History Lesson

[satellite66]

"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
this 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
and silently thank these patriots. It's not much to
ask for the
price they paid . . .

LET'S ALL REMEMBER THAT FREEDOM IS "NEVER FREE"!!!!

Author unknown.