One example of that growing centrality: On July 6, 1776, Hancock sent a freshly printed copy of the Declaration of Independence to Gen. On March 17, 1776, Langdon penned a more conciliatory letter, since by then he was fully aware of Hancock’s growing role in the unfolding Revolution. His response - the original resides at Harvard’s Houghton Library - was so chilly that he cast it in the third person, offering that “he very seriously resents” the letter’s implications. The fifth such letter arrived at Hancock’s Concord, Mass., home in April 1775, a week before the opening battles of the Revolutionary War in Lexington and Concord.
JOHN HANCOCK SIGNATURE SERIES
By November 1774, Harvard President Samuel Langdon and others wrote the first in a two-year series of dunning letters to Hancock, calling for an accounting and for him to return the materials. Hancock was elected Harvard treasurer in July 1773, taking into his possession 15,400 pounds sterling in securities, along with the College account books. There was … a report that you are going to be married soon. I do assure you I should take it as a great favor. Written while he was a senior at Harvard, the letter includes an exhortation from Hancock to his sister to write to him more frequently: “I wish you would spend one hour writing to me. A letter from John Hancock to his sister, Mary, includes his dramatic signature. He was wary of attacks, by letter, from officials at Harvard College. The first synonym for “signature,” after all, is “John Hancock.” Harvard owns an early example, which anchors a signed 1754 letter to his sister Mary.īut as the Fourth of July approaches, it is useful to remember that around the time of the Revolution, Hancock - sequestered in Philadelphia and Baltimore with the Continental Congress - was wary of more than attacks from the hovering British.
It is his dramatic autograph - floridly large, and (in case we missed seeing it) underlined. It is not Hancock’s patriotism, of course, that chiefly survives in the popular imagination 220 years after his death. Indeed, Hancock’s became the most celebrated signature in the nation’s history – so perfect and artistic that National Handwriting Day is celebrated on Hancock’s birthday, which is January 23.Īll because he signed his “John Hancock” right there, big, boldly and defiantly as a new nation was born.John Hancock was an aristocratic Boston merchant, Harvard College graduate (Class of 1754), Revolutionary War hero, and the first patriot to sign the Declaration of Independence. The British had warrants out for their arrests during the battles in those towns that began the Revolutionary War. However, both men escaped and went to Philadelphia, where they signed the Declaration a year later. When British troops went to Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts to confiscate stored militia armament in April 1775, they also went looking for Hancock and his good friend, Samuel Adams. Hancock further infuriated the British by raising money for the Revolution, recruited troops for the Continental Army and also helped assemble ships to create naval power. Hence, the battle cry of “No Taxation without Representation” was born. They dumped tea into the Boston Harbor to protest the tea tax foisted upon them by the Crown.
In 1773, three years before the revolution began, Hancock revved up the angry mob at a Sons of Liberty meeting prior to the Boston Tea Party, telling them “Let every man do what is right in his own eyes.” By that time, however, he’d already ruffled the British in many other ways. Such explains why the Declaration might be dated J– two days after the first founding fathers signed it – the last of the names weren’t signed until November of that year.īy signing first and with such flourish, Hancock made himself a target publicly. They signed what would have been their death warrants had England ultimately prevailed. They didn’t just sign America’s most famous piece of parchment. In fact, he was the first of the 56 men who signed the document that told King George III and England to take a hike, and no doubt wanted emphasize his dedication to the revolution and defiance.Īfter all, breaking away from England’s grip required the will of brave men and women who knew they were, in essence, declaring treason against the Crown. JBy Jeff Jardine - Granted, this was more prevalent in the days before electronic digital signatures, but you’ve probably heard the term at some point:Īs we celebrate the United States of America’s 246 th birthday, no signature on the Declaration of Independence – our first Hallmark moment – stands out bigger, bolder and with more flair than that of John Hancock.
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