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.

Early life

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, ethically and virtuously, the same. Along with his generosity he was regarded as a man of integrity and honor.

Career

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The Stamp Act was repealed, but later acts (such as the Townshend Acts) led to further taxation on common goods.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 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 claimed they could be ready to fight in sixty seconds—and his boycott of tea imported by the British East India Company eventually led to the Boston Tea Party.

American Revolution

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. 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.)

Post-war activities

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.

Quotes

“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 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

Additional notes

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.

Things named after John Hancock

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.

References

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: ^*.
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.

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