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Samuel Ward (May 25, 1725 – March 26, 1776) was an American farmer, politician,
Rhode Island Supreme Court The Rhode Island Supreme Court is the Supreme court, court of last resort in the U.S. State of Rhode Island. The Court consists of a Chief Justice and four Associate Justices, all selected by the Governor of Rhode Island from candidates vetted by ...
justice, governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, and delegate to the Continental Congress where he signed the
Continental Association The Continental Association, also known as the Articles of Association or simply the Association, was an agreement among the American colonies adopted by the First Continental Congress on October 20, 1774. It called for a trade boycott against ...
. He was the son of Rhode Island Governor Richard Ward, was well-educated, and grew up in a large
Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and northeast of New Yor ...
, family. After marrying, he and his wife received property in
Westerly, Rhode Island Westerly is a town on the southwestern shoreline of Washington County, Rhode Island, first settled by English colonists in 1661 and incorporated as a municipality in 1669. It is a beachfront community on the south shore of the state with a popula ...
, from his father-in-law, and the couple settled there and took up farming. He entered politics as a young man and soon took sides in the hard-money vs. paper-money controversy, favoring hard money or specie. His primary rival over the money issue was Providence politician Stephen Hopkins, and the two men became bitter rivals—and the two also alternated as governors of the colony for several terms. During this time of political activity, Ward became a founder and trustee of Brown University. The most contentious issue that he faced during his three years as governor involved the Stamp Act, which had been passed by the British Parliament just before he took office for the second time. The Stamp Act placed a tax on all official documents and newspapers, infuriating the American colonists by being done without their consent. Representatives of the colonies met to discuss the act, but when it came time for the colonial governors to take a position, Ward was the only one who stood firm against it, threatening his position but bringing him recognition as a great
Patriot A patriot is a person with the quality of patriotism. Patriot may also refer to: Political and military groups United States * Patriot (American Revolution), those who supported the cause of independence in the American Revolution * Patriot m ...
. Ward's final term as governor ended in 1767, after which he retired to work on his farm in Westerly. On August 5, 1769, he was baptized at the age of 44 in the old church of Westerly as a
Seventh Day Baptist Seventh Day Baptists are Baptists who observe the Sabbath as the seventh day of the week, Saturday, as a holy day to God. They adopt a covenant Baptist theology, based on the concept of regenerated society, conscious baptism of believers by immers ...
becoming a member, despite having been a long time visitor. He was called back into service in 1774 as a delegate to the Continental Congress. War was looming with England, and to this end he devoted all of his energy. After hostilities began, Ward stated, "'Heaven save my country,' is my first, my last, and almost my only prayer." He died of
smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...
during a meeting of the Congress in
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, three months before the signing of the American Declaration of Independence, and was buried in a local cemetery. His remains were later re-interred in the Common Burying Ground in Newport.


Ancestry and early life

Ward was born in Newport in the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations in 1725, the son of Rhode Island Colonial Governor Richard Ward. His mother Mary Tillinghast was the daughter of John Tillinghast and Isabel Sayles, and a granddaughter of Pardon Tillinghast who had come from Seven Cliffs, Sussex, England. She was a granddaughter of John Sayles and Mary Williams, and a great granddaughter of Rhode Island founder Roger Williams, making Ward the great great grandson of the colony's founder. Ward's great grandfather John Ward was born in
Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...
, England and had been an officer in
Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three K ...
army, but he came to the American colonies following the accession of King Charles II. Ward was the ninth of 14 children. He grew up in a home of liberal tastes and cultivated manners, and he was trained under the discipline and instruction of a celebrated grammar school in his home town. He may also have been tutored by his older brother Thomas, who had graduated from
Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...
in 1733. As a young man, Ward married Anne Ray, the daughter of a well-to-do farmer on Block Island, from whom the couple received land in Westerly where they settled as farmers. He devoted much effort to improving the breeds of domestic animals, and he raised a breed of racehorse known as the Narraganset Pacer.


Family and legacy

Samuel and Anna Ward had eleven children. Their second son Samuel Ward, Jr. served as the lieutenant colonel of the
1st Rhode Island Regiment The 1st Rhode Island Regiment (also known as Varnum's Regiment, the 9th Continental Regiment, the Black Regiment, the Rhode Island Regiment, and Olney's Battalion) was a regiment in the Continental Army raised in Rhode Island during the Americ ...
in the Continental Army. A great-granddaughter was
Julia Ward Howe Julia Ward Howe (; May 27, 1819 – October 17, 1910) was an American author and poet, known for writing the " Battle Hymn of the Republic" and the original 1870 pacifist Mother's Day Proclamation. She was also an advocate for abolitionism ...
who composed the "
Battle Hymn of the Republic The "Battle Hymn of the Republic", also known as "Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory" or "Glory, Glory Hallelujah" outside of the United States, is a popular American patriotic song written by the abolitionist writer Julia Ward Howe. Howe wrote her l ...
". Ward's aunt Mary Ward married Sion Arnold, a grandson of Governor Benedict Arnold. In 1937, the town of Westerly honored Ward's memory by dedicating its high school to him. It was renamed Westerly High School in the late 20th century, but the main auditorium was given his name. Ward left a dressing table to his son Samuel Ward, Jr. The dressing table is now with the Chipstone Foundation in
Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...
, Wisconsin. The table is an example of
Queen Anne style furniture The Queen Anne style of furniture design developed before, during, and after the time of Queen Anne, who reigned from 1702 to 1714. History and characteristics Queen Anne furniture is "somewhat smaller, lighter, and more comfortable than its p ...
. It was made in 1746 by the cabinetmaker Job Townsend, Sr, who worked with his brother Christopher Townsend in Newport, Rhode Island.


Political life

Ward first became active in politics in 1756 when he was elected as a deputy from Westerly. The divisive political issue of the day was the use of hard money (or specie) versus the use of paper money, and Ward sided with the former group. His chief rival was Stephen Hopkins of Providence who sided with the paper money view. So bitter was the animosity between these two men that Hopkins commenced an action for slander against Ward. The case was moved to Massachusetts for a fair trial, and the judgment went against Hopkins by default in 1759. For ten years, the two men went back and forth as governor of the colony, each at the head of a powerful party.
Josias Lyndon Josias Lyndon (March 10, 1704 – March 30, 1778) was a governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, serving for a single one-year term. Biography Lyndon was the son of Samuel and Priscilla (Tompkins) Lyndon of Newport, t ...
was elected as a compromise candidate in 1768, and the constant butting heads stopped. Hopkins won the election as governor in 1758 and beat Ward again in the following three elections. In 1761, the Assembly named Ward to the office of chief justice of the
Rhode Island Supreme Court The Rhode Island Supreme Court is the Supreme court, court of last resort in the U.S. State of Rhode Island. The Court consists of a Chief Justice and four Associate Justices, all selected by the Governor of Rhode Island from candidates vetted by ...
, but he only served in this capacity for a year, finally being elected governor in 1762. During this first year in office, the plan was discussed of founding a college in the Rhode Island colony, and it received Ward's hearty support. He took an active part in the establishment of "Rhode island College," later Brown University. When the school was incorporated in 1765, he was one of the trustees and one of its most generous supporters.


Stamp Act

In 1763 Hopkins once again beat out Ward in the election for governor, serving for the next two years. However, in 1765 Ward for the second time won the contest between the two men. During this term one of the most contentious issues of the age arose, uniting the divided elements into a common cause. Two months before Ward's election the Stamp Act was passed by both houses of the Parliament of Great Britain. This act was a scheme for taxing the colonies, directing that all commercial and legal documents, to be valid in a court of law, must be written on stamped paper sold at fixed prices by governmental officers, and also directing that a duty be applied to newspapers. Parliament, assuming the right to tax the colonies, put additional duties on sugar, coffee and other articles. The government also required that lumber and iron from the colonies only be exported to England. The news of the act infuriated the colonists.
Samuel Adams Samuel Adams ( – October 2, 1803) was an American statesman, political philosopher, and a Founding Father of the United States. He was a politician in colonial Massachusetts, a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, an ...
of Massachusetts invited all the colonies to a congress of delegates to meet in New York to discuss relief from the unjust taxes. In August 1765 the Rhode Island General Assembly passed resolutions following the lead of
Patrick Henry Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736June 6, 1799) was an American attorney, planter, politician and orator known for declaring to the Second Virginia Convention (1775): " Give me liberty, or give me death!" A Founding Father, he served as the first a ...
of
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
. Rhode Island's appointed stamp distributor, Attorney General Augustus Johnson, refused to execute his office "against the will of our Sovereign Lord the People." The Rhode Island General Assembly met again at East Greenwich in September 1765, choosing delegates to the New York congress, and appointing a committee to consider the Stamp Act. The committee reported six resolutions that pointed to the absolution of allegiance to the British Crown unless the grievances were removed. The day before the act was to become effective, all of the royal governors took an oath to sustain it. Among the colonial governors, only Samuel Ward of Rhode Island refused the act. In so doing, he forfeited his position and was threatened with a huge fine, but this did not deter him. Ultimately the act was repealed, with news reaching the colonies in May 1766 to public rejoicing. The conflict for independence was delayed but not abandoned.


Continental Congress

In the 1767 election, Ward once again lost to his nemesis, but Hopkins would not seek re-election after 1768. Eventually, friendly relations between the two great rivals was established. The famous controversy was replaced by a more momentous struggle soon to involve the colony. Governor Ward retired to his estate in Westerly but became active again in 1774. At a town meeting in May of that year, the freemen of Providence formally proposed a Continental Congress for the union of the colonies, the first such act in favor of this measure, though the idea had already been circulating in several of the colonies. As plans solidified, the General Assembly met the following month in Newport and elected Ward and Hopkins as delegates to Congress. Ward served on several important committees, including the ''Committee on Secrets'' and frequently sat in the chair when the Congress met as a committee of the whole. He devoted all of his energy to the Continental Congress, until his untimely death from smallpox at a meeting of the convention in Philadelphia. Ward died a little more than three months before the Declaration of Independence was signed. He was originally buried in Philadelphia but in 1860 was reinterred in the Common Burying Ground in Newport, Rhode Island.


See also

*
Stamp Act Congress The Stamp Act Congress (October 7 – 25, 1765), also known as the Continental Congress of 1765, was a meeting held in New York, New York, consisting of representatives from some of the British colonies in North America. It was the first gat ...
*
List of delegates to the Continental Congress The Continental Congress was initially a convention of delegates from several British American colonies at the height of the American Revolution era, who spoke and acted collectively for the people of the Thirteen colonies that ultimately became ...
*
List of colonial governors of Rhode Island This is a list of the judges, presidents, and governors of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations from 1638 to 1776. Governor of Providence *Roger Williams June 1636 - September 1644 Judges of Portsmouth *William Coddington 7 ...
*
List of lieutenant governors of Rhode Island The current lieutenant governor of Rhode Island is Sabina Matos, who was sworn in on April 14, 2021, after Daniel McKee succeeded to the office of governor. The first lieutenant governor was George Brown. In Rhode Island, the lieutenant gove ...
* List of Chief Justices of the Rhode Island Supreme Court * Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations


Notes


References

* * * * The material used in this article has been removed from the website.


Further reading

*


External links


Biographic sketch at U.S. Congress website
- Volumes 1–3 contain his letters to his children and the diaries he kept of events at the Congress; these tell Ward's story poignantly.
Brown University CharterChronological list of Rhode Island leaders
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Samuel 1725 births 1776 deaths Brown University people Colonial governors of Rhode Island Continental Congressmen from Rhode Island 18th-century American politicians Deaths from smallpox American people of English descent Infectious disease deaths in Pennsylvania Patriots in the American Revolution People from Westerly, Rhode Island Politicians from Newport, Rhode Island People of Rhode Island in the American Revolution Political leaders of the American Revolution Seventh Day Baptists University and college founders Burials at Common Burying Ground and Island Cemetery Signers of the Continental Association