Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Happy 4th of July

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Can't trick me, 4th of July and Christmas Lights !

THE 4TH OF JULY

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured.
Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.
They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.
What kind of men were they?
Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.
Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence
knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.
Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family
was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.
At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, she died within a few months.
John Hart was driven from his wife�s bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.
Some of us take these liberties so much for granted, but we shouldn�t.
So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots.
It�s not much to ask for the price they paid.
Give thanks also for our sons & daughters serving with honor in our military today preserving the freedom the signers of the Declaration of independence so dearly sacrificed for.
Remember: freedom is never free!

Thanks for reminding us of our heritage Ric and the price that many paid and continue to pay for our freedom. I have a special place in my heart for our guys and gals in the military. I have no one in the family serving right now but I work with hundreds of them and I will be the first to tell you that almost to a person they are the best. I know many that have been, currently are, or have some back from Afgan. and Iraq. Believe me, they are trying their best and for the most part have the best intentions. A few bad apples is what our US media chooses to point out. I thank them for their service every chance I get and thanks to anyone reading this who has served or is serving. Thanks for our freedom and I salute you all!