2. America’s Top 10 Founding Fathers
Who were the founding fathers?
George Washington
John Adams
Thomas Jefferson
James Madison
Benjamin Franklin
Samuel Adams
Thomas Paine
Patrick Henry
Alexander Hamilton
Gouverneur Morris
Video Clip
Resources
About the Author
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3. Who were the founding fathers?
The founding fathers of the United Stated were the
political leaders who signed the Declaration of
Independence, led the Patriots in the American
Revolution or helped write the United States
Constitution. There were many more than 10
founding fathers, but the 10 men in this tutorial
had perhaps the greatest impact in the creation
of the United States of America.
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4. George Washington
George Washington was a
member of the First and Second
Continental Congresses . The
Second Continental Congress
chose him to lead the Continental
Army. He was the president of
the Constitutional Convention
and was, of course, the first
president of the United States.
He was not one of the signers of
the Declaration of Independence
because in July 1776 he was in
New York preparing his defense
against the British.
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5. John Adams
John Adams was an important
figure in both the First and
Second Continental Congresses.
He was on the committee to draft
the Declaration of Independence.
Because of his foresight, George
Washington was named
Commander of the Continental
Army. He helped negotiate the
treaty of Paris that officially
ended the American Revolution.
He later became the first vice
president and then the second
president of the United States.
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6. Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was a delegate
to the Second Continental
Congress and was part of the
committee that would draft the
Declaration of Independence. He
was picked unanimously to write
the Declaration of Independence.
He was sent to France as a
diplomat after the Revolution and
when he returned he became
vice president under John Adams
before he became our third
president.
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7. James Madison
James Madison was known as the
Father of the Constitution
because he was responsible for
writing much of it. He was also
one of the author’s of the
Federalist Papers that helped
persuade the states to adopt the
Constitution. He was responsible
for drafting the Bill of Rights
which were added to the
Constitution in 1791. He helped
organize the new government
and later became the fourth
president of the United States.
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8. Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin was considered
America’s elder statesman by the
time of the Revolution and later
the Constitutional Convention.
He was a delegate to the Second
Continental Congress. He helped
draft the Declaration of
Independence. Franklin was
important in getting French aid
for the Patriots during the
American Revolution. He also
helped with negotiating the
Treaty of Paris that ended the
war.
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9. Samuel Adams
Samuel Adams was one of the
founders of the Sons of Liberty.
His leadership helped organize
the Boston Tea Party. He was a
delegate to both the First and
Second Continental Congresses
and fought for the Declaration of
Independence. He helped draft
the Articles of Confederation and
the Massachusetts Constitution
before becoming governor of
Massachusetts.
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10. Thomas Paine
Thomas Paine was the author of a
pamphlet called Common Sense
which was published in 1776. His
pamphlet had a compelling
argument for independence from
Great Britain and convinced many
colonists and founding fathers
that rebellion against the British
was necessary. During the
Revolutionary War, he published
a pamphlet called The Crisis that
helped spur on the soldiers to
fight.
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11. Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry was a radical
revolutionary who was not afraid
to speak up against Great Britain.
He is most famous for his speech
which includes the line, “Give me
liberty or give me death.” He was
governor of Virginia during the
Revolution. He also helped fight
for the addition of the Bill of
Rights to the US Constitution.
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12. Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton fought in the
Revolutionary War. His true
importance came about after the
war when he was a huge
proponent for the US
Constitution. He was one of the
author’s of the Federalist Papers
which helped persuade the states
to adopt the Constitution. He
was the first Secretary of the
Treasury under President George
Washington and he was
responsible for getting the new
country on its feet economically.
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13. Gouverneur Morris
Gouverneur Morris was an
accomplished statesman who had
the idea of a person being a
citizen of the union, not the
individual states. He was part of
the Second Continental Congress
and helped provide legislative
leadership to back up George
Washington in the fight against
the British. He signed the Articles
of Confederation and he wrote
parts of the US Constitution
including possibly its preamble.
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14. Resources
Images and Information from:
http://www.historyimages.com/
http://www.download-free-pictures.com/history/john-adams.html
http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Founding_Fathers_of_the_United_States
http://www.americanhistory.about.com/od/revolutionarywar/tp/foundingfathers.htm
http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/related/henry.htm
http://etc.usf.edu/clipart
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30OyU4O80i4
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15. About the Author
My name is Nancy Albrecht and I am
working towards my teacher certification
through Grand Valley State University's
graduate teacher certification program. I
graduated from Western Michigan
University in 1990 with a degree in
marketing. I then spent several years
working in advertising before leaving in
2002 to become a stay at home
mom. Over the last several years, I have
spent much of my time working as a
volunteer with elementary age children. I
am a Girl Scout Troop leader, a docent at
the Van Andel Museum and I have spent
Click on my photo to many years in the classroom as a parent
send me an email. volunteer. I am currently completing a
Social Studies major and plan to become
certified in elementary education.
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