Samuel Adams
September 27, 1722 – October 2, 1803
Sam Adams was a Founding Father of the American Revolution. He was a speaker for independence from the British and organizer of resistance against the British. He became governor of Massachusetts and was cousin to President John Adams.
Patrick Henry
May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799
Patrick Henry is best known for his speech, “Give me Liberty or Give me Death!” He was a leader among the Anti-Federalists during the Constitutional Convention of 1787.
John Hancock
January 23, 1737 – October 8, 1793
Hancock was the president of the Second Continental Congress. He is best known for his large signature on the Declaration of Independence. He later became governor of Massachusetts.
John Dickinson
November 13 (or 15), 1732 – February 14, 1808
Dickinson was a Founding Father known for efforts to reconcile the colonies with Britain. He helped draft the Articles of Confederation.
Henry “Light-Horse Harry” Lee (Henry Lee III)
January 29, 1756 – March 25, 1818
He was a cavalry officer in the Revolutionary War and later became governor of Virginia and member of Congress. His son was confederate General Robert E. Lee.
Paul Revere
December 21, 1734 – May 10, 1818
Paul Revere is best known for warning Massachusetts militia of approaching British troops before Lexington and Concord because of Longfellow’s poem “Paul Revere’s Ride.”
Nathan Hale
June 6, 1755 – September 22, 1776
Nathan Hale is best remembered for his last words when he was executed by the British. “I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country.”
John Paul Jones
July 6, 1747 – July 18, 1792
John Jones was a leading naval officer during the Revolution and is called a founder of the U.S. Navy.
Ethan Allen
January 21, 1738 – February 12, 1789
Ethan Allen was a soldier who captured Fort Ticonderoga in 1775. He was part of founding Vermont.
George Washington
February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799
Washington was the commander in Chief of the Continental Army. He was the first president of the United States. He established many of our traditions such as the inaugural addresses, cabinet meetings, and the two-term limit.
Benjamin Franklin
January 17, 1706 – April 17, 1790
Franklin was a leading diplomat, scientist, inventor, and founding father. He made major discoveries in electricity. He also invented bifocals and the lightning rod. He helped draft the Declaration of Independence and secured the French alliance.
John Adams
October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826
Adams fought to have American fight for independence. He worked with Jefferson and Franklin on the Declaration of Independence. He served as a diplomat and became the second U.S. President.
Thomas Jefferson
April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826
Jefferson was the main author of the Declaration of Independence. He was the third President of the United States after being vice president under John Adams. He was a founder of the Democratic-Republican Party.
Alexander Hamilton
January 11, 1755 (or 1757) – July 12, 1804
Hamilton was the first Secretary of the Treasury. He designed U.S. financial system and founded the national bank. He was a close aide to Washington during the war. He was tragically killed in a duel with Vice President Aaron Burr.
James Madison
March 16, 1751 – June 28, 1836
Madison was the fourth President of the United States. He is called the “Father of the Constitution” and “Father of the Bill of Rights.” He was an author of The Federalist Papers.
John Jay
December 12, 1745 – May 17, 1829
John Jay was the first Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He was governor of New York and an author of The Federalist Papers. He played a major role in abolishing slavery in New York.
Marquis de Lafayette
September 6, 1757 – May 20, 1834
Lafayette was a French military officer who fought alongside Washington, notably at Yorktown. He took part in the French Revolution, was imprisoned, and later honored by both France and the U.S.
Betsy Ross
January 1, 1752 – January 30, 1836
Betsy Ross is remembered as the one who sewed the first American flag in 1776 at Washington’s request.
King George III
June 4, 1738 – January 29, 1820
King George III was the king of Great Britain during the American Revolution. The American colonists accused him of tyranny.
General Benedict Arnold
January 14, 1741 – June 14, 1801
Arnold was initially a general for the Continental Army, but he later defected to the British. He is known as a traitor and died in debt in London.
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham
November 15, 1708 – May 11, 1778
Pitt was a prominent British statesman. He opposed harsh British policies toward the colonies during the lead-up to the Revolution.
Prime Minister Lord Frederick North
April 13, 1732 – August 5, 1792
He was the British Prime Minister from 1770–1782. He led Britain during the Revolution.
General Thomas Gage
1719/1720 – April 2, 1787
Cage was the military governor of Massachusetts and commander at the Battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill. He was replaced by General Howe.
General William Howe
August 10, 1729 – 1814
Howe became the British Commander-in-Chief after Gage. He captured New York City and Philadelphia and resigned after failures in the Saratoga campaign.
General John Burgoyne
February 24, 1722 – August 4, 1792
He was the British general who was defeated at the Battle of Saratoga. That battle was the turning point that brought France into the war.
General Charles Cornwallis
December 31, 1738 – October 5, 1805
He was the British general who surrendered at Yorktown in 1781, ending the Revolutionary War. He later served in India and Ireland.
Thomas Paine
February 9, 1737 – June 8, 1809
Revolutionary author of Common Sense (1776), which argued for independence. Later wrote The Rights of Man in defense of the French Revolution. He spent later life in isolation after returning to the U.S.
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