Thank You for sharing this. I had not seen it before and thought it was very enlightening! Steven Page ----- Original Message ----- From: "J. E. Leonard" <lenardo@bellsouth.net> To: <BRUCE-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, June 20, 2000 4:36 PM Subject: WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM? > I got this from one of the other lists I belong to. I thought it might > fit in with our research of our families and their history and because > of the Fourth of July rapidly approaching. I know that this isn't > exactly specific to genealogy, but thought all might find it > interesting. > > > WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM? > > 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 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 talk 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! > > I hope you will show your support by please sending this to as many > people as you can. It's time we get the word out that patriotism is NOT > a sin, and the Fourth of July has more to it than beer, picnics, and > baseball games. > > > ==== BRUCE Mailing List ==== > >