We’ve had so much fun discovering fascinating incidents in the life of Dolley Madison, I went on longer than I had originally intended.
Just a few more items of interest. Molly Payne, Dolley’s mother, had a cousin named Patrick Henry. Patrick was a valiant Founding Father in his own right. Patrick had purchased a two story house which he, and the land title, referred to as Scotchtown. Probably because many of the immigrant workers on the nearby tin mines were from Scotland.
This home is where the Henry’s lived when Sallie Henry, Patrick’s first wife, became ill and eventually died. She died about 5 weeks before Patrick gave his immortal speech “Give Me Liberty.” Patrick had to ride horse-back from Scotchtown to Richmond, Virginia, a distance of about 28 miles, (just over a half hour by car—but Patrick went on his horse!) to attend the meeting where this speech was given.
John Adams as you know, was elected to succeed George Washington as the President of the United States of America. He had had a great deal to do with the creation of this new nation. He doesn’t get remembered too much for his contributions. He knew it would be that way.
Benjamin Franklin was greeted with a hero’s welcome when he arrived back in America in 1785. He had been in Paris, France, under the direction of Congress to finally achieve a Treaty, The Treaty of Paris, which officially ended the Revolutionary War. In that achievement he was assisted by Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and John Jay. They were successful, and the Treaty was heavily in favor of the United States.
Can you imagine if James Monroe, the lieutenant in charge of the cannon with General George Washington’s troops that crossed the Delaware River in December 1776, hadn’t been rescued by a medic when he suffered life-threatening wounds in the Battle of Trenton? If he hadn’t survived to become the fifth President of the United States of America we wouldn’t have the Monroe Doctrine.
When things were getting rough in the Colonies, there were a few men who stood up for things they believed in. It started with Patrick Henry in his speech as he was first elected to the house of Burgesses. Thomas Jefferson, his friend, listened in at the door of the Capitol in Williamsburg, as Henry made his speech, from notes written in the flyleaf of Jefferson’s loaned book!
For years I have presented classes, speeches, and presentations about the Founding Fathers of our United States of America. I love to do it. I suppose during one of my speeches, I had become a little too enthusiastic and bombastic. One attendee came up to me afterwards to tell me as much!