A Smuggler, a Distiller,
an Adulterer, an Exhibitionist?
Our country’s Founding Fathers never knew their famous title.
The term “founding fathers” wasn’t coined until almost 150 years later, when Warren G. Harding addressed the 1916 Republican National Convention, long after the founders had all passed away.
We tend to envision these men as icons of sobriety, virtue, and decorum. But they also had their wild side. In honor of Independence Day, let’s examine some surprising facts about four of the men who forged the United States:
A Little Contraband
No one knows why John Hancock used such broad strokes for his legendary six-square-inch signature on the Declaration of Independence, but at the time, Hancock was more famous for being a smuggler.
Hancock secretly transported glass, lead, paper, and tea into the U.S. colonies to avoid paying British taxes.
As a result, the British government sought his head on the proverbial stake, allegedly offering 500 pounds for his capture – a figure which Hancock deemed insultingly low.
A Shot of Liquor
When George Washington left the presidential office in 1979, he went home to make whiskey. Two years later, his Mount Vernon distillery was one of America’s most extensive whiskey operations, producing nearly 11,000 gallons of the brew.
The enterprise was highly profitable. With five copper-pot stills operating 12 months a year, Washington’s distillery brought in $7,500 annually (approximately $120,000 in today’s currency).
Not surprisingly, Washington held an enlightened, modern attitude toward alcohol consumption, and he moderately enjoyed various liquors.
Curiously, he named his three foxhounds Drunkard, Tipsy, and Tippler.
A Dash of Hanky-Panky
Alexander Hamilton caused the country’s first political sex scandal. While serving as U.S. treasury secretary in 1791, Hamilton began an affair with Maria Reynolds, a married woman. (Hamilton was also married at the time.)
When Reynolds’ husband threatened to publicize the scandal unless he was paid hush money, Hamilton was placed at the front of a long line of American politicians forced to apologize publicly for their private behavior.
In his defense, Hamilton wrote and circulated a pamphlet detailing his side of the story. “Observations on Certain Documents,” argued that Hamilton had been the victim of an elaborate extortion scheme, and that his only actual crime had been an “irregular and indelicate amour.”
In a bizarre footnote, Maria Reynolds subsequently sued her husband for divorce — with Aaron Burr as her attorney.
The Naked Truth
Scientist, inventor, diplomat, and Founding Father, the eccentric Benjamin Franklin spurned bathing in water. Instead, he maintained a different cleansing ritual — his daily “air baths.”
Despite its presumed unpopularity with neighbors and passersby, Franklin would disrobe in front of wide-flung windows and embrace the morning air in all its refreshing glory.
He would then stand or sit before the window and engage in contemplative pursuits, such as reading or writing.
Undeterred by the changing seasons, Franklin partook in air baths year-round, insisting that the practice not only invigorated the mind and body but also cured the common cold.
Sources:
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Mental Floss
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World Strides
Mount Vernon
Smithsonian