The men who signed the Declaration of Independence made world history in 1776. “The Signers” are recognizable by name, this is your chance to learn if you descend from one of the men who participated in one of the most famous acts of rebellion in western history.
The men who signed the Declaration of Independence made world history in 1776. “The Signers” are recognizable by name, this is your chance to learn if you descend from one of the men who participated in one of the most famous acts of rebellion in western history.
Fifty-six men signed the Declaration of Independence which was created between June – July of 1776 and unanimously ratified on July 4, 1776. Originally published and distributed as a broadside, the Declaration listed 27 grievances against King George III from the colonies. It has since become a well-known statement on human rights and was the inspiration for other similar documents in other countries including Austria, Belgium, and Liberia. By the time it was adopted, the 13 Colonies and Great Britain had been at war for more than a year.
These records document the descendants of these 56 men and offer a standardized lineage, which allows family historians to determine any possible connection to the Signers. The most famous is undoubtedly John Hancock, the President of the Continental Congress, who chose to sign in large letters. It is also signed by two future Presidents: Thomas Jefferson and John Adams. Benjamin Harrison V was the father and great-grandfather of two other presidents, Edward Rutledge was the youngest at age 26, and at age 70, Benjamin Franklin was the oldest. Many had familial connections to Britain, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
The signers were:
Adams, John
Adams, Samuel
Bartlett, Josiah
Braxton, Carter
Carroll, Charles
Chase, Samuel
Clark, Abraham
Clymer, George
Ellery, William
Floyd, William
Franklin, Benjamin
Gerry, Elbridge
Gwinnett, Button
Hall, Lyman
Hancock, John
Harrison, Benjamin
Hart, John
Hewes, Joseph
Heyward Jr., Thomas
Hooper, William
Hopkins, Stephen
Hopkinson, Francis
Huntington, Samuel
Jefferson, Thomas
Lee, Francis Lightfoot
Lee, Richard Henry
Lewis, Francis
Livingston, Philip
Lynch Jr., Thomas
McKean, Thomas
Middleton, Arthur
Morris, Lewis
Morris, Robert
Morton, John
Nelson Jr., Thomas
Paca, William
Penn, John
Read, George
Rodney, Caesar
Ross, George
Rush, Benjamin
Rutledge, Edward
Sherman, Roger
Smith, James
Stockton, Richard
Stone, Thomas
Taylor, George
Thornton, Matthew
Treat Paine, Robert
Walton, George
Whipple, William
Williams, William
Wilson, James
Witherspoon, John
Wolcott, Oliver
Wythe, George
The images in this collection come from the Frank Willing Leach Collection, housed at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
While records vary from family to family, the materials in this collection are presented in a traditional genealogical text style, with the primary subject at the top of each page or section, and their children, or Issue, listed below. Each generation follows in a similar format. When it was available, information on locations, dates, marriages, spouses, and other vital genealogical data is included.
Many of the pages include handwritten edits that were inserted after the original publication was created, as ongoing research revealed new information or corrections.
Researchers should be attentive to any additional notes or citations offered for each family, and should verify this information against original documents, as you would with any other published genealogical research.
While the vast majority of the information will be from the United States, families will include information from England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Euorpe, South America, Australia, and other areas around the globe, depending on where the family may have ventured to over several generations.
Copyright: Findmypast; images courtesy Historical Society of Pennsylvania