Samuel Adams played a pivotal role in the Revolutionary era in America. He was one of the founders of the Sons of Liberty, a Massachusetts delegate to the First and Second Continental Congress,and a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
Early Life
Samuel Adams, second cousin to John Adams, was born September 27, 1722 in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the tenth of twelve children born to Samuel Adams, a successful brewer, and Mary Fifield.
Samuel Adams early education was at the Boston Latin School. At the age of fourteen, he entered Harvard University. Though not a distinguished student, he graduated from Harvard in 1743 with a Master of Arts degree.
Introduction to Political Life
Adams passion was always in politics. Throughout his post college years he had been active in political meetings at the Boston town meetings. When his private business failed in 1764, he was elected tax collector. In 1765 he was elected to the Massachusetts Assembly, the same year Britain passed The Stamp Act.
Stirrings of Revolution
Britain required colonists to pay taxes, yet refused to seat their representatives in Parliament. The Stamp Act brought to headpolitical tensions that had been stirring throughout the colonies. The Stamp Act required the colonists to procure and use special water marked paper from Britain to print any legal documents, such as marriage license and court papers, or newspapers. Colonist speculated that this would soon extend to paper used for Bibles and religious tracts.
This act by the British government influenced Samuel Adams, along with Boston attorney, James Otis, to found the Sons of Liberty, a group of patriots willing to stand against British tyranny. The group would become prominent in protests against The Stamp act and later were involved in The Boston Massacre and The Boston Tea Party.
With the Stamp Act repealed, it was quickly replaced by the Townsend Act. The new law required the colonists to pay taxes on many items, including glass, oil, tea, lead, and paper. In a short time, colonists began to rebel.
In 1773 the Townshend Act was repealed, except for tax on tea. The Tea Tax gave the East India Tea Company the sole rights to sell tea to the colonies. The Tea Tax eventually led to the event in American history known as the Boston Tea Party.
The Continental Congress
In 1774, Samuel Adams was a delegate to the First Continental Congress. During the First Continental Congress, the delegates composed a list of complaints that were sent to the King of England. The group agreed to assemble again the next spring if their complaints had not been addressed to the colonies satisfaction.
Signing the Declaration of Independence
When the Second Continental Congress convened, the four delegates representing Massachusetts were Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, and Elbridge Gerry.
During this session, the Declaration of Independence was drafted and signed by fifty-one of the fifty-six signers. Samuel Adams, long an advocate for independence, was the fourth signer of the Declaration of Independence.
Later Life
During the war, Adams lent a hand in keeping the newborn government on track and gave encouragement to others to have faith in the cause for which they were fighting.
In 1779, he assisted his cousin, John Adams, in drafting a state constitution for the state of Massachusetts. He also served as lieutenant governor of Massachusetts under Governor John Hancock. After Hancock’s death, he served as governor for a period of three years.
He suffered through illness and poverty in his remaining years and died October 2, 1803.
Sources:
Our Nation's Great Heritage by Donald E. Cooke. Maplewood, New Jersey: Hammond Incorporated, 1972. ISBN: 0-8437-3715-8
1776 by John McCullough. Simon & Schuster, 2006. ISBN: 0-0743226720
Mary Briggs - I am a wife and mom. We live in the mountains in a home we built ourselves. I enjoy writing both fiction and non-fiction. I am also a ...
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