Archive for April 2025
James Smith
“If the British administration should determine by force to effect a submission to the late arbitrary acts of the British Parliament, in such a situation, we hold it our indispensable duty to resist such force, and at every hazard to defend the rights and liberties of America.” So uttered James Smith at the Pennsylvania state…
Read MoreBenjamin Rush
“There is no one outside my own family whose friendship was so essential to my happiness.” John Adams wrote these words about Dr. Benjamin Rush. He was a man beloved by people near and honored by many from afar. One example is the number of students he taught at the College (now University) of Pennsylvania.…
Read MoreJohn Morton
It can be argued John Morton’s contributions to the young United States were significantly cut short due to his untimely death in 1777. He signed the Declaration of Independence first and, in 1777, he chaired the Committee of the Whole as they determined, wrote, and considered the adoption of the Articles of Confederation, the United…
Read MoreRobert Morris
Robert Morris, known as the financier of the American Revolution, was born on January 20, 1734 in Liverpool, England. He would become one of the two wealthiest signers of the Declaration of Independence. His father, a tobacco merchant, came to Maryland in 1738 representing a English mercantile firm. He possessed genius and savvy that brought…
Read MoreGeorge Clymer
In the fall of 1682, George Fitzwater and his family landed at New Castle, Delaware, after a two-month voyage across the Atlantic. They had joined William Penn and others aboard the ship Welcome, a small cargo vessel, 150 feet in length maximum. In cramped conditions, the roughly 100 future settlers of the Pennsylvania colony survived on salted…
Read MoreThomas McKean
The Irish are known to be blunt and, at times, feisty folk. And the Scottish are known as a hearty people, able to persevere through hardship. For Thomas McKean, these traits certainly rang true. The son of Irish and Scottish ancestry was surprisingly a successful lawyer during the American Revolutionary period. The wonderment was present…
Read MoreCaesar Rodney
Despite having much to be proud of, Caesar Rodney exhibited the most admirable of traits in service to his home state, Delaware, and the new nation he assisted in birthing—humility. His forbearing and patient qualities endeared him to his friends and his overall character of person is tainted not by even one recorded instance of…
Read MoreGeorge Read
by Tim Scheiderer George Read is a founding father not known by many today, but during his lifetime, he was a man known by many for his integrity and generosity. He gave not only his time, but also his money to the creation of the new republic. He was also the brother-in-law of fellow signer,…
Read MorePhoebe Palmer
After languishing in obscurity for many years, the work of Phoebe Palmer (1807-1874) has been rediscovered by church historians and scholars. Although virtually unknown today, Palmer was a widely-recognized religious figure in her day—a woman whose concern for the holy life enabled her to transcend the limitations of both gender and denominational affiliation. As a…
Read MoreElizabeth Alexandra
Queen Elizabeth II had a strong Christian faith, evident throughout her life in her words and actions. As well as her formal role as ‘Defender of the Faith and Supreme Governor of the Church of England’, which came with monarchy, her personal faith was evident even before she was crowned. ‘Pray for me … that…
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