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 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 fortunes, and our sacred honor." They gave you and me a free and
independent America.

The history books never told you a lot of what happened in the
Revolutionary War. We didn't just fight 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...We shouldn't. So, take a couple of
minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these
patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid.

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