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History Has
History |
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Have
you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who
signed the Declaration of Independence? |
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Five
signers were captured by the British as traitors, and
tortured before they died. |
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Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost
their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another
had two sons captured. |
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Nine
of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of
the Revolutionary War. |
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They
signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and
their sacred honor. |
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What
kind of men were they? |
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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. |
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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. |
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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. |
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Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery,
Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and
Middleton. |
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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. |
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Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The
enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months. |
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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. |
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Some
of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we
shouldn't. |
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Freedom is never free! |
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Freedom must be defended or it will be taken away.... |
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Patriotism Is Not
A Sin
The US
Constitution, The Bill Of Rights,
The Declaration Of
Independence, Memorial Day, and the
Fourth of July provide
more than opportunities
for America-haters to denigrate,
desecrate, and despise the United States Of
America, patriotic
Americans, and
America's accomplishments. |
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