Roger Sherman

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: Roger Sherman

(born April 19, 1721, Newton, Mass. — died July 23, 1793, New Haven, Conn., U.S.) American jurist and politician. Active in trade and law in Connecticut, he served as judge of the superior court (1766 – 85) and mayor of New Haven (1784 – 93). A delegate to the Continental Congress, he signed the Declaration of Independence and helped draft the Articles of Confederation. At the Constitutional Convention, he proposed a compromise on congressional representation that combined facets of the two opposing plans by the large and small states. The result, called the Connecticut (or Great) Compromise, which was incorporated into the Constitution, provided for a bicameral legislature with representation based on population in one house (House of Representatives) and on the principle of equality in the other (Senate).

For more information on Roger Sherman, visit Britannica.com.

Search unanswered questions...

Browse: Unanswered questions | Most-recent questions | Reference library

5min Related Video: Roger Sherman

Top

Biography: Roger Sherman

Top

Roger Sherman (1721-1793), American patriot, was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and a formidable voice at the Constitutional Convention.

Roger Sherman was born of humble origins. As a youth, he worked as a cordwainer and cobbler on the family farm in Stoughton, Mass. In 1743 he moved to New Milford, Conn., where he was variously employed as a surveyor, storekeeper, almanac compiler, and lawyer. He also began his long career as a public official, serving as juryman, deacon, town clerk, school committeeman, justice of the peace, assemblyman, and commissary officer for the Connecticut militia. In 1761 he moved permanently to New Haven, where he continued his mercantile enterprises until 1772, when he retired to devote full time to public affairs. He served long terms as a member of the upper house of the Connecticut Legislature (1766-1785) and as a judge of the superior court (1766-1789), while also acting as treasurer of Yale College, from which he received an honorary master's degree in 1768.

As the Revolution approached, Sherman opposed the Stamp Act, supported the Sons of Liberty, enforced nonimportation agreements, and headed the New Haven Committee of Correspondence. He served in the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1781 and again in 1783-1784. He often counseled caution and moderation but without compromising American self-determination. He signed the Articles of Association of 1774, the Declaration of Independence (serving on its drafting committee as well), and the Articles of Confederation. After the war he returned to New Haven, where he was faced with severe financial reverses stemming from his support of the Revolution, the collapse of some of his businesses, and the demands of a large family (seven children by his first wife and eight by his second).

Though Sherman had consistently sought to strengthen the powers of Congress, he went to the Constitutional Convention of 1787 convinced that it would suffice to "patch up" the Articles of Confederation. He added constructively to debates, often leading the small-state opposition to the Pennsylvania-Virginia insistence on representation according to population. He also fought to uphold the supremacy of state legislatures. In the end, he helped devise the "Great Compromise," approved the Constitution, and defended it in the ratification debates. As an elder statesman, he served for 2 years in the first Federal House of Representatives and then for 2 years in the Senate.

Further Reading

Sherman's letters are in E.C. Burnett, ed., The Letters of the Members of the Continental Congress (8 vols., 1921-1938). His speeches are in The Annals of Congress (16 vols., 1857-1861), and in Max Farrand, ed., The Records of the Federal Convention (4 vols., 1937). The standard biography is Roger S. Boardman, Roger Sherman: Signer and Statesman (1938). See also Lewis H. Boutell, The Life of Roger Sherman (1896). Clinton Rossiter, 1787: The Grand Convention (1966), gives a lively, sympathetic account of Sherman's role.

Additional Sources

Rommel, John G., Connecticut's Yankee patriot, Roger Sherman, Hartford, Conn.: American Revolution Bicentennial Commission of Connecticut, 1979, 1980.

Columbia Encyclopedia: Roger Sherman

Top

Sherman, Roger, 1721-93, American political leader, b. Newton, Mass. Sherman helped to draft and signed the Declaration of Independence. He was long a member (1774-81, 1783-84) of the Continental Congress, helped to draw up the Articles of Confederation, and after serving as a member of the Constitutional Convention (1787) was one of the strongest proponents of the new Constitution. He was prominent in Connecticut colonial and state politics and was mayor of New Haven and treasurer of Yale College. Sherman was a U.S. Representative (1789-91) and U.S. Senator (1791-93).

Bibliography

See biographies by L. H. Boutell (1896) and R. S. Boardman (1938, repr. 1971); C. Collier, Roger Sherman's Connecticut (1971).

Legal Encyclopedia: Sherman, Roger

Top

Roger Sherman was a colonial and U.S. politician and judge who played a critical role at the Constitutional Convention of 1787, devising a plan for legislative representation that was accepted by large and small states. His actions at the convention in Philadelphia came near the end of a distinguished life in public service.

Sherman was born on April 19, 1721, in Newton, Massachusetts. He was admitted to the Massachusetts bar in 1754 and later served as a justice of the peace. In 1761 Sherman moved to New Haven, Connecticut, where he established a business as a merchant. From 1764 to 1785 he served in the Connecticut legislature and was a superior court judge from 1766 to 1788. During these years Sherman became recognized as a national political leader. Though conservative, he was an early supporter of American independence from Great Britain.

Sherman's belief in independence led him to serve as a delegate to the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1784. He was instrumental in the creation of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and signed the declaration. He also helped draft the Articles of Confederation.

After America won its independence, Sherman devoted himself to Connecticut politics, serving as the first mayor of New Haven from 1784 to 1793. He also helped revise Connecticut statutes, eliminating material related to the state's former colonial status.

In 1787 Sherman was a member of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. He recognized that the Articles of Confederation had not provided a stable and secure method of national government. The convention, however, was soon divided over the issue of legislative representation. The small states feared a federal Congress apportioned by population, in which a few large states would control most of the seats. Therefore, William Paterson of New Jersey proposed a plan that provided for equal representation in Congress. Edmund Randolph of Virginia, speaking for the interests of the large states, proposed a plan for a bicameral legislature, with representation in both houses based on population or wealth.

Neither side would yield on the issue of representation. Sherman, along with Oliver Ellsworth, proposed the Connecticut Compromise, or Great Compromise. This plan created a bicameral legislature, with proportional representation in the lower house and equal representation in the upper house. All revenue measures would originate in the lower house. The compromise was accepted, and the convention soon approved the Constitution.

Sherman served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1789 to 1791 and in the U.S. Senate from 1791 to 1793. He strongly supported the establishment of a national bank and the enactment of a tariff.

Sherman died on July 23, 1793, in New Haven, Connecticut.

Wikipedia: Roger Sherman

Top

Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Connecticut's At-large district
Roger Sherman

United States Senator from Connecticut
In office June 13, 1791 – July 23, 1793
Preceded by	William S. Johnson
Succeeded by	Stephen M. Mitchell
In office March 4, 1789 – March 4, 1791
Preceded by	None
Succeeded by	Amasa Learned

Born	April 19, 1721(1721-04-19) Newton, Massachusetts
Died	July 23, 1793 (aged 72)
Nationality	USA
Political party	Pro-Administration
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Hartwell Rebecca Minot Prescott
Alma mater	Yale University
Profession	Politician, Lawyer
Religion	Congregationalist
Signature

Roger Sherman (April 19, 1721 – July 23, 1793) was an early American lawyer and politician. He served as the first mayor of New Haven, Connecticut, and served on the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence, and was also a representative and senator in the new republic.

He was the only person to sign all four great state papers of the U.S.: the Continental Association, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution.^[1] Thomas Jefferson said of him: "That is Mr. Sherman, of Connecticut, a man who never said a foolish thing in his life."^[2]

Sherman was also the patriarch of one of America's oldest, most powerful and prolific U.S. political families, the Baldwin, Hoar & Sherman family as ranked by Political Graveyard.

1 Early life
2 Legal, political career
3 Constitutional Convention
4 Family
5 Places and things named in honor of Roger Sherman
6 Notes
7 References
8 External links

Early life

His family moved to Stoughton, Massachusetts, a town located seventeen miles (27 km) south of Boston. The part of Stoughton where Sherman grew up was later incorporated in 1797 to Canton, Massachusetts. Sherman's education did not extend beyond his father's library and grammar school, and his early career was spent as a shirt designer. However, he was gifted with an aptitude for learning, and access to a good library owned by his father, as well as a Harvard educated parish minister, Rev. Samuel Dunbar, who took him under his wing.

In 1743, after his father's death, he moved (on foot) with his mother and siblings to New Milford, Connecticut, where in partnership with his brother, he opened the town's first store. He very quickly introduced himself in civil and religious affairs, rapidly becoming one of the town's leading citizens and eventually town clerk of New Milford. Due to his mathematical skill he became county surveyor of New Haven County in 1745, and began providing astronomical calculations for almanacs in 1748.

Painter Ralph Earl's depiction of Sherman was described by Bernard Bailyn as "one of the most striking portraits of the age."^[3]

Legal, political career

Despite the fact that he had no formal legal training, Sherman was urged to read for the bar exam by a local lawyer and was admitted to the Bar of Litchfield, Connecticut in 1754, and chosen to represent New Milford in the Connecticut General Assembly from 1755 to 1758 and from 1760 to 1761. In 1766 he was elected to the Upper House of the Connecticut General Assembly, where he served until 1785.

He was appointed justice of the peace in 1762, judge of the court of common pleas in 1765, and justice of the Superior Court of Connecticut from 1766 to 1789, when he left to become a member of the United States Congress. He was also appointed treasurer of Yale College, and awarded an honorary Master of Arts degree. He was a professor of religion for many years, and engaged in lengthy correspondences with some of the greatest theologians of the time.

In 1783 he and Richard Law were appointed to massively revise the confused and archaic Connecticut statutes, which they accomplished with great success. In 1784 he was elected Mayor of New Haven, which office he held until his death. He is especially notable for being the only person to sign all four great state papers of the United States: the United States Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Association, the Articles of Confederation, and the United States Constitution. Only one other person, Robert Morris, signed 3 of these documents (not the Articles of Association).

In John Trumbull's famous painting, Sherman is literally front and center – of those standing up near the desk, he is the second person from the left. The painting depicts the Committee of Five presenting its work to the congress.

Constitutional Convention

During the Constitutional Convention of 1787, summoned into existence to amend the Articles of Confederation, Sherman offered what came to be called the Great Compromise or Connecticut Compromise. In this plan, the people would be represented in the house by proportional representation in one branch of the legislature, called the House of Representatives (the Lower House). The states would be represented in another house called the Senate (the Upper House). In the lower house, each state had a representative for every 30,000 people. On the other hand, in the upper house each state was guaranteed two senators, no matter their size.

Sherman is also memorable for his stance against paper money and his authoring of Article I Section 10 of the United States Constitution.

Mr. Wilson & Mr. Sherman moved to insert after the words "coin money" the words "nor emit bills of credit, nor make any thing but gold & silver coin a tender in payment of debts" making these prohibitions absolute, instead of making the measures allowable (as in the XIII art:) with the consent of the Legislature of the U.S. ... Mr. Sherman thought this a favorable crisis for crushing paper money. If the consent of the Legislature could authorize emissions of it, the friends of paper money would make every exertion to get into the Legislature in order to license it."^[4]

Family

Roger Sherman's descendants, in the third and fourth generations and later, via the associated Baldwin, Hoar & Sherman families have been influential political participants and office holders in United States history, especially in the 19th century, and is considered by Political Graveyard to be the 4th largest US political family. One distant relative of Sherman's is William Tecumseh Sherman.

Roger Sherman was a first cousin twice removed of Eli Whitney, inventor of the cotton gin. Sherman's mother Mehitable Wellington and Whitney's great-grandmother Elizabeth Wellington were siblings. It has been suggested that both of them were descended from Edward I of England.

Watergate-era prosecutor Archibald Cox, famous for his firing during the Saturday Night Massacre was a direct descendant of Roger Sherman.

Roger Sherman's grandson and namesake, Roger Sherman Baldwin earned his place in history as US Senator, Governor of Connecticut and one of two lawyers descended from members of the original Committee of Five who successfully argued for the freedom of approximately 50 Mende men, women, and children involved in the Amistad Supreme Court case of 1841. Two other grandsons, George F. Hoar and William M. Evarts were also US Senators. Evarts also served US Attorney General and was succeed by his first cousin Ebenezer R. Hoar, the brother of Senator George F. Hoar.

He is buried in the Grove Street Cemetery in New Haven, and his grave is the center of the city's 4th of July celebrations.

Places and things named in honor of Roger Sherman

Naturally, there is a Sherman Avenue in New Haven, which extends into neighboring Hamden.
The town of Sherman, Connecticut is named in honor of Roger Sherman.
Sherman Street in Canton, Massachusetts is named in honor of Roger Sherman.
Sherman Avenue in central Madison, Wisconsin is named in honor of Roger Sherman. Most of the main streets in downtown Madison are named after signers of the United States Constitution.
The official name of the policy debate team at Western Connecticut State University is the "Roger Sherman Debate Society".
Roger Sherman Inn of New Canaan, Connecticut is named in honor of Roger Sherman.
The Roger Sherman House on Howe Street in New Haven is named in honor of Roger Sherman.
Aside from his grave, there is only one statue known to have been made of Roger Sherman. His statue is located at the National Consttution Center[1] in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Notes

^ Roger Sherman Architect of the Capitol. Retrieved February 14, 2007.
^ Waln, Robert (1824). "Biography of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence". Port Folio 18: 450. http://books.google.com/books?id=b_IaAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA450&dq=%22That+is+Mr.+Sherman+of+Connecticut,+a+man+who+has+never+said+a+foolish+thing+in+his+life.%22#PPA450,M1. Retrieved 2009-01-16.
^ http://www.neh.gov/news/archive/19980323.html
^ Farrand, Max, ed. The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787.

References

Dictionary of American Biography
Boardman, Roger Sherman, Roger Sherman, Signer and Statesman, 1938. Reprint. New York: Da Capo Press, 1971.
Boutell, Lewis Henry, The Life of Roger Sherman, Chicago: A.C. McClurg & Co., 1896.
Hall, Mark David, "Roger Sherman: An Old Puritan in a New Nation." In Daniel L. Dreisbach, Mark David Hall, and Jeffry H. Morrison, ed. The Forgotten Founders on Religion and Public Life (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 2009)
Gerber, Scott D., "Roger Sherman and the Bill of Rights." Polity 28 (Summer 1996): 521-540.
Hoar, George Frisbie, The Connecticut Compromise. Roger Sherman, the Author of the Plan of Equal Representation of the States in the Senate, and Representation of the People in Proportion to Numbers in the House, Worcester, MA: Press of C. Hamilton, 1903.
Rommel, John G., Connecticut’s Yankee Patriot: Roger Sherman, Hartford: American Revolution Bicentennial Commission of Connecticut, 1980.

External links

From Rev. Charles A. Goodrich, Lives of the Signers to the Declaration of Independence, 1856
Roger Sherman at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
Sherman Genealogy Including Families of Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk, England By Thomas Townsend Sherman
Hoar-Baldwin-Foster-Sherman family of Massachusetts at Political Graveyard
History of Sherman's boyhood home of Stoughton, Massachusetts
Roger Sherman at Find a Grave
"Sherman, Roger". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.

Political offices
Preceded by none	Mayors of New Haven, Connecticut 1784–1793	Succeeded by Elizur Goodrich
United States Senate
Preceded by William S. Johnson	United States Senator (Class 3) from Connecticut 1791–1793 Served alongside: Oliver Ellsworth	Succeeded by Stephen M. Mitchell
Honorary titles
Preceded by William S. Johnson	Oldest living U.S. Senator June 13, 1791 – July 23, 1793	Succeeded by William S. Johnson

v • d • e United States Senators from Connecticut

Class 1	Ellsworth · Hillhouse · Dana · Boardman · Edwards · Foot · N. Smith · Niles · Betts · Huntington · R.S. Baldwin · Toucey · Dixon · Buckingham · Eaton · Hawley · Bulkeley · McLean · Walcott · Maloney · Hart · R.E. Baldwin · Benton · Purtell · T. Dodd · Weicker · Lieberman

Class 3	Johnson · Sherman · Mitchell · Trumbull · Tracy · Goodrich · Daggett · Lanman · Willey · Tomlinson · P. Smith · Niles · T. Smith · Gillette · Foster · Ferry · English · Barnum · Platt · Brandegee · Bingham · Lonergan · Danaher · McMahon · Purtell · Bush · Ribicoff · C. Dodd

v • d • e Signers of the Declaration of Independence

J. Adams • S. Adams • Bartlett • Braxton • Carroll • Chase • Clark • Clymer • Ellery • Floyd • Franklin • Gerry • Gwinnett • Hall • Hancock • Harrison • Hart • Hewes • Heyward • Hooper • Hopkins • Hopkinson • Huntington • Jefferson • F. Lee • R. Lee • Lewis • Livingston • Lynch • McKean • Middleton • L. Morris • R. Morris • Morton • Nelson • Paca • Paine • Penn • Read • Rodney • Ross • Rush • Rutledge • Sherman • Smith • Stockton • Stone • Taylor • Thornton • Walton • Whipple • Williams • Wilson • Witherspoon • Wolcott • Wythe

v • d • e Signers of the Articles of Confederation

A. Adams · S. Adams · T. Adams · Banister · Bartlett · Carroll · Clingan · Collins · Dana · Dickinson · Drayton · Duane · Duer · Ellery · Gerry · Hancock · Hanson · Harnett · Harvie · Heyward · Holten · Hosmer · Huntington · Hutson · Langworthy · Laurens · F. Lee · R. Lee · Lewis · Lovell · Marchant · Mathews · McKean · G. Morris · R. Morris · Penn · Reed · Roberdeau · Scudder · Sherman · Smith · Telfair · Van Dyke · Walton · Wentworth · Williams · Witherspoon · Wolcott

v • d • e Signers of the United States Constitution

Baldwin · Bassett · Bedford · Blair · Blount · Brearley · Broom · Butler · Carroll · Clymer · Dayton · Dickinson · Few · Fitzsimons · Franklin · Gilman · Gorham · Hamilton · Ingersoll · Jackson · Jenifer · Johnson · King · Langdon · Livingston · Madison · McHenry · Mifflin · G. Morris · R. Morris · Paterson · C. C. Pinckney · Pinckney · Read · Rutledge · Sherman · Spaight · Washington · Williamson · Wilson

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Donate to Wikimedia

Learn More

	New Milford (city, Connecticut)
	Sherman
	Ralph Earle (American painter)

	Did Roger Sherman have kids? Read answer...
	Are there quick facts about Roger Sherman? Read answer...
	What was Roger Sherman's philosophy? Read answer...

Help us answer these

	What state was Roger Sherman a delegate of?
	Who Roger Sherman Married?
	What kind of man was roger sherman?

Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:

Copyrights:

		Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		Biography. © 2006 through a partnership of Answers Corporation. All rights reserved. Read more
		Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/. Read more
		Legal Encyclopedia. West's Encyclopedia of American Law. Copyright © 1998 by The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Roger Sherman". Read more