A Place Called Simplicity: they valued liberty more

Happy 4th of July from miss Ruby

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.?

A few weeks later, he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.

Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.?

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution.

?These were not wild-eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians.

They were soft-spoken men of means and education.?

They had security, but they valued liberty more. ?

We are so grateful for our forefathers for their sacrifices?

and we?honor our sons, daughters,?

brothers, sisters,?moms, dads, friends?

and

?loved ones for their sacrifices for our nation

as they serve around the world.

??
Their sacrifices are not understood by most.

We are laying low today {my favorite}.

Just hanging out as family.

Gonna' BBQ on the grill in a few minutes.

Dw, Graham and Savannah are still in Africa.

Our Sarah and baby girl arrived last week to visit.

We're joyfully giving her and her 6 month boy-belly a rest while?

we chase the little miss.

Love, love, love having them here.?

And to throw a bit of excitement in the mix,

?we have one who is sick?with a virus.?

? How do you celebrate the 4th of July?

Lastly,

a powerful word from John Adams

2nd U.S. President and Signer of the Declaration of Independence

"Suppose a nation in some distant Region should take the Bible?

for their only law Book, and every member should regulate his?

conduct by the precepts there exhibited! Every member would be?

obliged in conscience, to temperance, frugality, and industry;?

to justice, kindness, and charity towards his fellow men;?

and to piety, love, and reverence toward Almighty God ...?

What a Utopia, what a Paradise would this region be."?

--Diary and Autobiography of John Adams, Vol. III, p. 9.

Source: http://aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.com/2013/07/they-valued-liberty-more.html

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