Sam Adams
for the rights of the colonists
Family History
Born in Boston
One of 12 children born to Samuel Adams Sr. and Mary Adams
Only 3 children survived past age 3
Wealthy, religious family heavily involved in politics
Second cousin to John Adams
Samuel Adams Sr. was a deacon of the Congregational Church along with being a businessman and a politician
Both parents were strict Puritans
Political affiliations
Democrat-Republican (following Thomas Jefferson)
strongly opposed British taxation
served as a legislator of Massachusetts from 1765-1774
served as a delegate to the Continental Congress until 1781
signed Declaration of Independence as a delegate
served as Massachusetts governor from 1794 through 1797
Contributions to the American Revolution
Political leader in Massachusetts
Spoke greatly of the injustices of the Stamp Act of 1765
Organizer and member of the Sons of Liberty
Wrote articles in newspapers throughout English colonies to speak out against England
Recruited many figureheads of the the American Revolution
Helped organize and lead the colonial attacks against British taxes, the most famous being the Boston Tea Party in answer to the Tea Act
Stamp Act- taxes on paper products to help repay debts from the 7 Years War
Tea Act- tax on tea to help raise the East India Company from bankruptcy
7 Years War- all out war between England and France, also known in the Americas as the French and Indian War, England won
- Sons of Liberty- political groups that opposed British rule and worked towards American independence
- Helped draft the Declaration of Independence and Articles of Confederation
Sam Adam's integrity
Integrity: the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness
- From the viewpoint of a colonist, one would say that Sam Adams was very honest because he had their best interest in mind and spoke out when he believed something was unfair for the them such as British taxes on tea and the British rule over the colonists. The colonists would also say that Sam Adams had very strong moral principles including his Puritan background and the rights he wanted his fellow colonists to withhold. On the other hand, the British would look at Sam Adams and say that he was a liar, and lacked moral principles because he rebelled against their rule several different times. The British would see him as a nuisance with no integrity because of the voice he had for the colonists.
Sam Adam's citizenship
Citizenship: a person who is involved in trying to make the community, nation or world a better place
The colonists would view Sam Adams as a man full of citizenship. He was very involved in trying to make the American colonies as best of a place to live as he could. This is why he was a very involved political leader who organized the Sons of Liberty, led attacks against British taxes, and spoke out against the Sugar and Stamp Acts. The British however would view Sam Adams as a man with no citizenship whatsoever. To them, he was a pest that made life for the British worse because of the freedom he wanted for the colonists.