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THE MEN WHO SIGNED THE DECLARATION of INDEPENDENCE:
[A REFLECTION UPON HOW GREAT THEY WERE]:
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 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 fortune, 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!
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