Independence Day Fun

More fun from the National Archives and the Don't Know Much blog.

-Jefferson is the principle author of the Declaration of Independence with assistance from Franklin and Adams. The latter's edits were incorporated into the final version.

-The D of I was actually passed on July 2nd. Whoops.

-The D of I was signed over the course of a month. The famous painting of each signer coming up to the desk is not true.

-Hancock's signature is not so large because he wanted the king to be able to read it without his glasses. It's because he was the first to sign.

-With the exception of Hancock, everyone's signature is placed geographically to the state he represented.

-The D of I has traveled around quite a bit. Most interestingly to an unused gristmill in Virginia during the War of 1812.

-Reese Witherspoon is a direct descendent of declaration signer John Witherspoon.

Loyalist William Franklin

Benjamin Franklin's son, William Franklin, was a devout Loyalist. The younger Franklin was born in Philadelphia in 1731 to Benjamin and an unnamed mother. Historians believe his mother was either Benjamin's common law wife, Deborah Read, or a prostitute. The whole situation was covered up as neither scenario was good for the son of an influential politician.

William is correctly depicted as helping his father with the famous kite experiment which proved conduction of electricity. He is, however, incorrectly depicted as a small child. William was 21 and earned a master's degree for the achievement.

Things were going well for father and son until the American Revolution broke out. Benjamin became one of the leading voices of the Patriots. William was Royal Governor of New Jersey and stuck by the crown. For his efforts, he was arrested in 1776. Upon his release in 1778, he led a group called the Associated Loyalists. The Associated Loyalists went to General Henry Clinton and asked for custody of a Continental officer named Joshua Huddy. They told Clinton they would exchange Huddy for a high ranking British officer; instead they hung him. Clinton was infuriated and thus ended the political career of William Franklin.

William and Ben lived estranged for most of their adult lives. William moved to England and had a meeting with his father in 1785. The meeting was brief and really tied up financial ends more than reconnected the two. Ben never forgot his son, however, dedicating his autobiography to William by starting with, "Dear Son."

Christmas 1776

There are many stories that go along with the famous crossing of the Delaware in 1776. Here are three things you may not know.

Washington's men were cold and demoralized. Both of these conditions could be remedied with a victory and a warm place to sleep. Our future first President seized a golden opportunity to bring a smile to his men's faces. Henry Knox, chief of artillery, had just got into Washington's boat. Knox was, let's say, a portly gentleman. In true Washington fashion, he nudged Knox with his boot and proclaimed, "shift that fat @##, Harry, but slowly or you'll swamp the da##ed boat." (edited for the sake of touchy readers). A little known fact about George Washington is that he could curse the paint off the wall.

Above is the iconic image of "Washington Crossing the Delaware." The general stands proudly in a small rowboat. Not the case. Washington had 900 men to get across the river. They actually crossed in long, narrow, flat boats. Washington more than likely could not and would not want to stand up. Everyone huddled together was the only way to keep warm.

On the other side of the Delaware in Trenton, NJ were a group of Hessians led by Johann Rall. The Hessians' Christmas was a stark contrast to that of the Americans. They were warm inside, had plenty to eat, and unfortunately for them plenty to drink. They celebrated the season with little worry of a Continental attack.

Rall enjoyed playing cards. He was doing such when a loyalist named John Honeyman arrived and handed him a note. Rall was enjoying his game and also had quite a bit to drink. He placed the note in his pocket and return to the table. Later that night, Washington's troops attacked. Rall was hit by a musketball while leading the retreat and died the next day. The note from Honeyman was taken from his pocket. It said that Washington's men were organizing and preparing an attack.

The Least Known Founding Father

""I have been young and now I am old, and I solemnly say I have never known a man whose love of country was more ardent or sincere, never one who suffered so much, never one whose service for any 10 years of his life were so important and essential to the cause of his country..."
-John Adams

Who was Adams talking about? The end of the quote: "...as those of Mr. Otis from 1760 to 1770." I present to you, dear reader, the least known founding father, James Otis.

Otis was a young lawyer around the time the colonies started thinking about breaking away from Great Britain. He considered himself a loyal subject, although in 1761, he delivered a speech that some consider to be the beginning of the American Revolution (not the war; the revolt). Otis represented American merchants against the Writs of Assistance. His performance was capped by a 5 hour speech. Afterward, Otis was called the "Oak that drew the lightning stroke of British wrath." Those words are very ironic later on.

As the 1760's progressed, James Otis' mental state deteriorated. It is not known what illness he suffered from. Some historians suspect schizophrenia. The crippling blow to Otis' effectiveness can in 1769 when he got in a fight with a few British officers and was struck with a sword. He was never quite right again. Otis was to be taken care of by his younger brother, Samuel, from then on out. On December 17, 1775, however, Otis slipped his caretakers, stole a gun, and headed for the fighting at Bunker Hill. In part because of this incident, Otis was sent to live with a friend outside of the city.

It has been said that Otis once told his sister, ""My dear sister, I hope, when God Almighty in his righteous providence shall take me out of time into eternity that it will be by a flash of lightning" (remember the lightning reference earlier?). In May 1783, Otis got that wish. He stepped outside and "the oak that drew the lightning stroke of British wrath" was struck by lightning and killed.

The Battle of the Kegs

The last time we left David Bushnell, he was a bit dejected after failing to blow up a single British ship with his Turtle in 1776. Bushnell resurfaced in 1778 in an even stranger story.

In January of 1778, Bushnell was traveling with Colonel Joseph Borden's troops around Philadelphia. Bushnell approached Borden with a bold idea. He said that he could outfit barrels, or kegs, of gunpowder with hair triggers. The barrels could then be lowered into the Delaware River and sent downstream toward the British fleet. Borden agreed to give David a shot.

On January 6th, a group of specially-outfitted kegs were placed in the water and slowly began to float toward the British fleet. Unfortunately, many of the ships had already been moved to avoid ice. Nevertheless, a few made it to their destination. One of the British ships sent out a barge to inspect one of the kegs. They inspected a bit too closely and the keg went off killing four men. The commotion whipped the British army and loyalists in Philadelphia to a frenzy. For the rest of the day, British sailors shot at anything that was moving in the water. Loyalists in the Philadelphia feared barrels throughout the city as rumors abounded of Continental soldiers hiding in barrels and then popping out with murderous rage. The event even inspired a Francis Hopkinson poem which the Americans especially loved for making reference to Sir William Howe and his affair with Elizabeth Loring, wife of a famed Boston Loyalist.

Sir William he, snug as a flea,
Lay all this time a snoring,
Nor dreamed of harm as he lay warm,
In bed with Mrs. Loring.

Full poem here

Bush or Bushnell, Inventor or Doctor

Let's get started with my favorite.

In 1740, a baby was born in what is today Old Saybrook, CT. David Bushnell was the first male born into what would be a pretty big farm family. David, however, was different from his brother and sisters. He was brilliant. After an agrarian and religious education, Bushnell enrolled at Yale College right about the time when America was thinking about breaking free from England. Good timing! While at Yale, Bushnell experimented with his favorite substance- gunpowder. In 1775, the not so young David (he enrolled in college only after the affairs of the family farm were in order) proved that gunpowder could detonate underwater and created a time bomb. Great ideas but how could they be put to practical use.

Why create a submarine, of course! One problem. Everyone else who attempted to create a submarine up until 1776 had failed miserably. But again, David was different. He was brilliant. Bushnell created a craft he called the Turtle (for obvious reasons). The craft was man-powered (by his brother, Ezra) and used various levers and pedals to move through the water. The powder keg was attached by a rope and a spike. The idea was to maneuver the submarine under a ship and attached the powder keg with the spike. Once the spike (keg attached) left the submarine, Bushnell's time bomb would start ticking.

Did it work? Not really. Two attempts were made in 1776 in New York Harbor, but unfortunately for David, he didn't take into account how hard the lining on the bottom of ships was. Another event led by Bushnell inspired the Battle of Kegs poem, but that's a story for another time.

After serving in the Army for the remainder of the war, David simply disappeared. A few years later, however, a certain Dr. David Bush appeared to Warrenton, GA. Dr. Bush was a kind older man who assumed not only the role of town physician but also served on various councils. Dr. Bush became all the more interesting when he died and the contents of his will revealed him as the inventor of the submarine; one David Bushnell.

For more info, I suggest:
I first heard this story in Webb Garrison's, Great Stories of the American Revolution.