Samuel Adams grave stone in Granary Burial Ground (aka The Old Granary)
My view of American history has changed over the past month. First, I read David G. McCullough’s 1776 which seriously altered my take on the revolution. The year 1776 was actually a very dark period in American history (until the last week) as independence seemed very difficult to come by in July and nearly impossible by mid-December with numerous defeats and retreats.
Seeing the actual places in New York and Boston where some of the events of 1776 occurred after reading 1776 also gave me a new perspective.
July 4 is celebrated as Independence Day even though independence didn’t actually come until the war ended in 1783, and the legal separation from America’s point of view came on July 2. But the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4 so that is the day that stuck.
Today’s photo is of the tombstone of one of the signers of that document, Samuel Adams. His father started the brewery that many know the name Samuel Adams by today. However, the modern Samuel Adams beer of the Boston Beer Company didn’t get started until 1984, despite the commercials which make it look like it has been brewed since the 18th Century.