Lives of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence (original 1848; edition 1995)

by Benson J. Lossing

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440	4	56,638	(4.13)	None

kaulsu's review

This book was originally published in 1848, and it shows. Each signer was a man of superior intelligence and integrity, with no faults whatsoever! Having said that, it may be the only book that brings all of these men together. I found it surprising how many of the signers had read the law. And, those that hadn't, it seemed, were medical doctors. But then there was Dr. Franklin. To give a bit of the flavor of the writing, "At length, the harmony between himself and his brother was interrupted, and he left his service...." At any rate, he was neither a doctor nor lawyer, but was held in very high esteem.

The book also contains the Declaration of Independence, the Articles if Confederation, the United States Constitution, and the Stamp Act.

The Stamp Act is a MUST read! It really will make you wonder what Parliament was thinking! (

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kaulsu | May 2, 2014 |

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The short bios of each signer were interesting, but definitely biased toward the positive. I don‘t doubt they were, for the most part, good people; but I was left wanting as to their absolute character from these reads. The latter part of the book was far more compelling, especially the “Declaration of Independence Historically Considered”. This is a good rendering of America‘s foundation. Something the typical American today lacks knowledge of. (

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282Mikado | Apr 13, 2022 |

I love learning about history, it's kind of my thing. And I've recently started to grow more of an interest in the american revolutionary war era. I did enjoy this book, even if I did find it overly dramatic at points, I did learn a lot about the signers that I had never heard of and probably wouldn't look up myself. The second half I feel like dragged on longer than it should have though. I understand what the author was going for with explaining everything, considering this reads like a college textbook, but this was just...too much. I would recommend this book if you want to learn more about these men though and what lead up to them signing the declaration and what happened after. It is an interesting read, just realize it is a very slow read. 3.5 out of 5 stars. (

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Beammey | Jul 25, 2017 |

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kaulsu | May 2, 2014 |

This book provides a brief overview of the lives of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence. It is a good book to begin with if you are looking for information on the Signers. The book also provides Thomas Jefferson's version of the Declaration, along with the subsequent changes made by the congress. It also gives the Articles of Confederation, the US Constitution, and the Stamp Act. This book provides a lot of information for the beginning student of the Declaration of Independence. (

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