John Hancock Grave
42.357206°N 71.062197°W

6/23/2012 3:31:06 PM

John Hancock Grave
42.357206°N 71.062197°W

6/23/2012 3:31:11 PM

Granary Burying Ground

John Hancock is probably most noted for the size and prominence of his signature on the Declaration of Independence. He was also the first Governor or Massachusetts and later became the third Governor. John Hancock inherited extreme wealth from his uncle and was one of the wealthiest men in the colonies. He served two years on the Continental Congress (he was President of the Congress when the Declaration was signed) and used much of his personal wealth to help the patriot cause against Britain.

In 1768, John Hancock was accused of smuggling and his ship the Liberty was boarded and ceased. The action made him quite popular among patriots and eventually the charges were dropped. On April 14th, 1775, General Thomas Gage was instructed to send troops out to confiscate arms and attempt to arrest John Hancock and Samuel Adams. Hancock was intimately involved in governance during the revolution and even commanded 6,000 men in an attack on a British garrison in Newport, RI in 1778 although he left the details of the attack to the officers. When the war ended, Hancock settled into politics particularly related to the governing Massachusetts.

John Hancock

John Hancock (January 23, 1737 [O.S. January 12, 1736] – October 8, 1793) was a merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He is remembered for his large and stylish signature on the United States Declaration of Independence, so much so that the term "John Hancock" has become, in the United States, a synonym for signature.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John Hancock