The signing of the Declaration of Independence took place on August 2, 1776, at the Pennsylvania State House in Philadelphia. The 56 delegates from the 13 colonies, except for New York, which abstained, voted to approve it on July 4, 1776. The Declaration declared that the colonies were now "free and independent States" and no longer a part of the British Empire. The signers’ names are grouped by state, except for John Hancock, as President of the Continental Congress. The final draft was approved on July 4, but it was signed on August 2, according to most historians.

In 1820 the then Secretary of State John Quincy Adams commissioned William J. Stone, a printer, to create a copperplate engraving of the Declaration of Independence. This engraving was used to produce copies of the Declaration. The 1823 Stone engraving is now the most commonly replicated version of the Declaration.

William Floyd was a prominent American Founding Father, farmer, and political leader who hailed from New York. In the early stages of the British conflict, he served as a member of the Suffolk County Militia and eventually became a Major General. Floyd was elected in 1774 to represent New York in the first Continental Congress, where he remained until 1776. During this time, his estate was destroyed in the Revolutionary War. After the war, he obtained land on the Mohawk river and retired there a few years later. In 1789, he was elected to the 1st Congress following the adoption of the new Constitution, serving until 1791. Floyd was also a presidential elector in 1792 and voted for George Washington's re-election. In 1803, he was called upon to serve his state as a Senator before eventually retiring to farming.

William  Floyd

Francis Lewis, a prominent figure in American history, was a merchant and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He held several important positions, including being a member of the Committee of Sixty and the New York Provincial Congress. Additionally, he was a delegate to the Continental Congress from 1775 to 1779, where he played a key role in the formation of the country. In 1776, he signed the United States Declaration of Independence, and two years later, he signed the United States Articles of Confederation. In 1779, he also served as the chairman of the Continental Board of Admiralty.

Trinity Church and Graveyard

Francis Lewis

Born in Scotland in 1742, James Wilson attended several universities but never earned a degree. After emigrating to America in 1766, he taught at the Philadelphia College and eventually received an honorary Master of Arts degree. Wilson became a successful lawyer in Reading, Pennsylvania, and also lectured on English Literature at the College of Philadelphia. In 1774, he was elected to the Continental Congress and argued against the British Parliament's legislative authority in his pamphlet "Considerations on the Nature and Extent of the Legislative Authority of the British Parliament." Although Pennsylvania was divided on the issue of separation, Wilson eventually voted in favor of independence. After the Declaration, Wilson opposed a proposed new constitution and faced financial difficulties due to his land speculation and aggressive gambling. However, he was appointed as France's US advocate general for maritime and commercial enterprises and worked on financial matters of state with Robert Morris in Congress. He was later appointed as an Associate Justice in 1789, but his wife's death and financial troubles led to his mental and financial collapse. He died in 1798 while visiting a friend in North Carolina.

James Wilson

Thomas Jefferson was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, musician, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. The principal author of the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson was a proponent of democracy, republicanism, and individual rights, motivating American colonists to break from the Kingdom of Great Britain and form a new nation; he produced formative documents and decisions at both the state and national levels.

Thomas Jefferson

Samuel Chase, a signatory of the Continental Association and the Declaration of Independence for Maryland, was a Founding Father of the United States and an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. He faced impeachment by the House of Representatives for allegedly allowing his political bias to affect his court rulings but was ultimately acquitted by the Senate and retained his post. Having started practicing law in Annapolis, Maryland, he supported independence during the Revolution and served in the Maryland General Assembly, followed by positions in the Baltimore District Criminal Court and the Maryland General Court. In 1796, President George Washington appointed Chase to the United States Supreme Court.

Samuel Chase

Charles Carroll, also known as Charles Carroll of Carrollton or Charles Carroll III, was an Irish-American politician and plantation owner. He was the only Catholic, the wealthiest and the longest surviving among the signers of the Declaration of Independence. His personal wealth included a 10,000-acre estate which held approximately 300 enslaved people. He served as a delegate to both the Continental and Confederation Congresses and later became Maryland's first United States Senator. A Founding Father, Carroll was often referred to as the "First Citizen" of the American Colonies for the use of this as his pen name in his writings in the Maryland Gazette.&nbsp;

Charles Carroll

William Williams was born in 1731 and received a common school education before attending Harvard and studying theology with his father. After serving in the French and Indian War, he became a successful merchant and also held several public positions, including town clerk, Selectman, and member of the Legislature for nearly forty years. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1776 and signed the Declaration of Independence. He also served on the committee that framed the Articles of Confederation and was appointed to the Board of War in 1777. Later, he attended the Hartford convention and ratified the Federal Constitution. Williams spent his remaining years as a County Court judge, and died in 1811 at the age of 80.

William Williams

Lewis Morris, born in New York, inherited great wealth but lost most of it during the Revolutionary War. He graduated from Yale College in 1746 and returned to his father's farm near Harlem. He entered politics after his father's death and served in the Provincial legislature until it was dissolved by the royal governor. Morris joined the patriots and was appointed a delegate to the Second Continental Congress, where he served on committees for the defense of New York. He also served as a brigadier-general in the New York militia. In 1777, he was succeeded in Congress by his brother Gouverneur Morris. Morris returned to his local duties and later served as a judge in Worcester, as well as a member of the upper house of the new legislature until 1790. He spent several years rebuilding his farm and served on the first Board of Regents for the University of New York.

Lewis Morris

John Witherspoon came to the colonies in 1768 to serve as president of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton). He was highly educated, receiving a Master of Arts and a Doctorate of Divinity, and was a successful Presbyterian minister and theologian in Scotland before coming to America. Witherspoon was a popular and successful leader of the college, and wrote essays on topics of interest to the colonies. He initially avoided political involvement but eventually supported the revolutionary cause, serving on committees and being elected to the Continental Congress. Witherspoon was an active member of Congress, serving on more than a hundred committees and debating frequently. He evacuated the college during the war, but devoted his life to rebuilding it after the war. Witherspoon suffered injuries that left him blind before his death in 1794.

John Witherspoon

A lawyer, and a talented writer of music, poetry, and satire, Francis Hopkinson was the first scholar and graduate of the College of Philadelphia, which was chartered by his father and Benjamin Franklin. After studying law with Benjamin Chew, later Chief Justice of Pennsylvania, he continued his education in England for two years. He signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776 as a delegate to the Continental Congress, and actively promoted the new Federal Constitution after the war. Hopkinson served as a Judge of Admiralty in Pennsylvania and was appointed a Federal District Judge for his home state by George Washington in 1790. He claimed credit for designing the American flag, but this is uncertain.

Francis Hopkinson

John Hart, a colonial New Jersey farmer and politician, served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and signed the Declaration of Independence. In 1761, he was elected to the New Jersey Assembly, where he was annually reelected until the assembly dissolved in 1771. Hart was appointed to the local Committee of Safety, the Committee of Correspondence, and a judge to the Court of Common Pleas in 1775. The following year, he was elected to the newly formed Provincial Congress of New Jersey and sent as a delegate to the Continental Congress. During the war, Hart's property was looted, but he continued to serve in public office, including as Speaker of the New Jersey assembly and on the Committee of Safety. In 1778, he even invited the American army to encamp on his farm, and Washington held his famous Council of War at the nearby Hunt House. Despite hosting 12,000 troops on his fields during the growing season, Hart remained active in politics until his death at age 66 in 1779.

John Hart

Richard Stockton, born in 1730 near Princeton, attended West Nottingham Academy and the College of New Jersey which later became Princeton. He became a renowned lawyer with a large practice. He was appointed to the royal council of New Jersey in 1765 and was moderate in his views on colonial autonomy. However, he supported independence when elected to the Congress in 1776. He was appointed to committees supporting the war effort and dispatched on a fact-finding tour, but was captured and imprisoned by the British. After his release, he returned to his estate, which had been destroyed by the British. Stockton reopened his law practice and taught students but developed cancer and died in 1781.

Richard Stockton

George Ross was born in May 1730 in Newcastle, Delaware, and received a classical education at home before studying law with his older brother, John. He became a lawyer at the age of 20 and established his own practice in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Ross was a supporter of Tory politics and served as Crown Prosecutor or Attorney General to Carlisle for 12 years. He was then elected to the provincial legislature of his state in 1768 and chosen to represent Pennsylvania in the General Congress in 1774. Ross served as a provincial legislator and a Colonel in the Continental Army while elected to the Continental Congress in 1776. He also negotiated on behalf of his colony with the Northwestern Indians and served as the vice-president of the first constitutional convention for Pennsylvania. Ross resigned from the Continental Congress in 1777 due to poor health. In March 1779, he was appointed to a judgeship in the Pennsylvania Court of Admiralty, where he died in July of the same year.

George Ross

Thomas McKean, born in New London, Pennsylvania, studied law, serving as the clerk of the Court of Common Pleas while still a student. Admitted to the bar in Delaware before he turned 21, he was appointed deputy Attorney General to county Sussex in Pennsylvania in 1756. He was elected a delegate to the Assembly in 1762 and re-elected for 17 years, serving as Speaker of the Assembly in 1772. He attended the Continental Congress from 1774, served on the committee to draw up the Articles of Confederation, and was commissioned a colonel in the New Jersey militia. In 1777, while serving in the Congress, he was appointed Chief Justice of Pennsylvania, holding the office for nearly 20 years. He was elected Governor of Pennsylvania in 1799 and filled that office by popular re-election for nine years before retiring in 1812, despite political enemies' unsuccessful attempt to impeach him. In 1787, he attended the ratifying convention for the new Federal Constitution and played a role in amending the constitution of Pennsylvania in 1789.

Thomas McKean

James Smith was born in Ireland in the early 18th century and later moved to Pennsylvania with his family. He received education from a local Church Minister and studied law at his older brother's office in Lancaster. Smith became a successful lawyer, practicing in the frontier town of Cumberland County before moving to York. He was a leader in the area and offered a paper in 1774 calling for a boycott of British goods and a General Congress of the Colonies. He organized a volunteer militia company in York and was elected Captain. Smith was appointed to various conventions and elected to the Continental Congress in 1776, where he served for two years. He retired from Congress in 1777 and served in few public offices after. He was appointed Brigadier General of the Pennsylvania militia in 1782 and was reelected to Congress in 1785 but did not attend due to his age. Unfortunately, little is known about his work as a fire destroyed his office and papers shortly before he died.

James Smith

Born in South Carolina in 1746, Thomas Heyward, Jr. received an education at home and went on to study law in England. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1775, where he signed the Declaration of Independence. Heyward returned to South Carolina in 1778 and served as a Judge, but was later captured by the British during the siege of Charleston while commanding a Militia force. After the war, he resumed his Judgeship until his retirement in 1798.

Thomas Heyward Jr.

 An American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and political philosopher. Among the leading intellectuals of his time, Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and the first United States Postmaster General. As a scientist, he was a major figure in the American Enlightenment and the history of physics for his discoveries and theories regarding electricity. As an inventor, he is known for the lightning rod, bifocals, and the Franklin stove, among other inventions. 

Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Rush, an accomplished physician, writer, educator, and humanitarian, was born in Byberry, Pennsylvania. After obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of Philadelphia in 1759, he pursued an M.D. at Edinburgh, studying science, French, Italian, and Spanish. Upon returning to Philadelphia in 1769, he opened a successful medical practice and became a Professor of Chemistry at the College of Philadelphia. Rush was known for his work with the poor and authored the first American chemistry textbook. He also contributed editorial essays to the papers about the patriot cause and joined the American Philosophical Society. In 1776, Rush was appointed to represent Philadelphia at the Continental Congress, where he signed the Declaration of Independence. He served as surgeon-general of the middle department of the Continental Army but resigned after a conflict over the Army Medical service. Later, he secretly campaigned for Washington's removal as commander-in-chief but withdrew from war-related activities after being confronted by Washington. Rush supported the adoption of the Constitution in 1789 and served as treasurer of the U.S. Mint from 1797 to 1813. He became a popular professor at the consolidated University of Pennsylvania and was a social activist, advocating for the abolition of slavery, scientific education, and public medical clinics for the poor. Rush passed away at the age of 68 at his home in Philadelphia, renowned as America's foremost physician.

Benjamin Rush

Robert Morris was a prominent figure in Philadelphia during the American Revolution. Despite not being a scholar or a soldier, he played a critical role in financing the war and establishing the Bank of the United States after. Morris was born in England in 1734 and moved to Philadelphia for school at the age of ten. He began his career as an apprentice in a counting room and went on to become a successful businessman. Morris joined the colonials during the Stamp Act and became involved in the movements against British rule. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1775 and played a crucial role in raising funds and provisions for the Continental Army. Morris personally financed the operations of privateers and loaned $10,000 of his own money to the government to provision the troops at the Battle of Trenton. In 1781, Morris submitted a plan for a National Bank, which became The Bank of North America. He was appointed as Financial Agent of the United States and later declined the position of Secretary of the Treasury under President George Washington. Morris retired from public service after serving as a Senator for Pennsylvania. Despite his success, Morris lost his fortune in land speculation and died in poverty at the age of 73.

Robert Morris

Benjamin Harrison V, a colonial Virginia planter, merchant, and politician, was among the Founding Fathers who signed both the Continental Association and the United States Declaration of Independence. In addition to serving as a legislator in Virginia, he also held the position of governor in the state from 1781 to 1784. Born in Berkeley, Virginia in 1726, Benjamin Harrison was an early advocate for American independence and was elected to the Continental Congress in 1774. He was also a slave owner but supported a petition to King George III to end the slave trade in 1772. After serving as a lieutenant in the county militia, he returned to Virginia in 1777 to serve in the House of Burgesses and was eventually chosen as Speaker of the House and later elected Governor of Virginia. After five years in office, Harrison retired from his position as Governor.

Benjamin Harrison

Thomas Nelson Jr., a member of Virginia's aristocratic society, received a degree from Cambridge after a private education in England. He served his colony and country after returning to Virginia, and was elected to the House of Burgesses in 1774. In 1775, he helped create the Virginia Militia and was elected to the Continental Congress, but retired due to health problems in 1777. After returning to military service, he was reelected to Congress in 1779 but retired again due to declining health. In 1781, he became Civil Governor and Commander in Chief of the Virginia Militia, succeeding Thomas Jefferson. General Nelson retired from public service in October of 1781 and died at one of his estates in Hanover County in 1789 at the age of 50.

Thomas Nelson Jr

Joining the likes of Patrick Henry in opposing the Stamp Act, Francis Lightfoot Lee, brother of RH Lee, was a radical elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1765, where he served until 1775. He played a key role in the call for a general congress and a Virginia Convention in 1774, and attended the convention before being sent to the first Continental Congress the same year. Working on numerous committees, he represented Virginia in the Congress until 1779, when he retired and returned home. After a brief stint in the Virginia Senate, he retired from public office and lived a private life.

Francis Lightfoot Lee

Carter Braxton was one of the Founding Fathers and a signatory of the Declaration of Independence who was also a slave owner, a Virginia planter and a merchant. He participated in Virginia's legislature, including the House of Burgesses and as a Delegate to the Continental Congress until August 1776. Braxton also served on the Committee of Safety for Virginia patriots in 1774. Despite selling some properties due to debts from his father and brother's passing, Braxton still owned 12,000 acres and 165 slaves after the Revolutionary War. Although not a Loyalist, he was considered a moderate revolutionary and sympathized with the British.

Carter Braxton

Richard Henry Lee was born to an aristocratic family in Virginia and attended a private school in England before returning to Virginia in 1751. In 1757 Lee was appointed Justice of the Peace and later elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses. In 1774 he was elected to attend the first Continental Congress and played an important role, offering the Resolutions for Independence in 1776. Lee served in Congress throughout the War and was selected as president of Congress in 1783. He opposed the federal constitution, preferring strong state rights but was elected as the first State Senator from Virginia under the new federal government. Lee was known for his oratory skills and his radical political views. He died in 1794 at the age of 62.

Richard Henry Lee

George Wythe, born in Virginia in 1726, was a highly distinguished man of his time. He was appointed clerk to the Committee forming rules of conduct in the House of Burgesses in 1746. Wythe was a successful law student, admitted to the bar at age 20, and appointed Attorney General in 1753. He served in the House of Burgesses until it was dissolved on the eve of the revolution. Wythe's most significant contribution was in education. He was elected to the Board of Visitors at the College of William and Mary in 1761 and became America's first Professor of Law eight years later, teaching for 20 years and influencing many prominent figures. He served in the Continental Congress and was later elected Speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates in 1777, becoming one of the three Chancellors of the State of Virginia in 1778. Wythe was a republican and a quiet abolitionist who freed his slaves and made provisions for their support. However, his provision to will part of his family property to his slaves ended in tragedy when a family member poisoned them with arsenic, killing Wythe in the process.

George Wythe

Thomas Stone, a landowner and lawyer from Maryland, was born in 1743. He was elected to Congress in 1775, voted for Independence in 1776, and was a member of the committee that framed the Articles of Confederation. During his second term in Congress in 1783, he served as chairman but retired at the end of his term. Stone declined an invitation to attend the Constitutional Convention in 1787 due to his wife's poor health, who unfortunately passed away the same year. Grieving the loss, Stone decided to travel to England, but passed away in Alexandria while waiting for the ship. He was 44 years old, and no letters or papers that account for his life have ever been found.

Thomas Stone

William Paca was an American statesman, born in Abington, Maryland. He received a classical education at home before studying law at the Inner Temple in England. Paca was a local leader in the patriot movement in the late 1770s, and he wrote and organized against a poll-tax instituted by the royal governor. He was elected to the Maryland State Legislature in 1771 and appointed to the Continental Congress in 1774. Paca was reelected and served until 1779 when he was appointed chief justice of the State of Maryland. He was elected governor of Maryland in 1782 and later appointed federal district judge for the state, serving in that position until his death in 1799.

William Paca

John Penn, born to an affluent family in Caroline County, Virginia, lost his father at the age of eighteen. He was licensed to practice law in Virginia at twenty-two and later moved to Granville County, North Carolina. There he established a law practice and became a member of the political community. In 1775, he was elected to attend the provincial Congress, and that same year he was elected to the Continental Congress, where he participated in committee work until 1777. He was reelected in 1779 and appointed to the Board of War, serving until 1780. Due to failing health, he declined becoming a judge in Virginia and retired to engage in his law practice.

John Penn

Joseph Hewes, a native of Princeton, New Jersey, received his education from Princeton College. In 1760, he established a shipping business in Wilmington, North Carolina and became very successful. Hewes was elected to the Provincial Assembly in 1766 and remained a member until it was dissolved by the royal governor in 1775. During his tenure, he was appointed to the Committee of Correspondence and later elected to the Provincial Legislature. In 1775, he was sent to the Continental Congress where he was a hard-working committee member and an expert on maritime issues. Hewes played a crucial role in the American Revolution by signing the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and offering his ships for the Continental Armed Forces. In 1779, he served as the Secretary of the Naval Affairs Committee for Congress.

Joseph Hewes

Thomas Lynch Jr., a native of South Carolina, received his education in England, where he graduated with honors from Cambridge. After studying law in London, he returned home in 1772 and became politically active. In 1775, he was commissioned as a company commander in the South Carolina regiment and was subsequently elected to a seat in the Continental Congress. Having fallen ill and subsequently retired from Congress, Lynch Jr., and his wife embarked on a journey to the West Indies, but their ship disappeared and there is no record of their fate.

Thomas Lynch Jr.

Arthur Middleton, a representative from South Carolina in the Second Continental Congress, played a crucial role in framing the Articles of Confederation. Although he resigned before signing them, he was an instrumental figure in shaping the new government. A Cambridge, England graduate and member of the Council of Safety at Charleston, Middleton was a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1776. He was captured by the British during the Revolutionary War and held prisoner for over a year, during which time he lost most of his fortune. However, having married into a prominent family, he became a wealthy rice plantation owner who owned over 100 slaves and remained active in politics until his death &nbsp;in 1787.

Arthur Middleton

Edward Rutledge was born to an aristocratic family in South Carolina and was educated in law at Oxford. He and his brother John both attended Congress, supporting each other on the floor and in committee. At the age of 27, he left Congress to join the defense of his colony, attaining the rank of Captain. He returned to Congress in 1779 but left again in 1780 to defend Charleston. He was captured and held prisoner until 1781. After his release, he returned to the legislature of his native state until 1796, where he served on numerous committees and was elected Governor in 1789. His health declining, he died in January of 1800 at the age of 50.

Edward Rutledge

Oliver Wolcott was the youngest of 14 children of Royal Governor Roger Wolcott. He attended Yale, graduating in 1747, and was commissioned by Governor Clinton of New York to raise a volunteer militia to assist in the French and Indian War even before graduating. After the war, he studied medicine and became sheriff of Litchfield County, Connecticut for over 20 years. He rejoined the Militia in 1771, was made a Major, and later a Colonel in the Connecticut Militia, eventually becoming Brigadier General of the entire Connecticut force during the Revolutionary War. In 1774, he was appointed a Commissioner of Indian Affairs by the Continental Congress, and he was later elected to the Congress in 1775. Although he wasn't very active in Congress, he signed the Declaration of Independence and spent most of the time between 1776 and 1778 engaged in military affairs. After retiring from Congress, he served as an Indian Commissioner twice more. Wolcott was much revered in his native state, honored with a second degree from Yale, elected president of the Connecticut Society of Arts and Sciences, and elected Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut in 1786, and later became Governor in 1796 until his death in 1797 at the age of 71.

Oliver Wolcott

Matthew Thornton, born in Ireland moved to America with his family when he was three. He became a physician and was appointed surgeon to the New Hampshire troops in the expedition against Louisburg in 1745. He was successful in his medical practice and became a leading member of the community in Londonderry, New Hampshire. Thornton held many local offices while representing Londonderry at the Provincial Assembly, eventually becoming its President. In 1775, Thornton was asked to draft a plan of government for New Hampshire after dissolution of the royal government, which became the state's first constitution. He was selected as the first President of the New Hampshire House of Representatives and a justice to the Superior Court under the new constitution. He signed the Declaration on behalf of New Hampshire when he arrived at the Continental Congress. Thornton declined to attend the Congress again in 1777 due to poor health, and he spent the rest of his life attending to State duties and writing political essays.

Matthew Thornton

William Hooper, born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1742, graduated from Harvard College in 1760 and became a lawyer. He moved to Wilmington, North Carolina in 1767 and represented the town in the General Assembly of North Carolina in 1773. Hooper attended the Continental Congress in 1774 but resigned in 1776 to return home. Although he was appointed to the Federal Bench in 1789, he retired after a year due to declining health.

William Hooper

Philip Livingston, a slave trader and a politician born in Albany, New York, graduated from Yale College in 1737. He became an alderman and also attended the Colonial Convention at Albany in 1754. Livingston was selected as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1776 and strongly supported the Declaration of Independence. He was elected to the state Senate following the adoption of a new Constitution for New York State.

Philip Livingston

Abraham Clark, a Revolutionary War figure and politician, represented New Jersey in the Continental Congress where he signed the Declaration of Independence. The American Founding Father also served in the US House of Representatives in both the Second and Third Congresses until his death in 1794.

Abraham Clark 

George Read was born on a farm near North East, Maryland in 1733. Read studied law under John Moland in Philadelphia and was admitted to the Philadelphia Bar in 1753. The following year, he moved to New Castle, Delaware, to start a new law practice. Read was appointed as Attorney-general to three Delaware counties, an office which he resigned in 1774 when he was elected to the first Continental Congress. In 1776 Read served as the president of the committee that drafted the Delaware Constitution. He later became governor of Delaware in 1777 when the British captured Governor John McKinly. During the war, he led the state by raising money, troops, and supplies for its defense. After suffering from poor health in 1779, Read was appointed Judge in Court of Appeals in admiralty cases three years later. He was twice elected State Senator and later served as Chief Justice of the State of Delaware until his death in 1798.

George Read

Caesar Rodney was born in 1728 on his father's farm near Dover, Delaware. Rodney entered politics through his guardianship under Nicholas Ridgely, a clerk of the peace in Kent County. He was appointed High Sheriff of Kent County at the age of 22 and subsequently held several other official capacities. He was elected to the colonial legislature at Newcastle when he was 30 and served as a representative until the legislature was dissolved in 1776. He resumed his seat in the Upper House of the State of Delaware until 1784. Rodney served as a member of the Stamp Act Congress in 1765, a formative member of the Delaware Committee of Correspondence, a military leader in the colonial militia, and a delegate to the Continental Congress. He was elected President of the State of Delaware in 1778 and played a crucial role in supporting the Continental Army. Rodney suffered from asthma and a cancerous growth on his face but continued to serve until his death in June of 1784 while holding the position of Speaker to the Upper House of the Delaware Assembly.

Caesar Rodney

George Taylor was an Irish immigrant who worked as an Ironmaster in Pennsylvania, focusing on iron production throughout his life. Though not politically inclined, he served when called upon, and was elected to the provincial assembly in 1764, where he remained for five consecutive years. Taylor was appointed to Congress in 1775, replacing a member who refused to support Independence. Though he arrived too late to vote, he did sign the Declaration of Independence. He served Congress until 1777, then served for only six weeks on the Supreme Council of his state, apparently due to illness. No record record of any public service has ever been found.

George  Taylor

George Clymer, an abolitionist and American politician, was among the six Founding Fathers who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. He advocated for complete independence from Britain and held political office until his death, having attended the Continental Congress. Clymer was a Framer of the Constitution and unsuccessfully tried to regulate the importation of slaves. He was a minor slave owner through his inheritence.

George Clymer

John Morton received a practical education in surveying from his stepfather, who himself was a surveyor from England. Morton entered politics in 1756, when he was elected to the Provincial Assembly, and later became president of the Assembly in 1775. He participated in the Stamp Act Congress in 1765 and held various civil positions in Pennsylvania, including High Sheriff, Justice of the Peace, and Presiding Judge of the General Court and the Court of Common Pleas. In 1774, he was appointed Associate Judge of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Morton was elected to the Continental Congress in 1774 and served on several committees. He chaired the committee that reported the Articles of Confederation, and died shortly after presenting it to Congress at the age of 53.

John Morton

Josiah Bartlett, a Founding Father of America, was a physician and statesman from New Hampshire. He represented his state in the Continental Congress and was a signatory to both the Declaration of Independence and Articles of Confederation. He later became the first governor of New Hampshire and served as chief justice of the state's Superior Court of Judicature. In addition to his political career, Bartlett practiced medicine for an impressive 45 years.

Josiah Bartlett

John Hancock, an important figure in the American Revolution, was a Founding Father, merchant, and statesman. He played a crucial role as the President of the Second Continental Congress and also served as the first and third Governor of Massachusetts. Having lost his parents as a child, he was taken in by his uncle, from whom he inherited a great deal of wealth. After graduating from Harvard College at 17, he worked for his uncle and although he was part of a society of loyalists in New England, Hancock became involved in revolutionary politics and supported independence from Great Britain. He worked with other leaders in the republican movement, including the Adamses, and was elected to various positions, including the Boston Assembly and the Continental Congress. He even played a role in events like the Boston Tea Party and commemoration of the Boston Massacre. Hancock was known for his support of the common man and his disdain for unreasoned authority. He also had a reputation for being bold, as demonstrated by his famous signature on the Declaration of Independence. He served as Governor of Massachusetts until his death in 1793.

John Hancock

George Walton was born in Virginia in 1741 and orphaned at a young age. After being adopted by his uncle, he became a carpenter before moving to Savannah in 1769 to study law. In 1774, he was admitted to the bar and became heavily involved with the patriot movement in Georgia. Walton served as Secretary and President of the Council of Safety in the Georgia provincial Congress, and later as Governor of Georgia, but his career was marked by political conflict and legal issues. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1776 and signed the Declaration of Independence, but spent much of the following years defending his state and battling with Button Gwinnett. Walton was commissioned as a Colonel in the Georgia Militia in 1778, but was injured and taken prisoner the following year. He gained his freedom in 1779 and was soon elected Governor, only to hold the office for two months. Walton was censured by the legislature for his involvement in a duel with Gwinnett and served in the US Senate for a brief period before retiring to farming. He died in 1804 at the age of 64.

George Walton

Lyman Hall had become involved in revolutionary politics and was elected to the Continental Congress by 1774. The founding father, up until then had established a medical practice in Charleston after having graduated Yale, purchased land in Georgia in 1760 and established a plantation. He was elected to the House of Assembly in 1783 before being elevated to the office of Governor in Georgia. He served one year as Governor, one more year in the Assembly, and a year as a judge before returning to private life.

Lyman Hall

Roger Sherman's trajectory into politics came after he had already established his career in Connecticut as a shoemaker, then a surveyor, then a merchant, then a lawyer, finally a justice of the Peace, before he was elected to the Connecticut General Assembly and appointed Treasurer of Yale College. &nbsp;He became an ardent patriot and represented Connecticut in both Continental Congresses. &nbsp;In addition to his appointment on the Committee of Five which drafted the Declaration of Independence, Sherman is credited with the ‘Connecticut Compromise’ at the Constitutional Convention which established the legislative system whereby the people would be represented by the Lower House of Representatives and the states by the Senate. &nbsp;He was also instrumental in supporting Alexander Hamilton's proposal for federal assumption of the states depts. &nbsp;After Benjamin Franklin, he was at 66 the second oldest member. &nbsp;He went on to serve as a Representative and appointed as a US Senator in 1791. &nbsp;He was considered steadfast and sensible but his colleagues never thought him to be a particularly skilled orator.&nbsp;He is reported to have arisen every morning at 5am and worked steadily till 10pm. &nbsp;He also was able to find enough time to marry twice and father 15 children.

The original house was moved.  The marker stands on the site of Town Hall

Sherman House

Grove Street Cemetery

Roger Sherman

William Ellery, a lawyer turned abolitionist, joined the Rhode Island Sons of Liberty and replaced Samuel Ward at the Continental Congress in 1776, where he served on the Marine committee and other committees, including foreign relations, while serving as a judge of the Rhode Island Supreme Court. He became an advocate for the abolition of slavery in 1785 and was appointed as the First Collector of the Newport port under the Federal Constitution, where he served until his death in 1820. A Founding Father who signed the United States Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation representing Rhode Island, Ellery also collaborated with Reverend Ezra Stiles to draft a charter for what is now Brown University.&nbsp;

William Ellery

Stephen Hopkins, a prominent Founding Father of the United States, served as a member and speaker of the Rhode Island Assembly. In 1754, he attended the Albany convention in New York where he reviewed Franklin's early plan of Union. Hopkins was an early critic of British tyranny and attended the first Continental Congress in 1774. He signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776 but left the Congress in 1778 to serve in Rhode Island's Legislature. Hopkins also served as governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, chief justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court, and was involved in taking measurements during the 1769 transit of Venus across the Sun as a surveyor and astronomer.

Stephen Hopkins

Elbridge Gerry was an influential American politician, diplomat, merchant and a Founding Father who served as the fifth vice president of the United States under President James Madison from 1813 until his death in 1814. Gerry graduated from Harvard University in 1762 with a degree in commerce and entered politics in 1773, winning a seat in the Massachusetts Legislature and attending the Provincial Congress in 1774. He went on to serve on the Continental Congress, where he worked on commercial and naval issues. Although he attended the Constitutional Convention in 1787, he opposed the new Federal Constitution and declined to sign it since it did not include a Bill of Rights. Gerry was elected to the first two Congresses from Massachusetts and later served as an envoy to France in 1797. He was also elected governor of Massachusetts in 1810 and 1811, but came under scrutiny for redistricting the state to benefit his party, which led to the creation of the term "gerrymandering." In 1812, Gerry was elected Vice President of the United States.

Elbridge Gerry

Born in Massachusetts in 1731, Robert Treat Paine was expected to become a Minister due to family tradition. However, he pursued a different path and graduated from Harvard College in 1749. After teaching and working as a merchant marine, he decided to pursue law and was admitted to the bar of Massachusetts in 1757. He served as associate prosecuting attorney in the trials of British soldiers following the Boston Massacre. Paine was elected to the Provincial Assembly in 1770 and selected to attend the first Continental Congress in 1774. He participated in the debates leading to the resolution for Independence and signed the Declaration. Paine was also attorney general of Massachusetts in 1777, and helped draft the first constitution of the state. In 1783, he declined an appointment to the bench of the Supreme Court, but accepted it in 1796 and retired 14 years later due to failing health. He died at the age of 83.

Robert Treat Paine

An American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Father who served as the 2nd president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before his presidency, he was a leader of the American Revolution that achieved independence from Great Britain and during the war, served as a diplomat in Europe. He was twice elected vice president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797 in a prestigious role with little power. Adams was a dedicated diarist and regularly corresponded with many important contemporaries, including his wife and adviser Abigail Adams as well as his friend and rival Thomas Jefferson. 

John Adams

Samuel Adams, a Founding Father of the United States and a signatory of the Declaration of Independence, was a statesman and political philosopher from colonial Massachusetts. He played a key role in the American Revolution and helped shape the principles of American republicanism. As a second cousin to President John Adams, he came from a religious and politically active family and was educated at Harvard College. Although his business ventures were unsuccessful, he found success in politics, serving as an influential member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Boston Town Meeting. He was also a vocal opponent of British Parliament's attempts to tax the American colonies without their consent in the 1760s.

Granary Burying Ground

Samuel Adams

William Whipple was born in Kittery, Maine, in 1730, and left school as a teenager to become a successful seaman. He later settled in Portsmouth and became a prosperous merchant, while also serving in various local offices and joining the Patriot movement. In 1775, he represented his town at the provincial congress, and was appointed to the Continental Congress the following year. He also served in the military, rising to the rank of Brigadier General and leading successful expeditions against the British. After the war, he became an associate justice of the Superior Court of New Hampshire, but died from a heart ailment while traveling his court circuit in 1785.

William Whipple

Despite little success in farming or business, Button Gwinnett found a foothold in revolutionary politics in his adopted colony. He was appointed commander of Georgia's continental militia in 1776 and elected to attend the Continental Congress. After signing the Declaration of Independence, Gwinnett returned home hoping to be appointed to lead the Georgia militia, but the post went to his rival Lachlan McIntosh. He served in the Georgia legislature and drafted a constitution for the new state. Gwinnett became president of the Council of Safety after the Georgia legislature adjourned in 1777. He led a failed attempt to invade Florida to secure Georgia's southern border, resulting in him being charged with malfeasance. Although he was cleared of wrongdoing, Gwinnett's honor was challenged by McIntosh, and they dueled outside of Savanna on May 16, 1777. Gwinnett died three days later at the age of 42.

Button Gwinnett

Samuel Huntington devoted his life to public office, beginning as a self-taught lawyer at age 23. He served as King's attorney to Norwich and was appointed to the superior Court of Connecticut in 1773. Despite his upper-class leanings, he joined the Sons of Liberty in 1774 and was elected to Connecticut's Upper House of Assembly in 1776. Huntington served on the Council of Safety, was selected as a delegate to the Continental Congress, and later served two terms as President during the adoption of the Articles of Confederation. He was elected Lieutenant Governor in 1784 and Governor in 1786, where he worked to develop roads and industry.

Signing of the United States Declaration of Independence