Neighbor News
July 4th Declaration of Independence – A Time to Reflect
We thank our First Responders and our Service men and women who defend our Constitution and our Nation and what it means to be free
The members of the Sarah Riggs Humphreys-Mary Silliman Chapter, NSDAR remind everyone that July 4th is a time to celebrate our freedoms and also reflect on those who sacrificed their lives and fortunes defending us so that we can be free.
On July 4, 1776 the members of the Second Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence. Among the signers was our CT delegation – Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, and Oliver Wolcott. The Congress announced that “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Eleven years later the US Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787. The years between 1776 and 1787 changed the World. Those patriots who believed that the Colonies should be free and independent states enabled the United States of America to come into being.
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Our Patriots made this happen by enlisting and volunteering to serve their country. The Ripton Parish Militia which was based in the current Huntington area of Shelton guarded the Long Island Coast and participated in the Alarms of 1777 and 1779 when the British invaded New Haven, burnt Fairfield, Norwalk and Danbury. Our militia was also part of a larger group of soldiers who marched to New York City to prepare for battle with the British who had landed on Staten Island ready to invade New York City. For this reason, our militia were in the city on July 9, 1776 when General George Washington had the Declaration read to his assembled troops.
Our Service men and women and our First Responders continue to give of themselves selflessly to defend our Constitution and our Nation so that we can enjoy our Fourth of July.
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The DAR perpetuates the memory and spirit of the men and women who won American independence. Any woman who is lineally descended from an ancestor who aided the patriot cause during the American Revolution may be eligible to join. The DAR is a nonprofit lineage society focused on historical preservation, community education and patriotism. For more information visit www.sarahriggshumphreysDAR.org
