Founding Fathers

Elbridge Gerry Childhood

Elbridge Gerry was born on July 17, 1744, in Marblehead, Massachusetts, a thriving seaport town. His father, Thomas Gerry, was a merchant who had migrated from England in the early 1730s, and his mother, Elizabeth Greenleaf, was from a well-to-do colonial family. Gerry's parents provided him and...

Rufus King Biography

Rufus King was born on March 24, 1755, in Scarborough, Massachusetts, which would later become part of Maine. His father, a well-to-do merchant and farmer, was known locally for his prosperity and his staunch Loyalist views during a period of increasing revolutionary sentiment. The elder King...

Thomas Paine Childhood

Thomas Paine was born on January 29, 1737, in Thetford, Norfolk, England. His father, Joseph Paine, was a Quaker and a corset maker by trade. Joseph likely impressed upon young Thomas the Quaker values of equality, simplicity, and integrity. These tenets might have sown early seeds within Paine for...

James Monroe Childhood

James Monroe was born into a planter family in 18th-century Virginia. His father, Spence Monroe, was of Scottish descent, while his mother, Elizabeth Jones Monroe, brought Welsh heritage to the family. Monroe was raised on a 600-acre property in Westmoreland County, where the family’s economic...

John Hancock Childhood

John Hancock was born on January 23, 1737, in Braintree, Massachusetts. His father died when he was young, and John moved in with his wealthy uncle and aunt, Thomas and Lydia Hancock, in Boston. Thomas Hancock owned a successful mercantile house, The House of Hancock, which was involved in...

James Madison Biography

James Madison was born into a prosperous Virginia family on March 16, 1751, at Belle Grove plantation. His upbringing afforded him educational opportunities that many of his contemporaries lacked. From the age of 11, under private tutors, Madison embarked on rigorous studies that spanned subjects...

John Hancock Biography

John Hancock was born on January 23, 1737, in Braintree, Massachusetts. After the death of his father, young John moved in with his uncle Thomas Hancock, a prosperous merchant in Boston. Under the guidance of his uncle, John attended the Boston Latin School and later Harvard College, where he...

John Jay Biography

John Jay was born on December 12, 1745, in New York City to a prosperous merchant family of French Huguenot roots. He received his early education from private tutors and entered King's College (later renamed Columbia University) at the age of 14. At King's College, Jay studied a wide range of...

Gouverneur Morris Childhood

Gouverneur Morris was born in 1752 at Morrisania estate, now part of modern-day Bronx. His father was a judge and his grandfather a colonial governor. Morris enrolled in King's College (present-day Columbia University) at the age of 12. Early education during this colonial era typically prepared...

Roger Sherman Childhood

Roger Sherman was born in Newton, Massachusetts and later lived in Stoughton. Despite sparse formal schooling, he pursued a rigorous self-education with support from his father's well-stocked library. This ignited his intellectual curiosity from a young age. Though his days were predominantly...

Alexander Hamilton was born in Charlestown, Nevis, an island in the West Indies, between 1755 and 1757. His father, James Hamilton, was a Scottish merchant, and his mother, Rachel Fawcett, was of French Huguenot descent. They were not legally married due to Rachel's prior unresolved marital status,...

John Adams Childhood

John Adams, born to John Adams Sr. and Susanna Boylston, hailed from a lineage deeply rooted in the Puritan tradition that pervaded Massachusetts in the 18th century. The Adams family commanded respect within their community due to their religious and moral values. Deacon John Adams Sr., John's...

Richard Henry Lee Biography

Richard Henry Lee was born on January 20, 1732, in Stratford, Virginia, to the wealthy and influential Lee family. Following the early deaths of both his parents during his adolescence, Lee's education was entrusted to the Queen Elizabeth Grammar School in Wakefield, West Yorkshire. Despite...

Charles Carroll Biography

Born on September 19, 1737, in Annapolis, Maryland, Charles Carroll was immersed from birth into a family where Catholic faith and prosperous society intertwined. At age ten, Charles began his schooling at the Jesuit school at Bohemia Manor, learning under the discreet but vigilant eye of his...

John Marshall Biography

John Marshall was born on September 24, 1755, near Germantown, Virginia. As the eldest of 15 children, he experienced a childhood of rugged frontier living which influenced his later views on life and law. His father, Thomas Marshall, was a land surveyor and engaged in local politics. Marshall's...

Benjamin Franklin Biography

Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on January 17, 1706, to Josiah Franklin and Abiah Folger. He was the fifteenth of seventeen children in a family of modest means. Franklin's formal education was brief, lasting only until the age of ten due to financial constraints. However, his...

George Washington Biography

Born in 1732 in Westmoreland County, Virginia, George Washington was introduced early to the expectations and challenges of the Virginia planter elite. His family had notable connections, with his father, Augustine Washington, involved in agriculture and iron mining, and his mother, Mary Ball...

John Adams Biography

John Adams, born on October 30, 1735, in Braintree (now Quincy), Massachusetts, grew up in modest surroundings, which instilled in him a strong work ethic. The eldest of three sons to farmer and cobbler John Adams Sr. and Susanna Boylston Adams, John's intellectual talents quickly became apparent...

Signers of The Declaration of Independence Because I found the information difficult to find on the Internet, I compiled the demographics for the Signers of the Declaration of Independence for this page. It mirrors the data found on a similar page which has demographics for the attendees of the...

The Convention Timeline Advertisement This timeline is a companion to the Main Timeline on this site. While that timeline attempts to put world and national events into some chronological perspective, this timeline intends to get into the details of the Constitutional Convention and the...