The Revolutionary War is the reason why the United States of America exists today, without early colonists fighting tyranny we would probably live under a monarchy form of government. But in order for the revolution to happen, there had to be great men behind it. One of those great men went by the name of John Hancock.
John Hancock was born into a simple family. It consisted of his father, his mother, his sister, Mary, and his brother Ebenezer. Hancock was born on January 12, 1737 in Braintree Massachusetts, present day Quincy. John's father died in 1744, and John went to go live with his uncle Thomas and Aunt Lydia in Boston. Unlike his biological family, his uncle was a wealthy merchant and had a great fortune in his possession.
John attended Boston Latin School and graduated from there in the spring of 1750. Afterwards, he enrolled in Harvard where he finished fifth of his class and graduated in 1754. John never had the commodity of school while living with his father, but he had the wits about him to make it through. These teachings that John received would later help him win positions in Congress, and write heartfelt speeches that gained the confidence of the people.
After graduating from his studies, John returned back home to his uncle. Hancock was enlisted as a clerk to work for Thomas" mercantile firm, and later inherited the business when Thomas died in 1764. This gave Hancock a substantial amount of money, which would later prove to be of great use for the cause of freedom.
The inheritance gave John more power amongst the colonists, and added to his power and popularity. Slowly but surely he was gaining recognition amongst the other colonists, which would also prove to be an essential to his later positions in government.
John Hancock was now in charge of a great amount of land, and a company. About the same time he inherited both of these, Britain passed the Stamp and Sugar Acts, which were greatly injuring his financial success.
