Founding Fathers

 

Did you know the Last Verse of the Star Spangled Banner contains a tribute to God?  O thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand   Between their loved home and the war’s desolation Blest with Vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n rescued land Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation!  Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just   And this be our motto: “In God is our trust.“  And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

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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 andproperties 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!I hope you will show your support by sending this to as many people as you can, please. It’s time we get the word out that patriotism is NOT a sin, and the Fourth of July has more MEANING to it than beer, fireworks, HOT DOGS, and picnics……

Jackson: The Iron-Willed Commander

• by
• Paul S. Vickery,
• Stephen Mansfield (Editor)

Overview

Orphan. Frontiersman. President. The rise of Andrew Jackson to the highest office in America has become a legend of leadership, perseverance, and ambition. Central to Jackson’s historic climb―long before the White House—was his military service. Scarred permanently as a child by the sword of a British soldier, Jackson grew into an unwavering leader, a general whose charisma and sheer force of personality called to mind those of George Washington a generation earlier.