Many favorite founding fathers
(The following article appears here courtesy of the Press-Register where it was first published in a slightly different form. © 2008 Press-Register)
Who's your favorite founding father?
MBT asked posed that question in advance of Independence Day and got the following responses:
"You have got to love George Washington -- he could party, he could organize, he could win a war, and he knew when to quit!"
-- David Bronner,
Retirement Systems of Alabama
John Adams. He passionately, courageously, expertly and selflessly served his country in a variety of capacities at home and abroad. He endured personal hardship, answering the call of duty for multiple stints overseas -- away from his family, leaving his wife to manage their farm and raise their children.
As a lawyer he represented unpopular clients, British soldiers accused in the Boston Massacre, without flinching at the prospect for damage to his reputation.
Close presidential races have early precedent. He bested Thomas Jefferson by three electoral votes in 1796 and later lost to him by eight electoral votes in 1800.
Adams was not a dashing figure; I doubt if he would have gotten very far in the telegenic world of today's presidential politics.
Although Jefferson and he were political rivals, Adams reached out to him in their latter years, creating a priceless legacy in the exchange of correspondence between the two great men. Historians agree that without Adams' magnanimity in breaking the ice between them, these papers would not exist. I am not convinced this nation would be what it is today without his appearance on the world stage.
Adams and Jefferson are forever linked to the Fourth of July: they were together in 1776 at the signing of the Declaration of Independence and both died on the 50th anniversary of the signing, July 4, 1826. Adams's last words were, 'Jefferson lives.' He was wrong, unknown to Adams, Jefferson had predeceased him earlier that day."
-- Champ Lyons, Jr.
Associate Justice, Supreme Court of Alabama
"I have no favorites among the so-called founding fathers. The ones about whom I know the most are studies in contradictions. On one hand to throw off the colonial ties to England in the name of freedom while on this soil visiting their own brand of oppression on women, Africans, those without property ...
-- Merceria Ludgood,
Mobile County Commission
"Nathanael Greene: One of the most overlooked leaders of the Revolutionary War.
Although he did not participate in the Continental Congress or drafting of the Declaration of Independence, he was instrumental to the war effort and was recognized as one of Washington's top generals. He commanded a column at the Battle of Trenton and the reserve at Brandywine. At Germantown, his brigade's fierce fighting held off the British counterattack and allowed the bulk of the Continental Army to escape.
Later, Greene took the position as the first Quartermaster General (an office he did not want but accepted at Washington's request), building that position and keeping supplies flowing to the troops while still commanding field troops alongside Lafayette.
In 1780, Greene took command of the southern Continental forces. He decided to divide his forces and won significant battles at Cowpens and Guilford Court House driving Cornwallis north to Yorktown for the final British defeat.
Unfortunately, Nathanael Greene is little remembered today because he died of heat stroke three years after the end of the war.
Before his death, he sold an estate, given to him in honor of his service, to pay the bill for the rations of his forces during the Revolution.
His name does still live on in the cities of Greensboro, NC; Greenville, SC; and Greeneville, TN. His remains are buried in Johnson Square in Savannah, GA.
-- Will Brooks,
Mobile native and captain, U.S. Army, Fort Drum, NY
"Alexander Hamilton. Along with Washington, he was the only other indispensable founding father. I say this as a collateral descendant of John Adams. But had it not been for Hamilton's advocacy of a central government and the creation of our financial system, the United States wouldn't exist today. Others, such as Adams, made valuable contributions, but their contributions were not indispensable.
Without Washington's overwhelming personal stature coupled with Hamilton's ideas, it seems unlikely we would have achieved a unified country or a vibrant free enterprise system with a strong national economy."
-- Palmer Hamilton,
attorney
"George Washington, a man in war and peace, and Jefferson for the brilliant Constitution."
-- Bill Roberts,
former state senator
"John Adams, not just because of the HBO series! John Adams was a hard-driving politician who dared to question, would we go the same way as the Queen? After Washington, (he led on the question of) who and how would we be a true democracy and not a monarchy.
He was not the most liked, like myself, but he always had the Republic in his heart, in his dreams and wanted this country to be the best.
His fight for France to join us was the reason we are the United States of America.
Today, I hear the rumbling of 'buy America,' which I do as much as I can, but I know that the French government is being abused for their participation in our tanker project.
Americans do not understand how vital and important was France's participation in our revolution, and that we owe a great deal to France.
Do I get upset when they do not let us use their air space to fight the war on terrorism? Hell, yes, but I know and respect the heritage we share with France and now we are going to be building the best tanker for the men and women in the U.S. military. Kind of kooky how the world shakes out over time.
John Adams was a great American."
-- Stephen Nodine,
Mobile County Commission
"I tend not to have individual 'heroes' or 'heroines.' There have been too many important people throughout American history to single out one person. I am reading about John Adams by David McCullough and enjoying it.
I can't help but feel that the women of the Revolutionary War period were special. They sacrificed their men (husbands, sons, brothers, and fathers) for the cause. Husbands were away for long periods of time and the women kept the families together. I guess I would have to say my favorites were the founding 'mothers' to whom the men came home."
-- Carol Norris,
Mobile County License Commissioner
"John Adams. Reminds me of me. The combination of passionate beliefs and the certainty of being right with the political skills of a bull in a china shop."
-- Jerry Lathan,
roofing contractor and Republican official
"My favorite founding father? That's like asking me to name my favorite apostle or the most marvelous flying animal. Butterfly? Dragonfly? Hummingbird?
History records epochs precisely because they are a
transcendent confluence of time, place and personality. This country's birth -- a seismic event in the topography of ideals and great ideas -- owes so much to so many different people with so many markedly different characteristics, attitudes and talents that were I forced pick my favorite apostle I could pare them down to no less than four: Adams, Jefferson, Hamilton and Washington.
My sentimental favorite, of course, is Thomas Jefferson, the principled anarchist. But what about his countertenor, the heavy-handed Hamilton? Or, the self-effacing Washington, leader of a rebel army? Or the acerbic and arrogant John
Adams who recognized when to get out of the way and when to step in?"
-- Dom Soto,
lawyer
"John Hancock because I'm a lefty and when I sign a document oftentimes a person will look at me and say, 'What's that supposed to be?' It's my John Hancock. He was always known for his prominent signature and that stood out to me because I sign my name so differently."
-- Mike Mitchell,
Dean of Students, University of South Alabama
"Button Gwinnett. Because the guy on whom I wrote my dissertation (and first book), Lachlan McIntosh, killed him in a duel. If that had not happened I probably would have had to write on something else a lot less interesting."
-- Hardy Jackson,
history professor
"Though he generally isn't counted among the founders, Crispus Attucks is the one I would call my favorite. I was taught that those killed during the Boston Massacre were the first martyrs of the Revolution. Also, he was one of the first black figures in American history referred to by name. Martin Luther King, Jr. referred to Attucks in his book Why We Can't Wait. It’s fascinating to see how one historical figure influences others."
-- Ravi Howard,
author, Like Trees, Walking
"Without doubt, Thomas Jefferson is my hero. He championed separation of church and state, along with others, but he seems to be the one most quoted (misquoted, often) and he was not intimidated by his stand. I wonder sometimes how he would handle the likes of a (Jerry) Falwell or an opinionated (Anne) Coulter.
I also wish that he was my next-door neighbor because he gave delightful dinner parties -- I suppose I would be invited -- and he had a taste for the 'finer things.'
I cannot imagine that he would tolerate some of the pettiness of politics as we experience today, although I don't romanticize his era by any means.
I admire him and the others for their strength of character, their ability to hammer out what was to become one the most significant documents aside from the Magna Carta, and to protect each other from the enemies who would have not only taken their fortunes, but would have taken their lives if the truth of their convention had been published in the paper or held up for inspection on FOX news.
Weren't they all brave souls? They were, from all accounts, fairly civil in their discourse and discussion of how this nation should be formed, and they were thoughtful. They realized the value of negotiation on some issues and the success of holding one's course on others.
But Jefferson, the man for all seasons in America, was obsessive compulsive, suffered from Aspergers, I believe, and was a genuine human. He deserves the beautiful monument to him in DC, and I get cold chills and admit that I tear up when I am there. He didn't walk on water, but he didn't have to.
Further, I believe if he were living when the Sally Hemings' history was making the news a few years ago, that he would have graciously said, 'yes, I did and what is your point?'
My vote is for Thomas Jefferson."
-- Vivian Beckerle,
lawyer, unsuccessful Democratic congressional candidate
"Benjamin Franklin is my favorite founding father. He was an extremely gifted man who worked very hard to attain his success. More importantly, he was a man with great wisdom and sincerity. Two of my favorite B.F. quotes are:
- "Educate your children to self-control, to the habit of holding passion and prejudice and evil tendencies subject to an upright and reasoning will, and you have done much to abolish misery from their future;" and
- "He that would live in peace and at ease, must not speak all he knows nor judge all he sees."
-- Kim Pettway,
Generation Obama Mobile chairperson
"Thomas Jefferson -- While many of our founding fathers were brilliant and had diverse interest, none, in my opinion, portrayed these characteristics more than 'Mr. Jefferson' with possible exception of Ben Franklin.
Jefferson was an inventor, horticulturist and naturalist, architect, strong proponent of public education and primary author of the Declaration of Independence. A public servant in every sense, having served as governor of Virginia, US Minister to France, Secretary of State under President Washington, Vice-President under President John Adams and as President of the United States."
-- Steve McMillan,
state legislator
"That's an easy one for me: Benjamin Franklin -- inventor, diplomat, satirist, venture capitalist, philosopher, statesman, scientist, epigramist and, most importantly, America's preeminent newspaperman."
-- Michael Marshall,
Press-Register Editor
"John Adams, even before reading McCullough's book (an outstanding read), although Jefferson comes in a close second. Adams was a tireless servant to our young democracy, an outstanding advocate, probably the first trial lawyer -- defending even British soldiers of murder charges (winning their acquittal!) and also a devoted husband and instructive father. He was solid and a great pragmatist -- the perfect president to follow Washington, whose presidency was a tough one to follow (like Truman following FDR)."
-- Christ N. Coumanis,
attorney
"Ben Franklin. He was a very interesting and smart man. It is amazing how he was so diverse. A true statesman and politician as well as a scientist and an inventor. He was bed-stricken during the drafting of the Declaration of Independence but still drafted and/or revised much of the final document. He also authored many articles regarding the importance of the integration of black people and the abolition of slavery. He invented or improved many of the things we all frequently use (electricity, the stove, eyeglasses, odometer, musical instruments, the first public library and fire department). He definitely was a visionary!"
-- Raymond L. Bell, Jr.,
attorney
"Thomas Jefferson: My respect for Jefferson began in high school, and to list the reasons for that respect would result in a document about the size of the many books about him.
In the current body politic, some of the 'Jeffersonian' concepts worth remembering the wisdom of, include the following:
- (1) His view on the role of judges, including this quote,
"To consider the judges as the ultimate arbiters of all constitutional questions is a very dangerous doctrine indeed, and one which would place us under the despotism of an oligarchy."
To which I would simply observe 'point, set, match, Jefferson!'
- (2) His view on the federal system. Jefferson clearly favored states' rights, and proposed our (yes, constitutionally) strictly limited federal government.
- (3) His belief in individual liberty and freedom of action.
His writings clearly explained the true, bare knuckle facts about freedom.
A great example is the concept of gun control laws. A few years ago, before today's Democrat party figured out they could not win certain elections opposing this particular individual liberty, gun control laws (which by definition apply only to law abiding citizens) were a political hot button in our country. On the subject of gun control laws, Thomas Jefferson repeated the well informed conclusion that "Laws that forbid the carrying of arms ... disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes ... Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than to prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man."
And, my favorite retort, "The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government." (Ouch, fresh memories of the junta in Myanmar. Now there's a reason for every American to own an assault rifle)
- (4) If all that is not reason enough to rate him number one, don't forget that he was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence.
-- Les Barnett,
businessman and self-proclaimed "freedom lover"
"... all of the founding fathers had tremendous foresight. However, Alexander Hamilton stands out slightly above most of the founders in my eyes. He was a true 'rags to riches' person, coming from a very poor background. He was also adamant about free enterprise, opposed to enslavement of humans, understood that there had to be a strong central government, and designed the federal banking system.
He just seemed to understand what was really necessary for a nation to succeed, and for the most part, was able to carry out his goals. Unfortunately, getting involved in a duel was not the smartest thing that he did."
-- Phil Benson,
runner-up Republican candidate for revenue commissioner
"My favorite founding father is James Madison, who rarely gets the accolades of some of the other founders, but who was an intellectual giant and is the single most important figure in the development of our form of government.
Along with his intellectual acumen, what I admire most about Madison was his ability, like Washington, to get things done. While others at what became the Constitutional Convention in 1787 were bickering over whether or not to keep or scrap the Articles of Confederation -- an argument that was going nowhere --Madison introduced a concrete plan for a new government, the Virginia Plan, for the convention to debate instead. While the eventual Constitution differed from Madison's in a number of ways, he provided both the blueprint for the Constitution's system of checks and balances, and moved the Philadelphia debate in a productive direction.
Madison was, of course, also integral in convincing a skeptical American public to ratify the Constitution. Through his co-authorship of the Federalist Papers he was able to sway a public that feared a strong central government of its virtues.
While most of the other Founding Fathers, who were well versed in their history of ancient Greece and Rome, feared factions would destroy a republic, as they had in Rome, and that a democracy had to remain small to survive, as in Greece, Madison argued just the opposite. In Federalist #10 he said that both the large size of the United States -- along with its expected growth -- and the resulting large number of opinions would instead be a good thing for the country as no faction could become too strong to become tyrannical. He proved prophetic on both counts. Among all the founders, I believe that Madison would be most pleased with the diversity of modern America.
The greatest example of Madison's pragmatism was in the development of the Bill of Rights. As the architect of the Constitution, Madison totally opposed Anti-Federalist arguments for a Bill of Rights to be added to the Constitution, as he believed that the question of "inalienable" individual rights had already been established with Jefferson's Declaration of Independence, and that the Constitution was designed to limit the scope of government, not secure rights which had already "been endowed by the creator."
In addition to being unnecessary, Madison thought that a Bill of Rights would be dangerous, as it would seem as though the government was granting rights to the people, which was anathema to Madison's view of the government's scope.
He also feared that a list would seem to limit rights. What would happen if something important was left off? How many rights should be listed? 10? 100? 1000? 1,000,000?
However, when it became clear that to secure public support for the ratification of the Constitution a Bill of Rights would have to be added, Madison did not do what we see so often in politics -- both in our own time and in the past. He did not stonewall his opposition, call them names or remove himself from the process. Instead, he wrote the Bill of Rights himself. And we are glad that he did."
-- Thomas J. Ward,
Associate Professor of History
Spring Hill College
"We owe so much to all of our founding fathers, who paved the way for our freedom. Of all the founding fathers, the one I admire most would have to be John Adams. He was one of the most central characters of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. He considered signing the document one of the finest moments of his life and said: “I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure it will cost us to maintain this declaration, and support and defend these states. Yet through all the gloom I see the rays of ravishing light and glory. I can see that the end is worth all the means. This is our day of deliverance.”
Serving as our second President from 1797-1801, Adams was an extraordinary man whose integrity was equaled only by his passion and love for his country, friends and family. Speaking of the White House, he wrote to his wife: “May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof.”
In a strange twist of providence, Adams passed away on July 4, 1826 -– 50 years to the day after signing the Declaration of Independence. Reflecting on his own experiences as well as the American experience, he penned these words: “People and nations are forged in the fires of adversity."
Through the centuries, God has blessed America. As we celebrate America’s most important patriotic holiday, it’s all about freedom. It was about freedom when the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776; and, it’s about freedom today. May God continue to bless the land of the free, the USA!"
-- Sam Jones,
mayor of Mobile
"Having just seen all seven of the series on John Adams, it's hard for me not to choose him. However, I don't believe that would be fair because it is clear to me that it was the unique coming together of the stars at that one point in history of such an unbelievable group of intelligent, learned and courageous men that produced in one document the most profound form of government for men to try to live under in order to have peace and prosperity for all."
-- Matthew S. Metcalfe,
Airland Corporation
"My favorite founding father is John Adams. He stood alone to persuade the un-unified colonies to take a stand against Britain. The other colonies were quite reluctant to stand against the Crown. He was the one who nominated Washington to lead the colonial army. He went with Benjamin Franklin to obtain loans to finance the colonial army. He went to Britain as the ambassador to England. He literally spent 12 years abroad at the expense of his family and giving up his law practice/farming to establish this as a sovereign nation. He was the primary mover to begin the United States of America. I had read several books about Adams but until I saw the T.V. series on HBO, I did not (fully comprehend) the role that Adams played in the establishment of this country."
-- John F. Butler,
retired juvenile judge
"My favorite founding father is George Washington because I look at him as being first among the fathers of this country. He as much as anyone set up the country to be one we can be proud of. I've always admired him and I've always admired Abraham Lincoln because of the Emancipation Proclamation. Growing up in school and learning, I was always interested in how creative those two were in making the country what it is today. A lot of us are still standing on their shoulders even in this day and time."
-- Ron Davis,
mayor of Prichard
"Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804). Among the many accomplishments of this politician and economic theorist, Hamilton was the first secretary of the treasury, serving under George Washington. Hamilton devised the U.S. fiscal program, supporting tariffs and excise taxes as a means of raising money for the new federal government. He advocated a financially strong federal government, while his opponents, led by Thomas Jefferson, wanted to leave the financing of the government to state and local branches. He was killed by rival Aaron Burr in a duel.
Hamilton was a strong federalist and helped write the Federalist Papers. We can only guess at what he could have accomplished if he were not cut down in the duel. He, more than any one else, was the father of our strong banking system."
-- John Paul Bradley Jones,
substitute teacher
