Transcriber’s Note: Italics is indicated by _underscores_, boldface by
=equals signs=.
[Illustration: Independence Hall in 1776. Here the Continental Congress
adopted and signed the Declaration of Independence.]
_Signers of the Declaration_
[Illustration: John Trumbull’s “The Declaration of Independence” hangs
in the rotunda of the U.S. Capitol. Depicting the drafting committee
presenting the document to the Continental Congress, the painting
commemorates the signers.]
THE NATIONAL SURVEY OF HISTORIC SITES AND BUILDINGS • VOLUME XVIII
_Signers_
OF THE DECLARATION
Historic Places Commemorating the Signing
of the Declaration of Independence
ROBERT G. FERRIS
Series Editor
[Illustration]
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
Washington, D.C. 1973
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
Ernest A. Connally
OFFICE OF ARCHEOLOGY AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION
Robert M. Utley, _Director_
DIVISION OF HISTORY
A. Russell Mortensen, _Chief_
HISTORIC SITES SURVEY
Horace J. Sheely, Jr., _Chief_
This volume incorporates a comprehensive survey of sites and buildings
associated with the signers accomplished by Charles W. Snell and the
late John O. Littleton. Also utilized were survey and evaluation
reports authored by the following individuals: S. Sydney Bradford,
Charles E. Hatch, Jr., W. Brown Morton III, Denys Peter Myers, John
D. R. Platt, Frank B. Sarles, Jr., Charles E. Shedd, Jr., Horace J.
Sheely, Jr., and Martin I. Yoelson. These surveys and reports were
reviewed by the Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites,
Buildings, and Monuments. Members of this group are listed in the
Acknowledgments. Directly involved in all aspects of the preparation
of this book were Assistant Editor Richard E. Morris and Editorial
Assistant James H. Charleton. It was designed by Gary Gore.
THIS BOOK IS ISSUED AS PART OF THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE OBSERVANCE OF
OUR NATION’S BICENTENNIAL.
As the Nation’s principal conservation agency, the Department of
the Interior has basic responsibilities for water, fish, wildlife,
mineral, land, park, and recreational resources. Indian and Territorial
affairs are other major concerns of America’s “Department of Natural
Resources.” The Department works to assure the wisest choice in
managing all our resources so each will make its full contribution to a
better United States—now and in the future.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOG CARD NUMBER: 73-600028
For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing
Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 · Price $5.65
Stock Number 2405-00496
_Foreword_
As we approach the two hundredth anniversary of the signing of the
Declaration of Independence, each of us is stirred by the memory of
those who framed the future of our country.
In the coming years we will have many opportunities to refresh our
understanding of what America means, but none can mean more than
personal visits to the sites where freedom was forged and our founding
fathers actually made the decisions which have stood the severest tests
of time.
I remember my reactions, for example, when I visited Independence Hall
in Philadelphia in 1972 to sign the new revenue sharing legislation.
Walking into the building where that small group of patriots gathered
some two centuries ago, I thought back to what it must have been
like when the giants of our American heritage solemnly committed
themselves and their children to liberty. The dilemmas they faced, the
uncertainties they felt, the ideals they cherished—all seemed more
alive to me than ever before, and I came away with an even stronger
appreciation for their courage and their vision.
As people from all over the world visit the places described in this
valuable book, they, too, will feel the excitement of history and
relive in their minds the beginnings of a great Nation.
I commend this book to your attention and encourage all people,
Americans and foreigners alike, to make a special effort to visit our
historic sites during these Bicentennial years.
_The White House_
_Washington, D.C._
[Illustration: Richard Nixon (signature)]
_Preface_
Nearly two hundred years have passed since America proclaimed her
independence. Yet this action and the beliefs and hopes motivating
those responsible for it are as central to us as a people today as
they were to Abraham Lincoln, whose words still remind us that “...
our fathers brought forth upon this continent, a new nation, conceived
in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created
equal....”
To understand what we have become, we must know what we have been.
This volume illuminates the role of those who framed the Declaration
of Independence and took the bold risk of putting their signatures to
it, thus bringing into being a new Nation on a new model of stated
principle. It will stimulate our visual memory of the persons and
events that cast this Nation upon its course, and I commend it to all
who would more fully appreciate that heritage.
ROGERS C. B. MORTON
_Secretary of the Interior_
It is my hope that this volume will not only increase popular knowledge
of the Declaration of Independence and its signers, but that it will
also undergird the efforts of historic preservationists to protect
sites and buildings associated with them. Written records alone cannot
convey the appreciation and understanding that come from personal
acquaintance with historic places. Thus, while we preserve and study
the documents of the American Revolution, we must also save and
experience what physical evidences remain to illustrate the lives of
those who so boldly brought it about. With the assistance of this
book, many more Americans may come to know the sites and structures
frequented by the signers of the Declaration, to visit them personally,
and to appreciate more deeply the importance of their preservation.
Credit for the preparation of this volume is shared widely by persons
both in and out of the National Park Service. The historic preservation
activities of the Service have particularly benefited from the
assistance of the National Trust for Historic Preservation in the
United States, cosponsor of the National Survey of Historic Sites and
Buildings. The Survey is authorized by the Historic Sites Act of 1935.
RONALD H. WALKER
_Director_
_National Park Service_
Contents
Part I
Signers of the Declaration:
Historical Background 1