''The Rights of Colonies Examined'' was an influential essay published in 1764 by

Founding Father The following list of national founding figures is a record, by country, of people who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e. ...

Stephen Hopkins. It received widespread circulation and brought hearty approval throughout the colonies. Historian Thomas Bicknell called it "the most remarkable document that was issued during the period preceding the War of the Revolution." Massachusetts Governor Thomas Hutchinson wrote that "it was conceived in a higher strain than any that were sent out by other colonies." With this paper, Hopkins became to Rhode Island what

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 ...

was to Massachusetts and what

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

was to Virginia. It was printed widely, and Hopkins became recognized as one of the leaders of public opinion in the colonies.Bicknell, p. 1083

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rights of Colonies Examined, The 1764 essays Documents of the American Revolution