As we celebrate - we remember:

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.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember: freedom is never free! We thank these early patriots, as well as those patriots now fighting to KEEP our freedom!

Crossnore Chapter NSDAR

Most people think the American Revolution started with “taxes on tea.” That’s only the surface.

What actually happened was a slow legal tightening, piece by piece, until the colonies began to feel like they were being governed without consent.

Here’s how the conflict progressed:

Stamp Act (1765)

Every printed item (newspapers, legal documents, playing cards) required an official British stamp (and a tax).

Why it mattered: It was about control over communication and law.

Quartering Act (1765)

Colonists were required to house and supply British troops.

Why it mattered: Military presence wasn’t just protection, it became a daily, imposed obligation inside civilian life.

Townshend Acts (1767)

Taxes on imported goods like glass, paint, paper, and tea.

Why it mattered: These were taxes designed to test compliance while quietly expanding revenue control.

Tea Act (1773)

Granted the British East India Company a monopoly on tea sales in the colonies.

Why it mattered: Not just a tax issue, this undercut local merchants and reshaped colonial markets through a single corporate pipeline.

Coercive Acts (Intolerable Acts) (1774)

Punitive laws after the Boston Tea Party that closed Boston Harbor and stripped Massachusetts of self-governance: Boston Port Act (March 1774), Massachusetts Government Act (May 1774), Administration of Justice Act (May 1774) & another Quartering Act (June 1774)

Why it mattered: Collective punishment. One city’s protest became everyone’s penalty.