John Hancock

Born January 23, 1737
Quincy, Massachusetts
Died October 8, 1793
Quincy, Massachusetts

Political leader, businessman

John Hancock played an important role in American life during the early days of the Revolution. He served as a unifying force among men who displayed a wide variety of opinions about the wisdom of declaring independence. Although criticized for his vanity and self-interest, he showed strong abilities as the president of the Second Continental Congress. But after 1776, Hancock spent most of his time attending to the affairs of his home state of Massachusetts, where he was immensely popular.

John Hancock was born in 1737 in what is now Quincy, Massachusetts. He was the second of three children born to John Hancock, a Protestant minister, and his wife, Mary Hawke Thaxter Hancock. When young John Hancock was seven years old, his father died of a heart attack. His mother then sent him to live with his uncle, Thomas Hancock, one of Boston's wealthiest businessmen. John Hancock attended Boston Latin School, then graduated in 1754 from what is now Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He immediately went to work as a clerk in his uncle's shipping business.

In 1760 young Hancock went to London, England, to learn more about his uncle's foreign business affairs. There he met and socialized with high-ranking members of European society and witnessed the crowning of the new British king, George III see entry, who granted him the honor of a brief meeting.

Hancock returned to Boston after a year abroad. Two years later, in 1763, he became a partner in his uncle's successful shipping business. When his uncle died in 1764, Hancock inherited the business and his childless uncle's large estate. He became, at age twenty-seven, the richest man in Boston and probably all of New England. Hancock continued to prosper, in time owning twenty ships that carried whale oil, whale-bone, lumber, and codfish from New England to Europe and elsewhere. They were traded for such items as tea, paper, furniture, wine, leather, and swords that were then brought back and sold in America.

Hancock's biographer, William M. Fowler Jr., described the handsome young man in The Baron of Beacon Hill. (A baron is a powerful businessman and Beacon Hill was the elite section of Boston where Hancock lived.) Fowler wrote: "Though not tall, Hancock was slender and well proportioned. He had dark brown hair, which he usually hid under a short white wig, and bushy eyebrows sitting atop dark, almond-shaped eyes." He also had a long, straight nose and a large dimple in his chin.

Opposes Stamp Act taxation

Hancock greatly enjoyed his life of luxury. He traveled in a carriage drawn by six horses, and held lavish parties that featured expensive imported wines. Writer Jean Fritz described his fashionable way of dressing in her book Will You Sign Here, John Hancock? She wrote: "Generally, John's [vests] were of embroidered satin, his [trousers] were of velvet, and his shoes had gold or silver buckles on them. He liked a touch of lavender or purple about his neck and he was wild about lace."

The first sign of trouble in Hancock's prosperous world came in 1765, when the British imposed a new form of taxation on the colonists by way of the Stamp Act. The act's purpose was to help pay for the cost of maintaining British troops in America. The Stamp Act taxed many paper items such as newspapers, business and legal documents, and even dice and playing cards.

Along with other colonial merchants who would be affected by the tax, Hancock deeply resented the Stamp Act. In a letter to businessman John Barnard, Hancock protested the fact that the colonists were being taxed but were not represented in the Parliament, the British law-making body. He wrote, "I will not be a slave. I have a right to the libertys and privileges of the English constitution."

Strong opposition to the Stamp Act by the colonists and their supporters in Parliament led to its repeal in 1766. Upon hearing the news, America celebrated. In Boston, Hancock held a huge banquet. Lamps were placed in all fifty-four windows of his Beacon Hill mansion. He endeared himself to ordinary citizens when he provided them with casks of wine on Boston Common as part of the celebration. At the end of the evening, hundreds of men, women, and children gathered in Boston Common to hang lanterns in the Liberty Tree, Boston's symbol of freedom. That same year, 1766, Hancock's popularity resulted in his election to serve on the Massachusetts General Court, a position he held for eight years.

The Liberty affair

By the late 1760s, tensions were high between the American colonists and their British rulers over British taxation policies. In time, a large number of British troops were stationed in Boston under General Thomas Gage see entry for the purpose of keeping the rebellious colonists under control.

During that time, Hancock began using his ships for smuggling. (Smuggling is bringing goods secretly or illegally into or out of a country without paying the required taxes.) British tax collectors in Boston objected to Hancock's open display of contempt towards them. But since they could not find any evidence to charge him with smuggling, they were unable to punish him. Then, in June 1768, tax officials used an oddity in the tax law as an excuse to seize one of Hancock's vessels, the Liberty.

Hancock was by then a very popular man among the citizens of Boston. When the British towed Hancock's ship into the harbor and anchored it right next to a British ship, riots broke out among the angry Bostonians. They were already seething with resentment against British taxation policies. Fearing attack, tax officials fled in terror to an island in Boston Harbor. Hancock was threatened with huge fines for the Liberty affair. But Boston patriot Samuel Adams see entry spoke so eloquently in Hancock's defense in court that the British dropped the smuggling charges against him.

"Johnny Dupe"

Hancock soon became friends with patriots Samuel Adams and his cousin, John Adams see entry. The two men realized the value of having such a wealthy, well-known, and well-liked comrade. Soon Samuel Adams and Hancock began to be seen together at political clubs and meetings throughout Boston. Hancock was proud to associate with the esteemed patriot, and Samuel Adams used Hancock's popularity to influence more people to support the revolutionary cause.

Hancock and Samuel Adams became such constant companions that their enemies started calling Hancock "Johnny Dupe." A dupe is a person who is easily fooled or influenced. They joked that Adams "led him around like an ape." They also referred to the vain and self-involved Hancock as "Hancocky" (cocky means conceited).

Hancock begins his political rise

The years just before the start of the Revolutionary War were a time of much disagreement and turmoil among the American colonists. While some wanted to break away from England and declare their independence, others wanted to remain part of Great Britain.

Hancock wavered for a time before announcing that he was totally committed to the patriot cause, even if it cost him his life and all his money. Some historians have suggested he was waiting to see which way the public was leaning before he made his own decision. Before long, his reputation as a patriot grew. In his article on Hancock in the Encyclopedia of American Biography, Richard D. Brown refers to the Bostonian as "remarkable for his deliberate decision to build a public career based on popularity."

Hancock enhanced his image by giving gifts to the city such as church steeples, library books, and even a fire engine. Using their own influence, the Adamses helped him to become a powerful figure beyond the boundaries of Boston, among those people throughout the colonies who favored revolution. Whether or not he really deserved all the acclaim he received as a force for liberty is a question still debated by historians. Still, it took courage to defy the British Empire in as public a way as Hancock did.

In Massachusetts, it was the British-appointed governor who decided issues that involved the whole colony, but each town had its own "selectmen," who decided local issues and oversaw the town business. Hancock's reputation as a voice for American freedom got a big boost in 1770 when he was elected to one of Boston's most important offices, moderator of the Boston Town Meeting. At that time Boston citizens were very upset over an incident called the Boston Massacre, in which five colonists were killed by British soldiers during a mob action. In his new position as moderator, Hancock and other committee members went to the British-appointed authorities to demand the removal of British troops from the city of Boston because their presence was causing so much trouble. Their demands were ignored.

By 1774, the citizens of Boston were growing more and more angry with Great Britain for ignoring their protests. The anger boiled over when a series of measures was passed that colonists called the Intolerable Acts. The acts punished Boston for the Boston Tea Party, a protest in which Bostonians threw hundreds of pounds of English tea into Boston Harbor to protest British taxation policies. The Intolerable Acts punished Boston's rebellious behavior by closing Boston Harbor and ending the Massachusetts charter government, which had been in place for nearly a century. (A charter is a document setting forth a group's or nation's aims and principles.)

First Continental Congress

In April 1774, General Thomas Gage was appointed by King George III to be the British governor of Massachusetts. When a military man is appointed governor, it usually means that citizens have become very unruly. Gage had problems trying to restore order, especially among the citizens of Boston, who were considered the most rebellious of all the Americans.

In September 1774, the First Continental Congress met in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to discuss what to do in the face of what they considered unfair taxation and other measures imposed on them by the British. The Congress was made up of representatives of all the colonies except Georgia. The congressmen called for a boycott on British goods, to begin in December. Boycotting meant they refused to buy from or sell products to the British. This measure would hurt British merchants; if they were hurt badly enough, Congress thought, merchants would protest to Parliament for a change. Hancock was not present at the First Continental Congress, but he did participate in Massachusetts meetings leading up to the Second Continental Congress.

Hancock presides over Massachusetts Provincial Congress

Meetings were held in cities and towns throughout the colonies to discuss how to enforce the boycott and what else could be done. In Suffolk County, which included the town of Boston, representatives met and criticized the Intolerable Acts. They called Gage and his aides "enemies of the country." They then asked each town in Massachusetts to elect delegates to a statewide provincial congress to meet in October 1774.

The actual formation of the Provincial Congress marked the beginning of independent government in Massachusetts. John Hancock was elected its president. He was also made chairman of the Committee of Safety; the committee's job was to oversee the security and defense of the province of Massachusetts in case of armed conflicts with the British. Hancock was given power to call out the militia (a group of citizen soldiers) to deal with any troubles that occurred.

By the end of 1774, two governments operated in Massachusetts. One was under the command of General

(and Governor) Gage and held power in Boston. The other, the Provincial Congress with Hancock at its head, met in Salem.

By 1775 outbreaks of mob violence against the British were common in Massachusetts. In February, Parliament declared the colony to be in a state of rebellion. By then, Han cock was recognized as one of the foremost American radicals (those who favor a complete change in the government). In August 1775, King George issued a proclamation declaring all the colonies to be in a state of rebellion.

Flees to Philadelphia, attends Continental Congress

In April 1775, Governor Gage decided to seize Hancock and Samuel Adams for disloyalty to Great Britain. Hearing this, Hancock and Adams fled from Boston to Lexington, Massachusetts, to hide. Boston patriot Paul Revere see entry rode to Lexington and warned them that the British were on the way to capture them. The two escaped to Philadelphia, where they were to serve as representatives at the May meeting of the Second Continental Congress.

Governor Gage never forgave the two American patriots for the trouble they had caused him, including their escape. Two months later, when the governor made yet another effort to restore peaceful relations with the colonies, he offered a general pardon to anyone who had acted against the British government. Hancock and Adams were the only ones excluded from the pardon.

Leaders from all thirteen colonies met in Philadelphia in May 1775 for the Second Continental Congress, and Hancock and Samuel Adams were among them. King George had ignored the documents sent to him by the First Continental Congress, and he had stated that fighting would decide whether the colonies would be subject to his country or become independent. Now, delegates had to decide how to deal with Great Britain. Though still not ready to make a complete break with England, they did take action to put the colonies in a state of readiness for possible war.

Hancock briefly heads Congress

John Hancock was elected president of the Second Continental Congress, replacing Peyton Randolph who resigned due to ill health. Some members of the Congress were so pleased with themselves that a major enemy of King George III had been elected, that they happily picked Hancock up and set him in the president's chair. Hancock ran the meetings and performed such other duties as writing letters, ordering supplies, giving directions for moving troops and building forts, and signing laws.

But during his short term of office, Hancock's superior attitude earned him some enemies. He alienated many New England radical comrades, especially Samuel Adams, when he made friends with men such as John Dickinson see entry and Benjamin Harrison, who favored a less extreme course of action in dealing with Great Britain than did the radicals. When a proposal to thank Hancock for his services did not come to a vote in Congress in 1777, Hancock blamed Adams. Their relationship was never fully mended.

Hancock presided over Congress when it adopted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. His signature dwarfs that of all others on the Declaration. A famous story quotes Hancock as saying that he signed his name in such large letters because he wanted King George III of England to be able to read Hancock's name without his eyeglasses.

Marriage and military action

In 1777 Hancock resigned from the presidency of the Continental Congress, perhaps out of anger and disappointment that the congressmen had not voted to thank him for his service. When he was again elected to the Congress and chosen its president, he never appeared in person to take his seat, causing both confusion and embarrassment for the group. Hancock became less involved in national politics and began spending more and more of his time in his hometown of Boston, where his popularity grew.

In August 1777, Hancock married Dorothy Quincy in Fairfield, Connecticut. In a portrait by renowned artist John Singleton Copley, Mrs. Hancock appears as a slender, thoughtful-looking young woman with dark hair and eyes. The couple had two children: a daughter who died as an infant, and a son who died at the age of nine after falling and hitting his head while iceskating. The Hancocks managed to accept the tragedies and go on with their lives.

John Hancock was a person who constantly sought public acclaim, and he longed for military glory. He had been gravely disappointed when, in 1775, he was denied command of the new Continental army due to his lack of military experience. The position he desperately wanted went instead to George Washington see entry.

Hancock's only chance to earn military fame came in 1778 in the unsuccessful American attempt to recapture Newport, Rhode Island, from the British. As leader of the five-thousand-member Massachusetts unit, his service was unremarkable.

Excels in Boston politics; shows evidence of character flaws

Away from the Continental Congress and national affairs, Hancock demonstrated a talent for politics. He used his wealth to make himself popular, even among the poorest groups of Boston citizens, who were not the natural supporters of such a wealthy man. According to historian Dennis Fradin in his biography of Samuel Adams, Hancock "was as known for his generosity as his showy way of life. Each winter he donated food and firewood to Boston's poor," and he was quick to offer help to widows, orphans, and other needy citizens of Boston. He also helped the first American black poet, Phillis Wheatley see entry, to get her book of poems published.

Of course, like everyone else, Hancock also had his flaws. He loved to be idolized, as when crowds ran along his carriage shouting "King Hancock!" In addition, he sometimes behaved in an immature way and could be easily insulted. This was demonstrated in his handling of a treasurer's post at Harvard College.

In the fall of 1773, Harvard elected Hancock to serve as its treasurer. The college did so partly out of patriotism and partly to encourage him to be even more generous with his contributions. It would have been embarrassing for everyone if Hancock had refused. But his acceptance of the post caused endless problems for both him and his college. Very busy with his work leading up to the American Revolution, he ignored his treasurer's duties and did not manage the college's funds properly. Finally, Harvard asked him to resign and appointed a new treasurer. Hancock felt resentful because he believed he had been shown disrespect. When he died in 1793, he still owed Harvard money, which had to be repaid by his heirs.

Becomes nine-time governor

In spite of his damaged reputation over the Harvard incident, the people of Massachusetts still loved Hancock. In 1780, they elected him as their first governor. Massachusetts's elections for governor took place every year and Hancock was reelected five years in a row.

In 1785, Hancock voluntarily retired from the position, claiming ill health. He suffered from bad headaches and gout, a disease that resulted in painful, swollen legs. But his retirement came at a time of financial crisis for Massachusetts. Critics said that Hancock knew this and resigned to avoid the resulting political storm, caused in part by his poor handling of state funds.

Hancock left to his successor and rival, Governor James Bowdoin (pronounced BOW-dun), the task of dealing with an uprising of farmers, known as Shays's Rebellion, which took place in 1786–87 (see Daniel Shays entry). The farmers were protesting what they considered unfair taxation. After the crisis quieted down, Hancock again ran for governor, beating out Bowdoin.

Helps passage of U.S. Constitution

In 1787 Hancock was elected president of the Massachusetts State Convention, which had been formed to decide whether or not Massachusetts would accept a proposed U.S. Constitution. At that time, opinion was divided on the issue of how the document should be worded and the delegates argued over every paragraph.

According to one story, Hancock offered a compromise to get Massachusetts delegates to accept the Constitution, thinking he might become the nation's first president for his efforts. His compromise was accepted. Massachusetts voted to accept the new Constitution, but his hopes of ruling the country never came to pass.

It is possible that the Constitution would not have passed in Massachusetts without his support. And had Massachusetts not passed it, the entire constitutional effort might have failed. Hancock emerged with a reputation as a peacemaker, gaining more prestige than ever.

Final years

John Hancock spent the rest of his life serving as the governor of Massachusetts, although his poor health sometimes prevented his full participation in political events. He died during his ninth term of office on October 8, 1793, at the age of fifty-six.

Hancock's funeral in Boston was one of the largest and most impressive events ever held in New England up until that time. Twenty thousand people marched four abreast in a procession that extended more than a mile. He was laid to his final rest at Boston's Old Granary Burying Ground, where people still come to look at the grave of the famous revolutionary.

In 1789 Massachusetts politician James Sullivan, a friend of John Hancock, sent a letter to fellow politician Elbridge Gerry, in which he referred to Hancock as "the centre of union." Though many historians do not consider Hancock a brilliant thinker, he was a flexible and masterful politician who could bring together people with strong opposing political opinions. As a result, Hancock helped to hold his new country together at a time when revolutionary fervor threatened to tear it apart.

For More Information

Allison, Robert T. American Eras: The Revolutionary Era. Detroit: Gale, 1998, pp. 78–79, 202–3.

Baxter, W. T. The House of Hancock: Business in Boston, 1724–1775. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1945.

Boatner, Mark M. "Hancock, John" in Encyclopedia of the American Revolution. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1994, pp. 483–84.

Bourgoin, Suzanne M., and Paula Byers, eds. "Hancock, John" in Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998, pp. 114–16.

Brown, Richard D. "Hancock, John" in Encyclopedia of American Biography. John A. Garraty and Jerome L. Sternstein, eds. New York: Harper-Collins Publishers, 1996, pp. 496–97.

Faragher, John Mack, general ed. "Hancock, John" in Encyclopedia of Colonial and Revolutionary America. New York: Facts on File, 1990, p. 183.

Ferris, Robert G., ed. Signers of the Declaration of Independence. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1973, pp. 67–69.

Fowler, William M., Jr. The Baron of Beacon Hill: A Biography of John Hancock. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1980.

Fowler, William M., Jr. "Hancock, John" in American National Biography. John A. Garraty and Mark C. Carnes, eds. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999, vol. 9, pp. 969–70.

Fradin, Dennis. Samuel Adams: The Father of American Independence. New York: Clarion Books, 1998, pp. 46–7, 51.

Johnson, Allen, and Dumas Malone, eds. Dictionary of American Biography. New York: Charles Scribners Sons, 1932, vol. IV, pp. 218–19.

Purcell, Edward L. Who Was Who in the American Revolution. New York: Facts on File, 1993, pp. 211–12.