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Historic Document
Birth of a Nation
A year after the first shots were fired in anger, the American colonies had finally given up on achieving a resolution to their grievances against Britain while remaining a part of the empire. Instead, Congress authorized Thomas Jefferson and his small group to draft a Declaration of Independence for congressional approval.
On July 2, 1776, while the actual Declaration was still undergoing modification, Congress unanimously voted for independence. Among the four delegates representing the Massachusetts colony was Boston lawyer and future president John Adams, cousin of fellow patriot Samuel Adams. The following day, Adams penned a letter to his wife, Abigail, explaining what had just taken place, along with both his hopes and fears. It's a short but rare insight into the feelings that must have coursed through the veins of every patriot that day, a future both bright and fearsome. To put Adams' letter into perspective, add to the mix a portion of the letter from Abigail to her husband on the same subject, written several months earlier, on March 31st: "In the new code of laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make, I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors." And you thought that all John Adams had to worry about was the British!
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