Founding Fathers of the United States

Founding Fathers of the United States
Founding Fathers of the United States
1760s–1820s
	The Committee of Five (Adams, Livingston, Sherman, Jefferson, and Franklin) present their draft of the Declaration of Independence to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia on June 28, 1776, as depicted in John Trumbull's 1818 portrait.
Location	Thirteen Colonies
Including	Signers of the Declaration of Independence (1776), Articles of Confederation (1781), and United States Constitution (1789)
Leader(s)	John Adams; Samuel Adams; Benjamin Franklin; Alexander Hamilton; John Hancock; Patrick Henry; John Jay; Thomas Jefferson; Richard Henry Lee; Robert R. Livingston; James Madison; George Mason; Robert Morris; Peyton Randolph; Roger Sherman; George Washington; James Wilson;
Key events	Stamp Act; Boston Tea Party; Intolerable Acts; American Revolutionary War; Lee Resolution; Declaration of Independence; Treaty of Paris; United States Constitution; Bill of Rights;

The Founding Fathers refers to certain men who lived during the American Revolutionary War era. These men signed the Declaration of Independence, helped write the Constitution of the United States, or helped win the American Revolutionary War. Many of these men were members of the Continental Congress at some point. The term "Founding Fathers" was first used for these people in 1916.^[1]

John Trumbull's painting, Declaration of Independence, depicting the five-man committee who wrote the Declaration of Independence presenting their work to the Congress.

There were many people who were Founding Fathers. Some scholars like to limit them to a small number, such as seven: George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison.^[2]

Most of the Founding Fathers were large landowners or rich merchants. Most of them owned slaves. After the Constitution, many of the Founding Fathers became leaders in the federal government. Five of them, Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, and James Monroe, were later elected president of the United States.

List of Founding Fathers

Name	Province/state	DI (1776)	AC (1777)	USC (1787)
Adams, AndrewAndrew Adams	Connecticut	zed	Yes	zed
Adams, JohnJohn Adams	Massachusetts	Yes	zed	zed
Adams, SamuelSamuel Adams	Massachusetts	Yes	Yes	zed
Adams, ThomasThomas Adams	Virginia	zed	Yes	zed
Baldwin, AbrahamAbraham Baldwin	Georgia	zed	zed	Yes
Banister, JohnJohn Banister	Virginia	zed	Yes	zed
Bartlett, JosiahJosiah Bartlett	New Hampshire	Yes	Yes	zed
Bassett, RichardRichard Bassett	Delaware	zed	zed	Yes
Bedford Jr., GunningGunning Bedford Jr.	Delaware	zed	zed	Yes
Blair Jr., JohnJohn Blair Jr.	Virginia	zed	zed	Yes
Blount, WilliamWilliam Blount	North Carolina	zed	zed	Yes
Braxton, CarterCarter Braxton	Virginia	Yes	zed	zed
Brearley, DavidDavid Brearley	New Jersey	zed	zed	Yes
Broom, JacobJacob Broom	Delaware	zed	zed	Yes
Butler, PiercePierce Butler	South Carolina	zed	zed	Yes
Carroll, CharlesCharles Carroll	Maryland	Yes	zed	zed
Carroll, DanielDaniel Carroll	Maryland	zed	Yes	Yes
Chase, SamuelSamuel Chase	Maryland	Yes	zed	zed
Clark, AbrahamAbraham Clark	New Jersey	Yes	zed	zed
Clingan, WilliamWilliam Clingan	Pennsylvania	zed	Yes	zed
Clymer, GeorgeGeorge Clymer	Pennsylvania	Yes	zed	Yes
Collins, JohnJohn Collins	Rhode Island	zed	Yes	zed
Dana, FrancisFrancis Dana	Massachusetts	zed	Yes	zed
Dayton, JonathanJonathan Dayton	New Jersey	zed	zed	Yes
Dickinson, JohnJohn Dickinson	Delaware	zed	Yes	Yes
Drayton, William HenryWilliam Henry Drayton	South Carolina	zed	Yes	zed
Duane, JamesJames Duane	New York	zed	Yes	zed
Duer, WilliamWilliam Duer	New York	zed	Yes	zed
Ellery, WilliamWilliam Ellery	Rhode Island	Yes	Yes	zed
Few, WilliamWilliam Few	Georgia	zed	zed	Yes
Fitzsimons, ThomasThomas Fitzsimons	Pennsylvania	zed	zed	Yes
Floyd, WilliamWilliam Floyd	New York	Yes	zed	zed
Franklin, BenjaminBenjamin Franklin	Pennsylvania	Yes	zed	Yes
Gerry, ElbridgeElbridge Gerry	Massachusetts	Yes	Yes	zed
Gilman, NicholasNicholas Gilman	New Hampshire	zed	zed	Yes
Gorham, NathanielNathaniel Gorham	Massachusetts	zed	zed	Yes
Gwinnett, ButtonButton Gwinnett	Georgia	Yes	zed	zed
Hall, LymanLyman Hall	Georgia	Yes	zed	zed
Hamilton, AlexanderAlexander Hamilton	New York	zed	zed	Yes
Hancock, JohnJohn Hancock	Massachusetts	Yes	Yes	zed
Hanson, JohnJohn Hanson	Maryland	zed	Yes	zed
Harnett, CorneliusCornelius Harnett	North Carolina	zed	Yes	zed
Harrison V, BenjaminBenjamin Harrison V	Virginia	Yes	zed	zed
Hart, JohnJohn Hart	New Jersey	Yes	zed	zed
Harvie, JohnJohn Harvie	Virginia	zed	Yes	zed
Hewes, JosephJoseph Hewes	North Carolina	Yes	zed	zed
Heyward Jr., ThomasThomas Heyward Jr.	South Carolina	Yes	Yes	zed
Holten, SamuelSamuel Holten	Massachusetts	zed	Yes	zed
Hooper, WilliamWilliam Hooper	North Carolina	Yes	zed	zed
Hopkins, StephenStephen Hopkins	Rhode Island	Yes	zed	zed
Hopkinson, FrancisFrancis Hopkinson	New Jersey	Yes	zed	zed
Hosmer, TitusTitus Hosmer	Connecticut	zed	Yes	zed
Huntington, SamuelSamuel Huntington	Connecticut	Yes	Yes	zed
Hutson, RichardRichard Hutson	South Carolina	zed	Yes	zed
Ingersoll, JaredJared Ingersoll	Pennsylvania	zed	zed	Yes
Jackson, WilliamWilliam Jackson	South Carolina	zed	zed	Yes
Jefferson, ThomasThomas Jefferson	Virginia	Yes	zed	zed
Jenifer, Daniel of St. ThomasDaniel of St. Thomas Jenifer	Maryland	zed	zed	Yes
Johnson, William SamuelWilliam Samuel Johnson	Connecticut	zed	zed	Yes
King, RufusRufus King	Massachusetts	zed	zed	Yes
Langdon, JohnJohn Langdon	New Hampshire	zed	zed	Yes
Langworthy, EdwardEdward Langworthy	Georgia	zed	Yes	zed
Laurens, HenryHenry Laurens	South Carolina	zed	Yes	zed
Lee, Francis LightfootFrancis Lightfoot Lee	Virginia	Yes	Yes	zed
Lee, Richard HenryRichard Henry Lee	Virginia	Yes	Yes	zed
Lewis, FrancisFrancis Lewis	New York	Yes	Yes	zed
Livingston, PhilipPhilip Livingston	New York	Yes	zed	zed
Livingston, WilliamWilliam Livingston	New Jersey	zed	zed	Yes
Lovell, JamesJames Lovell	Massachusetts	zed	Yes	zed
Lynch Jr., ThomasThomas Lynch Jr.	South Carolina	Yes	zed	zed
Madison, JamesJames Madison	Virginia	zed	zed	Yes
Marchant, HenryHenry Marchant	Rhode Island	zed	Yes	zed
Mathews, JohnJohn Mathews	South Carolina	zed	Yes	zed
McHenry, JamesJames McHenry	Maryland	zed	zed	Yes
McKean, ThomasThomas McKean	Delaware	Yes	Yes	zed
Middleton, ArthurArthur Middleton	South Carolina	Yes	zed	zed
Mifflin, ThomasThomas Mifflin	Pennsylvania	zed	zed	Yes
Morris, GouverneurGouverneur Morris^[a]	New York	zed	Yes	zed
Morris, GouverneurGouverneur Morris^[a]	Pennsylvania	zed	zed	Yes
Morris, LewisLewis Morris	New York	Yes	zed	zed
Morris, RobertRobert Morris	Pennsylvania	Yes	Yes	Yes
Morton, JohnJohn Morton	Pennsylvania	Yes	zed	zed
Nelson Jr., ThomasThomas Nelson Jr.	Virginia	Yes	zed	zed
Paca, WilliamWilliam Paca	Maryland	Yes	zed	zed
Paine, Robert TreatRobert Treat Paine	Massachusetts	Yes	zed	zed
Paterson, WilliamWilliam Paterson	New Jersey	zed	zed	Yes
Penn, JohnJohn Penn	North Carolina	Yes	Yes	zed
Pinckney, CharlesCharles Pinckney	South Carolina	zed	zed	Yes
Pinckney, Charles CotesworthCharles Cotesworth Pinckney	South Carolina	zed	zed	Yes
Read, GeorgeGeorge Read	Delaware	Yes	zed	Yes
Reed, JosephJoseph Reed	Pennsylvania	zed	Yes	zed
Roberdeau, DanielDaniel Roberdeau	Pennsylvania	zed	Yes	zed
Rodney, CaesarCaesar Rodney	Delaware	Yes	zed	zed
Ross, GeorgeGeorge Ross	Pennsylvania	Yes	zed	zed
Rush, BenjaminBenjamin Rush	Pennsylvania	Yes	zed	zed
Rutledge, EdwardEdward Rutledge	South Carolina	Yes	zed	zed
Rutledge, JohnJohn Rutledge	South Carolina	zed	zed	Yes
Scudder, NathanielNathaniel Scudder	New Jersey	zed	Yes	zed
Sherman, RogerRoger Sherman	Connecticut	Yes	Yes	Yes
Smith, JamesJames Smith	Pennsylvania	Yes	zed	zed
Smith, Jonathan BayardJonathan Bayard Smith	Pennsylvania	zed	Yes	zed
Spaight, Richard DobbsRichard Dobbs Spaight	North Carolina	zed	zed	Yes
Stockton, RichardRichard Stockton	New Jersey	Yes	zed	zed
Stone, ThomasThomas Stone	Maryland	Yes	zed	zed
Taylor, GeorgeGeorge Taylor	Pennsylvania	Yes	zed	zed
Telfair, EdwardEdward Telfair	Georgia	zed	Yes	zed
Thornton, MatthewMatthew Thornton	New Hampshire	Yes	zed	zed
Van Dyke, NicholasNicholas Van Dyke	Delaware	zed	Yes	zed
Walton, GeorgeGeorge Walton	Georgia	Yes	zed	zed
Walton, JohnJohn Walton	Georgia	zed	Yes	zed
Washington, GeorgeGeorge Washington	Virginia	zed	zed	Yes
Wentworth Jr., JohnJohn Wentworth Jr.	New Hampshire	zed	Yes	zed
Whipple, WilliamWilliam Whipple	New Hampshire	Yes	zed	zed
Williams, JohnJohn Williams	North Carolina	zed	Yes	zed
Williams, WilliamWilliam Williams	Connecticut	Yes	zed	zed
Williamson, HughHugh Williamson	North Carolina	zed	zed	Yes
Wilson, JamesJames Wilson	Pennsylvania	Yes	zed	Yes
Witherspoon, JohnJohn Witherspoon	New Jersey	Yes	Yes	zed
Wolcott, OliverOliver Wolcott	Connecticut	Yes	Yes	zed
Wythe, GeorgeGeorge Wythe	Virginia	Yes	zed	zed

↑ Morris signed two of the documents, one as a delegate from New York, and one as a delegate from Pennsylvania.

Other delegates

The 55 delegates who attended the Constitutional Convention are referred to as framers. Of these, the 16 listed below did not sign the document.^[3] Three refused, while the remainder left early, either in protest of the proceedings or for personal reasons.^[4]^[5] Nevertheless, some sources regard all framers as founders, including those who did not sign:^[6]^[7]

William Richardson Davie, North Carolina
Oliver Ellsworth, Connecticut
Elbridge Gerry, Massachusetts *
William Houston, New Jersey
William Houstoun, Georgia
John Lansing Jr., New York
Alexander Martin, North Carolina
Luther Martin, Maryland
George Mason, Virginia *
James McClurg, Virginia
John Francis Mercer, Maryland
William Pierce, Georgia
Edmund Randolph, Virginia *
Caleb Strong, Massachusetts
George Wythe, Virginia
Robert Yates, New York

_{(*) Randolph, Mason, and Gerry were the only three present at the Constitution's adoption who refused to sign.}

Founding Fathers Of The United States Media

George Washington, a key Founding Father, was commanding general of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War and a Revolutionary hero, presided over the Constitutional Convention and became the nation's first president in April 1789.
Thomas Jefferson, a key Founding Father, was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence, which Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Joseph Ellis says contains "the most potent and consequential words in U.S. history".
Portraits and autograph signatures of the Founding Fathers, who unanimously signed the Declaration of Independence at the Second Continental Congress inside present-day Independence Hall in Philadelphia
Benjamin FranklinEarly advocate of colonial unity, was a foundational figure in defining the US ethos and exemplifying the emerging nation's ideals.
Alexander HamiltonServed as Washington's senior aide-de-camp during most of the Revolutionary War; wrote 51 of the 85 articles comprising the Federalist Papers; and created much of the administrative framework of the government.
Robert R. LivingstonMember Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence; administered oath of office to Washington
John JayPresident of the Continental Congress from 1778 to 1779; negotiated the Treaty of Paris with Adams and Franklin; wrote The Federalist Papers with Hamilton and Madison.
James MadisonCalled the "Father of the Constitution" by his contemporaries
Peyton RandolphPresident of the Continental Congress, presided over creation of the Continental Association
Richard Henry LeeIntroduced the Lee Resolution in the Second Continental Congress calling for the colonies' independence from Great Britain