Family Card - Person Sheet
Family Card - Person Sheet
Birth19 Apr 1721, Newton, Mass
Death23 Jul 1793, New Haven, Conn
OccupationPolitician, Lawyer
FatherWilliam Sherman (1692-1740)
MotherMehetabel Wellington
Misc. Notes
Sherman is especially notable in United States history for being the only person to sign all four great state papers of the United States, the United States Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Association, the Articles of Confederation, and the United States Constitution.
Roger Sherman was an early American lawyer and statesman, as well as a Founding Father of the United States. He is the only person to have signed all four great state papers of the United States: the Continental Association, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution.[1]
Born in Newton, Massachusetts, Sherman established a legal career in Litchfield County, Connecticut despite a lack of formal education. After a period in the Connecticut House of Representatives, he served as a Justice of the Superior Court of Connecticut from 1766 to 1789. He represented Connecticut at the Continental Congress and signed the Continental Association, which provided for a boycott against Britain following the imposition of the Intolerable Acts. He was also a member of the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence, and he later signed the Articles of Confederation, the first constitution of the United States. In 1784, he was elected as the first mayor of New Haven, Connecticut.
Roger Sherman was born on April 19, 1721, in Newton, Massachusetts. He was admitted to the Massachusetts bar in 1754 and later served as a justice of the peace. In 1761 Roger Sherman moved to New Haven, Connecticut, where he established a business as a merchant.
Sherman's belief in independence led him to serve as a delegate to the continental congress from 1774 to 1784. He was instrumental in the creation of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and signed the declaration. He also helped draft the articles of confederation.
In 1787 Sherman was a member of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. He recognized that the Articles of Confederation had not provided a stable and secure method of national government. The convention, however, was soon divided over the issue of legislative representation. The small states feared a federal Congress apportioned by population, in which a few large states would control most of the seats.
Neither side would yield on the issue of representation. Sherman, along with Oliver Ellsworth, proposed the Connecticut Compromise, or Great Compromise. This plan created a bicameral legislature, with proportional representation in the lower house and equal representation in the upper house.
Roger Sherman was an early American lawyer and statesman, as well as a Founding Father of the United States. He is the only person to have signed all four great state papers of the United States: the Continental Association, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution.[1]
Born in Newton, Massachusetts, Sherman established a legal career in Litchfield County, Connecticut despite a lack of formal education. After a period in the Connecticut House of Representatives, he served as a Justice of the Superior Court of Connecticut from 1766 to 1789. He represented Connecticut at the Continental Congress and signed the Continental Association, which provided for a boycott against Britain following the imposition of the Intolerable Acts. He was also a member of the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence, and he later signed the Articles of Confederation, the first constitution of the United States. In 1784, he was elected as the first mayor of New Haven, Connecticut.
Roger Sherman was born on April 19, 1721, in Newton, Massachusetts. He was admitted to the Massachusetts bar in 1754 and later served as a justice of the peace. In 1761 Roger Sherman moved to New Haven, Connecticut, where he established a business as a merchant.
Sherman's belief in independence led him to serve as a delegate to the continental congress from 1774 to 1784. He was instrumental in the creation of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and signed the declaration. He also helped draft the articles of confederation.
In 1787 Sherman was a member of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. He recognized that the Articles of Confederation had not provided a stable and secure method of national government. The convention, however, was soon divided over the issue of legislative representation. The small states feared a federal Congress apportioned by population, in which a few large states would control most of the seats.
Neither side would yield on the issue of representation. Sherman, along with Oliver Ellsworth, proposed the Connecticut Compromise, or Great Compromise. This plan created a bicameral legislature, with proportional representation in the lower house and equal representation in the upper house.
Spouses
Birth31 Aug 1726, Stoughton, MA
Death19 Oct 1760
FatherDeacon Joseph Hartwell (1698-1786)
MotherMary Tolman (1697-1782)
Marriage17 Nov 1749
Birth20 May 1742, Danvers, Essex County, Mass
DeathAug 1814
FatherBenjamin Prescott
MotherRebecca Minot
Marriage12 May 1763