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 Continental 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 fought 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!
It's time we
get the word out that patriotism is not a sin. The Fourth of July is
about much more than beer, picnics, and baseball
games.
