
of the hall is a dining room and behind that a study. The rooms have
plastered walls and ceilings and wide floorboards. Four bedrooms occupy
the second floor, and the attic is unfinished. The service wing, which
includes the kitchen, is located to the west of the dining room.

The structure, unaltered except for metal roofs and modern plumbing,
is in excellent condition. It remained in the possession of Floyd
descendants until 1956. Still privately owned, it is not open to the
public.




Iredell House, North Carolina  ‎⊗

    _Location: Chowan County, 107 East Church Street, Edenton._


Early in 1798, in a state of extreme mental anguish because of mounting
debts brought on by unwise speculation in lands, James Wilson, probably
while visiting North Carolina on Federal circuit court matters, took
refuge in this house. It was the home of his friend and fellow U.S.
Supreme Court Justice James Iredell. Within a few months, Wilson died
there.

[Illustration: Iredell House.]

The little-altered Iredell House is a large L-shaped structure. It is
constructed of frame and is two stories in height with gable roof.
Two-story verandas span the front, or south, and rear elevations of
the long arm of the ell. The building was erected in three stages. The
earliest, the present short, or east, arm of the ell, was built in 1759
by John Wilkins, with its narrow gable end fronting on the street. In
1776 Joseph Whedbee enlarged the structure by adding to its west side
the two easternmost bays of the present five-bay long arm. In 1810
Iredell’s widow extended the arm by three bays to its present size and
added the verandas.

The original section of the house contains a living room and one other
room on the first floor and two bedrooms on the second. The first floor
of the 1776 section consists of the dining room; the second floor, a
large bedroom. These two sections are furnished as a historic house
museum and are open to the public. The remaining section of the long
arm, dating from 1810, serves as the caretaker’s quarters. The State
owns and administers the residence.




Nash-Hooper House, North Carolina  ∆

    _Location: Orange County, 118 West Tryon Street, Hillsborough._


The Nash-Hooper House is the only extant residence that can be
associated with William Hooper and is the only surviving home of a
signer in the State. It was built in 1772 by Francis Nash, who later
attained the rank of brigadier general in the Continental Army and
lost his life in the War for Independence. In 1782, after the British
had driven Hooper into hiding and destroyed his estate Finian near
Wilmington, he moved to Hillsborough, where his family had fled. He
purchased the Nash-Hooper House and resided in it until his death in
1790. Subsequently, from 1869 until 1875, it was the home of William A.
Graham, former Governor of North Carolina.

The original portion of the rectangular, two-story house was
constructed with a braced oak frame that was held together by pegs and
pins. It rests on shale foundations over an elevated basement, in which
are located two rooms and a center hall. The roof is gabled, with a
chimney at each end. A one-story, frame, “sitting room” (later dining
room) wing, added in 1819 on a log base, extends from the rear, or
north, of the house and creates its present L-shape. Weatherboarded
siding covers both sides of the wing and the front of the main section.
All the windows are flanked with exterior louvered shutters. The
one-story porch spanning the front of the house dates from the late
19th century. A detached kitchen, erected in 1819 just east of the
house adjacent to the storeroom and dining room in the north wing, was
demolished in 1908. Sometime during the period 1939–59, the dining room
in the north wing was converted into the present kitchen, and bathrooms
were installed in the residence.

[Illustration: Nash-Hooper House.]

The center hall of the main house is divided into two sections by means
of an arch near the rear. West of the hall are a large library and a
small study or bedroom; to the east, a large parlor and in the rear
corner a narrow, lateral stair hall, with the stairs set against the
north wall. Three bedrooms are located on the second floor, and the
attic is unfinished. Wide floorboards are exposed throughout most of
the main house. An original pine mantel remains in the dining room.

Although the little-altered Nash-Hooper House is structurally sound, it
has never been restored, and extensive painting and plastering will be
required to return it to good condition. It is privately owned and is
not open to the public.

Hooper was buried to the east of his home in the garden. That part
of the garden was later absorbed by the town cemetery, behind the
Presbyterian Church. In 1894 Hooper’s remains were reinterred at
Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, N.C., though his original
gravestone remains in the Hillsborough cemetery.




Independence National Historical Park, Pennsylvania  ‎☑

    _Location: Philadelphia County, in downtown Philadelphia; address:
    313 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, Pa. 19106._


This park in the old part of Philadelphia is not only preeminent
among the sites associated with the signers of the Declaration of
Independence, but also notably commemorates other major aspects of
the Nation’s founding and initial growth and many momentous national
events. These include meetings of the First and Second Continental
Congresses; adoption and signing of the Declaration, which marked the
creation of the United States; and the labors of the Constitutional
Convention of 1787, which perpetuated it. As historian Carl Van Doren
has said: “On account of the Declaration of Independence, [Independence
Hall] is a shrine honored wherever the rights of man are honored. On
account of the Constitution, it is a shrine cherished wherever the
principles of self-government on a federal scale are cherished.”

[Illustration: Independence Hall.]

Independence Hall was originally the State House for the Province of
Pennsylvania. In 1729 the provincial assembly set aside funds for
the building, designed by lawyer Andrew Hamilton. Three years later,
construction began under the supervision of master carpenter Edmund
Wooley. In 1736 the assembly moved into the statehouse, which was not
fully completed until 1756.

As American opposition to British colonial policies mounted,
Philadelphia became a center of organized protest. To decide on a
unified course of action, in 1774 the First Continental Congress met
in newly finished Carpenters’ Hall, whose erection the Carpenters’
Company of Philadelphia had begun 4 years earlier. In 1775 the Second
Continental Congress, taking over the east room of the ground floor
of the statehouse from the Pennsylvania assembly, moved from protest
to resistance. Warfare had already begun in Massachusetts. Congress
created an Army and appointed George Washington as commander in chief.
Yet the final break with the Crown had not come; not until a year later
would independence be declared.

On July 2, 1776, Congress passed Richard Henry Lee’s resolution of
June 7 recommending independence. The Delegates then turned their
attention to Thomas Jefferson’s draft of the Declaration, which had
been submitted on June 28. After modification, it was adopted on July
4. Four days later, in Independence Square, the document was first read
publicly, to the citizens of Philadelphia. In a formal ceremony on
August 2, about 50 of the 56 signers affixed their signatures to the
Declaration; the others apparently did so later.

Long, hard years of war ensued. In the late autumn and winter of
1776–77, the British threatened Philadelphia and Congress moved to
Baltimore. Again in the fall of 1777 it departed, this time for York,
Pa. During the British occupation of Philadelphia that winter and the
next spring, the redcoats used Independence Hall as a barracks and as a
hospital for American prisoners. In the summer of 1778, the Government
returned. On November 3, 1781, Congress officially received news of
Cornwallis’ surrender at Yorktown. Independence practically had been
won.

Earlier that same year, the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
Union had gone into effect. Under the Confederation, Congress stayed
in Philadelphia until 1783, and later met in other cities. In 1787
the Constitutional Convention also held its highly secret sessions in
Independence Hall, in the same chamber in which the Declaration had
been adopted.

About the same time that Philadelphia became the second Capital
(1790–1800) under the Constitution, after the Government had moved
from New York City, Independence Hall acquired three new neighbors
in Independence Square: City Hall (1791), on the east; County Court
House (1789), on the west; and American Philosophical Society Hall,
on the southeast. Beginning in 1790, Congress met in the County Court
House (subsequently known as Congress Hall). The following year, after
sitting for a few days in Independence Hall, the U.S. Supreme Court
moved to City Hall. In 1793 George Washington was inaugurated for his
second term as President in Congress Hall, and 4 years later President
Adams also took his oath of office there.

In 1799 the State government vacated Independence Hall and moved
to Lancaster. The next year, the Federal Government relocated to
Washington, D.C. The city of Philadelphia then used City Hall and
Congress Hall, and various tenants occupied Independence Hall until the
city acquired it in 1818. For example, during the period 1802–27 artist
Charles Willson Peale operated a museum there. He and his son painted
many of the signers and heroes of the War for Independence. These
portraits form the nucleus of the park’s present collection, which is
exhibited in the Second Bank of the United States Building; a special
room is devoted to the signers.

Stately and symmetrical Independence Hall, a 2½-story red brick
structure that has been carefully restored, is the most beautiful
18th-century public building of Georgian style in the United States.
The tall belltower, reconstructed along the original lines in 1828 by
architect William Strickland, dominates the south facade. Smaller
two-story, hip-roofed, brick wings, erected in 1736 and 1739 and
restored in 1897–98, one of which serves as a park information center,
are connected to the main building by arcades.

[Illustration: Independence Hall in 1778.]

The interior focus of interest in Independence Hall is the Assembly
Room, the eastern one on the first floor. Probably no other room in
the United States has been the scene of such political courage and
wisdom. In this chamber, members of the Continental Congress and the
Constitutional Convention formulated and signed the Declaration of
Independence and Constitution. The room is about 40 feet square and
20 feet high. Twin segmental-arched fireplaces along the east wall
flank the speaker’s dais. Massive fluted pilasters raised on pedestals
adorn the paneled east wall. The other three walls are plastered.
A heavy Roman Doric entablature borders the plaster ceiling. The
furniture arrangement at the time of the Continental Congress has been
duplicated. The only original furnishings are the “Rising Sun” chair
and the silver inkstand with quill box and shaker used by the signers
of the Declaration and the Constitution.

[Illustration: Restored Assembly Room, Independence Hall, where Members
of the Continental Congress adopted and signed the Declaration of
Independence.]

The other large room on the ground floor, where the U.S. Supreme Court
held sessions for a few days in 1791 and again in August 1796, housed
the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and later other State and local
courts. The paneled walls are decorated with massive fluted pilasters
of the Roman Doric order. The central hall between this room and the
Assembly Room is richly adorned with a Roman Doric order of columns and
entablature, fully membered. On the second floor are the Long Room,
Governor’s Council Chamber, and Committee Room. These are furnished to
represent the activities of the Pennsylvania legislature and government
prior to 1775.

The Liberty Bell, a worldwide emblem of freedom, is displayed in the
tower stair hall on the south end of the first floor. [When this
volume went to press, the bell was scheduled to be moved in the near
future to a newly constructed belltower, part of the park visitor
center, located 2 blocks from Independence Hall.] The source of the
2,080-pound bell’s name is the “Proclaim Liberty” inscription, engraved
on it to commemorate the 50th anniversary of William Penn’s Charter
of Privileges (1701). In 1750 the Pennsylvania assembly authorized
erection of the Independence Hall belltower, and the next year
ordered a bell from England. After it arrived in 1752, it was cracked
during testing and was twice recast by local workmen. As the official
statehouse bell, it was rung on public occasions. In 1777, before the
British occupied Philadelphia, the Government moved it temporarily to
Allentown, Pa. Traditionally the bell cracked once again, in 1835,
while tolling the death of Chief Justice John Marshall. The exterior
appearances of City Hall and Congress Hall have changed little since
the 1790’s, when many of the signers served in the Government. The
interior of Congress Hall has been restored and refurnished as the
meetingplace of Congress in the 1790’s. Exhibits in City Hall describe
the activities of the U.S. Supreme Court during the same period of
time, and portray Philadelphia life during the late 18th century.
Carpenters’ Hall, a block east of Independence Square, is still owned
and operated by the Carpenters’ Company of Philadelphia. The hall
memorializes the First Continental Congress and possesses architectural
significance.

The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743 by Benjamin
Franklin and the oldest learned society in the United States, still
maintains its headquarters in Philosophical Hall. Its distinguished
membership once included 15 of the signers. The society’s collections
also contain furniture and documents associated with them.

In the years 1789–91, the Library Company of Philadelphia (organized
in 1731), one of the first public libraries in the United States,
erected Library Hall, across from Independence Square on the corner of
Library and Fifth Streets. Numbering among the members were 11 signers,
including company founder Franklin. Library Hall, reconstructed by the
American Philosophical Society, now serves as its library. The Library
Company is quartered elsewhere in the city.

In addition to the preceding buildings, numerous sites associated
with the signers have also been identified within the park. Many of
them have been marked. On some, later buildings now stand. In a few
instances, the National Park Service has excavated and stabilized
foundations. Outstanding among the sites is that of the Jacob Graff,
Jr., House, two blocks from Independence Hall on the southwest corner
of Seventh and Market Streets. Jefferson was occupying the second floor
of the 3½-story brick house when he wrote the Declaration in June 1776.
His rented quarters consisted of a bedroom and parlor. He likely did
much of his writing on a portable writing desk of his own design. In
1791 the Graff House was also the residence of signer James Wilson. It
was demolished in 1883.

Other sites include those of the home (1766–90) and other structures
associated with Franklin, on Franklin Court in the block south of
Market Street between Third and Fourth Streets; two adjoining homes
(1785–90 and 1790–95) of Robert Morris, on the southeast corner of
Market and Sixth Streets, one of which was the unofficial Presidential
Mansion (1790–1800), where John Adams resided (1797–1800) while
President; Clarke Hall, on the southwest corner of Chestnut and Third
Streets, the residence of Samuel Huntington (1779–81) and Thomas
McKean (1781); Benjamin Rush’s home (1791–93), on the northwest corner
of Walnut and Third Streets; the James Wilson home (“Fort Wilson”)
(1778–90), on the southwest corner of the same intersection; and City
Tavern, near Walnut and Second Streets, a gathering place for members
of the Continental Congress and Constitutional Convention, as well as
other Government officials.

In connection with the U.S. Bicentennial commemoration, the National
Park Service plans to reconstruct the Graff House and the City Tavern.

[Illustration: Congress Hall, seat of the U.S. Congress from 1790 until
1800.]

The graves and tombs of seven signers are also located in the park.
Five (Franklin, Hewes, Hopkinson, Ross, and Rush) are in Christ Church
Burial Ground, at the southeast corner of Fifth and Arch Streets; and
two (Wilson and Robert Morris) in the yard of Christ Church, on Second
Street between Church and Filbert Streets. The graves of Hewes and Ross
are unmarked. A rose garden, dedicated in January 1971 to the memory
of the signers of the Declaration by the Daughters of the American
Revolution, is situated in a plot in the area between Walnut and Locust
and Fourth and Fifth Streets.

[Illustration: Carpenters’ Hall, meetingplace in 1774–75 of the First
Continental Congress.]

Buildings and sites in the park that are mainly of interest in other
themes of history than that treated in this volume include: the First
Bank of the United States; the Second Bank of the United States (Old
Custom House); New Hall (Marine Corps Museum); the Pemberton House
(Army-Navy Museum); the Philadelphia (Merchants’) Exchange; the Bishop
White House; the Deshler-Morris House, in Germantown; the Todd House;
St. George’s Church; St. Joseph’s Church; St. Mary’s Church; Mikveh
Israel Cemetery; and Gloria Dei (Old Swede’s) Church National Historic
Site.

[Illustration: The Graff House about 1855. By this time, alterations
had rendered it almost completely unrecognizable from its original
appearance. Among other changes, it had been joined to an adjacent
building and raised a story higher, more than doubling its size.]

The structures and properties in 22-acre Independence National
Historical Park, most of which are open to the public, include those
owned by the city of Philadelphia, but administered by the National
Park Service. These consist of Independence Hall, Congress Hall, City
Hall, and Independence Square. In recent years, to enhance the setting
of the area, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has created Independence
Mall in the three blocks directly north of Independence Hall. Federally
owned buildings include the First and Second Banks of the United
States; the Deshler-Morris House, administered by the Germantown
Historical Society; Todd House; Bishop White House; New Hall; Pemberton
House; and the Philadelphia Exchange.

Among those privately owned buildings whose owners have cooperative
agreements with the National Park Service are Carpenters’ Hall
and Christ Church, both National Historic Landmarks. The American
Philosophical Society owns Philosophical Hall, another Landmark and the
only privately owned building on the square, but also operates Library
Hall, on federally owned land.

In 1948, upon recommendation of the Philadelphia National Shrines Park
Commission, Congress created Independence National Historical Park.
This act specified the Federal Government’s role in the commemoration
of existing historic sites and buildings and the acquisition and
management of others. The entire undertaking is guided by an advisory
commission of distinguished citizens. Many individuals and private
and civic organizations have contributed to the preservation and
beautification of the park.




Parsons-Taylor House, Pennsylvania  ‎⊗

    _Location: Northampton County, northeast corner of Fourth and Ferry
    Streets, Easton._


This house, built by William Parsons in 1757, was leased by George
Taylor during the last year of his life and was the site of his death
in February 1781. His health failing and his iron business declining,
he had moved there the previous April from Greenwich Township, N.J.

[Illustration: Parsons-Taylor House.]

The residence, a small, two-story Georgian structure constructed of
fieldstone, has a steep gable roof and a pent roof extending along the
front at the second-floor level. A single chimney is located in the
north sidewall. The front door is surmounted by a rectangular transom;
the center door, in the south side, is sheltered by a hood. A frame
attachment to the house, probably existing in 1780, no longer stands.

A single large room containing stairs and a fireplace on the north wall
make up the first floor. The walls are plastered, and the joists are
supported by heavy, exposed beams. Bedrooms occupy the second floor
and attic. Restored about 1906, the structure is in fine condition
and is owned by the George Taylor Chapter, Daughters of the American
Revolution, which uses it as a meetingplace. It is not usually open to
visitors.




Shippen-Wistar House, Pennsylvania  ‎⊗

    _Location: Philadelphia County, southwest corner of Fourth and
    Locust Streets, Philadelphia._


Meetingplace of medical and political dignitaries, this townhouse was
the residence of three eminent doctors and was visited by some of the
signers and other key governmental officials. It was erected about
1750 by Dr. William Shippen, Sr. (1712–1802). A prominent medical man
of his day, he also served in the Continental Congress and contributed
to Philadelphia’s cultural life. His son, Dr. William Shippen, Jr.
(1736–1808), won distinction as a teacher as well as a practitioner,
helped found the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, and in
the period 1777–81 directed medical services in the Continental Army.
He and his father apparently shared the residence part of the time
during their careers. Like the Shippens, Dr. Caspar Wistar (1761–1818),
who acquired the house in 1798, was distinguished in medical and
intellectual circles.

Various signers and other Delegates to the Continental Congress paid
visits to the home. Richard Henry Lee, brother-in-law of young Shippen,
stayed there. Francis Lightfoot and Arthur Lee likely often made calls.
On occasion John Adams and John Witherspoon stopped by. Other notables
who did so later were George Washington, while presiding over the
Constitutional Convention (1787); Benjamin Rush, before his clash with
Shippen, Jr., over medical conditions in the Continental Army; Robert
R. Livingston, who had served on the Declaration drafting committee,
in the 1780’s; John Adams, while Vice President; and Jefferson, as
Secretary of State.

The exterior of the house is in good condition, but the interior
has been extensively altered. A 3½-story building in the colonial
Philadelphia architectural style, it is constructed in Flemish bond
with red bricks and black headers. The windows are shuttered. Notable
are a high gable on the Fourth Street side and brick parapet walls on
the roof joining the two end chimneys, one on each side of the roof
near the peak of the ridge. A garden extends along the Locust Street
side at the original rear of the house, which is now entered from
that side rather than from Fourth Street. The building is owned and
occupied by an insurance company, which has built a passageway between
it and the adjacent Cadwalader House on the south. Access to the two
structures is limited to the company’s customers.




Summerseat, Pennsylvania  ∆

    _Location: Bucks County, on Clymer Street in the block bounded by
    Morris and Hillcrest Avenues, Morrisville._


Summerseat was erected in the 1770’s by Thomas Barclay, a Philadelphia
merchant. In 1806 George Clymer acquired it and resided in it until his
death in 1813. It is a two-story, brick and stone Georgian structure
over an elevated basement. The roof is gabled and slate-covered. The
wall of the front, or east, facade is brick; the end walls, probably
also of brick, are covered with cement; the rear wall is of fieldstone.
Front first- and second-story windows are topped by flat arches of
gauged brick; rear windows on both levels and all the basement windows,
by segmental arches, also of gauged brick. Exterior solid shutters
flank the first- and second-story windows.

A rectangular transom and triangular pediment surmount the front center
door. Central halls divide the four rooms on each floor into pairs.
Each of the rooms is equipped with a fireplace. The stairs, located
at the rear of the hall along the south wall, are lighted by a large
window over the landing. The walls, floors, and some of the woodwork
appear to be original. Restored in 1931 and renovated 4 years later,
the house is owned by the Morrisville School District and is used for
educational purposes. It is open to the public only on a restricted
basis.

[Illustration: Summerseat.]




Taylor House, Pennsylvania  ∆

    _Location: Lehigh County, on Front Street, Catasauqua._


In 1768 George Taylor employed Philadelphia carpenters to build this
stone residence on the east bank of the Lehigh River, about 15 miles
west of Easton at the site of present Catasauqua. The structure was
located on a 331-acre tract of land, known as the “Manor of Chawton,”
which he had acquired the previous year. In 1771 he leased out most
of the manor as a farm, and 5 years later sold the house and land to
Philadelphia merchant John Benezet.

The rectangular residence is Georgian in style and consists of two
stories over an elevated basement. The thick walls are built of stone
masonry rubble faced with a whitish, slaked-lime stucco. Over the
windows are flat arches of gauged brick. First-floor windows have
exterior solid-panel shutters; those on the second floor, louvered. A
heavy, overhanging cornice surrounds the truncated hip roof. The brick
chimneys at both ends are symmetrically paired. A two-story stone
kitchen wing, dating from about 1800, adjoins the house at the south
end.

[Illustration: Taylor House.]

At the center of the front, or west, facade, a flight of marble
pyramidal steps lead up to a double door, over which are a rectangular
transom and triangular pediment. The central hall, which extends to the
rear of the house toward the stairway, is divided by an archway, with
fluted pilasters. Situated to the north of the hall are living room and
parlor; to the south, dining room and reception, or service, room. Of
special interest in the dining room, parlor, and living room are the
finely executed door pediments and fully paneled fireplace walls. Other
walls in these rooms have paneled wainscots and finely detailed chair
rails. The fireplace paneling and mantel in the dining room date from
the 19th century and represent the Greek Revival style, but the rest of
the first-floor paneling and mantels are original, as are also the wide
pine floorboards and iron hardware.

The second floor consists of four bedrooms and two small dressing
rooms. The fireplace paneling in the two bedrooms on the front side of
the house is almost as elaborate as that downstairs. A 1½-story, brick
summer kitchen, near the rear of the house, dates from about 1850.

The slightly altered Taylor House, acquired in 1945 by the Lehigh
County Historical Society and restored in 1966–68, is in excellent
condition and is open to the public.




Governor Hopkins House, Rhode Island  ∆

    _Location: Providence County, 15 Hopkins Street, Providence._


Stephen Hopkins bought this framehouse in 1742 and resided in it until
his death in 1785. It is the only extant structure closely associated
with him. The oldest section, the lower level of the present southwest
rear ell, dates from about 1707, when the small dwelling comprised two
first-floor rooms and an attic. As soon as he acquired the building,
Hopkins enlarged and remodeled it into its present L-shaped, two-story
form.

The Georgian building, which has a gabled roof and two chimneys, is
clapboarded. Cornices decorate the first-story windows. In 1928, during
a major restoration, a reconstructed door, with triangular pediment and
pilasters typical of the 18th century, was inserted in place of one of
the four windows along the present front elevation. This door, the only
major alteration in the house, became the main entrance. It replaced
a door on the west side, which opens into the original kitchen and is
still extant.

The central hall, along the east wall of which is the main stairway,
divides the front of the residence into two rooms, study and parlor.
The recessed parlor bookshelves, set in paneling above the hearth,
are distinctive. The paneling of the two fireplaces in the study and
ell is simpler. A passageway leads from the parlor to the southwest
ell, which consists of the original kitchen and in the southeast
corner a small bedroom. Five bedrooms, two of which are equipped with
fireplaces, are located upstairs. The interior of the house, including
stairs, woodwork, floors, and fireplaces, is largely original. The fine
garden was designed by a descendant of Stephen Hopkins, the late Alden
Hopkins, prominent landscape architect.

[Illustration: Governor Hopkins House.]

The Governor Hopkins House, first located on the northeast corner of
Hopkins and South Main Streets, was moved eastward in 1804 along the
north side of and about halfway up Hopkins Street. In 1927, to make
way for the construction of a new courthouse, the building was again
relocated eastward along the same street, to its present site, and the
next year was restored. Since that time, the State of Rhode Island has
owned the house and maintained the exterior and grounds. The Society of
Colonial Dames in the State of Rhode Island maintains and administers
the interior as a historic house museum.




Heyward-Washington House, South Carolina  ∆

    _Location: Charleston County, 87 Church Street, Charleston._


From 1778 until 1794 this townhouse was the principal residence
of Thomas Heyward, Jr. During this period, however, he also spent
considerable time at White Hall, his country estate near that of
his father about 25 miles northeast of Savannah, and in 1780–81 was
imprisoned by the British at St. Augustine. In 1770 his father, Daniel,
a rice planter, had purchased the lot and a two-story house standing on
it. Within 2 years, he probably demolished it and erected the present
one. Thomas inherited it in 1777, and moved in the following year,
upon completion of his tour in the Continental Congress. In 1780, when
the British took Charleston, they captured him and forced his family
to flee from the townhouse. For a week in 1791 the city rented it for
use of President Washington, who was visiting Charleston while touring
the Southern States. Three years later, Heyward sold the property and
retired to White Hall.

[Illustration: Heyward-Washington House.]

A slightly altered Georgian structure, the residence is a superb
example of a Charleston “double house.” The floor plan is the typical
Georgian center hall type, with four rooms on each floor. Two
interior chimneys allow for two fireplaces in pairs set back to back
on all floors. The first-floor rooms are simple; those on the second,
elaborate, for entertaining. The downstairs hall, divided by an arch
at midpoint, extends to a rear door. A Palladian window lights the
stairway, located at the rear of the hall against the north wall.

The large second-floor drawing room, the most elaborate room in the
house, features paneled walls, pedimented doors, interior paneled
shutters, an elaborate ceiling cornice, and a fireplace with a
magnificent carved mantel. In addition to the drawing room, the second
floor contains a smaller parlor and two bedrooms, each of which has a
paneled fireplace wall. Four more rooms are located on both the first
and third floors. Except for reconstruction in 1929 of one front room
and the front of the hall on the first floor, the structure is largely
original.

The brick house is square and rises three stories. The hipped roof
is pierced by a single front dormer and ornamented by a narrow,
denticulated cornice. Brick flat arches head the windows. The upper
windows have louvered shutters; those on the first floor, paneled
shutters. The center entrance, a reconstruction, consists of a
fan-lighted door surmounted by a pediment and flanked by Roman Doric
columns. A rear courtyard contains a brick kitchen-laundry with slave
quarters above, a carriage house, wood and tool sheds, a necessary, and
garden.

Subsequent to Heyward’s ownership, the house passed through several
hands until rescued from the threat of demolition in 1929 by the
Charleston Museum. After restoration and furnishing with period pieces,
it was opened to the public. A collection of china once owned by
Heyward is on display, as well as portraits of the Heyward family.




Hopsewee-on-the-Santee, South Carolina  ∆

    _Location: Georgetown County, on an unimproved road just west of
    U.S. 17, about 13 miles southwest of Georgetown._


Erected by his father during the 1740’s, this house on the north bank
of the North Santee River was the birthplace in 1749 and the boyhood
home of Thomas Lynch, Jr. He lived in it until his father sold it in
1763, the year before young Lynch sailed to Europe to continue his
education. It is the only surviving residence closely associated with
him.

[Illustration: Hopsewee-on-the-Santee.]

The 2½-story framehouse rests on a brick foundation, which is covered
with scored tabby. Two front dormers and two interior chimneys
protrude from the hip roof. A broad, two-story porch, or piazza, with
square columns extends across the front of the building. The frame,
comprised of black cypress, is of mortise-and-tenon construction, and
the walls are clapboarded. Exterior paneled shutters flank the first-
and second-story windows. Except for the present metal roof and the
screening of the front porch, the outside of the structure has not been
appreciably altered.

The central hall arrangement divides four rooms into pairs on the first
two floors. All the rooms are equipped with fireplaces. Throughout, the
mantels, wainscoting, cornice mold, and heart pine floors are original
and excellently crafted. The full cellar is constructed of brick and
divided into rooms. Two one-story, cypress, shingled outbuildings,
located to the northeast and northwest of the main house, probably once
served as kitchens. About 1948, by which time the house had fallen into
decay and the grounds were overgrown, the present owner acquired the
property, restored the garden, and repaired the residence. In fine
condition, it is privately occupied, but is shown to the public part of
the week.




Middleton Place, South Carolina  ∆

    _Location: Dorchester County, on an unimproved road just east of
    S.C. 61, about 13 miles northwest of Charleston._


This mansion, of which only the south wing stands today, was the
birthplace and lifelong home of Arthur Middleton (1742–87). About 1738
his grandfather had built a 3½-story brick house at the site. Some 3
years later, Arthur’s father began laying out the surrounding gardens
that have since won international fame as Middleton Place Gardens. More
than 100 slaves labored for a decade to complete the 45-acre gardens
and 16-acre lawn. In 1755 the mansion was enlarged by the addition
of two two-story brick flankers, or detached wings, on the north and
south sides of the original structure, for use respectively as a
library-conservatory and guest quarters.

During the War for Independence, British troops pillaged the residence
and despoiled the plantation. In 1865, as Union soldiers approached
during the Civil War, the slaves set the mansion to the torch, which
left only the walls standing. In 1868 William Middleton erected a
roof over the south wing, the least damaged section of the three, and
reoccupied it. In 1886 an earthquake felled the ruined walls of the
north wing and central section.

[Illustration: The south wing (1755) of Middleton Place, the only
18th-century section of the mansion that has survived.]

In the 1930’s the two-story, brick south wing was renovated and
enlarged. The major additions, both two-story brick and executed in an
18th-century manner, were a service wing along the main axis of the
wing at the south end; and, on the west side, a right-angled entrance
wing, containing a vestibule and stairway, and constructed with a
stepped and curvilinear gable roof to match those on the ends of the
original south wing. A third addition in the 1930’s was a one-story
brick porch on the east, or river, elevation. All the brickwork is
Flemish bond, the shutters are paneled, and a louvered circular window
decorates the gable end of the new entrance wing. The interior chimneys
are three in number. A parlor, dining room, and living room are located
on the first floor of the original south wing and three bedrooms on the
second. The interior finish dates from the mid-19th century, but many
of the furnishings are original 18th-century Middleton pieces.

To the east and north of the present house and ruins of the central
block and north wing are the famous gardens, which have been enlarged
and perfected over the years. They extend from the Ashley River and
the paired butterfly lakes at their foot west toward the residence and
beyond in sweeping terraces. To the northwest of the house, in another
18th-century formal garden, is the family graveyard, containing the
mausoleum of Arthur Middleton.

The estate comprises 7,000 acres and is still owned by Middleton
descendants. They occupy the south wing, which is not open to the
public, unlike the gardens. According to present plans, about 110
acres, embracing the gardens, burial plot, plantation house, and
reconstructed outbuildings, will be donated to a nonprofit organization
that will preserve them and keep them open to the public.




Rutledge House, South Carolina  ∆

    _Location: Charleston County, 117 Broad Street, Charleston._


The residence of Edward Rutledge during his later years, this building
is the only existing one that can be identified with him. Unfortunately
the construction date and the exact years of his residence cannot be
determined, though he was definitely the occupant in 1787.

The large, rectilinear, clapboarded, frame structure is two stories
high over a basement. The roof is hipped. A bilevel porch, supported
by columns, extends across the west side and around the south, or
rear, side of the house. A central modillioned pediment with circular
window fronts the main roof and is “supported” by consoles. Exterior
louvered shutters flank the corniced windows. The center doorway, once
crowned by a cornice, now has a triangular pediment. A small, two-story
clapboard wing, added to the front of the east end along the main
axis in the late 19th century, is the only definite major exterior
alteration. Behind it, runs a two-story porch.

[Illustration: Rutledge House.]

A center hall extends about halfway through the house. On one side are
two rooms with fireplaces; on the other, a front stair hall containing
a curved stairway. Behind this is a large room, accessible only from
the entrance hall. The kitchen, possibly another later addition, is
located in a wing that projects from the rear of the house at the
southeast corner. The interior woodwork appears to date from the
1880’s, and partition walls now subdivide the large original rooms into
smaller ones.

The Rutledge House, known in modern times as the Carter-May House, is
now a Roman Catholic home for elderly women. Portions of the first
floor may be visited upon request. A large garden is located at the
rear of the building.




Berkeley, Virginia  ∆

    _Location: Charles City County, on the south side of Va. 5, about 8
    miles west of Charles City._


In historical interest this fine mansion has few rivals among the James
River plantations. It was the birthplace and lifelong home of Benjamin
Harrison V (1726–91), signer of the Declaration and three-term Governor
of Virginia, as well as the birthplace and boyhood residence of his
son, William Henry (1773–1841), ninth President of the United States
and grandfather of Benjamin (1833–1901), the 23rd President. William
Henry probably wrote his 1841 inaugural address at Berkeley in the room
in which he had been born.

[Illustration: Berkeley.]

Benjamin Harrison IV, the signer’s father, built the structure in 1726.
In 1781 British troops under Benedict Arnold plundered the plantation,
but did not seriously harm the mansion. In the 1790’s one of the
Harrisons, probably Benjamin VI, made some architectural alterations
and redecorated the interior in the Adam style. By the time of the
Civil War, the plantation was known as Harrison’s Landing. In 1862 it
served as a supply base and camp for the Union Army of the Potomac
following its retreat from the Battle of Malvern Hill, Va., which ended
the Peninsular Campaign. Gen. George B. McClellan utilized the mansion
as his headquarters. While quartered nearby, Gen. Daniel Butterfield
composed the famous bugle call “Taps.”

The early Georgian mansion has been altered somewhat over the years,
but retains much of the original structure and character. It is 2½
stories high and has a dormered, gable roof with two tall interior
ridge chimneys, and distinctive pedimented gable ends, including
modillioned cornice. The brick walls are laid in Flemish bond. Gauged
brick is employed in the flat window arches, the belt course, and
door pediments. The broad-piered central doors on the north and south
elevations, with pediments in gauged brick, are reconstructions. Two
detached, two-story, brick dependencies, set slightly south of the
house on the river side, were built in the 1840’s to replace similar
structures that had been erected sometime before 1800.

The center hall plan has been slightly modified. The hall bisects
the four rooms on the first floor into pairs. A small stairs in the
northwest corner was probably inserted about 1800. Most of the interior
finish clearly reflects the Adam alterations of the 1790’s.

By 1915 the mansion was in poor condition. Subsequent owners have
reconstructed and restored it to its 18th-century appearance. This
included removal of a 19th-century porch on all four sides, replacement
of the window sash and exterior door framings, and reconstruction of
the center stairs. The upper floors are used as a private residence,
but the basement and first floor may be visited. The unmarked grave of
signer Benjamin Harrison is located in the family cemetery, a quarter
of a mile southeast of the plantation house.




Elsing Green, Virginia  ∆

    _Location: King William County, on a private road about 1 mile
    southwest of Va. 632, some 10 miles southwest of King William Court
    House._


In 1758, while Carter Braxton was visiting in England, his brother
George probably built for him this impressive plantation home on a high
bluff overlooking the Pamunkey River. Upon his return in 1760, Carter
took up residence in it and lived there until 1767. He then moved to a
new residence, Chericoke, a few miles to the northwest.

[Illustration: Elsing Green.]

The exterior is original, but about 1800 a fire destroyed the
interior. The present 18th-century style woodwork is a 20th-century
reconstruction. The Georgian structure of brick, laid in Flemish bond,
is U-shaped. Two wings project to the north, or rear, of the central
section. The large building is two stories in height and has a hip roof
and four tall chimneys. Side doors are centered in each wing, and there
are also central doors in the front and rear facades of the main house.
The door on the front, or river, facade, with gauged brick triangular
pediment, is a reconstruction.

The flat window arches are constructed of splayed brick. The
second-floor level is marked by a strong course of gauged brick,
unmolded and four courses high. Two old, detached, brick dependencies,
1½ stories high, flank the mansion. The eastern one may date from 1719;
the western contains a restored kitchen. A reconstructed smokehouse and
dairy rest on their original, symmetrically located, foundations.

An off-center hall extends northward halfway through the main arm
of the U from the south, or front, entrance and intersects with an
east-west lateral hall running the length of the main mansion. The
ends of this long cross hall each contain a stairway set against the
south wall. The southeast comer of the residence is occupied by a large
parlor; the southwest corner, by a smaller living room; and each of the
north wings, by a single large room. Four bedrooms are upstairs, which
has the same general plan as the ground floor.

The carefully restored house and well maintained estate, which now
includes about 3,000 acres, are in excellent condition but are
privately occupied and not open to visitors.




Menokin, Virginia  ∆

    _Location: Richmond County, on an unimproved road about 1 mile west
    of County Route 690, some 4 miles northwest of Warsaw._


Menokin, completed in 1769 by Col. John Tayloe of nearby Mount Airy as
a wedding gift for his daughter and her husband, Francis Lightfoot Lee,
was the home where they spent most of their lives and the one Lee loved
best. He died there in 1797.

This late Georgian house, similar in many respects to Mount Airy though
much smaller, was likely constructed by the same architect-builder,
probably John Ariss. The exterior possesses the qualities of a large
mansion, though the actual dimensions are rather modest.

[Illustration: Ruins of Menokin.]

The residence, constructed of local brown sandstone, is two stories
high with hip-on-hip roof and two large interior chimneys. Its exterior
walls are covered with plaster. The stone trim—quoins, belt courses,
and window and door trim—is elaborate. Two stone belt courses, one at
the second-floor line and the other at the sill level of the upper
windows, divide the main, or north, facade horizontally. The upper
course is eliminated on the other three facades. No longer standing are
two two-story, gable-roofed, detached, symmetrical service buildings,
a kitchen to the east and office to the west, which once stood in
the forecourt at right angles to the main house. They undoubtedly
heightened the impression of the mansion’s large size.

A center hall extends halfway through the first floor, which contains
dining room, living room, kitchen, and bedroom. Four bedrooms, divided
into pairs by a central hall, are located on the second floor.

Unoccupied for many years, Menokin is in ruinous condition. The roof
and walls on the southeast side have collapsed. The yard and grounds,
part of a 590-acre farm, are overgrown with vegetation and small trees.
The owner has removed and stored the original interior paneling.
Extensive reconstruction would be required to restore the structure to
its original condition. It is not open to the public.




Monticello, Virginia  ∆

    _Location: Albemarle County, just off Va. 53, about 2 miles
    southeast of Charlottesville._


“Monticello,” Italian for “Little Mountain,” is an enduring tribute to
the genius and versatility of Thomas Jefferson, who personally designed
and supervised erection of the splendid mansion. He resided in it for
many years of his long life, his spirit lives on in its architectural
perfection and the ingenious devices with which he equipped it, and
he is buried nearby. Sitting amid pleasant gardens and lawns on a
hilltop, the residence overlooks Charlottesville; the University of
Virginia, which Jefferson founded and some of whose buildings he
designed; and the green rolling hills of the surrounding countryside.
Especially after his retirement from public life in 1809 until his
death, at the age of 83 on July 4, 1826, the prominent men of his
age made pilgrimages to Monticello. To this day it is visited by the
humble, as well as the great—all who admire Jefferson’s character and
accomplishments.

[Illustration: Monticello.]

In 1757 Jefferson’s father died and passed on the property, 2,750
acres, to him. Eleven years later, he began leveling the hilltop. To
make all parts of it accessible, he built paths, or roundabouts, as he
called them, on its slopes at four different levels; remains of these
are visible today. In 1770 fire destroyed Jefferson’s modest residence,
his birthplace Shadwell, and he moved to Monticello, where he had
already begun building a mansion. The first part of it completed was
the small southwest pavilion, which Jefferson occupied as a bachelor’s
quarters until January 1772, when he brought his bride, Martha Wayles
Skelton, to share it with him. It is still known as “Honeymoon Cottage.”

The first Monticello, vastly different from the present one, was
probably completed in 1775. Constructed of brick with cut-stone
trim, it consisted of a central two-story unit, with pedimented
gable roof running from front to rear and one-story gabled wings,
set perpendicularly to the central block. The chief architectural
accent was the main two-story portico, Doric below and Ionic above.
Small polygonal bays projected from the ends of the wings. Jefferson
made numerous alterations and major changes after the War for
Independence. The present two-wing structure, built between 1793 and
1809, incorporates the rooms of the original house at its rear. It also
reflects a shift in architectural preference in the United States from
Georgian to Roman Revival—elements of both of which are represented.
Jefferson was almost entirely responsible for starting the Roman
Revival.

The mansion consists of 2½ stories over a basement and contains 35
rooms. The dominating feature is the central dome, over an octagonal
room. The house is furnished largely with Jefferson belongings,
including a replica of the small portable desk on which he probably
wrote the Declaration of Independence. Some of the clever devices in
the residence are a 7-day calendar-clock and a dumbwaiter. One room
contains one of the first parquet floors in the United States. The
upper levels, accessible only by narrow staircases, are not shown to
the public.

Before Jefferson built Monticello, every plantation had a group of
small outbuildings such as the laundry, smokehouse, dairy, stable,
weaving house, schoolhouse, and kitchen. Jefferson sought to render
these as inconspicuous as possible and increase the efficiency of
the facilities they provided by constructing two series of rooms for
these purposes beneath the outer sides of two long L-shaped terraces
extending from the house. Below the south terrace, beyond the angle
of the ell, are the kitchen, the cook’s room, servants’ rooms, room
for smoking meat, and the dairy. At the end of this terrace, stands
“Honeymoon Cottage.” Under the far side of the north terrace are the
stables, carriage house, icehouse, and laundry. Jefferson used the
small building terminating this terrace, adjacent to which is the
paddock, as an office. An underground passageway—containing storage
rooms for wine, beer, cider, and rum—connects the basement of the main
house with the series of service rooms along the outer sides of the
ells. Jefferson is buried in the family graveyard, which is adjacent to
the road leading from the house.

Upon Jefferson’s death in 1826, his daughter Martha inherited
Monticello, but was soon forced to sell it, to the first of a series of
private owners. In 1923 the newly organized Thomas Jefferson Memorial
Foundation purchased the estate, the following year opened it to the
public, and has retained ownership to the present day.




Mount Airy, Virginia  ∆

    _Location: Richmond County, on the north side of U.S. 360, about 1½
    miles west of Warsaw._


Francis Lightfoot Lee resided in this beautiful mansion for a short
time in 1769, while its owner, his new father-in-law, Col. John Tayloe,
completed building Menokin nearby as a residence for him and his bride.

Mount Airy, which sits on a ridge overlooking the Rappahannock Valley,
is one of the finest late Georgian mansions to be erected in America.
Built in the years 1758–62, it is attributed to noted Virginia
architect John Ariss, and is considered to be his best work. It was
the first residence in the English Colonies to carry out completely
a full five-part Palladian villa plan: a main house connected to
two dependencies by quadrant passageways that partially enclose
a forecourt. The massive main section, standing over an elevated
basement, and the two dependencies are two stories high and of dark
brown sandstone construction trimmed in light-colored limestone. The
one-story passageways curve from the main house to the dependencies and
enclose a semicircular forecourt on the north, or entrance, facade.

[Illustration: Mount Airy.]

Prominent characteristics of the main building are front and rear
central projecting pavilions of rusticated limestone, both having
loggias, three windows in the second story, and crowning triangular
pediments; limestone belt course; rusticated angle quoins; and two
pairs of interior chimneys near the ridge of the hip roof, which was
rebuilt after a fire in 1844 and may have replaced a hip-on-hip roof.
The four square piers gracing the front loggia are faced with Roman
Doric pilasters. The rear loggia has three round arches topped with
heavy, marked, voussoired keystones.

The two dependencies have hip roofs and central chimneys, and
their corner quoins match those of the main house. The connecting
passageways, also of stone, are covered with shed roofs concealed from
the front. At the point where they connect with the main house, which
rests on an elevated basement, they are stepped up to allow entrance to
the first floor.

Fire destroyed the probably fine wooden interiors in 1844, but the
original floor plan was retained in the reconstruction. A magnificent
central hall extends through the house between the front and rear
loggias. Full-height windows flank both central entrance doors. The
elliptical stairway in the front northwest corner room, in which there
is also a pantry, dates from the 19th century, but the original stairs
may have been in the present cross hall between the two east drawing
rooms, lighted by the central arch of a Palladian window in the east
end wall. In the southwest corner is a large dining room.

Mount Airy, in good condition, is still used as a residence by Tayloe
descendants and is not open to the public. Francis Lightfoot Lee is
buried with his wife in the Tayloe family cemetery, located about 300
yards northwest of the mansion.




Nelson House (Colonial National Historical Park), Virginia  ‎☑

    _Location: York County, northwest corner of Main and Pearl Streets,
    Yorktown; address: Colonial National Historical Park, P.O. Box 210,
    Yorktown, Va. 23490._


Thomas Nelson, Jr., may have been born in this house in 1738, resided
fulltime in it from 1767 until 1781, and probably stayed in it on
occasion during the following 8 years prior to his death. During the
latter period, he was living in partial retirement at his Hanover
County estate, Offley Hoo.

The probable builder, between 1732 and 1741, was Thomas (“Scotch Tom”)
Nelson, Sr., the signer’s grandfather. Thomas Jr.’s father, William,
lived in the residence until about 1738, the year of his marriage, when
he moved to his own house across the street. Thomas, Jr., could have
been born at either place. After “Scotch Tom” died, in 1745, his widow
continued in residence. Upon her death in 1766, Thomas, Jr., who since
his marriage 4 years earlier had apparently lived with his father,
acquired her home and moved in the next year.

[Illustration: Nelson House.]

According to family tradition, the Nelson House served as the second
headquarters of Gen. Charles Cornwallis during the siege of Yorktown
(September-October 1781), and with Nelson’s permission American
artillery shelled and hit the house. The historical record indicates
that both British and French military personnel likely used it, but
their identities cannot be definitely ascertained. And the southeast
face of the residence does show evidence of damage from cannon fire.
The Marquis de Lafayette, who revisited the United States in 1824–25,
was quartered there when in the former year he attended the celebration
of the anniversary of the Battle of Yorktown, in which he had played a
key role.

The Nelson House is an impressive specimen of early Georgian
architecture, though the four south and five north dormers added in
the 1920’s detract from the original design. The broad roof is gabled
and pedimented at the ends, with two massive interior chimneys and
strongly dentiled cornice. The Flemish bond brickwork includes gauged
belt course, water table, and flat window arches with segmental
soffits. Corner quoins, as well as the window sills and lintels and
their tall keystones, are of stone. The quoins and two levels of tall
windows give the house a strong vertical effect. The north center door
has simple gauged and molded brick piers that are topped by a brick
pediment. Destroying the symmetry of the south facade is the off-center
door, enclosed in a vestibule. A more elaborate door on the west side
is modern, replacing an original untrimmed service opening.

On one side of the off-center hall are two small rooms, with a lobby
and service stairs between them; on the opposite side of the hall,
are two larger rooms, divided by a tiny one, probably a pantry. The
general plan is repeated upstairs, where there are four bedrooms. Most
of the original interior woodwork, highlighted by the first-floor
wall-to-ceiling paneling, is still intact. From a decorative
standpoint, the most striking chamber is the northeast drawing room.
All the fireplaces in the residence are apparently reconstructions, as
are also the balusters and handrails of the stairs.

The house remained in possession of the Nelson family until 1914. In
1920–21 its owners rehabilitated and restored it and renamed it York
Hall. In 1968 the National Park Service acquired it. When this volume
went to press, an extensive research and restoration program was being
carried out preparatory to opening the building to the public.




Poplar Forest, Virginia  ∆

    _Location: Bedford County, on the east side of County Route 661,
    about 6½ miles west of Lynchburg._


In 1806–19 Thomas Jefferson designed and built this architecturally
significant octagonal house on his 4,000-acre Bedford County plantation
as a summer home and retreat. He occupied it intermittently until his
death in 1826.

The plantation came into the possession of Jefferson through Martha
Wayles Skelton, whom he married in 1772. For many years, whenever he
visited it to superintend its management, he resided in a two-room
cottage, the only dwelling. In June 1781, just after abdicating the
governorship and narrowly escaping capture with a group of legislators
during a British raid on Charlottesville, he temporarily moved his
family to the cottage. Before the month was out, a horse threw and
injured him. During his recuperation, he wrote _Notes on the State
of Virginia_, a study of social and political life in 18th-century
Virginia. In 1806–19 he erected Poplar Forest, whose completion
coincided with his retirement from public office. When visitors became
too numerous at Monticello or the fancy struck, he took up residence at
his retreat for a month or two, usually twice a year. As the years went
on, he refined the structure.

[Illustration: Poplar Forest.]

In 1845 a fire destroyed the roof and interior, leaving only the four
chimneys, the brick walls, and possibly the portico columns. That
same year, the present unadorned roof, octagonal and hipped like its
predecessor, and dormers were added. Prior to the fire, there was a
skylight and balustraded deck at the edge of the roof, with a Tuscan
cornice below that extended around the building. The one-story brick
building is set over a high basement. Because of the sloping ground
on the rear side, the structure is two stories high there. One- and
two-story tetrastyle Tuscan porticoes are attached to the front and
rear of the house respectively. The front one is pedimented; the
unpedimented rear one is built over a one-story arcade.

The original interior plan is unchanged. Four elongated octagonal rooms
are grouped symmetrically around the present dining room, a square
central room that was once lighted from above by the central skylight,
not replaced in 1845. No aboveground traces remain of a flat-roofed
office wing, referred to by Jefferson, but a kitchen and smokehouse
still stand.

Poplar Forest, in good condition, is a private residence and is not
open to the public.




Stratford Hall, Virginia  ∆

    _Location: Westmoreland County, just north of Va. 214, about 1 mile
    northeast of Lerty._


This architecturally outstanding mansion along the Potomac River
was the ancestral home of the Lee family. It was the birthplace and
boyhood home of two signers of the Declaration of Independence, Richard
Henry and Francis Lightfoot Lee, as well as their three distinguished
brothers, Arthur, William, and Thomas Ludwell. A later resident was
Col. Henry “Lighthorse Harry,” hero of the War for Independence. His
son, Robert E., Confederate leader during the Civil War, was born in
the house in 1807.

[Illustration: Stratford Hall.]

Thomas Lee—planter, merchant, shipowner, and politician—built the
mansion in the years 1725–30 on his 16,000-acre plantation. Upon his
death in 1750, the residence passed to his eldest son, Philip Ludwell.
Meantime, Richard Henry had been born there in 1732 and Francis
Lightfoot 2 years later. They maintained residence until 1757 and 1758
respectively, when they moved to their own estates. In 1782 Philip
Ludwell’s oldest daughter, Matilda, wife of “Lighthorse Harry,” her
cousin, inherited the mansion. In 1790 she died, and 3 years later her
husband remarried. One of his sons by that union was Robert E. Lee, who
lived in the house only 3 or 4 years, at the end of which his parents
moved to Alexandria.

Stratford Hall is a magnificent and rare example of an H-shaped
residence and illustrates the transition from the 17th-century William
and Mary style of architecture to early Georgian. The mansion is one
story high over an elevated basement and has a hip roof. Variations
in color and size between the Flemish bond brickwork in the basement
and upper story soften the austerity of the bold mass of the house. In
the central connecting arm, the flights of stone steps leading up to
the north and south entrances, which diminish in width as they ascend
to the main floor level and are flanked by ponderous balustrades, are
conjectural reconstructions, erected in 1929. Twin sets of four huge
chimney stacks are centered over the east and west wings. The stacks
are connected by arches and encompass balustraded roof decks, from
which the Lees could view navigation on the Potomac River.

“Lighthorse Harry” Lee made many changes. By 1800 he had altered or
replaced the exterior stairs and changed most of the interior trim,
except that in the central block’s great hall, to the Adam style. The
floor plan is unusual in colonial dwellings. The two wings each have
four rooms, divided laterally by a central hallway on the main floor.
The connecting central block consists of the fully paneled great hall,
or salon—one of the most formal and monumental rooms of the early
Georgian period in the English Colonies. The basement contains service
rooms and some bedrooms; the main floor, living quarters and bedrooms.
In the east wing’s dining room is a service alcove, common in Virginia
mansions. The 18th-century stairway was removed during the 1929
restoration. The only access between floors is now a small stairway in
the east wing.

The mansion is built in the center of a square parterre, a service
building being located at each corner of the square. Flanking the
entrance forecourt are the kitchen and library, 1½-story brick
structures with jerkin-head roofs. At the rear corners are a school
and office, with hip roofs. Outside the square are balanced brick
buildings: a stable on one side and smokehouse on the other. Seven of
the 12 original structures that were still standing in 1929 have been
restored. They provide an excellent picture of plantation life in the
18th century. Farther removed from the house, near the wharf on the
river, is the reconstructed mill.

In 1929 the Robert E. Lee Memorial Foundation, Inc., acquired the
mansion and 1,100 acres. Besides reconstructing the exterior stairs,
the foundation restored the library and library closet in the west
wing, as well as the dining room and service alcove in the east wing,
to their 18th-century appearance. The east and west corridors, parlor
in the west wing, Robert E. Lee’s birthplace room, and an adjoining
bedroom in the east wing were left as they appeared about 1800. The
formal garden, just east of the mansion, has also been restored. The
foundation today operates Stratford Hall as a historic house museum.




Tuckahoe, Virginia  ∆

    _Location: Goochland County, on the south side of Va. 650, about 13
    miles west of Richmond._


Tuckahoe, situated along the James River, was the boyhood home of
Thomas Jefferson for 7 years and the place where he obtained his
elementary education. The mansion, outbuildings, and surrounding
gardens and lands constitute an outstanding example of a Southern
colonial plantation.

[Illustration: Tuckahoe.]

The land on which Tuckahoe stands was patented in 1695 by William
Randolph. His son Thomas inherited the plantation and built the north
wing of the mansion about 1712. Sometime between 1730 and 1745, William
Randolph II enlarged the residence to its present proportions. When
Randolph died in 1745, Peter Jefferson moved his family, including
2-year-old Thomas, from Shadwell to Tuckahoe to fulfill a promise Peter
had made to Randolph, his wife’s cousin, to act as guardian of his son,
Thomas Mann Randolph. In 1752 the Jeffersons returned to Shadwell.

Like Stratford Hall, the house is an outstanding and rare example of
an H-shaped structure of early Georgian style in the Colonies. It is a
large, two-story frame structure lined with brick nogging and exterior
weatherboarded walls, except for the two solid brick ends of the south
wing. Two long gabled wings are connected by a broad central block.
Tall slender chimneys accentuate the narrow gable ends and the marked
verticality of the structure, which is further enhanced by the high
brick foundations. The chimneys in the frame ends of the north wing
project, but those in the south brick ends are flush with the walls.
The second-floor level is marked by a wooden belt course and the
roofline by a modillioned cornice.

The central doorways on the north and south sides have low porches with
square posts supporting gable roofs. The south porch is approached by
a long flight of stone steps, splayed but lacking a balustrade; the
north porch is near ground level. The doors in the center block, on
the east and west elevations, are sheltered by pedimented hoods. All
four exterior doors, one in each wing and two in the central block, are
original, as are also the weatherboarding and sash.

On the first floor of each of the wings are two rooms, divided by a
center cross hall. The north wing contains two parlors; the south,
a dining room and “children’s” room. The central connecting block
contains one large room, or salon. The second floor repeats the plan of
the first floor except that, of the original five bedrooms, the one in
the central block has been modernized and subdivided into several rooms.

The interior decoration and trim, of the finest workmanship, is
remarkably unaltered and in fine condition. All the walls are covered
with simple paneling. The original wide floorboards remain throughout
the structure. The hall stairways, especially the north one, with
elaborately turned and spiraled balusters, are outstanding examples of
early Georgian style. Mantels throughout the house date from the 19th
century, but the marble fireplace facing in the west bedroom of the
north wing is original.

East of the mansion is the small, one-room, brick, one-story
schoolhouse attended by Jefferson, as well as fine boxwood gardens. A
short distance to the west of the main house is a plantation street,
containing a complex of eight early 18th-century buildings, all in
excellent condition and little altered. They include kitchen, tobacco
house, three slave quarters, smokehouse, and barn.

Since Tuckahoe passed out of the possession of the Randolph family in
1830, a succession of individuals have owned it. It is still a private
residence, not open to the public.




Wythe House, Virginia  ∆

    _Location: On the west side of the Palace Green, between Duke of
    Gloucester and Prince George Streets, Williamsburg._


This house in Colonial Williamsburg is a superb example of a Georgian
brick house. It was the residence of George Wythe from around 1755
until 1791, a period that spanned some of his most active years in
politics and jurisprudence. His father-in-law, the noted Virginia
architect Richard Taliaferro, designed and built it for him and his
second wife about 1755. When Taliaferro died two decades later, Wythe
inherited it and resided in it until 1791, when he moved to Richmond.
A decade earlier, the house had served as Gen. George Washington’s
headquarters prior to the siege of Yorktown.

The outstanding aspects of the little-altered early Georgian structure
are its good lines and fine brickwork, in Flemish bond. It is two
stories high over a basement and has a hip roof and two interior
chimneys. Smaller windows on the upper level create an illusion that
the modestly sized house is larger than it actually is. The simple
facade is enriched mainly by the broad muntins and wide frames of the
windows and a fine paneled double door with rectangular transom. The
flat window arches are constructed of gauged brick. Windows, doors,
and house corners have rubbed dressings, and a modillioned cornice
decorates the eaveline.

[Illustration: Wythe House.]

Each floor consists of four rooms bisected into pairs by a central
hall. Chimneys between each of the pairs afford fireplaces for all
eight rooms. The handsome but unpretentious stairway contains the
only elaborate woodwork. Plaster dadoes, however, are found in every
room, with chair rails on plasterboard, and single molded cornices. On
the first floor are study, parlor, students’ room, and dining room;
on the second, four bedrooms. The existing mantels are replacements.
Furnishings are of the late 18th century or earlier and represent
American craftmanship. Extending behind the house is the formal garden;
along the north, the kitchen, smokehouse, laundry, lumberhouse, and
stable.

In 1926, when Bruton Parish acquired the residence, it was in poor
condition. By 1931 the parish had repaired and restored it, and
utilized it as a parish house for 6 years. Colonial Williamsburg then
acquired it, and in 1939–40 accomplished additional restoration. Today
the building is one of the main attractions at Colonial Williamsburg
and is part of Williamsburg Historic District, a National Historic
Landmark.




Appendix

The Declaration and Its History


_Text of the Declaration_

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people
to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another,
and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal
station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them,
a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should
declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created
equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable
Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of
Happiness.——That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted
among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the
governed.——That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive
of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish
it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such
principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall
seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence,
indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be
changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience
hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are
sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which
they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations,
pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them
under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to
throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future
security.——Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and
such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former
Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain
is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct
object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To
prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

_He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary
for the public good._

_He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing
importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should
be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend
to them._

_He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large
districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right
of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and
formidable to tyrants only._

_He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual,
uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records,
for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his
measures._

_He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with
manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people._

_He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause
others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of
Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise;
the State remaining in the meantime exposed to all the dangers of
invasion from without, and convulsions within._

_He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that
purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing
to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the
conditions of new Appropriations of Lands._

_He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his
Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers._

_He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of
their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries._

_He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of
Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance._

_He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the
Consent of our legislatures._

_He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to
the Civil power._

_He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to
our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to
their Acts of pretended Legislation:_

_For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:_

_For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders
which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:_

_For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:_

_For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:_

_For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:_

_For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:_

_For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring
Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging
its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument
for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:_

_For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and
altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:_

_For suspending our own Legislatures and declaring themselves invested
with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever._

_He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his
Protection and waging War against us._

_He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and
destroyed the lives of our people._

_He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries
to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun
with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most
barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation._

_He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas
to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their
friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands._

_He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured
to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian
Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction
of all ages, sexes and conditions._

_In every stage of these Oppressions we have Petitioned for Redress
in the most humble terms: our repeated Petitions have been answered
only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by
every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free
people._

_Nor have we been wanting in attention to our British brethren. We
have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to
extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them
of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have
appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured
them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations,
which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence.
They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity.
We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our
Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in
War, in Peace Friends._


=We, therefore=, the Representatives of the =united States of America=,
in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the
world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by
Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and
declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be =Free
and Independent States=; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to
the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and
the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and
that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War,
conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all
other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do.

And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the
protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our
Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.




_History of the Document_


The best known of all the copies of the Declaration of Independence
is the parchment copy, engrossed by Timothy Matlack. This one, signed
by 56 Delegates of the Continental Congress on and after August 2,
1776, is displayed today in Exhibition Hall at the National Archives
Building. Jefferson’s final draft of the Declaration, known as the
“rough draft,” cumulatively bearing the corrections, amendments, and
deletions of the drafting committee and of Congress as a whole, as
well as Jefferson’s marginal and textual notes, is preserved among
the Jefferson Papers at the Library of Congress. The revised draft,
adopted by the Delegates on July 4, 1776, and signed only by John
Hancock and Charles Thomson, President and Secretary of the Continental
Congress, is known as the broadside copy. It was sent to the printer
and has never been located. Sixteen copies of the printed broadside
have survived. In addition to the “rough draft,” as least six other
handwritten contemporary copies of the Declaration, one fragmentary,
have survived and are in various archival collections. Five were made
by Jefferson and one by John Adams.

The history of the parchment copy of the Declaration is fascinating.
From 1776 until 1789, along with other important national papers, it
was safeguarded by Secretary of Congress Thomson, who carried it
with him as Congress, at first to escape British troops and later for
other reasons, convened in various cities: Philadelphia, Baltimore,
Lancaster, York, Princeton, Trenton, Annapolis, and New York.

When the Constitution took effect in 1789 and Thomson left office,
he relinquished the Declaration to the newly created Department of
State, which was under the temporary stewardship of Acting Secretary
John Jay. Its offices were in New York’s old City Hall (Federal
Hall). The next March, Thomas Jefferson became the first Secretary
of State and custodian of the instrument he had created. Later that
year, Philadelphia became the seat of the Federal Government and the
Declaration returned to its birthplace. There it remained for a decade,
until 1800, when the Government moved to the new national Capital of
Washington.

Secretary of State John Marshall apparently at first stored the
Declaration in his Department’s temporary offices in the old Treasury
Building, at 15th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW., and possibly
then at Seven Buildings, 19th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. After
a few months, likely in 1801, the document was transferred to the War
Office Building, at 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW., where
the Department of State moved its offices. The Declaration remained
there until the summer of 1814, during the War of 1812, when British
troops invaded the Capital. Shortly before they arrived, Secretary of
State James Monroe packed the instrument and other state papers in
linen sacks and sent them by wagon to a barn on the Virginia side of
the Potomac 2 miles above Chain Bridge for one night, and then to a
clergyman’s home in Leesburg, Va. Within a few weeks, after the British
threat had subsided, the documents were brought back to Washington and
probably temporarily kept in various structures because of the burning
of the War Office Building by the British.

In 1820 the Department of State moved the Declaration to its
headquarters at 15th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. Stored for
years in scroll fashion, the document had already been damaged by
numerous unrollings, other handling, and frequent moves. In the period
1820–23 the use of a “wet” copying process to produce a facsimile
apparently divested the parchment of some of its ink, especially that
of the signatures.

Subsequently the Declaration remained relatively undisturbed until
1841, when Secretary of State Daniel Webster, concluding that it should
be on public view, ordered that it be mounted, framed, and moved to
the newly constructed Patent Office, in the block bounded by Seventh,
Ninth, F, and G Streets NW. The Patent Office was then part of the
Department of State. Placed beside George Washington’s commission
as commander in chief of the Continental Army in a large frame on a
wall of the second floor hall opposite a window, for 35 years the
Declaration endured exposure to glare, summer heat, and winter cold.
The text retained its legibility, but the parchment faded and yellowed,
cracked and warped. Many of the signatures had faded, some becoming
blurred or almost invisible.

The Federal Government in 1876 lent the Declaration to the city of
Philadelphia, site of the national Centennial Exposition. On July
4 Richard Henry Lee, grandson of the signer, read it publicly. It
was then exhibited in a fireproof safe behind a plate glass window
and seen by more people than ever before. Philadelphians, deploring
its condition, fought to retain it and only reluctantly returned
it to Washington. Heeding the outcry of those who had viewed the
timeworn parchment, a Government commission studied the possibility
of restoration and in time concluded that such an attempt might be
damaging.

Meantime, in 1877, as a safeguard the Declaration was moved from
the Patent Office to a more fireproof building at 17th Street and
Pennsylvania Avenue NW. shared by the State, War, and Navy Departments.
It had narrowly escaped destruction, for only a few months later fire
gutted the Patent Office. Finally, in 1894, for protection from the
light, State Department officials sealed the 118-year-old sheet between
two glass plates and locked it in a safe in the basement. There it lay,
except for rare occasions, in darkness and unobserved for more than a
quarter of a century.

In 1921 the Department of State, responding to the recommendation of a
special commission, relinquished custodianship of the Declaration to
the Library of Congress. The transfer was made personally by Herbert
Putnam, the Librarian, using a library mail truck, a Model T Ford.
At first he kept the document in his office. In 1924, however, he
placed it together with the Constitution, on public exhibition in
a bronze-and-marble shrine on the second floor. At this time, the
Declaration was encased between heavy glass panes specially treated to
keep out harmful rays of light.

The Declaration and the Constitution remained there until the outbreak
of World War II. On December 26, 1941, just 19 days after the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor, they left Washington under heavy guard by
train en route to Fort Knox, Ky., where they arrived the following
day. Specialists took advantage of the opportunity and cleaned and
restored the Declaration to the maximum degree. In 1944 both it and
the Constitution were taken back to the Library of Congress. They
remained there until 1952, at which time a tank under military escort
carried them to Washington’s National Archives Building, repository of
the Nation’s permanent records, which are under the jurisdiction of
the National Archives and Records Service of the U.S. General Services
Administration.

[Illustration: Constitution Avenue entrance of the National Archives
Building, Washington, D.C.]

[Illustration: This marble shrine at the rear center of Exhibition
Hall, National Archives Building, contains the Declaration of
Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.]

       *       *       *       *       *

Still enshrined there today, along with thousands of other priceless
national records, is the parchment copy of the Declaration. The massive
bronze doors at the Constitution Avenue entrance to the building lead
to the circular Exhibition Hall. At its rear center stands a marble
shrine containing the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution,
and the Bill of Rights. They are sealed in helium-filled bronze and
glass cases, screened from harmful light rays by special filters, and
can be lowered within seconds into a large fireproof, shockproof, and
bombproof vault.

The hall also features a “Formation of the Union” exhibit, a collection
of documents illustrating the evolution of the U.S. Government from
1774 until 1791. They include the Articles of Association (1774),
the Articles of Confederation (1777), the Treaty of Paris (1783),
and Washington’s inaugural address (1789). Above the exhibits are
two murals. In one, Jefferson is presenting the Declaration to John
Hancock, President of the Continental Congress; in the other, James
Madison is submitting the Constitution to George Washington, President
of the Constitutional Convention.




Suggested Reading


  BECKER, CARL L. _The Declaration of Independence: A Study in the
      History of Political Ideas._ New York: rev. ed., Harcourt, Brace,
      1942. A classic and scholarly study, originally published in
      1922, that analyzes the Declaration in terms of its political
      background, philosophical origins, and literary merit, and
      discusses subsequent reaction to it.

  BOYD, JULIAN P. _The Declaration of Independence: The Evolution
      of the Text as Shown in Facsimiles of Various Drafts by Its
      Author, Thomas Jefferson._ Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University
      Press, 1945. This valuable work is a revised edition of a study
      published by the Library of Congress in 1943 in connection with
      the bicentennial celebration of Jefferson’s birth. Examines the
      nature and evolution of the various drafts.

  BURNETT, EDMUND C. _The Continental Congress._ New York: Macmillan,
      1941. Although written in a cumbersome style, this book remains
      one of the best on its subject. Includes chapters dealing with
      the events surrounding adoption of the Declaration.

  DUMBAULD, EDWARD. _The Declaration of Independence and What It Means
      Today._ Norman, Okla.: University of Oklahoma Press, 1950.
      Phrase-by-phrase study of the contents of the document and
      differences in the several drafts. Also treats the underlying
      intellectual and political influences.

  MALONE, DUMAS. _The Story of the Declaration of Independence._ New
      York: Oxford University Press, 1954. Enhancing this readable
      account of the early phases of the Revolution and biographical
      sketches of the signers is a fine collection of illustrations
      assembled by Hirst Milhollen and Milton Kaplan.

  McGEE, DOROTHY H. _Famous Signers of the Declaration._ New York:
      Dodd, Mead, 1955. One of a series oriented to young readers, this
      volume presents biographies of selected signers.

  NATIONAL ARCHIVES. _The Formation of the Union._ Washington: National
      Archives and Records Service (Pub. No. 70-13), 1970. A handsome
      but moderately priced brochure that consists of a brief history
      of the period 1774–91 and facsimiles of key documents.

  WHITNEY, DAVID C. _Founders of Freedom in America: Lives of the Men
      Who Signed the Declaration of Independence and So Helped to
      Establish the United States of America._ Chicago: J. G. Ferguson,
      1964. This superbly illustrated work is one of the best popular
      versions of the events of the Revolutionary period and those
      associated with the signing. Includes biographies of the signers
      and patriots Patrick Henry and James Otis.




Criteria for Selection of Historic Sites of National Significance


=A.= National significance is ascribed to buildings, sites, objects, or
districts which possess exceptional value or quality in illustrating or
interpreting the historical (history and archeology) heritage of our
Nation, such as:

1. Structures or sites at which events occurred that have made a
significant contribution to, and are identified prominently with,
or which outstandingly represent, the broad cultural, political,
economic, military, or social history of the Nation, and from which an
understanding and appreciation of the larger patterns of our American
heritage may be gained.

2. Structures or sites associated importantly with the lives of persons
nationally significant in the history of the United States.

3. Structures or sites associated significantly with an important event
that outstandingly represents some great idea or ideal of the American
people.

4. Structures that embody the distinguishing characteristics of an
architectural type specimen, exceptionally valuable for a study of
a period, style, or method of construction; or a notable structure
representing the work of a master builder, designer, or architect.

5. Objects that figured prominently in nationally significant events;
or that were prominently associated with nationally significant
persons; or that outstandingly represent some great idea or ideal of
the American people; or that embody distinguishing characteristics of a
type specimen, exceptionally valuable for a study of a period, style,
or method of construction; or that are notable as representations of
the work of master workers or designers.

6. Archeological sites that have produced information of a major
scientific importance by revealing new cultures, or by shedding light
upon periods of occupation over large areas of the United States.
Such sites are those which have produced, or which may reasonably be
expected to produce, data affecting theories, concepts, and ideas to a
major degree.

7. When preserved or restored as integral parts of the environment,
historic buildings not sufficiently significant individually by reason
of historical association or architectural merit to warrant recognition
may collectively compose a “historic district” that is of historical
significance to the Nation in commemorating or illustrating a way of
life in its developing culture.


=B.= To possess national significance, a historic or prehistoric
structure, district, site, or object must possess integrity. For a
historic or prehistoric _site_, integrity requires original location
and intangible elements of feeling and association. The site of a
structure no longer standing may possess national significance if the
person or event associated with the structure was of transcendent
importance in the Nation’s history and the association consequential.

For a historic or prehistoric _structure_, integrity is a composite
quality derived from original workmanship, original location, and
intangible elements of feeling and association. A structure no longer
on the original site may possess national significance if the person or
event associated with it was of transcendent importance in the Nation’s
history and the association consequential.

For a historic _district_, integrity is a composite quality derived
from original workmanship, original location, and intangible elements
of feeling and association inherent in an ensemble of historic
buildings having visual architectural unity.

For a historic _object_, integrity requires basic original workmanship.


=C.= Structures or sites which are primarily of significance in the
field of religion or to religious bodies but are not of national
importance in other fields of the history of the United States, such as
political, military, or architectural history, will not be eligible for
consideration.


=D.= Birthplaces, graves, burials, and cemeteries, as a general rule,
are not eligible for consideration and recognition except in cases
of historical figures of transcendent importance. Historic sites
associated with the actual careers and contributions of outstanding
historical personages usually are more important than their birthplaces
and burial places.


=E.= Structures, sites, and objects achieving historical importance
within the past 50 years will not as a general rule be considered
unless associated with persons or events of transcendent significance.




Acknowledgments


_Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites, Buildings, and
Monuments (1971)_

  Durward L. Allen, _Purdue University_.
  Hon. E. Y. Berry, _Rapid City, S. Dak._
  Anthony A. Buford, _Clayton, Mo._
  Loren C. Eiseley, _University of Pennsylvania_.
  Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson, _Stonewall, Tex._
  Peter C. Murphy, Jr., _Springfield, Oreg._
  Nathaniel A. Owings, _San Francisco, Calif._
  Melvin M. Payne, _National Geographic Society_.
  Linden C. Pettys, _Ann Arbor, Mich._
  Steven Rose, _Arcadia, Calif._
  William G. Shade, _Lehigh University_.
  Elisha Walker, Jr., _New York, N.Y._
  James W. Whittaker, _Seattle, Wash._


_National Park Service_

  Edwin C. Bearss, _Historian, Historic Preservation Project (East),
    Denver Service Center_.

  S. Sydney Bradford, _Chief, Plans and Grants, National Register of
    Historic Places_.

  George S. Cattanach, Jr., _Program Coordinator, National Register of
    Historic Places_.

  Henry A. Judd, Chief, _Park Historic Architecture, Division of
    Historic Architecture_.

  Herbert E. Kahler, _Chief (retired), Division of History and
    Archeology_.

  Ronald F. Lee, _Special Assistant to the Director_.

  John Luzader, Historian, _Historic Preservation Project (East),
    Denver Service Center_.

  Warren A. McCullough, _Management Assistant, Independence National
    Historical Park, Pa._

  John D. McDermott, _Assistant Executive Secretary, Advisory Council
    on Historic Preservation_.

  Thomas W. Mullen, _Student Research Assistant (Northeastern
    University), Division of History_.

  Denys Peter Myers, _Architectural Historian, Division of History_.

  John D. R. Platt, _Historian, Independence National Historical Park,
    Pa._

  Charles W. Porter III, _Chief Historian (retired), Division of
    History_.

  Charles W. Snell, _Historian, Division of History_.

  Martin I. Yoelson, _Supervisory Interpretive Specialist, Independence
    National Historical Park, Pa._


_Other Individuals_

  Roland A. Block, _Regional Director, Taconic State Park Commission,
    Staatsburg, N.Y._

  Jerry M. Bloomer, _Secretary-Registrar, R. W. Norton Art Gallery,
    Shreveport_.

  Edwin Cox, _President, Virginia Historical Society, Richmond_.

  Alonzo T. Dill, _West Point, Va._

  Educational Programs Staff, _National Archives and Records Service,
    U.S. General Services Administration_.

  Ms. Constance M. Greiff, _Vice President, Historical Society of
    Princeton, N.J._

  Ms. Virginia Gunter, _Curator, New Hampshire Historical Society,
    Concord_.

  Edgar R. Lafferty, Jr., _Elsing Green, King William, Va._

  Charles H. McCormick, _Assistant Professor of History, Fairmont State
    College, Fairmont, W. Va._

  Ms. Mildred Steinbach, _Librarian, Frick Art Reference Library, New
    York_.

  E. Berkeley Tompkins, _Director, Division of Historical and Cultural
    Affairs, Department of State, State of Delaware, Dover_.




Art and Picture Credits


The National Park Service gratefully acknowledges the assistance
of agencies and individuals furnishing illustrations and granting
permission to reproduce them.

_Page_

   ii  Oil (1817) by John Trumbull, after his earlier painting of
       the same name (1786–95). Color separations courtesy United
       States Capitol Historical Society and Eastern National Park
       and Monument Association. Of the 48 individuals in the
       painting, 44 are signers. The likenesses were the basis for
       many later portraits by other artists.

    4  Oil (date unknown) by Allan Ramsay. Library of Congress.

    5  Engraving (1770) by Paul Revere. Library of Congress.

    6  Lithograph (1830) by either William or John Pendleton,
        after a cartoon (1774) published in London. Library of
        Congress.

    7  Lithograph (1846) by Nathaniel Currier. Library of Congress.

    8  Engraving (1775) by Amos Doolittle. National Park Service.

    9  Detail from broadside, publisher unknown. National Park
        Service.

   10  Engraving (ca. 1776) by an unknown artist. Library of
       Congress.

   11  Library of Congress.

   12  Oil (ca. 1858) by Bass Otis, after George Romney.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   13  Mezzotint (1778) by an unknown artist, after Corbutt.
       Library of Congress.

   14  Oil (ca. 1782) by Charles Willson Peale. Independence
       National Historical Park.

   17  Library of Congress.

   19  Engraving (1823) by William Stone. Library of Congress.

   21  Library of Congress.

   22  Engraving (1859) by John C. McRae, after Johannes A. S.
       Oertel. Library of Congress.

   23  Oil (date unknown) by Xavier D. Gratta. Valley Forge (Pa.)
       Historical Society.

   28  Oil (before 1897) by an unknown artist, after Thomas Sully.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   29  Oil (date unknown) by W. Trego. Valley Forge (Pa.)
       Historical Society.

   30  Engraving (ca. 1725–26) by William Burgis. Library of
       Congress.

   33  Oil (ca. 1791–94) by Charles Willson Peale. Independence
       National Historical Park.

   36  Oil (1873) by Nahum B. Onthank, after John S. Copley.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   39  Oil (1871) by Caroline Weeks, after John Trumbull.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   41  Oil (1901) by Albert Rosenthal, after a miniature by an
       unknown artist. Independence National Historical Park. In
       1913 Charles H. Hart, an authority on historical portraits,
       maintained that this likeness was not Carter Braxton but was
       that of his brother George.

   43  Oil (1823) by Charles Willson Peale, after Rembrandt Peale.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   45  Oil (1819) by Charles Willson Peale, after his 1773
       painting. Independence National Historical Park.

   47  Oil (1873) by James R. Lambdin, after John Trumbull.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   48  Wood engraving by an unknown artist, after F. O. C. Darley,
       from Henry Howe, _Life and Death on the Ocean_ (1855).
       Library of Congress.

   49  Oil (1872) by Edward D. Marchant, after Charles Willson
       Peale. Independence National Historical Park.

   50  Pen and ink drawing by an unknown artist, from _Magazine of
       American History_ (September 1880). Library of Congress.

   51  Oil (1876) by Samuel B. Waugh, after John Trumbull.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   53  Oil (1874) by Edward L. Henry, after Ralph Earl (Earle).
       Independence National Historical Park.

   55  Oil (date unknown) by David Martin. Pennsylvania Academy of
       Fine Arts, Philadelphia.

   57  Engraving (1859) by Robert Whitechurch, after Christian
       Schussele. Library of Congress.

   59  Oil (1861) by James Bogle, after John Vanderlyn.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   62  Detail from the lithograph “Signers of the Declaration of
       Independence,” published in 1876 by Ole Erekson. Library of
       Congress. The detail is a conjectural representation; no
       portrait or reliable likeness of Button Gwinnett is known to
       exist.

   63  Lithograph, probably by an artist named Ferris, from William
       Brotherhead, _The Book of the Signers_ (1861). Library of
       Congress.

   65  Detail from the lithograph “Signers of the Declaration of
       Independence,” published in 1876 by Ole Erekson. Library of
       Congress.

   67  Oil (1816) by Samuel F. B. Morse, after John S. Copley.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   70  Oil (1873) by James R. Lambdin, after John Trumbull.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   71  Oil (ca. 1884) by Herman F. Deigendisch, after Henry Bryan,
       Jr. Independence National Historical Park. Some authorities
       have questioned the authenticity of this likeness.

   73  Oil (before 1893) by an unknown artist, after Charles
       Willson Peale. Independence National Historical Park.

   74  Engraving by James B. Longacre, after Charles Willson Peale,
       from James Herring and James B. Longacre, _The National
       Portrait Gallery of Distinguished Americans_ (1836). Library
       of Congress.

   75  Oil (before 1851) by Charles Fraser, after Jeremiah Theus.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   77  Oil (1873) by James R. Lambdin, after John Trumbull.
       Independence National Historical Park.

   79  Oil (1873) by James R. Lambdin, after John Trumbull.
       Independence National Historical Park. According to one
       authority, Trumbull based his likeness on the features of
       Hopkins’ eldest son, Rufus, who bore a close resemblance to
       his father.

   81  Oil (before 1854) by Dubois (probably Samuel T.), after
       Robert E. Pine. Historical Society of Pennsylvania and
       Independence National Historical Park.

   83  Oil (1783) by Charles Willson Peale. Independence National
       Historical Park.

   85  Oil (1791) by Charles Willson Peale. Independence National
       Historical Park.

   87  Library of Congress.

   89  Engraving (1826) by Benjamin Tanner. Library of Congress.

   90  Detail from the lithograph “Signers of the Declaration of
       Independence,” published in 1876 by Ole Erekson. Library of
       Congress.

   92  Oil (1784) by Charles Willson Peale. Independence National
       Historical Park.

   94  Oil (1906) by Albert Rosenthal, after an engraving from John
       Sanderson, _Biography of the Signers to the Declaration of
       Independence_ (1824). Independence National Historical Park.

   96  Oil (ca. 1770) probably by Abraham Delanoy, Jr. Frick Art
       Reference Library, New York City, and Taconic State Park
       Commission, Staatsburg, N.Y.

   97  Pen and ink drawing by an unknown artist, from _Magazine of
       American History_ (December 1885). Library of Congress.

   99  Oil (1875) by Anna Lea, after John Trumbull. Independence
       National Historical Park.

  100  Oil (1797) by Charles Willson Peale. Independence National
       Historical Park.

  103  Oil (1872) by Philip F. Wharton, after Benjamin West.
       Independence National Historical Park.

  104  Oil (1873) by Charles N. Flagg, after John Trumbull.
       Independence National Historical Park.

  106  Oil (ca. 1872) by Charles Willson Peale. Independence
       National Historical Park.

  107  Engraving by William Birch, from _The City of Philadelphia_
       (1800). Independence National Historical Park.

  109  Watercolor (ca. 1765) by Pierre Eugene Du Simitière. The
       R. W. Norton Art Gallery, Shreveport, La.

  110  Oil (ca. 1876) by William L. Sheppard, after Mason
       Chamberlin. Independence National Historical Park.

  112  Oil (date unknown) by Louis E. Lami. Hangs in the Virginia
       State Capitol. National Park Service.

  113  Oil (date unknown) by Francis B. Mayer, after Charles
       Willson Peale. Independence National Historical Park.

  115  Oil (1876) by Richard M. Staigg, after Edward Savage.
       Independence National Historical Park.

  116  Detail from the lithograph “Signers of the Declaration of
       Independence,” published in 1876 by Ole Erekson. Library of
       Congress.

  118  Oil (1860) by Thomas Sully, after Robert E. Pine.
       Independence National Historical Park.

  120  Detail from the lithograph “Signers of the Declaration of
       Independence,” published in 1876 by Ole Erekson. Library of
       Congress.

  122  Oil (1873) by Philip F. Wharton, after Benjamin West.
       Independence National Historical Park.

  123  Oil (1783) by Charles Willson Peale. The Henry Francis du
       Pont Winterthur Museum, Winterthur, Del. Gift of Mrs. Julia
       B. Henry.

  125  Engraving (1799) by William Birch & Son. Library of Congress.

  127  Oil (1873) by Philip F. Wharton, after James Earl (Earle).
       Independence National Historical Park.

  129  Oil (1874–75) by Thomas Hicks, after Ralph Earl (Earle).
       Independence National Historical Park.

  130  Lithograph by an unknown artist, from William Brotherhead,
       _The Book of the Signers_ (1861). Library of Congress.

  132  Watercolor (ca. 1760) by an unknown artist. The R. W. Norton
       Art Gallery, Shreveport, La.

  133  Oil (1873) by George W. Conarroe, after John Wollaston.
       Independence National Historical Park.

  135  Library of Congress.

  137  Oil (1912) by Laura J. Schneider, probably after George T.
       Pool. Independence National Historical Park.

  139  Oil (date unknown) by an unknown artist. New Hampshire
       Historical Society, Concord.

  140  Oil (1874) by Samuel B. Waugh, after Charles Willson Peale.
       Independence National Historical Park.

  142  Oil (1888) by Ulysses D. Tenney, after John Trumbull. Hangs
       in the Moffatt-Ladd House, Portsmouth, N.H. Photographer,
       Douglas Armsden, Kittery Point, Maine.

  144  Oil (1873) by James J. Sawyer, after John Trumbull.
       Independence National Historical Park.

  145  Oil (1873) by Philip F. Wharton, after a miniature
       attributed to James Peale. Independence National Historical
       Park.

  146  Sketch (date unknown) by C. A. Poulson. Historical Society
       of Pennsylvania and Independence National Historical Park.

  149  Oil (ca. 1783) by Charles Willson Peale. Independence
       National Historical Park.

  150  Engraving by Henry Dawkins, after W. Tennant, from _An
       Account of the College of New Jersey_ (1764). Library of
       Congress.

  152  Oil (1873) by James R. Lambdin, after Ralph Earl (Earle).
       Independence National Historical Park.

  154  Oil (1876) by John F. Weir, after John Trumbull.
       Independence National Historical Park.

  164  National Park Service (Tony P. Wrenn).

  165  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  167  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  168  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  169  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  171  National Park Service (Abbie Rowe).

  172  Aquatint by an unknown artist, from Charles W. Janson, _The
       Stranger in America_ (1807). Library of Congress.

  174  National Park Service (Charles W. Snell).

  175  National Park Service (John O. Littleton).

  178  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  179  National Park Service (Littleton).

  181  National Park Service (Snell).

  182  National Park Service (Littleton).

  184  National Park Service (Snell).

  185  National Park Service (Snell).

  187  Photographer, William L. Klender.

  188  National Park Service (Littleton).

  190  National Park Service (Littleton).

  192  Engraving (date unknown) probably by Stephen A. Schouff.
       Library of Congress.

  194  National Park Service (Joseph L. Winn, Jr.).

  196  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  197  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  198  National Park Service (Snell).

  200  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  201  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  203  National Park Service (Snell).

  205  National Park Service (Snell).

  206  Historical Society of Princeton, N.J. Photographer,
       Constance Greiff.

  207  National Park Service (Snell).

  208  Department of Public Information, Princeton University,
       Princeton, N.J.

  210  National Park Service (Snell).

  211  National Park Service (Snell).

  212  National Park Service (Snell).

  213  National Park Service (Snell).

  215  National Park Service (Snell).

  216  National Park Service (Ralph H. Anderson).

  219  Engraving by an unknown artist, from Columbian Magazine
       (July 1787). Library of Congress.

  220  National Park Service.

  223  National Park Service.

  224  National Park Service (Jack E. Boucher).

  225  National Park Service.

  227  National Park Service (Snell).

  229  National Park Service (Snell).

  230  National Park Service (Snell).

  232  National Park Service (Wrenn).

  233  National Park Service.

  235  National Park Service (Snell).

  236  Photographer, Jesse Gibbes.

  238  National Park Service (Snell).

  239  National Park Service (Snell).

  241  National Park Service (Littleton).

  242  National Park Service (Littleton).

  244  National Park Service (Snell).

  246  National Park Service (Snell).

  248  National Park Service (Snell).

  250  National Park Service (Snell).

  251  National Park Service (Littleton).

  253  National Park Service (Snell).

  256  National Park Service (Snell).

  265  National Archives.

  266  National Archives.

    —  FRONT END PAPER: Engraving (1776) by John C. McRae.
       Independence National Historical Park.

    —  REAR END PAPER: National Park Service sketch.




Index


  “A Declaration by the Representatives of the United States of America
          in General Congress Assembled,” _see_ Declaration of
          Independence

  _A Summary View of the Rights of British America_ (tract), 86, 87

  Abingdon, Md., 113

  Abolition of slavery, _see under_ Slaves

  Academies and academic affairs, _see_ Education

  Adam architectural style, 174, 239–240, 251–253

  Adams, Abigail, _see_ Adams, Mrs. John

  Adams, Brooks, great-grandson of signer, 33, 194, 195

  Adams, Charles Francis, grandson of signer, 33, 194, 195

  Adams, Charles Francis, Jr., great-grandson of signer, 33, 194

  Adams, “Deacon” John, father of signer, 191–192, 193

  Adams, Henry, great-grandson of signer, 33, 194

  Adams, John (signer) (“Atlas of American Independence”), career of and
          sites associated with, 16, 18, 20, 27, 29, 30, _33–35_, 37,
          38, 58, 59, 61, 68, 74, 75, 88, 90, 93, 115, 124, 128,
          _170–173_, _191–195_, 218, 222, 228, 262

  Adams, John Quincy, son of signer and sites associated with, 30, 33,
          35, _191–195_

  Adams, John Quincy II, great-grandson of signer, 33, 194

  Adams, Mrs. John (Abigail Smith), wife of signer, 34, 35, 191–192, 193

  Adams, Mrs. Samuel, first wife of signer, 37

  Adams, Mrs. Samuel, second wife of signer, 37

  Adams, Samuel (signer) (“Firebrand of the Revolution”), career of and
          sites associated with, 12, 27, 31, _36–39_, 59, 60, 68,
          69, 160, 199

  Adams (John) Birthplace, Mass., _191–192_

  Adams (John Quincy) Birthplace, Mass., 191, _192–193_

  Adams Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, 192

  Adams (John) family and descendants, 33, 34, 191–195 _passim_

  Adams Mansion, _see_ Adams National Historic Site

  Adams Memorial Society, 195

  Adams National Historic Site (Adams Mansion; “Old House”; “Peacefield”;
          Vassall-Adams House), Mass., 160, 192, _193–195_

  Admiralty boards, courts, and judges:
    civil, _see_ Merchant marine and maritime affairs;
    naval, _see_ Continental Navy

  Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites, Buildings, and
          Monuments, 161, 272

  Age of signers: at time of death, compared, 28–29, 43, 45, 52, 62, 98,
          99, 109, 199;
    at time of signing, compared, 28–29, 55, 79, 99, 123, 127.
    _See also specific signers._

  Agencies of U.S. Government, _see under_ United States

  Agricultural Society of S.C., 76

  Agriculture, _see_ Farms and farming

  Alamance, Battle of, N.C., 78

  Albany, N.Y., 96, 153

  Albany Congress (1754) and Albany Plan of Union, 56, 79, 80

  Albemarle County, Va., 86

  Alcoholic beverages, 51

  Alexandria, Va., 136, 252

  Alison, Rev. Francis, educator, 101, 118, 132

  Allen, Md., 45

  Allentown, Pa., 221

  Almanacs, _see_ Books, pamphlets, essays, and tracts

  America and Americans, _see_ United States;
    _and appropriate topics throughout this index_

  American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 116

  American Philosophical Society, 126, 221, 222, 226

  American Philosophical Society Hall (Philosophical Hall), Pa., 218–226

  American Revolution, _see_ War for Independence;
    _and appropriate topics throughout this index_

  American Revolution, Daughters of the, _see_ Daughters of the
          American Revolution

  American Revolution, Sons of the, _see_ Sons of the American Revolution

  Amesbury, Mass., 39

  Ammunition, _see_ Arms, ammunition, and ordnance

  Ancestry of signers, compared, 27–28 (_and see particular signers_)

  Anglican Church, 43–44, 45, 56, 62, 77, 113, 122, 136.
    _See also_ Christianity and religion.

  Anglo-Saxon origin of signers, 27

  Annapolis and Colonial Annapolis Historic District, Md., 43, 44, 45,
          46, 100, 113, 147, 170–191 _passim_, 263

  Annapolis Convention (_1786_), 46, 48, 108, 119

  Antifederalists and Antifederalism, 61, 94

  Antislavery movement, _see under_ Slaves

  Aquia Creek Quarries, Va., 171

  Archeologists and archeological excavation, 177

  Architects, architectural styles, and architectural features, _see
          specific architects, architectural styles, and buildings
          and residences_

  Archives: Federal, _see_ National Archives and Records Service;
    non-Federal, and Declaration of Independence, 262

  Ariss, John, architect-builder, 242, 246

  Aristocrats and aristocracy, 31, 37, 41, 61, 66, 76, 77, 79, 97, 99,
          147

  Arlington, Mass., 60

  Armies, standing, 60.
    _See also especially_ Continental Army;
    _and various wars, battles, and nations_.

  Arms, ammunition, and ordnance, 9, 22, 38, 42, 84, 103, 106, 111,
          137, 138, 248

  Army-Navy Museum, Pa., 224

  Army of the Potomac (Civil War), 239

  Arnold, Gen. Benedict, British officer, 239

  Arson, and historic sites, 40

  Art and artists, 81–83, 85, 134, 218, 234, 267 (_and see_ Museums _and
          illustrations throughout this volume_)

  Articles of Association (_1774_), 267

  Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union: debated, drafted,
          adopted, and signed, 29, 36, 39, 59, 71, 76, 81, 84, 90, 91,
          93–94, 100, 106, 110, 117, 129, 131, 136, 145, 149, 151, 218;
    document exhibited, 267;
    signers of Declaration who also signed, 29, 36, 39, 59, 76, 90,
          93–94, 100, 106, 117, 129, 149.
    _See also_ Continental Congress.

  Ashley River, 103, 237

  Assemblies, colonial, provincial, and State: role of, in independence
          movement, _see_ Independence movement and British-colonial
          clash;
    signers serve in, _see specific signers_.
    _See also individual colonies/States._

  Assembly Room (Independence Hall, Pa.), _219–221_

  Athens, Ga., 142

  Attorneys and attorneys-general, _see_ Legal practice, legal
          education, and jurisprudence

  Augusta, Ga., 67, 141, 142, 161, 173, 175, 176

  Augusta (Ga.) Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, 176

  Authors, _see_ Books, pamphlets, essays, and tracts;
    Literature and literary figures;
    _and particular authors_

  _Autobiography_, of Benjamin Franklin, 58


  Bachelor signers, 29, 73, 120

  Back River, 154

  Baltimore, Md., 45, 46, 50, 124, 183, 184, 185, 187, 217, 263

  Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, 44

  Baltimore County, Md., 46

  Baltimore Municipal Museum, 183

  Baltimore Museum of Art, 187

  Bank of England, 46

  Bank of North America, 108, 147

  Bank of the United States, First and Second, 218, 224, 226

  Banks and banking, governmental and private, 46, 108, 147,
          218, 224, 226.
    _See also_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing;
      Currency and money;
      Speculators and speculation.

  Barbados, 59

  Barclay, Thomas, merchant, 229

  Bartlett, Josiah (signer), career of and sites associated with, 31,
          _39–41_, _199–201_

  Bartlett, Mrs. Josiah, wife of signer, 40

  Bartlett descendants, 201

  Bartlett House, N.H., _199–201_

  Battles, _see under name of battle_

  Bedford County, Va., 249

  Beith (town), Scotland, 149

  Benezet, John, merchant, 230

  Bennington, Battle of, N.Y., 40

  Berkeley (Harrison’s Landing) (estate), Va., 70, 71, _239–240_

  Bible, _see_ Christianity and religion

  Bicentennial, U.S., 222

  Bill of Rights, U.S., _see under_ United States Constitution

  Birthplaces of signers, _see specific signers_

  Bishop White House, Pa., 224, 226

  Blacks, _see_ Slaves

  Bonaparte, Joseph, Napoleon’s brother, 204

  Bonaparte, Napoleon, French ruler, 204

  Books, pamphlets, essays, and tracts:
    favor or oppose U.S. Constitution, 94, 125;
    on astronomy, 130;
    on monetary theory, 130;
    on religion, 149;
    signers write, 33, 35, 55–56, 58, 86, 87, 94, 125, 126, 130, 145,
          146, 149, 150;
    support Revolutionary cause, 9, 11, 12, 15, 33, 35, 86, 87,
          145, 146, 150.
    _See also_ Libraries;
      Literature and literary figures;
      _and particular works_.

  Borden, Joseph, father-in-law of signer, 204

  Bordentown, N.J., 82, 204, 205

  Bordentown (N.J.) Chamber of Commerce, 205

  Borland, Leonard Vassall, and Adams National Historic Site, 194

  Boston and Boston Harbor, Mass., 6, 7, 9, 10, 12, 33–34, 36, 37–39,
          53–54, 59–60, 68, 69, 77, 93, 115, 116, 120, 143, 193, 199.
    _See also entries immediately following._

  Boston (Mass.) Latin School, 36, 68, 77, 115

  Boston Massacre, 5, 34, 37, 68, 115

  Boston Port Act, 111

  “Boston Tea Party,” 7, 38

  “Bostonians Paying the Excise-Man or Tarring and Feathering,” (The)
          (cartoon), reproduced, 6

  Boudinot, Annis, marries signer, 134

  Boudinot, Elias, brother-in-law of signer, 207

  Boyhood homes of signers, _see specific signers_

  Braintree, Mass., _see_ Quincy

  Brandywine, Battle of, Pa., 50

  Braxton, Carter (signer), career of and sites associated with, 29,
          _41–42_, 70, 71, 135, _240–242_

  Braxton, George, brother of signer, 41, 240

  Braxton, Mrs. Carter, first wife of signer, 41

  Braxton, Mrs. Carter, second wife of signer, 41

  Bridgeport, Conn., 65

  Bristol, England, 62

  Britain, British, British Isles, British Empire, and British
          Commonwealth of Nations, _see_ Great Britain

  Broadside copies of Declaration, _see under_ Declaration of
          Independence

  Bronx, N.Y., 105.
    _See also_ New York City and New York Harbor.

  Brookhaven and Brookhaven Township, N.Y., 53

  Brooklyn and Brooklyn Heights, N.Y., 97, 98.
    _See also_ New York City and New York Harbor.

  Brothers, among signers, 92

  Brown University, R.I., 80

  Bruton Parish, Va., 256

  Buckland, William, architect, 181–182

  Bucks County, Pa., 137, 138

  Builders, buildings, and building materials, _see specific
          builder-architects, buildings, and residences_

  Burgesses, House of, _see_ Virginia House of Burgesses

  Burgoyne, Gen. John, British officer, 40, 143, 153

  Burial places and burial grounds, _see_ Cemeteries and burial places

  Burke County, Ga., 67

  Burlington, Mass., 199

  Burlington and Burlington County, N.J., 148

  Business and businessmen, _see_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing

  Butterfield, Gen. Daniel, and “Taps,” 240

  Byberry (“The Homestead”), Pa., 124

  Byfield (plantation), Del., 120, 121


  Cadwalader House, Pa., 228

  Calvinists and Calvinism, 116, 149.
    _See also_ Christianity and religion;
      Presbyterians and Presbyterian Church.

  Cambridge, Mass., 9, 60, 68, 196, 197

  Cambridge University (England), 99, 103, 111

  Canada, 44, 46, 173

  Canals, 44

  Cape Fear region of N.C., 77

  Capital cities: national, _see_ United States Capitals;
    State, _see particular cities_

  Capital punishment, 50, 126

  Capitol (U.S.), _see_ United States Capitol

  Carlisle, Pa., 146

  Carolinas, 115.
    _See also_ North Carolina;
      South Carolina.

  Caroline County, Va., 117

  Carpenters, 114, 201, 217, 221

  Carpenters’ Company of Philadelphia, 217, 221

  Carpenters’ Hall, Pa., 8, 217, 221, 224, 226

  Carroll, Charles I, grandfather of signer, 185

  Carroll, Charles II, father of signer, 43, 185

  Carroll, Charles III, of Carrollton (signer), career of and sites
          associated with, 16, 28, 31, 35, _43–45_, 46, 52, 114,
          _179–181_, _183–186_

  Carroll, Charles V, grandson of signer, 186

  Carroll, Father John, cousin of signer, 44

  Carroll, Mary, daughter of signer, 45, 183

  Carroll (Charles) American Heritage Association, Inc., 185

  Carroll family and descendants, 43, 179, 180, 181, 183, 185

  Carroll Mansion, Md., 43, _179–180_

  “Carroll Vocational School,” Md., 184

  Carrollton Manor, Md., 43, _180–181_, 185

  Carskerdo, Scotland, 145

  Carter, Robert “King,” grandfather of signer, 41

  Carter-May House, S.C., _see_ Rutledge House

  Carvel Hall Hotel, Md., 189

  Catasauqua, Pa., 230

  Catholic Church, _see_ Roman Catholic Church

  Caton, Mary Carroll, daughter of signer, 45, 183

  Caton, Richard, son-in-law of signer, 45, 183

  Caton family, 184

  Cecil County, Md., 118, 124

  Cemeteries and burial places, of signers, marked, 160 (_and see
          specific signers_)

  Centennial (U.S.) Exposition, 264

  Chain Bridge, 263

  Chancery courts, _see_ Legal practice, legal education, and
          jurisprudence

  Channing, William Ellery, descendant of signer, 52

  Chantilly (estate), Va., 92, 94

  Chapels and chaplains, _see_ Christianity and religion

  Charitable organizations, 166

  Charles Carroll American Heritage Association, Inc., 185

  Charles City and Charles City County, Va., 70

  Charles County, Md., 135–136, 189

  Charleston and Charleston Harbor, S.C., 65, 76, 103, 104, 127,
          128, 129, 233

  Charleston County, S.C., 99

  Charleston “double house,” 233–234

  Charleston (S.C.) Museum, 234

  Charlestown, Mass., 9

  Charlottesville, Va., 88, 89, 243, 250

  Charter of Privileges (_1701_), 221

  Chase, Mrs. Samuel, first wife of signer, 45, 46

  Chase, Mrs. Samuel, second wife of signer, 46

  Chase, Samuel (signer) (“Demosthenes of Maryland”), career of and
          sites associated with, 16, 29, 44, _45–46_, 113, 114, 136,
          161, _181–182_

  Chase family and descendants, 183

  Chase-Lloyd House, Md., 161, _181–183_

  Chatham County, Ga., 67

  “Chawton Manor,” Pa., 230

  Chemistry education, 123, 124

  Chericoke (estate), Va., 42, 240

  Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Company, 44

  Chester and Chester County, Pa., 50, 101, 109, 110, 118, 137, 138

  Chestertown, Md., 114

  Chew, Benjamin, lawyer-jurist, 82

  Chilbury Hall, Md., 113

  Children of signers, number and careers of, compared, 29–30, 41 (_and
          see individual signers_)

  Christ Church, Christ Churchyard, and Christ Church Burial Ground,
          Pa., 58, 75, 83, 108, 123, 126, 148, 224, 226

  Christ Episcopal Church, Del., 121

  Christianity and religion, and historic sites, 160, 181, 186, 199;
    and signers, 28, 31, 33, 43, 45, 65, 68, 73, 77, 88, 90, 95, 97,
          115, 116, 122, 149–150, 181, 186;
    freedom in, 88, 90, 97;
    in Colonies, 55–56;
    in public education, 126;
    in Scotland, 149–150;
    in Va., 90, 93, 263;
    theologian prominent in, 52.
    _See also specific denominations and churches._

  Churches and church affairs, _see_ Christianity and religion

  Circuit courts and judges, U.S., _see_ United States Judiciary

  Cities, towns, and villages: and committees/councils of
          correspondence, _see_ Committees of correspondence;
    and committees/councils of safety, _see_ Committees of safety;
    and historic preservation, 160;
    and signers, _see particular signers_.
    _See also individual cities, towns, and villages._

  City Hall, old, New York City, _see_ Federal Hall

  City Hall (Philadelphia), 218, 221

  City Tavern (Philadelphia), 222

  Civic affairs and politics, role of signers in, _see specific signers_

  Civic organizations, and historic preservation, 160

  Civil War (U.S.), 186, 236, 239, 251

  Clark, Abraham (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _47–48_, 160

  Clarke, Rev. Jonas, relative of signer, 199

  Clarke Hall (Philadelphia), 222

  Classical and Classic Revival architectural style, 183–184.
    _See also_ Greek Revival architectural style.

  Classics, studied, _see under_ Education

  Clay, Henry, law student, 154, 156

  Clergymen, _see_ Christianity and religion

  Clymer, George (signer), career of and sites associated with, 29,
          _49–51_, 134, _229_

  Cobblers, 129

  Codes, legal, _see_ Legal practice, legal education, and jurisprudence

  Codfish, 59

  College Hill (Walton-Harper House), Ga., 142, _173–175_

  College of Charleston, S.C., 104

  College of New Jersey, _see_ Princeton University

  College of Philadelphia, 82, 113, 124, 126, 146, 148

  College of William and Mary, Va., 41, 70, 86, 154–156

  Colleges and universities, and historic sites, 160;
    chemistry education in, 123, 124;
    classical education in, 154, 156;
    legal education in, 154–156;
    medical education in, 123–126;
    signers aid, head, and serve, 67, 123–126, 142, 146, 148,
          150–151, 154–156;
    signers attend, 30 (_and see particular signers_).
    _See also_ Education;
      and _specific colleges and universities_.

  Colonial and colonial Philadelphia architectural style, 172,
          228, 246, 252

  Colonial Annapolis Historic District, Md., _see_ Annapolis and
          Colonial Annapolis Historic District

  Colonial Dames of America, 160, 202

  Colonial National Historical Park, Va., 160, 247–249

  Colonial Park Cemetery, Ga., 64

  Colonial Williamsburg, Va., _see_ Williamsburg, Williamsburg Historic
          District, and Colonial Williamsburg

  Colonies, Thirteen (British-American): and British Empire, 147, 156;
    and signers, _see_ Signers of the Declaration _and individual
          signers_;
    architecture in, _see particular styles_;
    confederations of, actual and proposed, 16, 34, 56, 79, 80 (_and
          see_ Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union);
    constitutions, legislatures, and governments of, 9, 15 (_and see
          specific colonies/States_);
    cultural heritage of, 8;
    foreign nations recognize independence of, 35;
    government and diplomacy of, _see_ Continental Congress;
    heroes and prominent men in, 27, 31, 34, 37, 43, 55, 56, 68, 115;
    independence movement in, _see_ Independence movement and
          British-colonial clash, Declaration of Independence, _and_
          Independence resolution;
    meetings and congresses of, 56, 79, 80, 93, 132;
    proprietary, 43, 56–57, 113, 120, 122, 136;
    publications popular in, 15, 55–56, 81;
    regions and trade of, 30, 62;
    status of Ga. in, 15, 64, 89;
    territory added to, 3;
    wars in, _see specific wars_.
    _See also_ Continental Congress;
      States;
      War for Independence;
      _individual colonies/States and regions_;
      _and appropriate topics throughout this index_.

  Columbia University (King’s College), N.Y., 97

  Commerce, trade, and manufacturing: and colonial protest, 97;
    and historic sites, 160, 181, 228;
    and signers, 27, 31 (_and see specific signers_);
    Britain-Colonies, 4, 8, 9, 37–38, 62, 68;
    Continental Congress regulates, 49, 52, 95;
    embargoes and restrictions on, _see_ Independence movement and
          British-colonial clash;
    France-Colonies, 147;
    in slaves, _see_ Slaves;
    in various colonies, 36, 52, 55, 80, 101, 120, 184, 202;
    Indian-Colonies, 4;
    individuals other than signers in, 51, 59, 62, 68, 106, 111, 115,
          184, 204, 251;
    treaties deal with, 35, 58, 88–89.
    _See also_ Banks and banking;
      Merchant marine and maritime affairs;
      Taxes and taxation.

  Commissions and commissioners, _see individual commissions,
          governmental bodies, and topics_

  Committee of fifty-one, 95, 98

  Committee of one hundred, 98

  Committee of sixty, 95, 98

  Committees, _see particular agencies, governmental bodies, topics, and
          entries immediately preceding and following_

  Committees of correspondence, 7–8, 37–38, 40, 44, 45, 59, 70, 72, 73,
          78, 81, 93, 106, 113, 130, 136, 138, 146, 150

  Committees of safety, 9, 10, 40, 42, 44, 45, 47, 49, 54, 60, 68, 72,
          76, 103, 106, 114, 122, 131, 138, 139, 140, 141, 143, 145

  Common Ground Cemetery, R.I., 52

  Common schools, _see_ Education

  _Common Sense_ (pamphlet), 11, 12, 15, 124

  Community affairs and politics, role of signers in, _see specific
          signers_

  Companies, _see_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing

  Composers, musical, _see_ Music and musicians

  Concord and Battle of Concord, Mass., 8, 9, 10, 12, 38, 42, 60, 68

  Confederacy (Civil War), 251

  Confederations: of Colonies, actual and proposed, _see under_ Colonies;
    of Thirteen States, _see_ Articles of Confederation and Perpetual
          Union;
      Continental Congress

  Conferences, _see particular agencies, governmental bodies, and topics_

  Confiscation of lands, _see under_ Land

  Congregationalists and Congregational Church, 65, 68, 77, 144, 150,
          166.
    _See also_ Christianity and religion.

  Congresses, colonies/States, _see individual colonies/States_;
    Continental, see Continental Congress;
    intercolonial, _see under_ Colonies;
    U.S., _see_ United States Congress

  Congress Hall (County Court House), Pa., 218, 221, 223, 226

  Congressional Cemetery, D.C., 62

  Connecticut (colony and State), history of and historic sites in, 16,
          18, 24, 53, 72, 83–84, 123, 129–131, 133, 143, 144–145,
          152–153, 164–170, 211

  Connecticut (Great) Compromise, in U.S. Constitutional Convention, 131

  Conservatives and conservatism, political, 14, 16, 18, 22–23, 37, 41,
          42, 45–46, 56, 70, 71, 72, 73, 79, 80, 88, 94, 96, 101, 113,
          114, 118, 119, 128, 135, 136, 141–142, 145, 147;
    religious, 56, 65

  _Considerations on the Nature and Extent of the Legislative Authority
          of the British Parliament_ (tract), 146

  Constitutional conventions and constitutions: British, _see under_
          Great Britain;
    colonies/States, _see specific colonies/States_;
    U.S., _see_ United States Constitution _and_ United States
          Constitutional Convention

  Continental Army, and signers, 27, 34, 40, 60, 99–100, 107, 111;
    battles and campaigns of, _see_ War for Independence;
    Continental Congress regulates, 34, 49, 60, 71, 84, 91, 98, 101,
          105, 115, 143, 145, 147, 151;
    created, 14, 217;
    Declaration distributed to, 22;
    financed, 14, 60, 106–108;
    inspected, 134;
    leadership of, 14, 29, 34, 41, 69, 74–75, 217, 264;
    medical service and conditions in, 40, 125, 228;
    recruiting poster of, reproduced, 10;
    recruitment-enlistment for, 60, 121;
    supplied, 14, 60, 84, 95, 106–108, 137, 138;
    veterans of, 60, 114.
    _See also_ Militia.

  Continental Association, 9, 66, 103
  Continental Congress (First and Second), adjourns and convenes, 7–8,
          9, 14, 38, 93;
    and Adams (John), 18, 33–35, 38;
    and Articles of Confederation, _see_ Articles of Confederation and
          Perpetual Union;
    and Bank of North America, _see_ Bank of North America;
    and Colonies, _see_ Colonies;
    and committees of correspondence and safety, _see_ Committees of
          correspondence _and_ Committees of safety;
    and Cornwallis’ surrender, 218;
    and Declaration of Independence, _see_ Declaration of Independence;
    and Halifax Resolves, 74;
    and Hancock, 69;
    and independence from Britain, _see_ Independence movement and
          British-colonial clash _and_ Independence resolution;
    and Indians, _see_ Indians and Indian affairs;
    and maritime matters, _see_ Merchant marine and maritime affairs;
    and Olive Branch Petition, 14;
    and signers, _see particular signers_;
    and U.S. Constitution, _see_ United States Constitution;
    book on, 268;
    Delegates and delegations to, _see individual Delegates and
          colonies/States and under_ Counties and parishes;
    diplomatic program of, _see_ Diplomats and diplomacy;
    father-son team in, 100;
    fiscal problems and policies of, 31, 49–50, 60, 71, 106–108, 111,
          117, 131, 141, 143, 151;
    gathering place for members of, 222;
    key days in, 18;
    meetingplaces of, _front endpaper_, 8, 14, 50, 217, 219–221, 224,
          263;
    memorialized, 221;
    officials of, 22, 24, 39, 52, 67, 69, 84, 92, 94, 101, 117, 136,
          207, 262–263, 267;
    organization and committees/commissions of, 8, 15, 16, 34, 40, 44,
          49–50, 52, 54, 71, 74, 81, 84, 91, 95, 98, 105, 110, 115, 131,
          138, 141, 143, 147, 151;
    profiteering in, 31, 46, 106–107;
    prominent men not Delegates to, 27;
    regulates commerce, 49, 52, 95;
    representation and voting procedures in, 8, 15, 18, 24, 27, 39, 66
          (_and see individual colonies/States_);
    sectional rivalries in, 74;
    temper and range of political opinion in, 8–9, 14–15, 16, 18, 34,
          88, 135, 136, 141, 147.
    _See also entries immediately preceding and following, specific
          colonies/States, and appropriate topics throughout
          this index._

  Continental currency, 31, 49, 69

  Continental Loan Office, 52

  Continental Navy, 15, 34, 52, 74–75, 81, 82, 108

  Continental Navy Board, 82. _See also_ Continental Navy.

  Convention of Saratoga, _see_ Saratoga and Battle of Saratoga

  Conventions, _see individual conventions, colonies/States, and
          appropriate topics_

  Conway, Thomas, and Conway Cabal, 60, 95, 125

  Coopers, 83

  Corbin, Richard, father-in-law of signer, 42

  Cornwallis, Gen. Charles, British officer, 218, 248

  Corporations, _see_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing

  Correspondence, committees/councils of, _see_ Committees of
          correspondence

  Coton (estate), Va., 91

  Cotton planters, _see_ Planters and plantations

  Councils, _see particular councils, cities, towns, colonies/States,
          and appropriate topics_

  Councils of correspondence, _see_ Committees of correspondence

  Councils of safety, _see_ Committees of safety

  Counties and parishes, and committees/councils of correspondence and
          safety, _see_ Committees of correspondence _and_ Committees of
          safety;
    militia of, _see_ Militia;
    offices in and affairs of, role of signers in, _see specific
          signers_;
    send Delegates to Continental Congress, 54, 66, 141.
    _See also individual colonies/States and counties/parishes._

  Counting rooms and houses, 36, 184, 202

  County Court House, Pa., _see_ Congress Hall

  Courts, _see_ Legal practice, legal education, and jurisprudence

  Coventry Forge, Pa., 137

  Criteria of eligibility of sites and buildings for National Historic
          Landmark status, 161, 270–271

  Crown, British, _see_ Colonies;
    Great Britain

  Crown Point, N.Y., 115

  Cumberland County, Pa., 122

  Currency and money, and Continental Congress, _see under_ Continental
          Congress;
    British problems with, 3;
    Continental, 31, 49, 69;
    signers raise to further Revolutionary cause, 31, 49;
    speculation in, _see_ Speculators and speculation;
    status of signers regarding, _see_ Wealth and financial status of
          signers;
    theory on, 130. _See also_ Banks and banking.

  Customs laws, collection, and officials, British and American, 3, 4,
          6, 34, 37, 52, 68, 82, 101


  Dana, Richard Henry, Sr., grandson of signer, 52

  Dartmouth College, N.H., 40, 84

  Daughters of signers, _see particular signers_

  Daughters of the American Revolution, 160, 176, 192, 224, 227

  Daughters of the Revolution, 160

  Dawes, William, patriot, 10, 199

  “Dean’s House,” N.J., _see_ President’s House

  Deaths of signers: age at, compared, 28–29;
    earliest, 62, 98, 109, 199;
    latest, 35, 43;
    on anniversary of adoption of Declaration, 35, 90.
    _See also specific signers._

  Debts and economic reversals of signers, 36–37, 46, 63–64, 69, 73, 78,
          89–90, 107–108, 112, 132, 146, 148, 196, 213

  “Declaration by the Representatives of the United States of America in
          General Congress Assembled” (A), _see_ Declaration of
          Independence

  Declaration of Independence, and Adams (John), 16, 18, 20, 33–34;
    and Va. constitution, 20;
    anniversary of, 35, 90, 264;
    author of, _see_ Jefferson, Thomas;
    books on, 268–269;
    broadside copies of, 22, 69, 262;
    building, residence, and rooms involved in creation of, 18, 159–160,
          217, 222, _rear endpaper_;
    celebrated and read publicly, 22, 217, 264;
    contents and style of, analyzed, 20, 22;
    debated, altered, adopted, and signed, 3, 18, 20, 22, 23–24, 28, 33,
          34, 67, 69, 71, 72, 76, 81, 82, 88, 90, 93, 95, 100, 106, 110,
          117, 120, 123, 124, 129, 136, 159–160, 217, 219–220, 222, 262
          (_and see individual signers_);
    desk written on, 222, 245;
    displayed, in various places, 3, 262–267;
    displayed, photo of, 266;
    drafted, 14, 16, 18, 33, 34, 55, 57–58, 88, 90, 93, 129, 130, 217,
          228, 245, 262, 263;
    drafting committee of, illus. of, ii;
    historical background and origins of, 3–24;
    history of document, 262–267;
    Jefferson presents to Hancock, in mural, 267;
    misconceptions concerning, 23–24;
    newspapers describe and publish, 21;
    parchment copy of, 23–24, 69, 262–267;
    parchment copy of, facsimile of, reproduced, 19;
    political philosophy of, 20;
    preamble of, 20;
    predicted, 78, 82;
    presented to Continental Congress, illus. of, ii;
    printed and distributed, 22, 23–24, 262;
    reflects unanimity, 23;
    revised draft of, 262;
    rough draft of, illus. of first page of, 17;
    rough drafts of, 17, 18, 20, 262;
    signatures on, order and nature of, 23–24, 39, 60, 67, 93, 100, 139,
          140, 153, 155, 217, 262;
    signers of, _see_ Signers of the Declaration _and specific signers_;
    significance and influence of, 3, 20;
    text of, reprinted, 259–262;
    titles of, 23;
    traditions concerning, 52, 58, 69, 79.
    _See also_ Independence movement and British-colonial clash;
      Independence resolution.

  “Declaration of Independence” (The) (painting), reproduced, ii

  “Declaration of Rights,” 20.
    _See also_ Rights.

  Degrees, academic and honorary, signers earn, _see individual signers_

  Deists, 28

  Delaware (Three Lower Counties) (colony and State), history of and
          historic sites in, 16, 18, 24, 27, 100–102, 118–121, 122, 135.
    _See also_ Pennsylvania.

  Delaware County, Pa., 109

  Delegates, _see particular legislative bodies and appropriate topics_

  Democracy, 3.
    _See also appropriate related topics throughout this index._

  Democratic-Republicans and Democratic-Republican Party, 52, 61–62,
          85, 89, 102.
    _See also_ Jeffersonians.

  Departments of U.S. Government, _see appropriate departments
          following_ United States

  Derry Village, N.H., 139, 203

  Descendants of signers, achieve distinction, 29–30;
    and historic sites, 160.
    _See also specific signers and   individuals_.

  Descendants of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence,
          Inc., 160

  Deshler-Morris House, Pa., 224, 226

  Deshon, Christopher, merchant, 183

  Deshon-Caton-Carroll House, Md., 45, _183–185_

  Dickinson, John, lawyer-legislator, 18, 69, 93, 110, 119, 146

  Dickinson College, Pa., 126

  Dinwiddie, Robert, British official, 154

  Diplomats and diplomacy, 15, 16, 29, 33, 35, 44, 46, 55, 58, 61, 71,
          85, 88, 93, 95, 98, 128, 136, 143, 151, 193–196

  Disease, sickness, and physical afflictions of signers, _see
          particular signers_

  District courts, U.S., _see_ United States Judiciary

  District of Columbia, _see_ Washington, D.C.

  Doctors, medical education, medical practice, and hospitals, 31,
          39–40, 56, 65, 66, 67, 97, 98, 121, 123–127, 139–140, 152,
          201, 203, 218, 228.
    On the health of individual signers, _see specific signers._

  Dorchester, Mass., 129

  Dorchester, S.C., 65

  Doric architectural style, 166, 176, 186, 244

  “Double house,” 233–234

  Doughoregan Manor, Md., 43, 45, 179, 180, 183, _185–186_

  Dover, Del., 18, 101, 119, 120, 121

  Down Hatherly (village), England, 62

  Drafting, of Articles of Confederation, _see_ Articles of Confederation
          and Perpetual Union;
    of Declaration, _see_ Declaration of Independence;
    of key State documents, _see individual States_;
    of U.S. Constitution, _see_ United States Constitution

  Drafts, various, of Declaration, _see_ Declaration of Independence

  Dublin, Ireland, 118, 172

  Duels, 62, 63, 64, 117

  Duke of Leinster, 172

  Dunmore, Lord John M., British official, 42, 111

  Durham Furnace, Pa., 137, 138

  Dutch, _see_ Holland

  Duties, _see_ Customs laws, collection, and officials


  East Cemetery, Conn., 153

  East River, 97

  East Windsor, Conn., 153

  Eastern Shore, _see_ Maryland

  Easton, Pa., 137, 138, 230

  Easton Cemetery, Pa., 138

  Economic matters, _see mainly_ Banks and banking;
    Commerce, trade, and manufacturing

  Economic status of signers, _see_ Wealth and financial status of
          signers

  Edenton, N.C., 73, 78, 148

  Edge, Gov. (N.J.) and Mrs. Walter E., and Morven, 208

  Edinburgh, Scotland, 134, 149

  Education, and Jefferson, 85, 86;
    and Lowell, 195–196;
    classical, 39, 45, 154;
    in chemistry, 123, 124;
    in various colonies/States, 84, 102, 229, 245, 252, 255;
    legal, _see_ Legal practice, legal education, and jurisprudence;
    medical, _see_ Doctors, medical education, medical practice,
          and hospitals;
    of signers, compared, 27, 28, 30 (_and see specific signers_);
    reform of, 126;
    religious, in public schools, 126 (_and see_ Christianity
          and religion);
    signers further as teachers, professors, and administrators, 33, 56,
          65, 67, 80, 85, 115, 142, 154–156.
    _See also_ Colleges and universities.

  Elections and elective officials, _see particular legislative bodies,
          offices, individuals, and colonies/States_

  Electors, presidential, _see under_ United States Presidents
          and Presidency

  Elementary schools, _see_ Education

  Eligibility of sites and buildings for National Historic Landmark
          status, _see_ National Historic Landmarks

  Elizabeth City County, Va., 154

  Ellery, William (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _51–52_, 160

  Elmwood (Oliver-Gerry-Lowell House), Mass., _195–197_

  Elsing Green (estate), Va., 41, 42, _240–242_

  Emancipation of slaves, _see_ Slaves

  Embargoes, _see_ Independence movement and British-colonial clash

  Emley, John, _see_ Imlay, John

  England and Englishmen, _see_ Colonies;
    Great Britain

  English language and literature, _see_ Literature and literary figures

  Epidemics, _see_ Doctors, medical education, medical practice,
          and hospitals

  Esopus, N.Y., 98

  Essays and essayists, _see_ Books, pamphlets, essays, and tracts

  _Essays: Literary, Moral, and Philosophical_ (book), 126

  Essex County, N.J., 47

  Eton (school), England, 99

  Europe, and _Poor Richard’s Almanac_, 55–56;
    architecture in, 172;
    capital from, 148;
    colonists from, and western lands, 148;
    culture of, 88;
    medical students from, 126;
    signers visit and study in, 30, 43, 88, 92, 95, 103, 179, 180,
          192, 193, 235;
    U.S. diplomats in, _see_ Diplomats and diplomacy.
    _See also specific countries._

  Excavation, archeological, 177

  “Exceptional value,” sites and buildings of, _see_ National
          Historic Landmarks

  Excise taxes, _see under_ Taxes and taxation

  Exeter, N.H., 143

  Exhibition Hall (National Archives Building, D.C.), 262, 266, 267

  Exports, _see_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing


  Facsimiles of Declaration, _see under_ Declaration of Independence

  Fairfax County, Va., 91

  Families of signers, suffer during War for Independence, 31, 47, 54,
          71–72, 94–95, 104–105, 110.
    _See also specific signers and families._

  Farms and farming: and signers, 31, 45, 47, 53, 72, 80, 83, 85, 101,
          109, 110, 117, 124, 129, 134, 140, 164, 203, 209, 210–211,
          212–213;
    in various areas, 33, 76, 101, 117, 138, 140, 164, 166, 230, 255.
    _See also_ Planters and plantations.

  Farmville, Va., 141

  Federal, _see United States entries and those immediately following_

  Federal City, _see_ Washington, D.C.

  Federal Hall (old City Hall), New York City, 263

  Federal period architecture and literature, 81, 170

  Federalists and Federalist Party, 35, 44, 46, 52, 61, 89, 102, 108,
          116, 119, 128, 131, 156.
    _See also_ Hamilton, Alexander, and Hamiltonians.

  Ferries, 140

  Financial matters, _see_ Currency and money;
    Wealth and financial status of signers

  Finian (estate), N.C., 77, 78, 79, 214

  Finns and Finland, 109

  Fire Island National Seashore, N.Y., 160, 210–212

  Fires, and historic sites, 40, 86, 97, 159, 199, 207, 247, 250, 263

  First Bank of the United States, _see_ Bank of the United States

  First Bank of the United States Building, Pa., 224, 226

  First Baptist Church, N.J., 72

  First Continental Congress, _see_ Continental Congress

  First Presbyterian Church Cemetery, Pa., 133

  First South Carolina Regiment of Continentals, 99

  Fiscal matters, _see_ Currency and money

  Floor plans, _see specific houses_

  Florida (region and State), 76, 104, 128, 233

  Floyd, Mrs. William, first wife of signer, 53

  Floyd, Mrs. William, second wife of signer, 54

  Floyd, Nicoll, son of signer, 54, 211, 212

  Floyd, William (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _53–54_, _210–213_

  Floyd Birthplace (Fire Island National Seashore), N.Y., 53, 54,
          160, _210–212_

  Floyd family and descendants, 54, 210–213

  Floyd (General) House, N.Y., _see_ General Floyd House

  Flushing, N.Y., 95

  Food shortages, 147

  Foreign affairs, _see_ Diplomats and diplomacy

  Foreign born signers, 27–28 (_and see particular signers_)

  “Formation of the Union” exhibit, 267

  Fort Knox, Ky., 265

  Fort Oswego, N.Y., 95

  Fort Stanwix, N.Y., Second Treaty of (_1784_), 153

  “Fort Wilson” (residence), Pa., 146, 147, 222

  Foundations, historic, and historic sites, 160

  Founders’ Monument, Ga., _see_ Signers’ Monument

  France, and Democratic-Republicans, 61;
    and signers, 35, 43, 58, 95, 100, 145, 147;
    and War for Independence, 145;
    artist-engineer from, 171;
    cedes land to Britain, 3, 4;
    commerce of, 147;
    diplomacy of and U.S. diplomats in, 35, 55, 58, 61, 88;
    fortress of, 139;
    loans money to Continental Congress, 108;
    revolution in, 35, 88–89;
    undeclared war of, with U.S., 35, 61;
    wallpaper from, 202;
    wars of, _see specific wars_.
    _See also_ New France.

  Franklin, Benjamin (signer), career of and sites associated with, 16,
          18, 20, 27, 28, 29, 35, 44, _55–58_, 79, 82, 88, 110, 124,
          128, 147, 160, 221, 222, 224

  Franklin, James, half-brother of signer, 55

  Franklin College, Ga., 67, 142

  Franklin stoves, 204

  Frederick and Frederick County, Md., 43, 135

  French and Indian War, 3, 56, 95, 97, 115, 144

  French language, 44

  French Revolution, 35, 88–89

  Friends Meeting House Cemetery, N.J., 51

  Frontier and frontiersmen, 4, 54, 56, 78, 85, 86, 108, 141,
          147, 148, 212

  Fulling mills, 72

  Furniture and furnishings, associated with signers, collectively,
          219, 221.
    _See also individual sites._


  Gadsden, Christopher, legislator, 128

  Gage, Gen. Thomas, British officer-official, 10

  Galloway, John, Loyalist, 138

  Gardens, famous, 236–237. _See also specific sites._

  Garrison house, 178

  General Floyd House, N.Y., 54, _212–213_

  General Services Administration (U.S.), _see_ United States General
          Services Administration

  George II, King of England, 68

  George III, King of England, 4, 8, 15, 22, 24, 68

  George Taylor Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, 227

  Georgetown and Georgetown County, S.C., 99

  Georgia (colony and State), history of and historic sites in, 8, 9,
          15, 16, 18, 24, 30, 51, 54, 56, 62–67, 76, 138, 140–142, 148,
          161, 173–177

  Georgia State Society, Daughters of the American Revolution, 176

  Georgian architectural style, 176–178, 181–183, 185–191, 194–198,
          201–202, 206–213, 218–219, 226–227, 229–234, 239–249, 251–256

  German Evangelical Lutheran Church, Pa., 138

  Germans and Germany, 40

  Germantown and Battle of Germantown, Pa., 23, 151, 224

  Germantown (Pa.) Historical Society, 226

  Gerry, Elbridge (signer), career of and sites associated with, 24, 29,
          _59–62_, _195–198_

  Gerry, Mrs. Elbridge, wife of signer, 61–62

  Gerry, Thomas, father of signer, 197

  Gerry Birthplace, Mass., _197–198_

  Gerry family, 197

  “Gerrymander,” 61

  Gifford (village), Scotland, 149

  Glamorganshire, Wales, 95

  Glasgow, Scotland, 149

  Gloria Dei (Old Swedes’) Church National Historic Site, Pa., 226

  Gloucestershire, England, 62

  “God save the King” (British national anthem), 76

  “God save the thirteen States” (song), 76

  Goochland County, Va., 86

  Governor Hopkins House, R.I., _231–232_

  Governor Huntington House, Conn., _see_ Huntington House

  Governors, _see specific colonies/States and individuals_

  Grace Episcopal Church, Va., 112

  Graff, Jacob, Jr., House, Pa.: and Declaration of Independence,
          18, 222;
    illus. of, 225, _rear endpaper_

  Graham, Gov. (N.C.) William A., and Nash-Hooper House, 214

  Grammar schools, _see_ Education

  Granville County, N.C., 117

  Graves, graveyards, and gravestones, _see_ Cemeteries and burial places

  Great Britain, agents of various American colonies in, 56;
    and Federalists, 61;
    and Ga., 15, 64, 89;
    and Liberty Bell, 221;
    and signers, 28, 31, 41, 56, 62, 64, 68, 76, 82, 88, 95, 99, 103,
          106, 109, 111, 113, 115, 127, 136, 143, 240;
    and slave trade, 20;
    Army of, _see_ Independence movement and British-colonial clash _and
          specific wars_;
    Bank of England in, 46;
    clashes with American Colonies, _see_ Independence movement and
          British-colonial clash _and_ War for Independence;
    colonies of, _see_ Colonies;
    Commonwealth of Nations of, 147;
    “conspiracy” in, 3–4;
    constitution of, 15;
    creditors in, 4, 78;
    debtors in, 78;
    diplomacy of and U.S. diplomats in, 35, 194, 196;
    Empire of, and Colonies, 155;
    financial problems of, 3;
    France cedes lands to, 3, 4;
    grants lands, 95;
    kings of, _see specific kings_;
    national anthem of, 76;
    navy of, 64, 98, 141;
    Parliament of, _see under_ Independence movement and British-colonial
          clash;
    people of, and Declaration of Independence, 20;
    recognizes U.S. independence, _see_ Treaty of Paris;
    reorganization of imperial structure of, 147;
    Revolutionary tracts circulate in, 81, 146;
    rights of citizens of, 8–9;
    ties of, to American Colonies, 8;
    trade of, 8, 9, 31, 37, 46;
    treasury of, 3;
    wars of, _see specific wars_.
    _See also_ Irish, Ireland, and Scotch-Irish;
      Scots, Scotland, and Scotch-Irish;
      Wales and Welshmen;
      _and other appropriate topics throughout this index_.

  Great Compromise, in U.S. Constitutional Convention, 131

  Greek language, 39, 156

  Greek Revival architectural style, 164–165, 166, 168, 180, 185–186,
          199–201, 203–204, 207–208, 231

  Greenland, 115

  Greensboro, N.C., 79, 118, 161

  Greenwich Forge and Greenwich Township, N.J., 138, 226

  Grievances, colonial, _see_ Independence movement and British-colonial
          clash

  Grist mills, 72

  Grove Street Cemetery, Conn., 131

  Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, N.C., 79, 118, 161, 216

  Guns and gunpowder, _see_ Arms, ammunition, and ordnance

  Gwinnett, Button (signer), career of and sites associated with, 27–28,
          _62–64_, 65, 67, 98, 140, 161, _176–177_

  Gwinnett, Mrs. Button, wife of signer, 62


  H-shaped buildings, 251–253, 253–255

  Habre-de-Venture (estate), Md., 136, _186–188_, 189

  Hackney School, England, 103, 111

  Haddington (town) and Haddington Presbytery, Scotland, 149

  Hague (town), Va., 94

  “Hail Columbia” (song), 81

  Halifax Resolves, 74

  Hall, Lyman (signer), career of and sites associated with, 31, 64,
          _65–67_, 140, 141, 160, 161

  Hall, Mrs. Lyman, first wife of signer, 65

  Hall, Mrs. Lyman, second wife of signer, 65

  Hall, Rev. Samuel, uncle of signer, 65

  Hall family, 66

  Hall’s Knoll (estate), Ga., 66, 67

  Hamilton, Alexander, and Hamiltonians, 35, 89.
    _See also_ Federalists and Federalist Party.

  Hamilton, Andrew, lawyer-architect, 217

  Hampton, Va., 154

  Hancock, John (signer), career of and sites associated with, 12, 22,
          24, 34, 37, 38, 39, 59, 60, _67–69_, 115, 116, _198–199_,
          262, 267

  Hancock, John George Washington, son of signer, 69

  Hancock, Rev. John, grandfather of signer, 199

  Hancock, Thomas, uncle of signer, 68, 199

  Hancock-Clarke House, Mass., _198–199_

  Hancock family, 199

  Hanover County, Va., 42, 112, 247

  Harford County, Md., 113

  Harper family, 175

  Harrison, Benjamin IV, father of signer, 239

  Harrison, Benjamin V (signer) (“Falstaff of Congress”), career of and
          sites associated with, 30, 69, _70–71_, _239–240_

  Harrison, Benjamin VI, son of signer, 239

  Harrison, Benjamin, great-grandson of signer and President, 30, 70, 239

  Harrison, Joseph H., legislator, 114, 136

  Harrison, Mrs. Benjamin V, wife of signer, 70

  Harrison, William Henry, son of signer and President, 30, 70, 239

  Harrison family, 70, 71, 240

  Harrison’s Landing, Va., _see_ Berkeley

  Hart, John (signer) (“Honest John”), career of and sites associated
          with, _71–72_, 160

  Hart, Mrs. John, wife of signer, 72

  Harvard College and University, Mass., 30, 33, 36, 51, 59, 68, 77,
          115, 144, 197

  Hayes Plantation, N.C., 148

  Health of signers, _see specific signers_

  Henry, Patrick, career of, 27, 28, 42, 70, 71, 86, 88, 92, 93, 111

  Heraldic emblems, 82

  Hessians, _see_ Germans and Germany

  Hewes, Joseph (signer), career of and sites associated with, 29,
          _73–75_, 116, 117, 161, _206_, 224

  Heyward, Daniel, father of signer, 233

  Heyward, Mrs. Thomas, Jr., first wife of signer, 76

  Heyward, Mrs. Thomas, Jr., second wife of signer, 76

  Heyward, Thomas, Jr. (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          31, _75–76_, 99, 104, 127, 128, _233–234_

  Heyward family, 76, 234

  Heyward-Washington House, S.C., _233–234_

  Higher education, _see_ Colleges and universities

  Hills, The (estate), Pa., 108

  Hillsborough, N.C., 79, 214

  Historians and historiography, 33, 194.
    _See also entries immediately following_.

  Historic Annapolis, Inc., 189

  Historic Districts, _see_ National Historic Landmarks

  Historic foundations, and historic sites, 160

  Historic Places, National Register of, _see_ National Register of
          Historic Places

  Historic preservation activities and problems, 159–162.
    _See also entries immediately preceding and following_.

  Historic sites and buildings of national significance, _see_ National
          Historic Landmarks

  Historical societies, State and local: and historic preservation, 160

  Historiography, _see_ Historians and historiography

  Hoban, James, architect, 171, 172

  Holland (Dutch Republic; Netherlands), 35, 96, 211

  Homes of signers, _see_ Residences of signers

  “Homestead” (The), Pa., _see_ Byberry

  “Honeymoon Cottage,” Va., 244, 245

  Hooper, Mrs. William, wife of signer, 77

  Hooper, Rev. William, father of signer, 77

  Hooper, William (signer) (“Prophet of Independence”), career of and
          sites associated with, 31, _77–79_, 116, 117, 161, _214–216_

  Hopewell, N.J., 72

  Hopkins, Alden, descendant of signer, 232

  Hopkins, Esek, brother of signer, 80, 81

  Hopkins, Mrs. Stephen, first wife of signer, 80

  Hopkins, Mrs. Stephen, second wife of signer, 80

  Hopkins, Stephen (signer), career of and sites associated with, 51,
          _79–81_, _231–232_

  Hopkins (Governor) House, R.I., _see_ Governor Hopkins House

  Hopkinson, Francis (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _81–83_, _204–205_, 224

  Hopkinson, Joseph, son of signer, 81, 204

  Hopkinson, Mrs. Francis, wife of signer, 82

  Hopkinson family, 204

  Hopkinson House, N.J., _204–205_

  Hopsewee-on-the-Santee (plantation), S.C., 99, _234–236_

  Horses, 101, 121, 134

  Hospitals, _see_ Doctors, medical education, medical practice,
          and hospitals

  House of Burgesses, _see_ Virginia House of Burgesses

  Howard County, Md., 43, 180, 183

  Howe, Lord Richard, British admiral, 98, 128, 136

  Howe, Sir William, British officer, 13, 128

  Humanitarians and reformers, 50, 80, 97, 123–126

  Humphreys, Charles, legislator, 110

  Hunterdon County, N.J., 72

  Huntington, Mrs. Samuel, wife of signer, 83

  Huntington, Samuel (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _83–84_, _164–166_, 222

  Huntington Birthplace, Conn., _164–165_

  Huntington House (Governor Huntington House), Conn., _165–166_


  Illnesses of signers, _see_ Disease, sickness, and physical
          afflictions of signers

  Imlay (Emley), John, merchant, 204

  Immanuel Episcopal Churchyard, Del., 119

  Impeachment, 46, 102, 148

  Imports, _see_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing

  Imprisonment, _see_ Prisons, prisoners, and prisoners-of-war

  Inaugurations and inaugural addresses of U.S. Presidents, _see under_
          United States Presidents and Presidency

  Indentured servants, 31, 137

  Independence Day (U.S.), 76

  Independence Hall (State House for the Province of Pennsylvania), Pa.,
          _front endpaper_, 14, 18, 22, 216, _217–226_

  Independence Mall, Pa., 226

  Independence movement (U.S.) and British-colonial clash: and Adams
          (John), 18, 33–34;
    and Adams (Samuel), 36–38;
    and British Parliament, 8, 9, 14, 15, 38, 42, 56, 57, 59, 72, 81,
          86, 93, 134, 146, 155;
    and Continental Congress, _see_ Continental Congress;
    and R.I., 15;
    and Va., 15;
    British actions and postures during, 3–156 _passim_, 199;
    colonial grievances, protests, and actions during, 3–156 _passim_,
          189–190, 195, 199, 217, 259–262;
    fathers of, 33, 67;
    fruition and celebration of, 15, 22, 218;
    outcome of, predicted, 78, 82;
    public attitudes toward, 22–23;
    range of reaction to, _see_ Conservatives and conservatism,
          Loyalists and Tories, Moderates, _and_ Radicals and radicalism;
    results in war, _see_ War for Independence;
    signers’ role in, _see individual signers_;
    timing of, 8, 16, 217.
    _See also_ Declaration of Independence;
      Independence resolution;
      _specific colonies/States_;
      _and appropriate topics throughout this index_.

  Independence National Historical Park, Pa., 159–160, _216–226_

  Independence resolution (U.S.), background, introduction, and adoption
          of, 14, 15–18, 22, 27, 34, 39, 44, 46, 60, 67, 72, 74, 92, 93,
          95, 98, 100, 101, 106, 109, 110, 111, 114, 118, 119, 120–121,
          122, 127, 128, 134, 135, 136, 147, 153, 217.
    _See also_ Declaration of Independence;
      Independence movement and British-colonial clash.

  Independence Square, Pa., 217, 221, 222, 226

  Indians and Indian affairs, 4, 51, 84, 89, 98, 105, 115, 122, 131,
          138, 141, 147, 152–153, 177

  Indigo, 66

  Indigo Society School, S.C., 99

  Individuals, and historic preservation, 160 (_and see particular
          sites_);
    rights of, _see_ Rights

  Inflation, 147

  Insane and insanity, 126

  Intellectuals and intellectual life, 43, 55, 85, 145, 194, 228

  Intercolonial affairs, _see_ Colonies

  Interstate disputes, _see under_ States

  Inventors and invention, 55, 85

  Ionic architectural style, 182, 184, 197, 244

  Iredell, James, U.S. Supreme Court Justice, 78, 148, 213

  Iredell, Mrs. James, and certain signers, 79, 214

  Iredell House, N.C., _213–214_

  Irish, Ireland, and Scotch-Irish, 43, 101, 118, 127, 132, 137, 139,
          146, 171, 172, 204

  Iron and iron manufacturing, 31, 132, 137, 226

  Iroquois (Six Indian Nations) Indians, 138, 153

  Italy and Italians, 88, 113, 183, 243


  Jacob Graff, Jr., House, Pa., _see_ Graff, Jacob, Jr., House

  Jails, _see_ Prisons, prisoners, and prisoners-of-war

  James River, 239, 253

  Jasper County, S.C., 75

  Jay, John, diplomat, 35, 58, 263

  Jefferson, Martha, daughter of signer, 245

  Jefferson, Mrs. Thomas, wife of signer, 88, 244, 249

  Jefferson, Peter, father of signer, 86, 254

  Jefferson, Thomas (signer and author of Declaration), career of and
          sites associated with, 16, 18, 20, 27, 28, 29, 33, 34, 35,
          _85–90_, 93, 124, 154, 155, _170–173_, 217, 222, 228,
          _243–245_, _249–251_, _253–255_, 262, 263, 267,
          _rear endpaper_.
    _See also_ Jeffersonians.

  Jefferson family, 245

  Jefferson (Thomas) Memorial, D.C., 161

  Jefferson (Thomas) Memorial Foundation, 245

  Jefferson Papers, 262

  Jeffersonians, 35. _See also_ Democratic-Republicans and
          Democratic-Republican Party.

  _Jersey_ (ship), 48

  Jesuits, _see_ Roman Catholic Church

  John Adams Birthplace, Mass., _see_ Adams (John) Birthplace

  John Quincy Adams Birthplace, Mass., _see_ Adams (John Quincy)
          Birthplace

  Johnson, Thomas, lawyer, 114, 136

  Jones, John Paul, naval officer, 74–75

  Judges, judicial matters, and jurisprudence, _see_ Legal practice,
          legal education, and jurisprudence


  Kent County, Del., 120, 121

  King and Queen County, Va., 41

  King George’s War, 139, 152

  King William County and King William Courthouse, Va., 41

  Kings, denounced, 15 (_and see specific kings_)

  King’s Attorneys, _see_ Legal practice, legal education, and
          jurisprudence

  King’s College, N.Y., _see_ Columbia University

  Kingston, N.H., 39, 41

  Kingston, N.Y., 98

  Kittery, Maine, 143, 177


  Ladd family, 201–202

  Lafayette, Marquis de, visits U.S., 248

  Lake George, 144

  Lancaster, Pa., 122, 132, 218, 263

  Land, and signers, 31, 47, 61, 63, 66, 67, 95, 102, 108, 119, 133,
          138, 141, 142, 143, 146, 147, 148, 175, 212, 213;
    interstate disputes over, 119, 133, 143, 153;
    Loyalist, confiscated, 61, 67, 103, 138, 142, 175;
    major grants of, 54, 63, 95, 102, 212;
    speculation in, 108, 147, 148, 213

  Landmarks, National Historic, _see_ National Historic Landmarks

  Languages, _see specific languages_

  Latin language, 39, 146, 156

  Latrobe, Benjamin H., architect, 172

  Laurel Hill Cemetery, Pa., 102

  Laurens, Henry, legislator, 117

  Laws and lawyers, _see_ Legal practice, legal education, and
          jurisprudence

  Learned societies, 80, 116, 126, 218–226 _passim_

  Lebanon, Conn., 144–145, 166

  Lee, Arthur, brother of signers, 35, 90, 228, 251

  Lee, Francis Lightfoot (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _90–91_, 92, 93, 228, _242–243_, _246–247_, _251–253_

  Lee, Henry (Col. “Lighthorse Harry”), relative of signers, 251–252

  Lee, Matilda, niece of signers, 251–252

  Lee, Mrs. Francis Lightfoot, wife of signer, 91, 242, 246

  Lee, Mrs. Richard Henry, first wife of signer, 92

  Lee, Mrs. Richard Henry, second wife of signer, 92

  Lee, Philip Ludwell, brother of signers, 91, 92, 251

  Lee, Richard Henry (signer and sponsor of independence resolution),
          career of and sites associated with, 15–16, 18, 22, 24, 27,
          28, 44, 46, 71, 74, 86, 90, 91, _92–94_, 111, 128, 147, 217,
          228, _251–253_

  Lee, Richard Henry, grandson of signer, 264

  Lee, Robert E., Confederate officer, 251–253

  Lee, Thomas, father of signers, 91, 92, 251

  Lee, Thomas Ludwell, brother of signers, 251

  Lee, William, brother of signers, 90, 251

  Lee family, 91, 94, 251–253

  Lee (Robert E.) Memorial Foundation, Inc., 253

  Leesburg, Va., 91, 263

  Legal practice, legal education, and jurisprudence: admiralty, _see_
          Merchant marine and maritime affairs;
    and colonial protests, 97;
    and slaves, 80;
    codes for, State, compiled and revised, 88, 101, 120, 131, 148, 155;
    famous trials in, 34;
    Federal, _see_ United States Judiciary;
    impeachment in, 46, 148;
    individuals other than signers practice, 97, 101, 113, 117, 118,
          122, 132, 134, 135, 141, 204, 217, 232;
    political partisanship in, 46;
    schools teach, 43, 154–156;
    signers study and practice, _see specific signers_.
    _See also particular laws._

  Legislatures, colonial, provincial, and State: role of, in
          independence movement, _see_ Independence movement and
          British-colonial clash;
    signers serve in, _see individual signers_.
    _See also specific colonies/States._

  Lehigh County (Pa.) Historical Society, 231

  Lehigh River, 230

  Leinster, Duke of, 172

  L’Enfant, Maj. Pierre Charles, artist-engineer-architect, 108, 171

  “Letters of the Federal Farmer to the Republican,” 94

  Lewis, Francis (signer), career of and sites associated with, 28,
          _94–96_, 160

  Lewis, Mrs. Francis, wife of signer, 31, 94, 95

  Lexington and Battle of Lexington, Mass., 12, 38, 42, 60, 68

  Lexington (Mass.) Historical Society, 199

  Liberty Bell, 221

  Liberty County, Ga., 65–66

  Libraries, public and private, 56, 80, 134, 151, 176, 186, 193, 195,
          207, 209, 222, 236, 253, 262, 264–265.
    _See also_ Books, pamphlets, essays, and tracts.

  Library Company of Philadelphia, 222

  Library Hall, Pa., 222, 226

  Library of Congress, 90, 262, 264–265

  Linlithgo, N.Y., 96

  Litchfield, Litchfield Historic District, and Litchfield County,
          Conn., 152, 153, 169

  Literature (English and American) and literary figures, 8, 18, 33,
          36–37, 45, 52, 55, 81–83, 86, 115, 123–126, 134, 146, 156,
          194, 195–196, 204.
    _See also_ Books, pamphlets, essays, and tracts.

  Liverpool, England, 106

  Livingston, Mrs. Philip, mother of signer, 96

  Livingston, Mrs. Philip, wife of signer, 96–97

  Livingston, Philip, father of signer, 96

  Livingston, Philip (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _96–98_, 160

  Livingston, Robert R., helps draft Declaration, 14, 16, 18, 20, 228

  Livingston Manor, N.Y., 96, 98

  Llandaff (city), Wales, 95

  Lloyd, Edward IV, planter-politician, 181

  Lloyd family, 183

  Local affairs and politics, role of signers in, _see specific signers_

  Local groups and historical societies, and historic preservation, 160

  Locke, John, British political philosopher, 20

  London, England, 43, 46, 55, 56, 68, 76, 99, 103, 113, 124

  Londonderry, N.H., 139, 140, 203

  Long Island, Long Island Sound, and Battle of Long Island, N.Y., 53,
          54, 95, 98, 212

  Longevity of signers, _see_ Age of signers

  Lord North, British official, 82

  Loudoun County, Va., 91

  Louisbourg (fortress), Nova Scotia, 139

  Lowell, James Russell, career of, 195–196

  Lower Counties, Three, _see_ Delaware

  Loyalists and Tories: activities of, in various colonies/States, 7,
          22–23, 40, 46, 53–54, 66, 77, 95, 104, 105, 119, 121, 122,
          134, 138, 211;
    criticized, 127;
    forgiven, 79;
    lands and property of, confiscated, 61, 67, 103, 138, 142, 175, 195;
    legally defended, 147;
    punishment of, recommended, 103, 143;
    ridiculed, 82

  Ludowici tile, 177

  Lutwyche’s Ferry, N.H., 140

  Lynch, Mrs. Thomas, Jr., wife of signer, 99, 100

  Lynch, Thomas, Sr., father of signer, 99, 100, 128

  Lynch, Thomas, Jr. (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _99–100_, 127, _234–236_

  Lynchburg, Va., 89


  Maclean House, N.J., _see_ President’s House

  McClellan, Gen. George B., Union officer, 239–240

  McIntosh, Gen. Lachlan, and signer Gwinnett, 63, 64

  McKean, Mrs. Thomas, first wife of signer, 101

  McKean, Mrs. Thomas, second wife of signer, 101

  McKean, Thomas (signer), career of and sites associated with, 18, 24,
          _100–102_, 119, 120, 121, 160, 222

  Madison, James, President, 61, 85, 89, 267

  Magistrates, _see_ Legal practice, legal education, and jurisprudence

  Mail service, 56, 57, 264

  Maine (region and State), history of and historic site in, 139,
          143, 177–178.
    _See also_ Massachusetts.

  Malvern Hill, Va., Battle of, 239

  Manhattan, _see_ New York City and New York Harbor

  Manor houses, 185–186, 230

  “Manor of Chawton,” 230

  Manufacturing, _see_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing

  Marblehead, Mass., 59, 196

  Marine and maritime matters, _see_ Continental Navy;
    Merchant marine and maritime affairs;
    United States Navy;
    _and foreign navies_

  Marine Corps Museum, Pa., _see_ New Hall

  Marital status of signers, compared, 29 (_and see_ Bachelor signers
          _and individual signers_)

  Marshall, John, Supreme Court Justice and Secretary of State, 46, 154,
          155, 221, 263

  Maryland (colony and State), history of and historic sites in, 9, 16,
          18, 24, 43–46, 106, 113–114, 118, 124, 134, 135–136, 179–191

  Maryland Historical Trust, 189

  Mason, George, and Declaration of Independence, 20

  Masonboro Sound, N.C., 77

  Massachusetts (colony and State), history of and historic sites in, 6,
          7, 9, 10, 12, 16, 18, 24, 30, 33–39, 53–54, 55, 56, 59–62,
          67–69, 77, 93, 115–116, 119, 129, 139, 140, 160, 177,
          191–199, 203, 217.
    _See also_ Maine.

  Mastic, N.Y., 53, 54, 212

  Mathematics, 47, 109

  Matlack, Timothy, and Declaration of Independence, 262

  Mattaponi River, 41

  Maybury Hill (estate), N.J., 73, 206

  Meadow Garden (cottage), Ga., 142, _175–176_

  _Medical Inquiries and Observations Upon the Diseases of the
          Mind_ (book), 126

  Medicine, medical practice, and medical societies, _see_ Doctors,
          medical education, medical practice, and hospitals

  Memorials and monuments to signers, 161.
    _See also specific signers._

  Menokin (estate), Va., 91, _242–243_, 246

  Menotomy, Mass., 60

  Merchant marine and maritime affairs, 20, 28, 31, 42, 52, 59, 64, 68,
          70, 71, 73, 74, 80, 82, 84, 91, 95, 98, 99, 100, 114, 119,
          121, 123, 136, 142–143, 147, 177, 201–202, 251.
    _See also_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing.

  Merchants and mercantile firms, _see_ Commerce, trade, and
          manufacturing

  Merchants’ Exchange, Pa., 224, 226

  Meredith family, 49

  Merrick’s Brook, Conn., 164

  Merrimack, N.H., 140, 203

  Merrimack River, 140

  Middle Colonies, 4, 16, 30, 134, 150

  Middleton, Arthur (signer), career of and sites associated with, 31,
          99, _103–104_, 127, 128, _236–237_

  Middleton, Henrietta, sister of one signer and wife of another, 127

  Middleton, Henry, father of one signer and father-in-law of another,
          104, 127, 128, 234

  Middleton, Mrs. Arthur, wife of signer, 103

  Middleton, William, and Middleton Place, 236

  Middleton family and descendants, 103, 237

  Middleton Place (estate), S.C., 103, 104, _236–237_

  Middleton Place Gardens, S.C., 236–237

  Middletown, Conn., 54, 211

  Midway (town) and Midway District, Ga., 66

  Midway Congregational Church, Ga., 64

  Mikveh Israel Cemetery, Pa., 226

  Military affairs, _see_ Continental Army;
    Militia;
    _specific nations and individuals_;
    _and other appropriate topics throughout this index_

  Militia, of various colonies/States and counties: activities of, 9,
          10, 12, 22, 38, 40, 42, 53, 54, 64, 69, 76, 111, 146;
    signers aid and serve in, 18, 27, 31, 40, 53, 54, 69, 75, 101, 103,
          104, 105, 110–112, 114, 120–121, 122, 124, 127, 128, 132, 133,
          138, 139, 140–141, 142–143, 145, 152–153

  Mills, 72, 253

  Ministers, diplomatic, _see_ Diplomats and diplomacy;
    religious, _see_ Christianity and religion

  Mint, U.S., _see_ United States Mint

  Mission of Santa Catalina, Ga., 177

  Moderates, political, 8, 16, 42, 69, 98, 110, 119, 127, 128, 138, 147

  Moffatt, Catherine, marries signer, 202

  Moffatt, John, father-in-law of signer, 201–202

  Moffatt, Samuel, merchant-shipowner, 201

  Moffatt family, 201–202

  Moffatt-Ladd House, N.H., _201–202_

  Mohawk River, 54

  Monarchs and monarchy, _see_ Kings

  Monetary theory and money, _see_ Currency and money

  Monmouth County, N.J., 134

  Monocacy River, 180

  Monroe, James, President, 85, 154, 155, 173, 263

  Monticello (“Little Mountain”) (estate), Va., 86, 88, 90,
          _243–245_, 250

  Montreal, Canada, 46

  Monuments to signers, _see_ Memorials and monuments to signers

  Moore, Thomas, Irish poet, 204

  Morality, in Scotland, 149

  Morris, Gouverneur, and Mrs. Robert Morris, 108

  Morris, Lewis (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _104–105_, 160

  Morris, Mrs. Lewis, wife of signer, 105

  Morris, Mrs. Robert, wife of signer, 106

  Morris, Robert (signer) (“Financier of the Revolution”), career of and
          sites associated with, 18, 27, 28, 29, 50, _106–108_, 110,
          129, 147, 160, 222, 224

  Morris (Lewis) family, 105

  “Morris’ Folly” (house), Pa., 107, 108

  Morrisania (estate), N.Y., 105

  Morrisville and Morrisville School District, Pa., 51, 229

  Morton, John (signer), career of and sites associated with, 98,
          _109–110_, 147, 160

  Morton, Mrs. John, wife of signer, 109

  Morton, Sketchley, son of signer, 109

  Morven (estate), N.J., 134, 135, _207–208_

  Moultrie, Gen. William, Army officer, 76, 128

  Mount Airy (estate), Va., 91, 242, _246–247_

  Mount Vernon (Va.) Conference (_1785_), 46, 136

  Municipal affairs and municipalities, _see_ Cities, towns,
          and villages

  Museums, 183, 187, 205, 218, 224, 234.
    _See also specific historic house museums._

  Music and musicians, 81–83, 85, 204

  “My Days Have Been So Wondrous Free” (song), 82


  Nash, Francis, and Nash-Hooper House, 214

  Nash-Hooper House, N.C., _214–216_

  Nassau Hall (Princeton University), 150, 151

  National affairs, signers lack reputation in, 27, 39, 51, 71, 113,
          116–117, 122, 137, 138, 139, 144, 154, 159;
    signers later take major part in, 29

  National Archives and Records Service, 265

  National Archives Building, D.C., 3, 262, 265–266

  National Historic Landmarks, described individually, 164–165, 168–175,
          181–183, 185–189, 191–193, 195–209, 212–216, 229, 247, 249–256;
    mapped, _facing page_ 163;
    nature, eligibility, and designation of, 161–163, 226, 256, 270–271.
    _See also_ National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings.

  National origins of signers, compared, 27–28 (_and see individual
          signers_)

  National parks, National Park Service, and National Park System: and
          historic-archeological preservation, 159–162;
    sites considered for inclusion in, 161;
    sites in, described individually, 193–195, 210–212, 216–227, 247–249;
    sites in, in National Register, 162;
    sites in, mapped, _facing page_ 163.
    _See also_ National Register of Historic Places;
      National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings;
      Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation.

  National Register of Historic Places, 162

  _National Register of Historic Places, 1972_, 162

  National significance of historic sites and buildings, _see_ National
          Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings

  National Society of Colonial Dames of America, 160

  National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution, _see_
          Daughters of the American Revolution

  National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings, purpose and
          procedures of, 161–162.
    _See also_ National Historic Landmarks;
      Other Sites Considered.

  Nativity of signers, _see_ National origins of signers

  Navies, _see_ Continental Navy;
    United States Navy;
    _and specific nations_

  Negroes, _see_ Slaves

  Nelson, Mrs. Thomas, Jr., wife of signer, 111

  Nelson, Thomas (“Scotch Tom”), Sr., grandfather of signer, 247–248

  Nelson, Thomas, Jr. (signer), career of and sites associated with, 88,
          _110–112_, _247–249_

  Nelson, William, father of signer, 247–248

  Nelson family, 249

  Nelson House (York Hall), Va., 112, 160, _247–249_

  Netherlands, _see_ Holland

  New Bern, N.C., 78

  New Castle and New Castle County, Del., 82, 101, 118, 119,
          120, 122, 204

  New England and New England architectural style, 20, 28, 30, 66, 68,
          69, 74, 81, 115, 139, 144, 164, 191, 193, 202, 203.
    _See also specific colonies/States._

  _New England Courant_ (newspaper), 55

  New France, 139, 152

  New Hall (Marine Corps Museum), Pa., 224, 226

  New Hampshire (colony and State), history of and historic sites in, 9,
          15, 16, 18, 24, 30, 39–41, 76, 128, 139–140, 142–143,
          177, 199–204

  New Hampshire Medical Society, 40

  New Haven, Conn., 130, 131

  New Jersey (colony and State), history of and historic sites in, 16,
          18, 24, 47–48, 56, 71–72, 81–83, 101, 121, 124, 133–135,
          149–151, 204–210

  New Jersey, College of, _see_ Princeton University

  New London and New London Township, Pa., 101, 118, 132

  New London County, Conn., 84

  New Milford, Conn., 129

  New York (colony and State), history of and historic sites in, 6, 9,
          14, 16, 18, 22, 23, 24, 44, 53–54, 94–98, 104–105, 110, 115,
          119, 134–135, 143, 144, 148, 153, 160, 210–213.
    _See also entries immediately following._

  New York Chamber of Commerce, 97

  New York City and New York Harbor, N.Y., 22, 95–98, 135, 218, 263.
    _See also_ Bronx;
      Brooklyn and Brooklyn Heights;
      Staten Island.

  New York Hospital, 97

  New York Society Library, N.Y., 97

  Newark, N.J., 134

  Newburyport, Mass., 140

  Newington Plantation, Va., 41

  Newport, R.I., 51, 52, 69, 80, 143

  Newspapers, 20, 22, 37, 43, 55, 81, 124, 125, 127, 145

  Newton, Mass., 129

  Noke, William, architect, 182

  Nonimportation agreements and measures, _see_ Independence movement
          and British-colonial clash

  North, Lord, British official, 82

  North America, Bank of, _see_ Bank of North America

  North Bridge, Mass., 8

  North Burial Ground, R.I., 81

  North Carolina (colony and State), history of and historic sites in,
          15, 16, 18, 24, 30, 73–75, 77–79, 99, 116–118, 161,
          206, 213–216.
    _See also_ Carolinas.

  North East (town), Md., 118

  North Santee River, 99, 234

  Northampton County, Pa., 137, 138

  Northern United States, 28.
    _See also specific colonies/States._

  Norwich, Conn., 83, 84, 164

  _Notes on the State of Virginia_ (book), 250

  Nova Scotia, Canada, 139


  Occupations of signers, _see_ Vocations of signers

  Octagonal houses and rooms, 245, 249–251

  Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation, National Park Service,
          programs and activities of, 162

  Offices, political, various local, State, and National, held by
          signers, _see individual signers_

  Offley Hoo (estate), Va., 112, 247

  Ohio (State), 153

  Old Burial Ground, Conn., 84, 166

  Old Custom House, Pa., 224

  Old Granary Burying Ground, Mass., 39, 69, 116

  “Old House,” Mass., _see_ Adams National Historic Site

  Old House Plantation, S.C., 75, 76

  Old St. Paul’s Cemetery, Pa., 110

  Old Swedes’ Church, Pa., _see_ Gloria Dei Church National Historic Site

  Olive Branch Petition, 14

  Oliver, Andrew, British official, 195

  Oliver-Gerry-Lowell House, Mass., _see_ Elmwood

  Orators and orations, and signers, 45, 52, 71, 78, 85, 86, 90, 92,
          122, 136, 150, 151

  Ordnance, _see_ Arms, ammunition, and ordnance

  Orphans, 49, 95, 120, 141

  Other Sites Considered, described individually, 165–167, 175–181,
          183–185, 189–191, 197–198, 209–210, 213–214, 220–228;
    nature of, 161–162

  Otis, James, lawyer-radical leader, 77

  Oxford, Md., 106


  Paca, John, son of signer, 114

  Paca, Mrs. William, first wife of signer, 113

  Paca, Mrs. William, second wife of signer, 114

  Paca, William (signer), career of and sites associated with, 16, 44,
          46, _113–114_, 136, _188–189_

  Paca family, 114

  Paca House, Md., 113, _188–189_

  Paine, Mrs. Robert Treat, wife of signer, 115

  Paine, Robert Treat (signer), career of and sites associated with, 31,
          _115–116_, 160

  Paine, Robert Treat, son of signer, 115

  Paine, Robert Treat, great-grandson of signer, 115

  Paine, Thomas, author-patriot, 12, 15, 107, 124, 204

  Painters and painting, _see_ Art and artists

  Paisley (town), Scotland, 149, 150

  Palladian architectural style, 172, 182, 183, 234, 246, 247

  Pamphlets, _see_ Books, pamphlets, essays, and tracts

  Pamunkey River, 41, 240

  Parchment copy of Declaration, _see under_ Declaration of Independence

  Parents of signers, _see specific signers_

  Paris, France, 43, 88, 124.
    _See also_ Treaty of Paris

  Parishes, political, _see_ Counties and parishes;
    religious, _see_ Christianity and religion

  Parliament, British: and Colonies, _see under_ Independence movement
          and British-colonial clash

  Parsons, William, and Parsons-Taylor House, 226

  Parsons-Taylor House, Pa., _226–227_

  Parties, political, _see particular political parties and individuals_

  Patent Office, D.C., 264

  Patowmack (Potowmack) Company, 44

  Patriotic-civic organizations, and historic sites, 160

  Patriots and patriotic movement, _see_ Independence movement and
          British-colonial clash

  Peace negotiations and treaties, _see_ Diplomats and diplomacy;
    Indians and Indian affairs;
    _and specific treaties_

  “Peacefield,” Mass., _see_ Adams National Historic Site

  Peach Tree Plantation, S.C., 99, 100

  Peale, Charles Willson, artist, 218

  _Peggy Stewart_ (ship), 189–190

  Peggy Stewart House (Rutland-Peggy Stewart House; Rutland-Stewart-Stone
          House), Md., _189–191_

  Pemberton House (Army-Navy Museum), Pa., 224, 226

  Penal matters, _see_ Prisons, prisoners, and prisoners-of-war

  Pendleton, Edmund, lawyer-patriot, 88, 111, 117, 155

  Peninsular Campaign (Civil War), 239–240

  Penn, John (signer), career of and sites associated with, _116–118_,
          160, 161

  Penn, Mrs. John, wife of signer, 117

  Penn, William, and Charter of Privileges, 221

  Penn (John) family, 118

  Penn (William) family, 56

  Pennsylvania (colony and State), history of and historic sites in,
          8–9, 14, 15, 16, 18, 24, 27, 30, 44, 49–51, 55–58, 82, 93,
          100–102, 106–110, 118, 122–126, 132–133, 137–138, 143,
          145–148, 153, 159–160, 216–231.
    _See also_ Delaware.

  _Pennsylvania Gazette (The)_ (newspaper), 55

  Pennsylvania Hospital, 125, 126

  Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery, 58, 126

  Pennsylvania State House, _see_ Independence Hall

  Persimmon Point, Ga., 177

  Perth Amboy, N.J., 134

  Philadelphia, Pa., 3, 8, 9, 14–24 _passim_, 38, 42, 44, 46, 47, 49–50,
          51, 52, 55–56, 57, 58, 64, 73, 82, 83, 95, 100–133 _passim_,
          138, 146–148, 159–160, 172, 199, 204, 209, 210, 216–226, 228,
          230, 263–264.
    _See also entries immediately following._

  Philadelphia Academy of Fine Arts, 51

  Philadelphia Agricultural Society, 51

  Philadelphia architectural style, 228

  Philadelphia Bank, 51

  Philadelphia Bible Society, 126

  Philadelphia College of Physicians, 126

  Philadelphia Dispensary, 126

  Philadelphia (Merchants’) Exchange, 224, 226

  Philadelphia Medical Society, 126

  Philadelphia National Shrines Park Commission, 226

  Philanthropists and philanthropy, 55, 56, 96, 97, 115

  Philosophical Hall, Pa., _see_ American Philosophical Society Hall

  Philosophical Society of Newport, R.I., 80

  Physicians, _see_ Disease, sickness, and physical afflictions of
          signers;
    Doctors, medical education, medical practice, and hospitals

  Piscataqua River, 177

  Plainfield Academy, Conn., 84

  Planters and plantations, 4, 28, 31, 41, 42, 43, 62, 63–64, 65, 66,
          70, 75–76, 86, 94, 99, 103, 104, 106, 110, 111, 113, 120, 129,
          135, 177, 186, 194, 233, 236–237, 239–256 _passim_.
    _See also_ Slaves;
    _and specific plantations._

  Poets and poetry, _see_ Literature and literary figures

  Politics, politicians, political parties, and political theory, _see
          particular political parties, colonies/States, signers, other
          individuals, and appropriate topics throughout this index_

  Poll taxes, _see under_ Taxes and taxation

  _Poor Richard’s Almanac_, 55–56

  Poplar Forest (retreat), Va., 89, _249–251_

  Port Royal Island, S.C., 76, 128

  Port Tobacco (town), Md., 136, 186

  Portland, Mass., 115

  Portraits of signers: collection of, discussed, 218;
    collective, reproduced, ii;
    individual, reproduced, _see specific signers_

  Portsmouth and Portsmouth Harbor, N.H., 143, 177, 202

  Post offices and postal officials, _see_ Mail service

  Potomac, Army of the (Civil War), 239

  Potomac River and Potomac River Valley, 44, 92, 251, 263

  Potowmack Company, _see_ Patowmack Company

  Poughkeepsie, N.Y., 98, 105

  Powell, Thomas, newspaper publisher, 127

  Poynton Manor, Md., 135

  Prehistory and prehistoric sites, 177

  Presbyterian Cemetery, N.J., 48

  Presbyterian Cemetery, N.Y., 54

  Presbyterian Church, N.C., 216

  Presbyterians and Presbyterian Church, 48, 54, 56, 149–151, 216.
    _See also_ Calvinists and Calvinism;
      Christianity and religion.

  Presidential electors, _see under_ United States Presidents
          and Presidency

  Presidents, of Continental Congress, _see under_ Continental Congress;
    U.S., _see_ United States Presidents and Presidency

  “President’s House,” D.C., _see_ White House

  President’s House (Dean’s House; Maclean House) (Princeton
          University), N.J., 150, 151, _208–209_

  President’s Lot, Princeton (N.J.) Cemetery, 151

  “President’s Palace,” D.C., _see_ White House

  Press, _see_ Newspapers

  Primogeniture, 120, 135

  Prince George County, Va., 154

  Prince George’s Parish, S.C., 99

  Princess Anne (town), Md., 45

  Princeton Alumni Council, 208

  Princeton and Battle of Princeton, N.J., 23–24, 72, 73, 134,
          135, 207, 263.
    _See also_ Princeton University.

  Princeton Cemetery, N.J., 151

  Princeton University (College of New Jersey), 84, 124, 134, 149,
          150–151, 208–209

  Printing and publishing industry, 55.
    _See also_ Books, pamphlets, essays, and tracts;
      Newspapers.

  Printing of Declaration, _see under_ Declaration of Independence

  Prisons, prisoners, and prisoners-of-war, 31, 48, 50, 75, 76, 94, 103,
          107, 108, 126, 128, 132, 134–135, 140–141

  Private individuals, groups, and agencies: and historic
          preservation, 160

  Private schools, _see_ Education

  Privateers and privateering, 60, 97

  Professions of signers, _see_ Vocations of signers

  Profiteering among signers, 31, 46, 59, 60, 106–107

  “Progressive” party, in Va., 88

  _Prophecy (The)_ (essay), 82

  Proprietary colonies, _see under_ Colonies

  Prospect Hill Cemetery, Pa., 98

  Protestant Episcopal Church, 183.
    _See also_ Christianity and religion.

  Protestants and Protestant Church, 28, 183.
    _See also_ Christianity and religion.

  Protests, colonial, _see_ Independence movement and British-colonial
          clash

  Providence and Providence County, R.I., 79–81

  _Providence Gazette and Country Journal_ (newspaper), 81

  Psychiatry, _see_ Insane and insanity

  Public libraries, _see_ Libraries

  Public schools, _see_ Education

  Public service, role of signers in, 29, 31 (_and see specific signers_)

  Public speaking, _see_ Orators and orations

  Publishers and publishing, _see_ Printing and publishing industry

  Puritans, 65–66

  Putnam, Herbert, and Declaration of Independence, 264


  Quakers, 56, 73. _See also_ Christianity and religion.

  Queen Annes County, Md., 113, 188

  Quincy (Braintree), Mass., 33, 34–35, 68, 192, 193

  Quincy (Mass.) Historical Society, 192, 193


  Radicals and radicalism, 16, 18, 34, 37–38, 45, 49, 71, 77, 78, 80,
          88, 98, 103, 119, 130, 141, 147, 155

  Rahway, N.J., 48

  Raleigh’s Tavern, Va., 93

  Randolph, Peyton, legislator, 42

  Randolph, Thomas, relative of signer, 254

  Randolph, Thomas Mann, relative of signer, 86, 254

  Randolph, William, relative of signer, 86, 254

  Randolph, William II, relative of signer, 254

  Randolph family, 86, 255

  Rappahannock Valley, 246

  Read, George (signer), career of and sites associated with, 27, 29,
          101, _118–119_, 120, 121, 135, 160

  Read, Mrs. George, wife of signer, 118

  Reading, Pa., 146

  Redemptionist Fathers, 179, 180

  Reform and reformers, _see_ Humanitarians and reformers

  Regulators, of North Carolina, 78

  Relatives of signers, _see individual signers_

  Religion, _see_ Christianity and religion

  Representation, political, and representative government, _see
          specific governmental bodies, colonies/States, and appropriate
          topics throughout this index_

  Republicans and republicanism, 61, 79, 128, 145, 147

  Residences of signers, condition and status of, 31 (_and see
          particular residences_)

  Retirement of signers, _see individual signers_

  Revere, Paul, patriot and artist, 5, 10, 68, 199

  Revolution, Daughters of the, 160

  Revolution, Daughters of the American, _see_ Daughters of the
          American Revolution

  Revolution, Revolutionaries, and Revolutionary movement, _see_
    Independence movement and British-colonial clash;
     War for Independence;
    _specific Revolutionaries_;
    _and appropriate topics throughout this index_

  Revolution, Sons of the, 160

  Revolution, Sons of the American, 160

  Revolutionary War (U.S.), _see_ War for Independence

  Rhode Island (colony and State), history of and historic sites in, 15,
          16, 18, 24, 30, 51–52, 79–81, 143, 231–232

  Rhode Island College, 80

  Rice planters, _see_ Planters and plantations

  Richmond, Va., 42, 86, 88, 156, 255

  Richmond Academy, Ga., 142

  Richmond County, Va., 91

  Ridley Township, Pa., 109

  Rights: Bill of, U.S., _see under_ United States Constitution;
    declarations of, by colonies/States, 20;
    of Englishmen, and Colonies, 8–9;
    of man, and Declaration of Independence, 20;
    of States, 123

  “Rights of the Colonies Examined” (The) (article-pamphlet), 81

  Rising Sun (town), Md., 124, 134

  “Rising Sun” chair, 219

  Risks and sacrifices of signers, 22, 23–24, 31–32 (_and see
          individual signers_)

  Robert E. Lee Memorial Foundation, Inc., 253

  Rodney, Caesar (signer), career of and sites associated with, 18, 29,
          101, _120–121_, 160

  Roman Catholic Church, 28, 43, 44, 179, 180, 238.
    _See also_ Christianity and religion.

  Roman Doric and Roman Revival architectural style, 189, 219, 221,
          234, 245, 247

  Rome, N.Y., 54, 212

  Roselle, N.J., 47, 48

  Rosney Cemetery, Ga., 142

  Ross, George (signer), career of and sites associated with, 118,
          _122–123_, 160, 224

  Ross, John, stepbrother of signer, 122

  Ross, Mrs. George, wife of signer, 122

  Rough draft of Declaration, _see under_ Declaration of Independence

  Royalists, _see_ Loyalists and Tories

  Royalty, _see_ Kings

  Rush, Benjamin (signer), career of and sites associated with, 27, 31,
          _123–126_, 134, 160, 222, 224, 228

  Rutland, Thomas, and Peggy Stewart House, 189

  Rutland-Peggy Stewart House, Md., _see_ Peggy Stewart House

  Rutland-Stewart-Stone House, Md., _see_ Peggy Stewart House

  Rutledge, Edward (signer), career of and sites associated with, 18,
          28, 31, 99, 104, _127–129_, 135, _237–238_

  Rutledge, John, brother of signer, 127, 128

  Rutledge, Mrs. Edward, first wife of signer, 127

  Rutledge, Mrs. Edward, second wife of signer, 129

  Rutledge (Carter-May) House, S.C., _237–238_


  Sacrifices of signers, _see_ Risks and sacrifices of signers

  Safety, committees/councils of, _see_ Committees of safety

  St. Andrews (city), Scotland, 145

  St. Andrew’s Society, 97

  St. Ann’s Church, N.Y., 105

  St. Augustine, Fla., 76, 104, 128, 233

  St. Catherines Island, Ga., 63, 64, 176–177

  St. George’s Church, Pa., 224

  St. Helena’s Parish, S.C., 75

  St. James Parish, S.C., 99

  St. John’s Episcopal Church, Va., 156

  St. John’s Parish, Ga., 64, 65–66, 67, 141

  St. Joseph’s Church, Pa., 224–226

  St. Luke’s Parish, S.C., 75

  St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Md., 179–180

  St. Mary’s Church, Pa., 226

  St. Paul’s Cemetery, Md., 46

  St. Paul’s Cemetery, Old, Pa., 110

  St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, S.C., 129

  Salem, Mass., 68

  Salem, N.J., 82

  Saltbox architectural style, 164, 191, 193, 203

  Santa Catalina Mission, Ga., 177

  Santee River, North, 99, 234

  Santee River, South, 99

  Saratoga (Schuylerville) and Battle of Saratoga, N.Y., 40, 143, 153

  Savannah, Ga., 63, 64, 66, 67, 76, 140–142, 175, 176, 233

  Savannah River, 67

  Sawmills, 72

  Schools, _see_ Education

  Schuylerville, N.Y., _see_ Saratoga and Battle of Saratoga

  Schuylkill River, 108

  Science and scientists, 55, 56, 80, 85, 89, 116, 130

  Scituate (city) and Scituate Township, R.I., 80

  Scots, Scotland, and Scotch-Irish, 74, 77, 96, 101, 122, 124, 134,
          139, 145, 146, 149–150, 208.
    _See also_ Great Britain.

  Scotland (city), Conn., 83

  Seamen, _see_ Continental Navy;
    Merchant marine and maritime affairs;
    United States Navy;
    _and various nations_

  Second Bank of the United States, _see_ Bank of the United States

  Second Bank of the United States Building, Pa., 218, 226

  Second Continental Congress, _see_ Continental Congress

  Second Treaty of Fort Stanwix (N.Y.), 153

  Secondary education, _see_ Education

  Secretaries, of Continental Congress, _see under_ Continental Congress;
    of U.S. Government Departments, _see following_ United States;
    of various other bodies, signers as, _see individual signers_

  Senate, U.S., _see_ United States Senate

  Servants, 31, 137, 186, 194, 195, 203.
    _See also_ Slaves.

  Seven Buildings, D.C., 263

  Shadwell (plantation), Va., 86, 244, 254

  Shell Bluff Plantation, Ga., 67

  Shenandoah River Valley, 44

  Sherman, Roger (signer), career of and sites associated with, 16, 18,
          20, 29, 106, _129–131_, 160

  Ship carpenters, 201

  Shippen, Dr. William, Sr., and Philadelphia, 228

  Shippen, Dr. William, Jr., brother-in-law of signers, 125, 228

  Shippen-Wistar House, Pa., 228

  Shippensburg, Pa., 132

  Ships, shippers, and shipping, _see_ Continental Navy;
    Merchant marine and maritime affairs;
    United States Navy;
    _and various nations_

  Sickness of signers, _see_ Disease, sickness, and physical
          afflictions of signers

  Signers of the Constitution (U.S.), _see_ United States Constitution

  Signers of the Declaration: age of, at time of signing and death,
          compared, _see_ Age of signers;
    biographical analysis and comparison of, collective, 27–32;
    biographical sketches of, individual, 33–156;
    books on, 268–269;
    early (formal signing), 23, 67, 217, 262;
    furniture and items associated with, collectively, 219, 221;
    honored and commemorated, ii, 159–160, 224;
    interest in, increases, 160;
    largest number of, from one State, 30;
    late, 23, 24, 60, 93, 100, 139, 140, 153, 155, 217, 262;
    nationally famous, 34;
    one of, prominent in affairs of two States, _see_ McKean, Thomas;
    one of, votes against independence, 27, 118, 121;
    painted, ii, 218, _and see individual portraits_, 33–156 _passim_;
    prominent patriots who were not, 27, 28, 29;
    reflect regional and colonial attitudes, 30;
    remarks of, on signing, 52, 58, 79;
    replace opponents of independence, 27, 47, 72;
    residences and sites associated with, collective, status of, 31,
          159–163, 216 (_and see particular residences and sites_);
    subsequent careers of, 29, 31 (_and see individual signers_);
    traditions regarding, 24, 52, 58;
    tragic life among, 99;
    way of life of, 28–29, 159;
    who also signed Articles of Confederation, 29, 36, 39, 59, 76, 90,
          93–94, 100, 106, 117, 129, 149;
    who also signed Articles of Confederation and Constitution (U.S.),
          29, 106, 129;
    who also signed Constitution (U.S.), 29, 49, 50, 55, 58, 106, 129;
    who did not vote for or take a stand on independence, 27,
          106, 118–119;
    who were non-natives of States they signed for, 30, 39, 55, 62, 65,
          72, 73, 77, 82, 95, 101, 106, 116, 118, 122, 129, 132, 137,
          139, 140, 143, 145, 149.
    _See also_ Declaration of Independence;
      _specific signers_;
      _and appropriate topics throughout this index._

  Signers’ Monument, Ga., 67, 142, 161

  Six Indian Nations, _see_ Iroquois Indians

  Skelton, Martha Wayles, marries signer, 86, 244, 249

  Sketchley, John, stepfather of signer, 109

  Slaves, and Congress, 58;
    and Declaration of Independence, 20;
    and Ga. economy, 66;
    and New England shippers, 28;
    British capture, 76;
    burn estate, 236;
    emancipated, 156;
    in N.Y., 53;
    institution of, opposed and condemned, 20, 28, 58, 80, 92,
          123, 126, 156;
    labor in gardens, 236;
    laws on, 80;
    quarters for, 177, 184, 234, 255;
    signers own and trade, 28, 53, 63, 90, 110.
    _See also_ Servants.

  Smith, Abigail, _see_ Adams, Mrs. John

  Smith, James (signer), career of and sites associated with, 28,
          _132–133_, 160–161

  Smith, Rev. Samuel S., son-in-law of signer, 151, 208

  Smith, Robert, carpenter, 209

  Smugglers and smuggling, 34, 68

  Social status of signers, _see_ Aristocrats and aristocracy;
    _and individual signers_

  Society of Colonial Dames in the State of Rhode Island, 232

  Songs, _see_ Music and musicians

  Sons of Liberty, 37, 45, 95, 97

  Sons of signers, careers of, 30 (_and see particular signers_)

  Sons of the American Revolution, 160

  Sons of the Revolution, 160

  Sourland Mountains, 72

  South Carolina (colony and State), history of and historic sites in,
          16, 18, 24, 64, 66, 75–76, 99–100, 103–104, 117, 127–129,
          135, 233–238.
    _See also_ Carolinas.

  South Santee River, 99

  South Windsor, Conn., 152

  Southern United States, 28, 30, 70, 74–75, 140–141, 233.
    _See also_ Planters and plantations;
    _and specific colonies/States._

  Spain and Spaniards, 59, 115, 177, 196

  Speaking, public, _see_ Orators and orations

  Speculators and speculation, 4, 108, 143, 147, 148, 213

  Spoils system, 102

  Spotsylvania County, Va., 154

  Staffordshire, England, 62

  Stamp Act, Stamp Tax, Stamp Act Congress, and Stamp Act agitation, 34,
          37, 45, 56–57, 68, 70, 91, 93, 95, 97, 101, 106, 110, 119,
          120, 134, 146, 155, 195

  Stark, Gen. John, Army officer, 40

  State Department, _see_ United States Department of State

  State House for the Province of Pennsylvania, _see_ Independence Hall

  Staten Island, N.Y., 98, 128. _See also_ New York City and New
          York Harbor.

  States (U.S.), and historic preservation, 160;
    and National Register of Historic Places, 162;
    economic and financial problems of, 107–108;
    governmental bodies and other agencies of, _see individual
          colonies/States_;
    honor and maintain homes of signers, 160, 161;
    land disputes among, 119, 133, 143, 153;
    large and small, and U.S. Constitution, 131;
    militia of, _see_ Militia;
    receive taxes, 117;
    rights of, _see_ States’ rights;
    role of, in Revolution, _see particular States and appropriate
          topics_;
    seals of, 155;
    signer prominent in affairs of two, _see_ McKean, Thomas;
    signers non-natives of those they signed for, 30, 39, 55, 62, 65,
          72–73, 77, 82, 95, 101, 106, 116, 118, 122, 129, 132, 137,
          139, 140, 143, 145, 149;
    signers’ role in affairs of, _see specific States and signers_.
    _See also_ Continental Congress;
      _and individual States._

  States’ rights, 123

  Statues of signers, 161

  Stewart, Anthony, merchant, 189

  Stewart (Peggy) House, Md., _see_ Peggy Stewart House

  Stockton, Julia, wife of one signer and daughter of another, 124

  Stockton, Mrs. Richard, wife of signer, 134

  Stockton, Richard, grandfather of signer, 207

  Stockton, Richard (signer), career of and sites associated with, 31,
          33, 124, _133–135_, _207–208_

  Stockton family, 134, 208

  Stone, Mrs. Thomas, wife of signer, 136

  Stone, Thomas (signer), career of and sites associated with,
          _135–136_, _186–188_, _189–191_

  Stonington, Conn., 72

  Stony Brook Quaker Meeting House Cemetery, N.J., 135

  Stores, _see_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing

  Stoughton, Mass., 129

  Stovall (town), N.C., 117

  Stratford Hall (estate), Va., 91–92, _251–253_

  Strickland, William, architect, 218

  Students, _see_ Education

  Suffolk County, N.Y., 53, 54

  Suffolk Resolves, 38

  Sugar Act, 37

  Sugar planters, _see_ Planters and plantations

  _Summary View of the Rights of British America (A)_ (tract), 86, 87

  Summerseat (estate), Pa., 51, _229_

  Sunbury, Ga., 63, 64, 66

  Superior Courts, State, _see individual States_

  Supreme courts, of colonies and States, _see specific colonies/States_;
    of United States, _see_ United States Judiciary

  Surgeons, _see_ Doctors, medical education, medical practice,
          and hospitals

  Surveyors and surveying, 47, 80, 86, 109, 130, 132

  Susquehanna River, 132

  Sussex County, Del., 101, 121

  Swedes and Sweden, 109


  Tabby construction material, 177, 235

  Tabby Cottage, Ga., 63, _176–177_

  Taliaferro, Richard, father-in-law of signer, 255

  “Taps” (bugle call), 240

  Tariffs, _see_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing

  Taunton, Mass., 115

  Taverns, 222

  Taxes and taxation, and British-colonial conflict, _see_ Independence
          movement and British-colonial clash;
    and signers, 37, 56, 131;
    excise, on alcoholic beverages, 51;
    in Boston, 36;
    on stamps, _see_ Stamp Act, Stamp Tax, Stamp Act Congress, and Stamp
          Act agitation;
    on sugar, _see_ Sugar Act;
    on tea, _see_ Tea and Tea Act;
    poll, 113, 114, 136;
    States receive, 117.
    _See also_ Customs laws, collection, and officials.

  Tayloe, Col. John, father-in-law of signer, 91, 242, 246

  Tayloe, Mrs. John, mother-in-law of signer, 91

  Tayloe, Rebecca, marries signer, 91, 242, 246

  Tayloe family and descendants, 91, 247

  Taylor, George (signer), career of and sites associated with, 28, 31,
          _137–138_, _226–227_, _230–231_

  Taylor, Mrs. George, wife of signer, 137, 242

  Taylor (George) Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, 227

  Taylor House, Pa., 137–138, _230–231_

  Tea and Tea Act, 7, 38, 49, 53–54, 189–190

  Teachers and teaching, _see_ Education

  Temperance, 123, 126

  “Temple of Minerva” (opera), 82

  “The Bostonians Paying the Excise-Man or Tarring and Feathering”
          (cartoon), reproduced, 6

  “The Declaration of Independence” (painting), reproduced, ii

  The Hills (estate), Pa., 108

  “The Homestead,” Pa., _see_ Byberry

  _The Pennsylvania Gazette_ (newspaper), 55

  _The Prophecy_ (essay), 82

  “The Rights of the Colonies Examined” (article-pamphlet), 81

  “The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America,”
          _see_ Declaration of Independence

  Theology, _see_ Christianity and religion

  Thirteen Colonies, _see_ Colonies

  Thomas Jefferson Memorial, D.C., 161

  Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation, 245

  Thomson, Charles, and Declaration of Independence, 22, 69, 262

  Thornton, Matthew (signer), career of and sites associated with, 24,
          28, 31, _139–140_, _203–204_

  Thornton House, N.H., _203–204_

  Thornton’s Ferry and Thornton’s Ferry Cemetery, N.H., 140

  Three Lower Counties, _see_ Delaware

  Tobacco planters, _see_ Planters and plantations

  Todd House, Pa., 224, 226

  Tombs and tombstones, _see_ Cemeteries and burial places

  Tories, _see_ Loyalists and Tories

  Townhouses, 43, 50, 76, 96, 97, 107, 108, 120, 179, 185, 188, 228, 233

  Towns, _see_ Cities, towns, and villages

  Townshend Acts (_1767_), 37, 93, 120

  Tracts, _see_ Books, pamphlets, essays, and tracts

  Trade and traders, _see_ Commerce, trade, and manufacturing

  Traditions regarding signing of Declaration, 24, 52, 58

  Treasury, British, _see under_ Great Britain;
    U.S., _see_ United States Treasury Department

  Treasury Building (old), D.C., 263

  Treaties, _see_ Diplomats and diplomacy;
    Indians and Indian affairs;
    _and specific nations and treaties_

  Treaty of Fort Stanwix, Second, 153

  Treaty of Paris (_1783_), 24, 35, 58, 207, 267

  Trenton and Battle of Trenton, N.J., 23–24, 51, 72, 263

  Trials, _see_ Legal practice, legal education, and jurisprudence

  Trinity Church, N.Y., 96

  Trumbull, John, artist, painting by, reproduced, ii

  Trumbull, Jonathan, father-in-law of signer, 144–145

  Trumbull Cemetery, Conn., 145

  Tryon, William, British official, 77, 153

  Tuckahoe (estate), Va., 86, _253–255_

  Tuscan architectural features, 196, 250

  Tuscarora Creek, Md., 180

  Tusculum (home), N.J., 151, 208, _209–210_

  Tutors and tutorial system, _see_ Education


  U-shaped buildings, 240, 242

  “Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America”
          (The), _see_ Declaration of Independence

  Union Army, _see_ Civil War

  Union Cemetery, N.H., 143

  Unitarians and Unitarianism, 52, 116.
    _See also_ Christianity and religion.

  United First Parish Church, Mass., 35

  United Kingdom, _see_ Great Britain

  United States, and Declaration of Independence, 3, 32;
    architectural and historical heritage of, 32, 159–160, 216–217,
          218, 245;
    early antislavery law in, 80;
    early chapel in, 186;
    early chemistry education in, 124;
    early legal education in, 155–156;
    early libraries in, 222;
    early medical practice and hospitals in, 123–126;
    early music in, 82;
    famous families in, 33, 91, 193;
    famous writer in, 83;
    first banks in, 108;
    founding and early growth of, 3, 216–217;
    major literary and political figures of, 194;
    oldest learned society in, 221.
    _See also various colonies/States, regions, entries immediately
          following, and appropriate topics throughout this index._

  United States, Bank of the, _see_ Bank of the United States

  United States Bicentennial, 222

  United States Bill of Rights, _see under_ United States Constitution

  United States Capitals, 50, 124, 217, 263, 264

  United States Capitol, D.C., ii, 161, 171, 173

  United States Centennial Exposition, 264

  United States circuit courts and judges, _see_ United States Judiciary

  United States Congress, 29, 30, 33, 40, 44, 46, 48, 50–51, 53, 54, 58,
          61, 81, 106, 118, 160, 194, 218, 221.
    _See also_ Continental Congress;
      United States Government;
      United States House of Representatives;
      United States Senate;
      _and specific Congressmen_.

  United States Constitution, and Connecticut (Great) Compromise,
          118, 131;
    and Pa. constitution, 148;
    and signers of Declaration, 29, 39, 40, 44, 46, 50, 55, 58, 92, 106,
          129, 144, 145–148;
    Bill of Rights of, 48, 61, 71, 92, 94;
    Bill of Rights of, displayed, 266, 267;
    Bill of Rights of, displayed, photo of, 266;
    debated, drafted, adopted, and signed, 50, 106, 129, 145–148,
          218–221;
    displayed, 264–265, 267;
    displayed, photo of, 266;
    favored and advocated, 40, 51, 61, 69, 125;
    history and protection of document, 264–267;
    Madison presents to Washington, mural of, 267;
    opposed, 39, 46, 48, 61, 69, 71, 79, 84, 92, 94, 102, 105, 114, 119,
          125, 131, 144, 148, 151, 153, 156;
    room adopted and signed in, 218–221;
    signers of, who also signed Declaration, 29, 49, 50, 55,
          58, 106, 129;
    significance of, 217;
    takes effect, 263.
    _See also_ United States Constitutional Convention.

  United States Constitutional Convention, and signers of Declaration,
          39, 44, 48, 61, 94, 108, 118, 119, 131, 136, 142, 145–148;
    compromise at, 118, 131;
    leader in, 228;
    membership, deliberations, and actions of, 29, 49, 50, 55, 58, 61,
          131, 145–148, 154, 156, 217, 218, 222, 267;
    room held in, 218–221.
    _See also_ United States Constitution.

  United States courts, _see_ United States Judiciary

  United States Declaration of Independence, _see_ Declaration of
          Independence

  United States Department of State, 33, 85, 88, 194, 228, 263–264

  United States Department of the Interior, and historic
          preservation, 161.
    _See also_ National parks, National Park Service, and National
          Park System.

  United States Department of War, 263, 264

  United States General Services Administration, 265

  United States Government, and Declaration, 264;
    and historic sites and buildings, 195, 212, 226;
    buildings of, 173;
    capitals of, _see_ United States Capitals;
    first official document of, _see_ Declaration of Independence;
    formation of, exhibit on, 267;
    Jefferson sells library to, 90;
    permanent records of, 265, 267;
    role of signers in, 29, 60 (_and see specific signers_).
    _See also_ Colonies;
      Continental Congress;
      _entries immediately preceding and following_;
      _and appropriate topics throughout this index_.

  United States House of Representatives, 48, 50–51, 54, 131, 195.
    _See also_ United States Congress.

  United States Judiciary, 29, 45, 46, 114, 145, 148, 213, 218, 219, 221

  United States Mint, 125

  United States Navy, 264.
    _See also_ Continental Navy.

  United States Presidents and Presidency, and John and John Quincy
          Adams, 29, 30, 33, 35, 193, 194, 195, 218, 222;
    and Mrs. John Adams, 34;
    and signers, 29, 30, 85, 89, 239;
    dignity of, 171;
    electors for, 54, 84, 128, 142;
    inaugurations and inaugural addresses of, 239, 267;
    official residence of, _see_ White House;
    unofficial residence of, 222.
    _See also specific Presidents._

  United States Secretary of State, _see_ United States Department of
          State

  United States Secretary of the Interior, _see_ United States
          Department of the Interior

  United States Secretary of the Treasury, _see_ United States
          Treasury Department

  United States Senate, 40, 44, 62, 92, 94, 106, 108, 118, 119, 131, 142.
    _See also_ United States Congress.

  United States Supreme Court, _see_ United States Judiciary

  United States Treasury Department, 106, 108, 152

  United States Vice Presidents, 29, 33, 35, 59, 61, 85, 88, 193,
          195, 196, 228

  United States War Department, 263, 264

  United States War for Independence, _see_ War for Independence

  Universalist Church, N.H., 41

  Universities, _see_ Colleges and universities

  University of Edinburgh, Scotland, 124, 134, 145, 149

  University of Georgia, 67, 142

  University of Glasgow, Scotland, 145

  University of New York, 105

  University of Pennsylvania, 82, 113, 126, 228

  University of Pennsylvania Medical School, 228

  University of St. Andrews, Scotland, 145

  University of the State of Pennsylvania, 126

  University of Virginia, 89, 90, 243

  Urbanization, and historic preservation, 159


  Valley Forge, Pa., 29

  Van Brugh, Catherine, and signer, 96

  Van Doren, Carl, historian, quoted, 217

  Vandalism, and historic sites, 50, 159

  Vassall, Maj. Leonard, and Adams National Historic Site, 194

  Vassall-Adams House, Mass., _see_ Adams National Historic Site

  Vermont (colony and State), 153

  Verse, _see_ Literature and literary figures

  Vice Presidents, U.S., _see_ United States Vice Presidents

  Villa architectural plan, 246

  Villages, _see_ Cities, towns, and villages

  Virginia (colony and State), history of and historic sites in, 7, 9,
          15, 16, 18, 20, 24, 41–42, 70–71, 74, 75, 85–94, 110–112, 117,
          135, 136, 141, 154–156, 160, 239–256, 263.
    _See also entries immediately following._

  Virginia Association, 42, 93

  Virginia House of Burgesses, 38, 41–42, 70, 86, 91, 92, 93, 111, 155

  Virginia Resolves, 42

  Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, 88, 90

  Vocations of signers, compared, 31.
    _See also individual signers._


  Wakefield Academy, England, 92

  Wales and Welshmen, 53, 62, 118

  Wallingford, Conn., 65, 130

  Walton, George (signer), career of and sites associated with, 31, 50,
          64, 65, 66, 138, _140–142_, 161, _173–176_

  Walton, George, Jr., son of signer, 175

  Walton, Mrs. George, wife of signer, 141

  Walton descendants, 175

  Walton-Harper House, Ga., _see_ College Hill

  Wamassee Head, Ga., 177

  War for Independence (U.S.), and Declaration of Independence,
          3, 23–24, 217;
    and Loyalists, _see_ Loyalists and Tories;
    battles and campaigns, land and naval, and course of, 3–156
          _passim_, 207–218 _passim_, 228, 233, 236, 239, 248, 263, 264;
    begins, 12, 38, 42;
    ends, _see_ Treaty of Paris;
    feared, 134;
    financed, _see_ Continental Congress, fiscal problems and
          policies of;
    generated, _see_ Independence movement and British-colonial clash;
    heroes of, 75, 251;
    heroes of, painted, 218;
    impact of, on signers and their families, _see_ Risks and
          sacrifices of signers;
    Iroquois Indians neutral during, 153;
    peace negotiations during, 35, 58, 98, 128, 136;
    verge of, 9;
    won, 24.
    _See also appropriate topics throughout this index._

  War of _1812_, 172, 173, 263

  War Office Building, D.C., 263

  Ward, Samuel, politician, 80

  Warren (town), R.I., 80

  Wars, and historic sites, 159. _See also specific wars._

  Warwick Furnace, Pa., 137

  Washington, President George, career of and sites associated with, 14,
          23–24, 27, 29, 34, 35, 42, 46, 52, 60, 69, 75, 95, 98, 104,
          107, 108, 114, 124, 125, 148, 171, 217, 218, 228, 233,
          255, 264, 267

  Washington, D.C., history of and historic sites in, 3, 62, 108, 161,
          170–173, 218, 263–266 _passim_

  Washington College, Md., 114

  Watkins, Thomas, and Meadow Garden, 175

  Wealth and financial status of signers, compared, 27, 28–29, 30,
          31, 43.
    _See also_ Debts and economic reversals of signers;
      _and individual signers._

  Weapons, _see_ Arms, ammunition, and ordnance

  Webster, Daniel, Secretary of State, 264

  Welcome (village), Md., 135

  Welles, Rev. Samuel, and Williams Birthplace, 166

  Welles-Williams House, Conn., _see_ Williams Birthplace

  Wells family, 204

  West, Benjamin, artist, 82

  West Indies, 100, 194, 202

  West Nottingham Academy, Md., 124, 134

  Westchester County, N.Y., 105

  Western Reserve (in present Ohio), 153

  Western United States, _see_ Frontier and frontiersmen

  Westernville, N.Y., 54, 211, 212

  Westminster School, England, 95

  Westmoreland Association (_1766_), 93

  Westmoreland County, Va., 91, 92

  Westward expansion, _see_ Frontier and frontiersmen

  Whedbee, Joseph, builder, 214

  Whigs (patriots) and Whig Party, _see_ Independence movement and
          British-colonial clash

  Whipple, Joseph, brother of signer, 143

  Whipple, Mrs. William, wife of signer, 143, 202

  Whipple, William (signer), career of and sites associated with, 28,
          _142–143_, _177–178_, _201–202_

  Whipple Birthplace, Maine, _177–178_

  White Hall Plantation, S.C., 76, 233

  White (Bishop) House, Pa., 224, 226

  White House (“President’s House”;
    “President’s Palace”), D.C., 34, 85, _170–173_

  White Plains, N.Y., 105

  Whitestone, N.Y., 95

  Widowers, signers as, 35, 41, 46, 54, 148

  Widows of signers, _see_ Wives and widows of signers

  Wilkins, John, builder, 214

  William and Mary, College of, _see_ College of William and Mary

  William and Mary architectural style, 252

  Williams, Mrs. William, wife of signer, 144

  Williams, Rev. Solomon, father of signer, 166, 168

  Williams, William (signer), career of and sites associated with, 31,
          _144–145_, _166–169_

  Williams Birthplace (Welles-Williams House), Conn., _166–167_

  Williams House, Conn., _168–169_

  Williamsburg, Williamsburg Historic District, and Colonial
          Williamsburg, Va., 15, 42, 86, 93, 111, 154–156, 255–256

  Willing, Charles, shipper, 106

  Willing, Thomas, shipper-legislator, 106, 110

  Wills, 67, 120, 156

  Wilmington, Del., 119

  Wilmington, N.C., 77, 78, 214

  Wilson, James (signer), career of and sites associated with, 28, 29,
          110, 125, _145–148_, _213–214_, 222, 224

  Wilson, Mrs. James, first wife of signer, 146

  Wilson, Mrs. James, second wife of signer, 148

  Windham, Windham County, and Windham district, Conn., 83, 144

  Windsor, Conn., 152, 169

  Winyaw, S.C., 99

  Wiscasset, Maine, 139

  Wistar, Dr. Caspar, and Philadelphia, 228

  Witherspoon, James, son of signer, 151

  Witherspoon, John (signer), career of and sites associated with, 28,
          31, 124, 134, _149–151_, _208–210_, 228

  Witherspoon, Mrs. John, first wife of signer, 124, 134, 149, 150

  Witherspoon, Mrs. John, second wife of signer, 151

  Wives and widows of signers, last to survive, 62 (_and see particular
          signers and individuals_)

  Wolcott, Oliver (signer), career of and sites associated with, 24, 31,
          _152–153_, _169–170_

  Wolcott, Oliver, son of signer, 152, 153

  Wolcott, Roger, father of signer, 152, 153

  Wolcott descendants, 170

  Wolcott House, Conn., _169–170_

  Wolverhampton, England, 62

  Wooley, Edmund, carpenter, 217

  Worcester, Mass., 33, 139, 203

  World War II, 265

  Writers and writing, _see_ Literature and literary figures

  Wyandotte Indians, 153

  Wye Hall, Wye Island, and Wye Plantation, Md., 113, 114, 188

  Wyoming Valley land dispute, 133, 143

  Wythe, George (signer), career of and sites associated with, 24, 86,
          88, _154–156_, _255–256_

  Wythe, Mrs. George, first wife of signer, 154

  Wythe, Mrs. George, second wife of signer, 154–155, 255

  Wythe, Thomas, brother of signer, 154

  Wythe House, Va., _255–256_


  XYZ affair, 61


  Yale College, Conn., 65, 84, 96, 105, 130, 152

  Yeoman farmers, 86

  York and York County, Pa., 98, 132, 133, 218, 263

  York County, Va., 111

  York Hall, Va., _see_ Nelson House

  Yorkshire, England, 92

  Yorktown and Battle (siege) of Yorktown, Va., 108, 111, 112,
          218, 248, 255


☆ U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1974 O-477-940


[Illustration: Sketch of proposed reconstruction of the Graff House,
where Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence.]




Transcriber’s Notes


Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant
preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed.

Simple typographical errors were corrected; occasional unbalanced
quotation marks retained.

Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained; occurrences of
inconsistent hyphenation have not been changed.

For compatibility with various display devices, the symbols for Site
Categories beginning on page 163 are slightly different from the ones
used in the original book.

Index not checked for proper alphabetization or correct page references.