Revolutionary Influence: important people leading up to war
While we are taught to believe all the colonists wanted independence from Britain, it was really a
handful of individuals who worked hard to make sure Britain was pushed to the brink of war. The
taxes imposed by Britain affected only a small portion of the population, but it was those affected by
the taxes who rallied other colonists and worked to convince the general public that independence was
necessary – and inevitable. John Winthrop’s Massachusetts Bay Colony, known now as Massachusetts,
evolved into the most influential of all the colonies, and it was there that the majority of revolutionary
action took place. (John Winthrop died in 1649, so his desire to create a “city upon a hill” influenced
others for over 100 years.)
To better understand what individuals were willing to do in order to secure independence, or at least
start war, you will research a person influential in the period leading up to the Revolutionary War.
Most people involved in pre-war activities became involved in wartime activities as well, so there will
be some overlap with their level of influence.
Once you’ve found a person you’d like to investigate, complete some brief research to answer the
following questions:
 Name, occupation, born/died
 One important action they took/decision they made before the war to move the colonies closer
to independence
 Why were they interested in securing independence?
o (you will have to draw your own conclusion about their motivations by putting research
pieces together)
 Would your individual be willing to compromise their values and morals to ensure the colonies
would have the opportunity to fight for independence? Explain why you believe your answer is
most likely.
o (you will have to think about the actions of your individual and their loyalty to the cause
and make a decision about their actions)
Once you’ve completed your research and have drawn your conclusions, write your information in
academic paragraph form – no first person or casual writing. This writing should result in 4
paragraphs.
Keep track of all the sources you looked at, even if you didn’t use them. A bibliography should be
included at the end of your paper.
Upload your finished product to your blog.
*NOTE: Be sure the person you’re researching was influential during the COLONIAL period, not just
the Revolutionary War…
Places to start researching:
 http://www.theamericanrevolution.org/people.aspx (list of colonial/Rev. War figures)
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sons_of_Liberty (scroll down for list of group members)
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daughters_of_Liberty (Daughters of Liberty)