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3rd President of the Confederation Congress John Hanson Death

3rd President of the Confederation Congress John Hanson

John Hanson was a merchant and public official from Maryland during the era of the American Revolution. In 1779, Hanson was elected as a delegate to the Continental Congress after serving in a variety of roles for the Patriot cause in Maryland.
Born: April 14, 1721, Port Tobacco, MD
Died: November 15, 1783, Prince George’s County, MD
Nationality: American
Buried: Addison Graveyard, Oxon Hill
Children: Alexander Contee Hanson Sr., Peter Contee Hanson
Parents: Samuel Hanson, Elizabeth Hanson

John Hanson (April 14, 1721–November 15, 1783) was an American Revolutionary leader who served as a delegate to Second Continental Congress and, in 1781, was elected the first “President of the United States in Congress assembled.” For this reason, some biographers argue that John Hanson—rather than George Washington—was actually the first President of the United States.

John Hanson was born on his wealthy family’s “Mulberry Grove” plantation in Port Tobacco Parish in Charles County, Maryland, on April 14, 1721. His parents, Samuel and Elizabeth (Storey) Hanson, were well-known members of Maryland’s social and political elite. Samuel Hanson was a successful planter, landowner, and politician who served two terms in the Maryland General Assembly.

While few details of Hanson’s early life are known, historians presume he was educated at home by private tutors as were most children of wealthy Colonial American families. Hanson then joined his father as a planter, slave owner, and public official.

Early Political Career
After serving as sheriff of Charles County for five years, Hanson was elected to the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly in 1757. An active and persuasive member, he was a major opponent of the Stamp Act of 1765 and chaired a special committee that coordinated Maryland’s participation in the Stamp Act Congress. In protest of the British-enacted Intolerable Acts, Hanson co-signed a resolution calling for a boycott of all British imports to the Colonies until the acts were repealed.

In 1769, Hanson resigned from the Maryland General Assembly to pursue business interests. After selling his Charles County land and plantation, he moved to Frederick County in western Maryland, where he held a variety of appointed and elected offices, including surveyor, sheriff, and treasurer.

Hanson Goes to Congress
As relations with Great Britain went from bad to worse and the colonies traveled down the road to the American Revolution in 1774, Hanson became recognized as one of Maryland’s foremost Patriots. He personally orchestrated the passage of a resolution denouncing the Boston Port Act (which punished the people of Boston for the Boston Tea Party). As a delegate to the First Annapolis Convention in 1775, Hanson signed the Declaration of the Association of the Freemen of Maryland, which, while expressing a desire to reconcile with Great Britain, called for military resistance to British troops in place to enforce the Intolerable Acts.

Once the Revolution broke out, Hanson helped recruit and arm local soldiers. Under his leadership, Frederick County, Maryland sent the first troops from the Southern Colonies north to join General George Washington’s newly-formed Continental Army. Sometimes paying the local soldiers out of his own pocket, Hanson urged the Continental Congress to declare independence.

In 1777, Hanson was elected to his first of five one-year terms in the new Maryland House of Delegates, which named him as the state’s delegate to the Second Continental Congress in late 1779. On March 1, 1781, he signed the Articles of Confederation on the behalf of Maryland, the last state needed to ratify the Articles and bring it into full effect.

First President of the USA?
On November 5, 1781, the Continental Congress elected Hanson as “President of the United States in Congress assembled.” This title is also sometimes called “President of the Continental Congress.” This election has led to the contention that Hanson, rather than George Washington, was the first President of the United States.

However, under the Articles of Confederation, the U.S. central government had no executive branch, and the position of president was largely ceremonial. Indeed, most of Hanson’s “presidential” duties consisted of dealing with official correspondence and signing documents. Finding the work so tedious, Hanson threatened to resign after just one week in office. After his colleagues in Congress appealed to his well-known sense of duty, Hanson agreed to continue to serve as president until the end of his one-year term on November 4, 1782.

Under the Articles of Confederation, presidents were elected to one-year terms. Hanson was neither the first person to serve as president or to be elected to the position under the Articles of Confederation. When the Articles went into full effect in March 1781, rather than elect a new president, Congress simply allowed Samuel Huntington of Connecticut to continue serving as president. On July 9, 1781, Congress elected Samuel Johnston of North Carolina as the first president after ratification of the Articles. When Johnston declined to serve, Congress elected Thomas McKean of Delaware. However, McKean served for less than four months, resigning in October 1781. It was not until the next session of Congress convened in November 1781, that Hanson was elected as the first president to serve a full term as president.

Hanson was responsible for establishing Thanksgiving Day. On October 11, 1782, he issued a proclamation setting aside the last Thursday in November as “a day of Solemn Thanksgiving to God for all His mercies…” and urging all Americans to celebrate progress in negotiations with Britain ending the Revolutionary War.

Later Life and Death
Already in poor health, Hanson retired from public service immediately after completing his one-year term as president of Congress in November 1792. He died just one year later at age 62, on November 15, 1783, while visiting his nephew Thomas Hawkins Hanson’s plantation in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Hanson is buried in Fort Washington, Maryland, in the cemetery of the Saint John’s Episcopal Church.

The Meaning of Freeman
The possibility remains that the John Hanson in question had one or more African ancestors, either known or not known to his colleagues or even to himself. J. Bruce Kremer, one of Hanson’s biographers, states that Hanson’s grandfather and his three brothers emigrated in 1642 from Sweden to the recently formed New Sweden settlement on the Delaware River with newly appointed Governor Johan Printz. Kremer points out that one of the Hanson brothers, Andrew, had the same name as “Andrew Hanson, freeman, who once worked as a farmhand” for New Sweden landowner and military leader Lieutenant Måns Kling, the owner of a tobacco plantation on the Schuylkill.

3rd President of the Confederation Congress John Hanson Birthday

3rd President of the Confederation Congress John Hanson

John Hanson was a merchant and public official from Maryland during the era of the American Revolution. In 1779, Hanson was elected as a delegate to the Continental Congress after serving in a variety of roles for the Patriot cause in Maryland.
Born: April 14, 1721, Port Tobacco, MD
Died: November 15, 1783, Prince George’s County, MD
Nationality: American
Buried: Addison Graveyard, Oxon Hill
Children: Alexander Contee Hanson Sr., Peter Contee Hanson
Parents: Samuel Hanson, Elizabeth Hanson

John Hanson (April 14, 1721–November 15, 1783) was an American Revolutionary leader who served as a delegate to Second Continental Congress and, in 1781, was elected the first “President of the United States in Congress assembled.” For this reason, some biographers argue that John Hanson—rather than George Washington—was actually the first President of the United States.

John Hanson was born on his wealthy family’s “Mulberry Grove” plantation in Port Tobacco Parish in Charles County, Maryland, on April 14, 1721. His parents, Samuel and Elizabeth (Storey) Hanson, were well-known members of Maryland’s social and political elite. Samuel Hanson was a successful planter, landowner, and politician who served two terms in the Maryland General Assembly.

While few details of Hanson’s early life are known, historians presume he was educated at home by private tutors as were most children of wealthy Colonial American families. Hanson then joined his father as a planter, slave owner, and public official.

Early Political Career
After serving as sheriff of Charles County for five years, Hanson was elected to the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly in 1757. An active and persuasive member, he was a major opponent of the Stamp Act of 1765 and chaired a special committee that coordinated Maryland’s participation in the Stamp Act Congress. In protest of the British-enacted Intolerable Acts, Hanson co-signed a resolution calling for a boycott of all British imports to the Colonies until the acts were repealed.

In 1769, Hanson resigned from the Maryland General Assembly to pursue business interests. After selling his Charles County land and plantation, he moved to Frederick County in western Maryland, where he held a variety of appointed and elected offices, including surveyor, sheriff, and treasurer.

Hanson Goes to Congress
As relations with Great Britain went from bad to worse and the colonies traveled down the road to the American Revolution in 1774, Hanson became recognized as one of Maryland’s foremost Patriots. He personally orchestrated the passage of a resolution denouncing the Boston Port Act (which punished the people of Boston for the Boston Tea Party). As a delegate to the First Annapolis Convention in 1775, Hanson signed the Declaration of the Association of the Freemen of Maryland, which, while expressing a desire to reconcile with Great Britain, called for military resistance to British troops in place to enforce the Intolerable Acts.

Once the Revolution broke out, Hanson helped recruit and arm local soldiers. Under his leadership, Frederick County, Maryland sent the first troops from the Southern Colonies north to join General George Washington’s newly-formed Continental Army. Sometimes paying the local soldiers out of his own pocket, Hanson urged the Continental Congress to declare independence.

In 1777, Hanson was elected to his first of five one-year terms in the new Maryland House of Delegates, which named him as the state’s delegate to the Second Continental Congress in late 1779. On March 1, 1781, he signed the Articles of Confederation on the behalf of Maryland, the last state needed to ratify the Articles and bring it into full effect.

First President of the USA?
On November 5, 1781, the Continental Congress elected Hanson as “President of the United States in Congress assembled.” This title is also sometimes called “President of the Continental Congress.” This election has led to the contention that Hanson, rather than George Washington, was the first President of the United States.

However, under the Articles of Confederation, the U.S. central government had no executive branch, and the position of president was largely ceremonial. Indeed, most of Hanson’s “presidential” duties consisted of dealing with official correspondence and signing documents. Finding the work so tedious, Hanson threatened to resign after just one week in office. After his colleagues in Congress appealed to his well-known sense of duty, Hanson agreed to continue to serve as president until the end of his one-year term on November 4, 1782.

Under the Articles of Confederation, presidents were elected to one-year terms. Hanson was neither the first person to serve as president or to be elected to the position under the Articles of Confederation. When the Articles went into full effect in March 1781, rather than elect a new president, Congress simply allowed Samuel Huntington of Connecticut to continue serving as president. On July 9, 1781, Congress elected Samuel Johnston of North Carolina as the first president after ratification of the Articles. When Johnston declined to serve, Congress elected Thomas McKean of Delaware. However, McKean served for less than four months, resigning in October 1781. It was not until the next session of Congress convened in November 1781, that Hanson was elected as the first president to serve a full term as president.

Hanson was responsible for establishing Thanksgiving Day. On October 11, 1782, he issued a proclamation setting aside the last Thursday in November as “a day of Solemn Thanksgiving to God for all His mercies…” and urging all Americans to celebrate progress in negotiations with Britain ending the Revolutionary War.

Later Life and Death
Already in poor health, Hanson retired from public service immediately after completing his one-year term as president of Congress in November 1792. He died just one year later at age 62, on November 15, 1783, while visiting his nephew Thomas Hawkins Hanson’s plantation in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Hanson is buried in Fort Washington, Maryland, in the cemetery of the Saint John’s Episcopal Church.

The Meaning of Freeman
The possibility remains that the John Hanson in question had one or more African ancestors, either known or not known to his colleagues or even to himself. J. Bruce Kremer, one of Hanson’s biographers, states that Hanson’s grandfather and his three brothers emigrated in 1642 from Sweden to the recently formed New Sweden settlement on the Delaware River with newly appointed Governor Johan Printz. Kremer points out that one of the Hanson brothers, Andrew, had the same name as “Andrew Hanson, freeman, who once worked as a farmhand” for New Sweden landowner and military leader Lieutenant Måns Kling, the owner of a tobacco plantation on the Schuylkill.

4th President of the Continental Congress 2 John Jay Death

4th President of the Continental Congress 2 John Jay

John Jay
Former Governor of New York
Image result for John Jay continental congress
DescriptionJohn Jay was an American statesman, patriot, diplomat, Founding Father of the United States, negotiator and signatory of the Treaty of Paris of 1783, second Governor of New York, and the first Chief Justice of the United States.
Born: December 23, 1745, New York, NY
Died: May 17, 1829, Bedford, NY
Spouse: Sarah Livingston Jay (m. 1774–1802)
Education: Columbia College
Party: Federalist Party

One of the Founding Fathers of the United States, John Jay is known as one of the writers of ‘The Federalist Papers’ and for being the nation’s first chief justice of the Supreme Court.

John Jay was an American statesman and Founding Father who served in several government offices. Initially wary of the disruption that independence would bring, he soon devoted himself to the American Revolution. Jay served in the Continental Congress, was a diplomat, wrote some of The Federalist Papers and was the first chief justice of the U. S. Supreme Court.

Born in New York City, on December 12, 1745, Jay spent his childhood in nearby Rye, New York. Jay came from a wealthy merchant family whose ancestors included French Huguenots. After graduating from King’s College in 1764, Jay began a career as a lawyer. He was already well-established in his career by the time that rifts with Great Britain and calls for independence erupted in the colonies.

Jay represented New York at the Continental Congress in 1774. His conservative nature initially had him searching for a way to maintain ties with Great Britain, something many other colonists also desired. However, wanting to ensure that colonists’ rights would be respected, Jay soon wholeheartedly supported the revolution.

In 1776, Jay went back to New York. After working as the state’s chief justice and helping to write the state constitution, he returned to the Continental Congress in 1778. Jay became president of the Congress, but would soon take on his most prominent role during the war—that of a diplomat.

As minister plenipotentiary, Jay traveled to Spain in an attempt to garner more support for American independence—a visit that was largely unsuccessful. Jay next joined Benjamin Franklin in Paris, France, where they negotiated an end to the Revolutionary War with the Treaty of Paris (1783).

A New Constitution and ‘The Federalist Papers’
With peace secured, Jay became the foreign affairs secretary under the Articles of Confederation. Frustration with the limited power of the state he represented led Jay to support a stronger central government, and a new Constitution.

Jay put pen to paper to show his support, joining Alexander Hamilton and James Madison to write five of the essays that became known as The Federalist Papers. The Federalist Papers discussed, and argued in favor of, the principles of government laid out in the Constitution. Jay also authored a pamphlet, “An Address to the People of New York,” which helped the Constitution attain ratification in New York.

In 1789, George Washington appointed Jay as the Supreme Court’s first chief justice, a role he held until 1795. Jay took a break from judicial duties in 1794, when he went to Great Britain to address contentious issues such as exports, seizures and occupation. The resulting “Jay Treaty” sparked protests because it was considered too favorable for the British. However, the treaty averted a war that the United States was then ill-equipped to fight.

Upon his return to the United States, Jay learned that he had been elected governor of New York. He resigned his seat on the Supreme Court to take office. Jay refused a reappointment to the Supreme Court in 1800, citing his poor health and a reluctance to resume life on the judicial riding circuit.

In 1801, Jay stepped away from public life to retire to his farm in Bedford, New York. He died at his farm on May 17, 1829, at the age of 83. Having served his country for years as a judge, Constitutional advocate, diplomat and in elected office, Jay merits a place of honor among the Founding Fathers of the United States.

4th President of the Continental Congress 2 John Jay Birthday

4th President of the Continental Congress 2 John Jay

John Jay
Former Governor of New York
Image result for John Jay continental congress
DescriptionJohn Jay was an American statesman, patriot, diplomat, Founding Father of the United States, negotiator and signatory of the Treaty of Paris of 1783, second Governor of New York, and the first Chief Justice of the United States.
Born: December 23, 1745, New York, NY
Died: May 17, 1829, Bedford, NY
Spouse: Sarah Livingston Jay (m. 1774–1802)
Education: Columbia College
Party: Federalist Party

One of the Founding Fathers of the United States, John Jay is known as one of the writers of ‘The Federalist Papers’ and for being the nation’s first chief justice of the Supreme Court.

John Jay was an American statesman and Founding Father who served in several government offices. Initially wary of the disruption that independence would bring, he soon devoted himself to the American Revolution. Jay served in the Continental Congress, was a diplomat, wrote some of The Federalist Papers and was the first chief justice of the U. S. Supreme Court.

Born in New York City, on December 12, 1745, Jay spent his childhood in nearby Rye, New York. Jay came from a wealthy merchant family whose ancestors included French Huguenots. After graduating from King’s College in 1764, Jay began a career as a lawyer. He was already well-established in his career by the time that rifts with Great Britain and calls for independence erupted in the colonies.

Jay represented New York at the Continental Congress in 1774. His conservative nature initially had him searching for a way to maintain ties with Great Britain, something many other colonists also desired. However, wanting to ensure that colonists’ rights would be respected, Jay soon wholeheartedly supported the revolution.

In 1776, Jay went back to New York. After working as the state’s chief justice and helping to write the state constitution, he returned to the Continental Congress in 1778. Jay became president of the Congress, but would soon take on his most prominent role during the war—that of a diplomat.

As minister plenipotentiary, Jay traveled to Spain in an attempt to garner more support for American independence—a visit that was largely unsuccessful. Jay next joined Benjamin Franklin in Paris, France, where they negotiated an end to the Revolutionary War with the Treaty of Paris (1783).

A New Constitution and ‘The Federalist Papers’
With peace secured, Jay became the foreign affairs secretary under the Articles of Confederation. Frustration with the limited power of the state he represented led Jay to support a stronger central government, and a new Constitution.

Jay put pen to paper to show his support, joining Alexander Hamilton and James Madison to write five of the essays that became known as The Federalist Papers. The Federalist Papers discussed, and argued in favor of, the principles of government laid out in the Constitution. Jay also authored a pamphlet, “An Address to the People of New York,” which helped the Constitution attain ratification in New York.

In 1789, George Washington appointed Jay as the Supreme Court’s first chief justice, a role he held until 1795. Jay took a break from judicial duties in 1794, when he went to Great Britain to address contentious issues such as exports, seizures and occupation. The resulting “Jay Treaty” sparked protests because it was considered too favorable for the British. However, the treaty averted a war that the United States was then ill-equipped to fight.

Upon his return to the United States, Jay learned that he had been elected governor of New York. He resigned his seat on the Supreme Court to take office. Jay refused a reappointment to the Supreme Court in 1800, citing his poor health and a reluctance to resume life on the judicial riding circuit.

In 1801, Jay stepped away from public life to retire to his farm in Bedford, New York. He died at his farm on May 17, 1829, at the age of 83. Having served his country for years as a judge, Constitutional advocate, diplomat and in elected office, Jay merits a place of honor among the Founding Fathers of the United States.

2nd President of the Continental Congress 2 and 7th President of the Confederation Congress John Hancock Death

John Hancock

John Hancock was an American merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Born: January 23, 1737, Braintree, MA
Died: October 8, 1793, Hancock Manor, Cambridge, MA
Buried: Granary Burying Ground, Boston, MA
Spouse: Dorothy Quincy (m. 1775–1793)
Education: Harvard University (1754), BLS (Boston Latin School)
Children: Lydia Henchman Hancock, John George Washington Hancock

John Hancock was an 18th century U.S. merchant who was president of the Continental Congress and the first person to sign the Declaration of Independence.
Born on January 23, 1737, in Braintree (present day city of Quincy) Massachusetts, John Hancock inherited a thriving trading business in Boston and would, with Samuel Adams, become a major figure in colonial agitation against British rule. He was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence and would later be elected the first governor of Massachusetts. He also faced accusations of financial mismanagement.

Hancock was born on January 23, 1737, in Braintree (present day city of Quincy), Massachusetts, to Mary Hawke and the senior John Hancock, who was a clergyman. The elder Hancock died when John was a child, and his mother took him and his siblings to live with in-laws in Lexington. She later sent John to live with Lydia and Thomas Hancock, his aunt and uncle. The couple had no children and hence adopted the boy.

Thomas was a wealthy merchant who owned a highly successful shipping business. John went on to attend Harvard College, his father’s alma mater, graduating in 1754 and subsequently working with his uncle. In 1759, John ventured to London and lived there for a spell, returning to the colonies in 1761. His uncle’s health was failing and upon Thomas’s death in 1764, John inherited the family business and estate.

Hancock — who reputedly maintained a lavish lifestyle and often faced staunch criticism for his exorbitance — would become a major figure in the American Revolution. In the mid-1760s, he won two consecutive political positions, first managing affairs on a local level in Boston and then moving to the colonial legislature. He entered politics at a time when American colonialists were becoming increasingly agitated by British parliamentary tax regulations and restrictions, with Hancock becoming inextricably involved due to his importing-exporting affairs.

Protesting financial regulations like the Stamp Act and Townshend duties, Hancock commandeered public acts of protest. To avoid British taxation, Hancock had also allegedly taken to smuggling goods aboard his vessels. In 1768, Hancock’s ship the Liberty was taken ahold of by British authorities who stated the merchant hadn’t paid the required fees on his imports. Hancock was given a huge fine and taken to court. These actions in turn prompted mob violence on Boston streets and eventually led to British authorities sending in military forces.

In 1770, after the Boston Massacre, where British troops fired into a crowd with no matching weaponry, Hancock chaired the committee that demanded the removal of British forces. After a period of improved transatlantic relations, Boston became a volatile site once again with the Tea Act of 1773, with Hancock helping to organize protests. He, along with fellow New England agitator and legislator Samuel Adams, was increasingly seen as a major rabble rouser by the British government.

In 1774, Hancock was made leader of the Massachusetts delegate to the second Continental Congress, which would convene the following year in Philadelphia. Yet Hancock and Adams were hunted by British general Thomas Gage. The two were warned by Paul Revere during his famous April 18, 1775 night ride shouting out that British forces were on their way. Hancock and Adams fled Lexington, where they were staying, and eventually made their way to Philadelphia.

The Congress met in May 1775. George Washington was appointed leader of the Continental Army while Hancock was appointed congress president. Hancock would give the coming American war effort financial support while his presidential role was more of a figurehead position, with congressional decisions generally achieved through committee. In August of the same year, he wed Dorothy Quincy, who came from a merchant family as well. Hancock’s business fortune by this time had significantly dwindled.

Hancock became the first representative to sign the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, a document which maintained that the thirteen American states were free of British rule. Hancock left a sizable signature with flourish; the idea of leaving one’s “John Hancock” on paperwork has meaning to this day.

Hancock resigned as president of the Continental Congress in 1777, citing health issues, though he remained a member. During the same year, he also faced accusations from Harvard for mismanagement of institutional funds, as he had been serving as treasurer since 1773; Hancock was made to issue a significant repayment. Then in 1778, working with the French navy, he would lead an unsuccessful military campaign to recapture Newport, Rhode Island from the British.

In 1780, Hancock won the election to become the first governor of Massachusetts. He held office until 1785 when he resigned, citing poor health once again. Yet his resignation also coincided with the forthcoming Shay’s Rebellion, an uprising from debt-burdened citizens of the state who were protesting high government taxation and state regulations. Hancock was believed to have mishandled the Massachusetts economy, yet he was re-elected to the governorship in 1787.

The following year Hancock also won the presidency of his state’s convention, whose purpose was to ratify the U.S. Constitution. Hancock ultimately pushed for constitutional approval despite some initial reservations, and also presented amendments endorsed by the Federalist Party. Hancock’s name was in the candidate pool during the first U.S. presidential election, though he won a small share of electoral votes.

Hancock died on October 8, 1793, while serving as governor. He was buried in Boston, Massachusetts.

2nd President of the Continental Congress 2 and 7th President of the Confederation Congress John Hancock Birthday

John Hancock

John Hancock was an American merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Born: January 23, 1737, Braintree, MA
Died: October 8, 1793, Hancock Manor, Cambridge, MA
Buried: Granary Burying Ground, Boston, MA
Spouse: Dorothy Quincy (m. 1775–1793)
Education: Harvard University (1754), BLS (Boston Latin School)
Children: Lydia Henchman Hancock, John George Washington Hancock

John Hancock was an 18th century U.S. merchant who was president of the Continental Congress and the first person to sign the Declaration of Independence.
Born on January 23, 1737, in Braintree (present day city of Quincy) Massachusetts, John Hancock inherited a thriving trading business in Boston and would, with Samuel Adams, become a major figure in colonial agitation against British rule. He was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence and would later be elected the first governor of Massachusetts. He also faced accusations of financial mismanagement.

Hancock was born on January 23, 1737, in Braintree (present day city of Quincy), Massachusetts, to Mary Hawke and the senior John Hancock, who was a clergyman. The elder Hancock died when John was a child, and his mother took him and his siblings to live with in-laws in Lexington. She later sent John to live with Lydia and Thomas Hancock, his aunt and uncle. The couple had no children and hence adopted the boy.

Thomas was a wealthy merchant who owned a highly successful shipping business. John went on to attend Harvard College, his father’s alma mater, graduating in 1754 and subsequently working with his uncle. In 1759, John ventured to London and lived there for a spell, returning to the colonies in 1761. His uncle’s health was failing and upon Thomas’s death in 1764, John inherited the family business and estate.

Hancock — who reputedly maintained a lavish lifestyle and often faced staunch criticism for his exorbitance — would become a major figure in the American Revolution. In the mid-1760s, he won two consecutive political positions, first managing affairs on a local level in Boston and then moving to the colonial legislature. He entered politics at a time when American colonialists were becoming increasingly agitated by British parliamentary tax regulations and restrictions, with Hancock becoming inextricably involved due to his importing-exporting affairs.

Protesting financial regulations like the Stamp Act and Townshend duties, Hancock commandeered public acts of protest. To avoid British taxation, Hancock had also allegedly taken to smuggling goods aboard his vessels. In 1768, Hancock’s ship the Liberty was taken ahold of by British authorities who stated the merchant hadn’t paid the required fees on his imports. Hancock was given a huge fine and taken to court. These actions in turn prompted mob violence on Boston streets and eventually led to British authorities sending in military forces.

In 1770, after the Boston Massacre, where British troops fired into a crowd with no matching weaponry, Hancock chaired the committee that demanded the removal of British forces. After a period of improved transatlantic relations, Boston became a volatile site once again with the Tea Act of 1773, with Hancock helping to organize protests. He, along with fellow New England agitator and legislator Samuel Adams, was increasingly seen as a major rabble rouser by the British government.

In 1774, Hancock was made leader of the Massachusetts delegate to the second Continental Congress, which would convene the following year in Philadelphia. Yet Hancock and Adams were hunted by British general Thomas Gage. The two were warned by Paul Revere during his famous April 18, 1775 night ride shouting out that British forces were on their way. Hancock and Adams fled Lexington, where they were staying, and eventually made their way to Philadelphia.

The Congress met in May 1775. George Washington was appointed leader of the Continental Army while Hancock was appointed congress president. Hancock would give the coming American war effort financial support while his presidential role was more of a figurehead position, with congressional decisions generally achieved through committee. In August of the same year, he wed Dorothy Quincy, who came from a merchant family as well. Hancock’s business fortune by this time had significantly dwindled.

Hancock became the first representative to sign the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, a document which maintained that the thirteen American states were free of British rule. Hancock left a sizable signature with flourish; the idea of leaving one’s “John Hancock” on paperwork has meaning to this day.

Hancock resigned as president of the Continental Congress in 1777, citing health issues, though he remained a member. During the same year, he also faced accusations from Harvard for mismanagement of institutional funds, as he had been serving as treasurer since 1773; Hancock was made to issue a significant repayment. Then in 1778, working with the French navy, he would lead an unsuccessful military campaign to recapture Newport, Rhode Island from the British.

In 1780, Hancock won the election to become the first governor of Massachusetts. He held office until 1785 when he resigned, citing poor health once again. Yet his resignation also coincided with the forthcoming Shay’s Rebellion, an uprising from debt-burdened citizens of the state who were protesting high government taxation and state regulations. Hancock was believed to have mishandled the Massachusetts economy, yet he was re-elected to the governorship in 1787.

The following year Hancock also won the presidency of his state’s convention, whose purpose was to ratify the U.S. Constitution. Hancock ultimately pushed for constitutional approval despite some initial reservations, and also presented amendments endorsed by the Federalist Party. Hancock’s name was in the candidate pool during the first U.S. presidential election, though he won a small share of electoral votes.

Hancock died on October 8, 1793, while serving as governor. He was buried in Boston, Massachusetts.

35th U.S. President John F. Kennedy Death

John F. Kennedy will long be remembered for challenging the American people: to put a man on the moon, to put aside racial prejudices, to join a volunteer corps to help undeveloped countries. From his childhood to his assassination, this special explores the life and legacy of the 35th President.

• John Fitzgerald Kennedy, often referred to by initials JFK and Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from January 1961 until his assassination in November 1963.
• Born: May 29, 1917, Brookline, MA
• Assassinated: November 22, 1963, Parkland Memorial Hospital, Dallas, TX
• Presidential term: January 20, 1961 – November 22, 1963
• Spouse: Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (m. 1953–1963)
• Party: Democratic Party
• Children: John F. Kennedy Jr., Caroline Kennedy, Patrick Bouvier Kennedy
• First president who was Catholic.
• First president born in the 20th century (Kennedy was born in 1917 and took office in 1961).
• First president (along with future president Richard Nixon) to participate in the first televised presidential debates. He took part in four televised debates in 1960.
• First president inaugurated with a living grandparent (Mary Josephine Hannon, his grandmother on his mother’s side)
• First president to have been a Boy Scout.
• First president to be awarded a Pulitzer Prize, received the Pulitzer Prize for Biography in 1957, for his book Profiles in Courage.
• First president to have previously served in the United States Navy.
• First president to have a brother serve in the U.S. Senate (Ted Kennedy) while in office.
• First president to have a brother serve in the Cabinet (Robert Kennedy) while in office.
• First president to be survived by both his parents. Kennedy died in 1963. His father Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. outlived him by six years, dying in 1969. His mother Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy outlived him by more than 30 years, dying in 1995.
• First president to be survived by a grandparent. Kennedy died in 1963. His maternal grandmother, Mary Josephine Hannon, died in 1964 at the age of 98.
• First president to be younger than four of his successors (Johnson, Nixon, Ford, and Reagan).
• First president to be assassinated and die on the same date.
• First president who was a Democrat to be assassinated.
• First president to use the Situation Room.
• First president to win fewer states than his opponent while winning a majority of the electoral vote.
• First president to visit Austria, Costa Rica, Venezuela and Ireland while in office.
• First president to receive a Presidential Medal of Freedom (awarded posthumously on December 6, 1963).
• First president to receive the Navy and Marine Corps Medal, awarded for his heroism as commanding officer of Motor Torpedo Boat PT-109 when the ship was rammed and sunk by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri in 1943.
• First president to receive the Purple Heart, awarded in 1943 after he was wounded in action aboard PT-109.

35th U.S. President John F. Kennedy Birthday

John F. Kennedy will long be remembered for challenging the American people: to put a man on the moon, to put aside racial prejudices, to join a volunteer corps to help undeveloped countries. From his childhood to his assassination, this special explores the life and legacy of the 35th President.

• John Fitzgerald Kennedy, often referred to by initials JFK and Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from January 1961 until his assassination in November 1963.
• Born: May 29, 1917, Brookline, MA
• Assassinated: November 22, 1963, Parkland Memorial Hospital, Dallas, TX
• Presidential term: January 20, 1961 – November 22, 1963
• Spouse: Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (m. 1953–1963)
• Party: Democratic Party
• Children: John F. Kennedy Jr., Caroline Kennedy, Patrick Bouvier Kennedy
• First president who was Catholic.
• First president born in the 20th century (Kennedy was born in 1917 and took office in 1961).
• First president (along with future president Richard Nixon) to participate in the first televised presidential debates. He took part in four televised debates in 1960.
• First president inaugurated with a living grandparent (Mary Josephine Hannon, his grandmother on his mother’s side)
• First president to have been a Boy Scout.
• First president to be awarded a Pulitzer Prize, received the Pulitzer Prize for Biography in 1957, for his book Profiles in Courage.
• First president to have previously served in the United States Navy.
• First president to have a brother serve in the U.S. Senate (Ted Kennedy) while in office.
• First president to have a brother serve in the Cabinet (Robert Kennedy) while in office.
• First president to be survived by both his parents. Kennedy died in 1963. His father Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. outlived him by six years, dying in 1969. His mother Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy outlived him by more than 30 years, dying in 1995.
• First president to be survived by a grandparent. Kennedy died in 1963. His maternal grandmother, Mary Josephine Hannon, died in 1964 at the age of 98.
• First president to be younger than four of his successors (Johnson, Nixon, Ford, and Reagan).
• First president to be assassinated and die on the same date.
• First president who was a Democrat to be assassinated.
• First president to use the Situation Room.
• First president to win fewer states than his opponent while winning a majority of the electoral vote.
• First president to visit Austria, Costa Rica, Venezuela and Ireland while in office.
• First president to receive a Presidential Medal of Freedom (awarded posthumously on December 6, 1963).
• First president to receive the Navy and Marine Corps Medal, awarded for his heroism as commanding officer of Motor Torpedo Boat PT-109 when the ship was rammed and sunk by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri in 1943.
• First president to receive the Purple Heart, awarded in 1943 after he was wounded in action aboard PT-109.

10th U.S. President John Tyler Death

John Tyler was the 10th president of the United States

• John Tyler was the tenth president of the United States from 1841 to 1845 after briefly serving as the tenth vice president; he was elected to the latter office on the 1840 Whig ticket with President William Henry Harrison.
• Born: March 29, 1790, Charles City County, VA
• Died: January 18, 1862, Richmond, VA
• Presidential term: April 4, 1841 – March 4, 1845
• Grandchildren: Harrison Ruffin Tyler, Julia Gardiner Tyler Wilson,
• Children: Lyon Gardiner Tyler, David Gardiner Tyler
• Spouse: Julia Gardiner Tyler (m. 1844–1862), Letitia Christian Tyler (m. 1813–1842)
• First president to ascend to the presidency by the death of his predecessor.
• First president to have a veto overridden.
• First president to face a vote of impeachment in the House (it was unsuccessful).
• First president to be widowed while in office
• First president to remarry while in office (to Julia Gardiner Tyler on June 27, 1844).
• First president to have been married twice (Letitia Christian and Julia Gardiner. He had children with both his wives.
• First president to have served as president pro tempore of the Senate.
• First president to not have a vice president during his entire time in office.
• First president to be born after the ratification of the United States Constitution.
• First president to be born during someone’s presidency.
• First president to be expelled from his political party while in office.
• First president to have grandchildren living in the 21st century.
• First president to join the Confederacy and serve in the Provisional Confederate States Congress.

10th U.S. President John Tyler Birthday

John Tyler was the 10th president of the United States

• John Tyler was the tenth president of the United States from 1841 to 1845 after briefly serving as the tenth vice president; he was elected to the latter office on the 1840 Whig ticket with President William Henry Harrison.
• Born: March 29, 1790, Charles City County, VA
• Died: January 18, 1862, Richmond, VA
• Presidential term: April 4, 1841 – March 4, 1845
• Grandchildren: Harrison Ruffin Tyler, Julia Gardiner Tyler Wilson,
• Children: Lyon Gardiner Tyler, David Gardiner Tyler
• Spouse: Julia Gardiner Tyler (m. 1844–1862), Letitia Christian Tyler (m. 1813–1842)
• First president to ascend to the presidency by the death of his predecessor.
• First president to have a veto overridden.
• First president to face a vote of impeachment in the House (it was unsuccessful).
• First president to be widowed while in office
• First president to remarry while in office (to Julia Gardiner Tyler on June 27, 1844).
• First president to have been married twice (Letitia Christian and Julia Gardiner. He had children with both his wives.
• First president to have served as president pro tempore of the Senate.
• First president to not have a vice president during his entire time in office.
• First president to be born after the ratification of the United States Constitution.
• First president to be born during someone’s presidency.
• First president to be expelled from his political party while in office.
• First president to have grandchildren living in the 21st century.
• First president to join the Confederacy and serve in the Provisional Confederate States Congress.