John Hancock

By Tom Kirvan

One of the Founding Fathers, John Hancock is perhaps best known for his large and stylish signature on the Declaration of Independence, which has far overshadowed all his important contributions to the political foundation of the United States.

Hancock, who died on October 8, 1793, at the age of 56, was the longest-serving president of the Continental Congress and served two terms as governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, helping ensure that it ratified the United States Constitution in 1788.

A man of wealth, Hancock was a product of Boston Latin School and Harvard College, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in 1754. As legend goes, Hancock is said to have signed his name prominently on the Declaration of Independence “so that King George could see it without his spectacles.”

Some of his other declarations:

John Hancock

“Some boast of being friends to government; I am a friend to righteous government, to a government founded upon the principles of reason and justice; but I glory in publicly avowing my eternal enmity to tyranny.”
“The greatest ability in business is to get along with others and to influence their actions.”
“Failure is merely a stepping stone on the road to success. Embrace it, learn from it, and use it as fuel to propel you forward.”
“A chip on the shoulder is too heavy a piece of baggage to carry through life.”