John Hancock
For other people and things named John Hancock, see John Hancock (disambiguation).John Hancock (
January 12,
1737 (O.S.) –
October 8,
1793 (N.S.)) was
President of the
Second Continental Congress and of the
Congress of the Confederation; first
Governor of Massachusetts; and the first person to sign the
United States Declaration of Independence.
Hancock was born in
Braintree, Massachusetts in a part of town which eventually became the separate city of
Quincy, Massachusetts. His father died when he was young, and he was adopted by his paternal uncle—Thomas Hancock, a highly successful merchant in
New England. After graduating from
Boston Latin School, he attended
Harvard University and received a business degree in
1754, when he was 17. Upon graduation, he worked for his uncle. From
1760–
1764, Hancock lived in England while building relationships with customers and suppliers of his uncle's shipbuilding business. Shortly after his return from England, his uncle died and he inherited the fortune and business, making him the wealthiest man in New England at the time.
Hancock married Dorothy Quincy. (Dorothy Quincy's aunt, who had the same name as her niece, was the great-grandmother of
Oliver Wendell Holmes.)
Despite his wealth, Hancock remained both ethical and virtuous. Along with his generosity, he was regarded as a man of integrity and honor.
John and Dorothy had two children, neither of whom survived to adulthood.[
1]
Lydia Hancock (b. Oct 1776; d. Aug 1777); died at the age of about ten months.
John George Washington Hancock (b. 21 May 1778; d. 27 Jan 1787); died at the age of eight years as a consequence of a fall while trying to use new ice skates.
A
Boston selectman and
representative to the
Massachusetts General Court, his colonial trade business naturally disposed him to resist the
Stamp Act, which attempted to restrict colonial trading.
The Stamp Act was repealed, but later acts (such as the
Townshend Acts) led to further taxation on common goods. Eventually, Hancock's shipping practices became more evasive, and he began to
smuggle glass, lead, paper and tea. In
1768, upon arriving from England, his
sloop Liberty was impounded by British customs officials for violation of revenue laws. This caused a
riot among some infuriated Bostonians, depending as they did on the supplies on board.
His regular merchant trade as well as his smuggling practices financed much of his region's resistance to British authority and his financial contributions led Bostonians to joke that "
Sam Adams writes the letters [to newspapers] and John Hancock pays the postage" (Fradin & McCurdy, 2002).
At first only a financier of the growing rebellion, he later became a public critic of British rule. On
March 5,
1774, the fourth anniversary of the
Boston Massacre, he gave a speech strongly condemning the British. In the same year, he was unanimously elected president of the
Provisional Congress of Massachusetts, and presided over its Committee of Safety. Under Hancock, Massachusetts raised bands of "
minutemen"—soldiers who pledged to be ready for battle in a minute's notice—and his boycott of
tea imported by the
British East India Company eventually led to the
Boston Tea Party.
In April
1775 as the British intent became apparent, Hancock and
Samuel Adams slipped away from Boston to elude capture, staying in the
Hancock-Clarke House in
Lexington, Massachusetts (which can still be seen to this day). There
Paul Revere roused them about midnight before the British troops arrived at dawn for the
Battle of Lexington and Concord. At this time,
General Thomas Gage ordered Hancock and Adams arrested for treason. Following the battle a proclamation was issued granting a general pardon to all who would demonstrate loyalty to the crown—with the exceptions of Hancock and Adams.On
May 24,
1775, he was elected the third
President of the
Second Continental Congress, succeeding
Henry Middleton. He would serve until
October 30,
1777, when he was himself succeeded by
Henry Laurens.
In the first month of his presidency, on
June 19,
1775, Hancock commissioned
George Washington commander-in-chief of the
Army of the United Colonies. A year later, Hancock sent Washington a copy of the
July 4,
1776 congressional resolution calling for independence as well as a copy of the
Declaration of Independence.
|
John Trumbull's famous painting is usually incorrectly identified as a depiction of the signing of the Declaration. What the painting actually depicts is the five-man drafting committee presenting their work to the Congress. Trumbull's painting can also be found on the back of the U.S. $2 bill.[http://www.americanrevolution.org/deckey.html] |
Hancock was the only one to sign the
Declaration of Independence on the fourth; the other 55 delegates signed on August 2nd. He also requested Washington have the Declaration read to the
Continental Army. According to popular legend, he signed his name largely and clearly to be sure King
George III could read it without his spectacles, causing his name to become an
eponym for "
signature". However, other examples suggest that Hancock always wrote his signature this way.
From
1780–
1785, he was
governor of Massachusetts. Hancock's skills as orator and moderator were much admired, but during the
American Revolution he was most often sought out for his ability to raise funds and supplies for American troops. Despite his skill in the merchant trade, even Hancock had trouble meeting the Continental Congress's demand for
beef cattle to feed the hungry army. On
January 19,
1781, General Washington warned Hancock:
"I should not trouble your Excellency, with such reiterated applications on the score of supplies, if any objects less than the safety of these Posts on this River, and indeed the existence of the Army, were at stake. By the enclosed Extracts of a Letter, of Yesterday, from Major Genl. Heath, you will see our present situation, and future prospects. If therefore the supply of Beef Cattle demanded by the requisitions of Congress from Your State, is not regularly forwarded to the Army, I cannot consider myself as responsible for the maintenance of the Garrisons below West Point, New York, or the continuance of a single Regiment in the Field." (United States Library of Congress, 1781.)
After the war, Hancock represented his state under the
Articles of Confederation. He was the seventh
President of the United States in Congress assembled, from
November 23,
1785 to
June 6,
1786. He was preceded in that position by
Richard Henry Lee and succeeded by
Nathaniel Gorham.
Resuming the governorship of Massachusetts in
1787, he led his state toward ratification of the federal Constitution. Hancock was prevalent in the formation of a
navy for the new nation. He died in
1793 while serving his ninth term as Massachusetts' governor, and was buried at the
Granary Burying Ground in Boston.
* "In circumstances as dark as these, it becomes us, as Men and Christians, to reflect that whilst every prudent measure should be taken to ward off the impending judgments, …at the same time all confidence must be withheld from the means we use; and reposed only on that God rules in the armies of Heaven, and without His whole blessing, the best human counsels are but foolishness… Resolved; …Thursday the 11th of May…to humble themselves before God under the heavy judgments felt and feared, to confess the sins that have deserved them, to implore the Forgiveness of all our transgressions, and a spirit of repentance and reformation …and a Blessing on the … Union of the American Colonies in Defense of their Rights [for which hitherto we desire to thank Almighty God]…That the people of Great Britain and their rulers may have their eyes opened to discern the things that shall make for the peace of the nation…for the redress of America's many grievances, the restoration of all her invaded liberties, and their security to the latest generations."Day of Fasting, Humiliation and Prayer, with a total abstinence from labor and recreation. Proclamation on April 15, 1775
In
1772,
Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral was published. John Hancock was among those who signed the
attestation that
Phillis Wheatley, an
African American, was its author. When, in
1773, the book was put on display in
Aldgate,
London (having been refused by Boston publishers) it thus became the first book by an
African American to be officially published.
He was also a
Freemason.
As Governor of Commonwealth of Massachusetts he presented a
flag to the
Bucks of America black military unit of Boston. See
Prince Hall Freemasonry.
A number of things have been named after John Hancock:
*Several states named a Hancock County after him. They are:
Georgia,
Illinois,
Indiana,
Iowa,
Kentucky,
Maine,
Mississippi,
Ohio,
Tennessee, and
West Virginia.
* The town of
Hancock, Massachusetts is named in his honor
*
John Hancock Insurance, a U.S. insurance company, and in turn its office buildings,:* The
John Hancock Tower, the tallest building in
Boston, Massachusetts :* The
"Old" John Hancock building, also in Boston, Massachusetts:* The
John Hancock Center, major skyscraper in
Chicago, Illinois*
USS John Hancock, an
1850 steam
tug*
USS Hancock (CV-19), a
World War II aircraft carrier*
USS John Hancock (DD-981), a
Spruance class destroyer commissioned
1979*The college football
John Hancock Bowl, played in
El Paso, Texas between 1990 and 1993.
* Fradin, Dennis Brindell & McCurdy, Michael (2002).
The Signers: The 56 Stories behind the Declaration of Independence. Walker & Company. ISBN 0-80-278850-5.
* United States Library of Congress (1781).
George Washington Papers. Online: [
2].
* United States Library of Congress.
U.S. Library of Congress Today in History: January 12. Retrieved January 18, 2003. Most of the initial text of this article was copied from this public domain source.
