It took courage to pen their names to this document asserting that thirteen colonies were breaking away from the most powerful government in the world, but there were fifty-six men from these thirteen colonies who dared. “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.”
Of these signers, five were captured by the British. Thomas McKean, a signer, was “hunted like a fox”, had to move his family five times. Charles Braxton lost his ships to the British Navy, sold his home and property to pay debts, died in rags.
The wife of Francis Lewis was jailed by the enemy. She died within a few months.
The grist mill belonging to John Hart was destroyed. He was driven from his home and lived in the forest and in caves. When he returned home, his wife had died and his children were scattered.
Of these fifty-six signers, the homes of twelve of them were burned and ransacked. Nine died from wounds or hardship. And, the list goes on. The lives of these men were on the line when they placed their signatures on the document that proclaimed America’s freedom.
These were not “old men”. The average age was forty-five. Ben Franklin was the oldest, at seventy; Thomas Lynch, Jr., the youngest at twenty-seven. They were educated men of means who had a lot to lose, but they valued liberty more than wealth.
The document which began, “When in the course of human events…” declared that thirteen upstart young colonies dared to declare their independence from England and had the right to govern themselves, the right to be free from imperial rule and would no longer be subjects of the King.
The War for Independence exacted a high price in lives and incomes lost. It was hard and heart-breaking, but the result was The United States of America. Freedom–winning it wasn’t free. Keeping it has not been free since that time. In the midst of all the noise and celebrations, let’s take a moment to remember and to be grateful.
Sources: History.com, Phillytalk.com, Kentucky Forums.
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