Declaration of Independence
OVERVIEW
READ THE DECLARATION
Drafting the Declaration
ABOUT THE SIGNERS
Women Behind the Signers
FASCINATING FACTS
DATES TO REMEMBER
Sons of Liberty
The Case for Revolution
The Five Riders
Two Great Thinkers
Famous Loyalists
The Shot Heard Round the World
THE FOURTH OF JULY
Treaty of Paris
True Copy of Declaration
DECLARATION QUIZ




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In the 225+ years since its independence, the United States of America has developed
into a thriving nation, based on the articulate freedoms of life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness. Yet, not every aspect of the Revolutionary Period is full of bright morals and
good behavior.
When Britain imposed the Intolerable Acts throughout the 1750s and 60s, a great number
of men became extremely angry, and began to act violently against British Loyalists in
the colonies. Mobs sprung up all over the colonies, reigning terror on those who
remained faithful to the crown.
One of these groupings would be a secret Boston association known as the The Loyal
Nine, composed of elite gentleman, mainly law men and artisans, who met discretely to
organize ways to begin to effectively oppose the actions of the crown. The Loyal Nine
were responsible for putting boundaries on the rampant violence of Boston, and set
limits on how far the demonstrations should progress. They actively stood against
British policies they found to be immoral and unlawful, and had their hands in projects
such as The Boston Tea Party.
The original members were Henry Bass, Joseph Field, John Smith, Thomas Chase, John
Avery, Stephen Cleverly, Benjamin Edes, George Trott and Thomas Crafts, but Samuel
Adams would eventually become involved in the group, adopting a role as one of its
leading members. John Adams, aware of his second cousin's role in the group, did not exactly approve of the methods used, and kept his distance from the organization.
As time progressed, and frustration with the crown began to heat up in the colonies, the
Loyal Nine merged into the more famous organization known as the Sons of Liberty.
The members of this group were Samuel Adams, Joseph Warren, Paul Revere, Benedict
Arnold, Benjamin Edes, John Hancock, Patrick Henry, John Lamb, William Mackay,
Alexander McDougall, James Otis, Benjamin Rush, Isaac Sears, Haym Solomon, James
Swan, Charles Thomson, Thomas Young, Marinus Willett, and Oliver Wolcott.
Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams (September 27 1722 -
October 2, 1803)
The second cousin of John Adams, Samuel
Adams was a Massachusetts statesman,
founding father, and firm voice of the
American Revolution. He was one of the
main forces behind the American movement
for Independence, and was infamous for his
role in the turmoil in Boston in the years
leading up to the Revolutionary War. Where
John Adams was strong spirited, Samuel
was practically virulent, a master of
propaganda and an engineer of mob
violence. He had few qualms about acting in
opposition to the British authorities,
especially on issues he deemed to be "unfair"
to the American colonists. His strong
leadership inspired the New England
colonies to take up arms against their
oppressors, and he continued to be a central
figure throughout the latter part of the
eighteenth century.
After the war was over, Adams would go on to become a delegate from Massachusetts to
the Continental Congress, and fourth Governor of Massachusetts. Despite his unusual
sense of morality, Adams' charisma and motivational abilities opened many doors for
him throughout his lifetime, and he would cause great change in whatever endeavors he
attended to.
Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold
A notorious traitor to the revolutionary cause,
Benedict Arnold started his political career as a Son
of Liberty. As a pharmacist and bookseller in New
England, Arnold fell into financial struggles after the
introduction of the Intolerable Acts. He did not
engage in any popular demonstrations, but became a
smuggler and continued to trade as if no "Act" had
ever been passed on the colonial form of the black
market.
Despite his early activity to oppose the British
crown, and his relative success as a Revolutionary
War General, Arnold eventually came to lose faith in
the American cause, and would change sides and
join the British against the American colonies
halfway through the war.
Benjamin Edes (October 14, 1732 - December 11, 1803)
Printer and publisher of the Boston Gazette, Benjamin Edes was a political instigator
known as one of the main financiers of the Boston Tea Party. Edes, through the Gazette,
spread Anti-British propaganda that helped inflame the colonies against their
oppressors. He attacked British policies, most significantly the Intolerable Acts. He was
eventually arrested on counts of sedition, but he escaped to Watertown, Massachusetts
where he continued to produce the Gazette until the late nineteenth century.
John Hancock
John Hancock (January 23, 1737 - October
8, 1793)
Most famous for his bold signature on the
Declaration of Independence, John Hancock was
a statesman, Second President of the Continental
Congress, and Authoritative voice of the
Revolution. A merchant whose business was
greatly affected by the Intolerable Acts, Hancock
joined forces with the Sons of Liberty to actively
oppose British influence in the colonies.
Unlike Adams, Hancock was moderately
disgusted by the violence enacted by the Sons of
Liberty against the Loyalists, and sought to effect
change on a more political and diplomatic level,
and gave a number of speeches against British
oppression which would eventually inspire the more organized move of the American
Revolution. His words encouraged many to take up arms, without resorting to mob
violence, and he would go down in history as a leading patriot.
Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 - June 6,
1799)
A Founding Father and two time Governor
of the state of Virginia, Patrick Henry was a
prominent orator who helped to spread
Revolutionary sentiment throughout the
American colonies. Most famous for the
phrase "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death,"
a speech he made before the Virginia House
of Burgesses, Henry was one of the main
voices which inspired Virginia to raise
troops to fight in the Revolutionary War.
Although not a Bostonian, he kept many
connections with the Sons of Liberty, and his
actions helped spread the movement to the
southern colonies.
John Lamb (1735-1800)
The son of a convicted burglar from New York, John Lamb would eventually overcome
his father's legacy to become a leading member of the Sons of Liberty. His role was
primarily as a writer, and he was responsible for writing articles and publishing
handbills which helped to spread the Revolutionary cause in the colonies.
Joseph Warren
Joseph Warren (June 11, 1741 - June 17,
1775)
President of the Massachusetts Revolutionary
Congress, Revolutionary War General, and
established man of medicine, Joseph Warren was
a leading activist in the war cause of the 1770s. On
April 18, 1775 he dispatched Paul Revere and
William Dawes to ride to Lexington in secret to
warn John Hancock and Samuel Adams of their
pending arrest by British troops and to alert the
militia along the way that the British were on the
move. During the war, Warren fell in battle, and
this moment was immortalized in a painting by
John Trumbull called "The Death of General
Warren."
Paul Revere
Paul Revere (December 21, 1734 - May
10, 1818)
An early American silversmith and active
voice of the Revolution, Paul Revere is most
well known for his ride to Lexington to alert
the militia of the movement of the British
troops and to warn John Hancock and Samuel
Adams of their pending arrest. After his
business fell into financial ruin after the
implementation of the Intolerable Acts, he
became one of the main organizers of the
intelligence and alarm system which would
keep tabs on the British military.
Despite popular historical accounts, he never
rode hundreds of miles through New England
shouting "the British are coming," but his acts
in secret, and in public, did do a great deal to
promote the American Revolutionary cause.
William Mackay (died 1800)
Although little is known about William Mackay, history has preserved the fact that he
was a Bostonian merchant strongly affected by
the implementation of the Stamp Act of 1765,
and worked as a Son of Liberty to promote the
Revolution.
Alexander McDougall
Alexander McDougall (about 1731-
1786)
Born in New York City sometime around 1731,
Alexander McDougall would become a seaman
and a prominent New England merchant.
After the addition of the Stamp Act,
McDougall joined the Sons of Liberty and
would become the leader of a faction in New
York. He would eventually enlist in a New
York City regiment in the Revolutionary War,
and become a Major General in 1777.
Alexander McDougall
James Otis, Jr. (February 5, 1725 - May
23, 1783)
A lawyer and member of the Massachusetts
provincial assembly, James Otis, Jr. would
become one of the leading members of the
American Revolutionary cause. He is famous for
coining the phrase, "taxation without
representation is tyranny," which would go on to
become an anthem for patriot opposition to the
crown. As a lawyer, Otis became enraged by
British imposed "writs of assistance" which
permitted British authorities to enter the house
of a colonist without notice or probable cause. In
response these writs, Otis gave a number of
speeches speaking out against British
exploitation of the colonists, and his words
inspired many people to rise up against the
tyranny of the crown.
Benjamin Rush
Benjamin Rush (January 4, 1746 - April
19, 1813)
The founder of Dickinson college in
Pennsylvania, signatory to the Declaration of
Independence, and Founding Father of the
United States, Benjamin Rush is certainly one of
the more famous voices of the revolution.
Incredibly outspoken, Rush would make many
friends, and enemies (most notably George
Washington, to whom he gave harsh criticism),
and his words would effect great movements
towards opposition to Great Britain. Also,
Thomas Paine looked to Rush when he was
drafting his treatises in favor of the
Revolutionary War. A truly learned manRush
would join the Medical Committee of the
Continental Congress, taking on a more practical
role as well as a political one.
Isaac Sears (1730 - 1786)
Nicknamed "King Sears" for his pivotal role in organizing the New York mob, Isaac
Sears was a leading member of the Sons of Liberty who leaned predominately towards
orchestrating violence and encouraging anti-British demonstration. A prosperous New
York City merchant outraged by the Intolerable Acts, Sears was forceful in his
opposition to the Stamp Act in particular, using whatever means necessary to dissuade
the use of British stamps in the colonies. After the Stamp Act was finally repealed, he
erected a number of liberty poles and broadsides (large sheets of paper printed on one
side only), signed "the Mohawks," warning that action would be taken against anyone
supporting any of the Intolerable Acts. He would eventually become the stand in
commander of New York City until Washington arrived to relieve him in 1775.
Haym Solomon
Haym Solomon (April 7, 1740 - January 6, 1785)
A Portuguese Jew by birth, Haym Solomon was a
wealthy merchant and financier of the American
Revolution. Sympathetic to the American cause,
Solomon joined the New York branch of the Sons of
Liberty and was arrested as a spy in 1776. After eighteen
months of torture aboard the British vessel, he was
released under the stipulation that he would remain as
an interpreter for British-commissioned mercenaries.
While involved in this forced employment, Solomon
helped many American prisoners escape their
confinement and encouraged the mercenaries to join the
Americans.
James Swan
James Swan (1754 - July 31, 1830)
Born in Scotland, James Swan moved to
American colonies in the late 1750s where he
spent his youth as a shop clerk in Boston. As
time went by, he became increasingly interested
in the American Revolutionary effort and joined
leagues with the Sons of Liberty. As a writer, he
published many tracts and articles in opposition
to the British crown. Wealthy before the war, he
financed Revolutionary efforts until he came to
ruin in the early 1780s.
Charles Thomson
Charles Thomson (November 29, 1729
- August 16, 1824)
A Patriot leader from Philadelphia born of
Scots-Irish parentage, Charles Thomson
became known as the "Samuel Adams of
Philadelphia," a nickname given to him by
John Adams. As secretary to the Continental
Congress for fifteen years, Thomson was
able to be directly involved in foreign affairs.
Also, along with William Barton, he was
given the opportunity to design the Great
Seal of the United States. Yet, he was a fiery
individual who had many enemies.
Famously, one James Searle attacked
Thomson on the floor of Congress over a
supposed misquotation, and the ensuing
cane fight ended with both men being cut in
the face.
Thomas Young (1731-1777)
The only member of the Boston Tea Party not to wear a disguise, Thomas Young was a
bold advocate of American Independence. As consequence for
his courage, the British made an example of Young, punishing
him to such severity that he nearly died.
Marinus Willett
Marinus Willett (July 31, 1740 - August 22, 1830)
Equal parts military man and cabinet maker, Marinus Willett
had a reputation for street brawling and reckless behavior. He
became a leading member of the New York faction of the Sons
of Liberty, organizing surprise movements against the British.
Most notably, in 1775, he assembled a small band of men,
commandeered a British sloop, and captured a protected
British storehouse in Turtle Bay. He would eventually enlist in
the 1st New York Regiment under command of Alexander
McDougall.
Marinus Willett
Oliver Wolcott (November 20, 1726 - December 1,
1797)
A signatory to the United States Declaration of
Independence as well as the Articles of Confederation,
Wolcott had a minor role in the Sons of Liberty and would
go on to become the fourth Governor of Connecticut. One of
his major acts for the Revolutionary cause was in erecting a
shed on his country estate in Litchfield and, with help from
his neighbors, casted more than 40,000 bullets.
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