Independence Day Things To Remember

[82Rigger]

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who
signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors,
and tortured before they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost
their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another
had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died
from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their
fortunes, and their sacred honor. What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were
merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners;
men of means, well educated. But they signed the
Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the
penalty would be death if they were captured.
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and
trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British
Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his
debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was
forced to move his family almost constantly. He served
in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in
hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and
poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery,
Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr, noted that
the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson
home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General
George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed,
and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.
The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was
dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His
fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more
than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning
home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A
few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.

Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.
Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution.
These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They
were soft-spoken men of means and education. They had
security, but they valued liberty more. Standing tall,
straight, and unwavering, they pledged: "For the support
of this declaration, with firm reliance on the
protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge
to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred
honor." They gave you and me a free and independent America.

The history books never told you a lot about what
happened in the Revolutionary War. We didn't fight just
the British. We were British subjects at that time and
we fougnt our own government! Some of us take these
liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn't. So,
take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July
holiday and silently thank these patriots. It's not
much to ask for the price they paid.
Remember: freedom is never free!

[frisco-kid]

Thanks for reminding us what sacrifices were made to help secure the rights and freedoms that we enjoy today. That the 4th OF JULY represents more than a 3 day weekend highlighted by a barbeque dinner and fireworks.

[Stick]

Entry in King George III diary, July 4, 1776.
"Nothing of importance happened today."

[Packo]

Great post. I never feel I need a reminder until I read something like this. Thanks for waking me up. If you don't mind, I'm gonna copy this and read it at our picknick this afternoon.

Thanks Steve and Frisco for your sacrifices to keeping this nation free! (and of course, everyone else on this site.)

Packo

[frisco-kid]

And "THANK YOU" to you, too, Packo.

You wouldn't be having any Frogmore Stew at the picnic, would ya? HMMM HMMM!

Have a GREAT weekend, Bro.

[Dragon Lady]

Ceasar Rodney of Delaware was the only signer of the Declaration who also signed the Constitution and he was the first one to sign that wonderful document, making Delaware the first state. You'll find reference to him all up and down the Delmarva penninsula. I don't know if he was one of the men who were harassed and chased from their lands, but he is buried right in a little graveyard in downtown Dover.

[Dragon Lady]

The above is what my kids are taught in skool and is in their buks.

I'm guessing there will be a few who come up with something different. So if I'm wrong...sorry.

[82Rigger]

DL,

It's great to hear that your young'uns are being taught about our founding fathers in school!

Here's more info:

In May of 1775, he was appointed a colonel and in September he became brigadier general of the Delaware militia. In 1776, he was alternately in his seat in congress, and at work in Delaware, stimulating the patriots and repressing the royalists. When the question of independence was raised he was delayed in getting to congress owing to the fact that, after presiding in June over the session of the assembly that had authorized support of the inter-colonial movement for independence and which virtually declared Delaware independent of the Crown, he had gone to Sussex County to look into a threatened Loyalist uprising. He had just returned home when he learned from his colleague McKean that a vote was pending in Congress and he rushed northward to give his voice. McKean, knowing Rodney to be favorable to the declaration, urged him by special messenger to hasten his return. Rodney had ridden eighty miles through a rain swept night for his trip was urgent, his vote was needed desperately to break the deadlock in the Delaware delegation, as Thomas McKean and George Read were divided. His affirmative vote secured the consent of the Delaware delegation to the measure, and thus affected that unanimity among the colonies that was so essential to the cause of independence.

Caesar Rodney at age forty-eight was one of only three bachelors to sign the Declaration of Independence. Perhaps he chose not to marry because of a cancer that was already ravaging part of his eye and face. The cancerous growth on his face, from which he suffered for years and finally died, may have contributed to the oddity of his appearance, but his actions showed him to be a man of heroic proportions.

His cenotaph is located at Christ Episcopal Church cemetery at Dover, Delaware.

[82Rigger]

...were indeed the first to ratify the Constitution, making Delaware the first state.

Delaware's state quarter coin, the first to be issued, makes remembrance of Caesar Rodney's famous eighty mile ride through the storm-ridden night to cast the tie-breaking vote for the Delaware delegation.

Delaware's state quarter design was created by a teacher at Caesar Rodney High School in Dover, Delaware.

[revwardoc]

82Rigger,

Are you sure that he made an EIGHTY mile ride in one night?! That must've been one damn fast horse since it would've taken 10-14 DAYS to go from Boston to Philly by coach or horseback at that time.

BTW, here's a history trivia question for you:

Who was the only man to sign The Declaration of Independence (1776), The US Constitution (1787), and the Treaty of Paris (the document that ended the Revolution, 1783)?