Full Title: Greatness to Spare: The Heroic Sacrifices of the Men Who Signed the Declaration of Independence
Author: Theodore Reed Fehrenbach, Jr.
Published: January 1, 1968
Publisher: Van Nostrand
Fifty six men signed the Declaration of Independence, and of those, not one recanted or regretted their participation or the risk that accompanied their signing. “Greatness to Spare” is the story of what happened to these men after they signed this most historic document.
T. R. Fehrenbach’s revealing account of the subsequent ordeal of forth-two of the signers: men who risked all they had for the liberty in which they believed. During the years from 1776 to 1782, for their defiance of King George and this “treasonous act” they were hunted down, their property was confiscated, and their families persecuted. You will read little-known stories of some of the most famous men in American history.
Submitter's Notes
I first learned about this book from a sermon I heard in Orlando, Florida in 1988 and the book was already twenty years old as of that date. But the book is still popular some fifty-four years after publication. Fortunately used copies show up on Amazon and other resellers frequently.
This is a part of American history not taught in schools and is a part of history I had little to no knowledge of before reading the book. With hindsight we should all know this happened because they were defying the Crown and the colonies were British possessions. Why this is not taught in schools as a part of American history is a mystery and you will know much more upon completion.
The story is written as a series of short stories about these forty-two men and their families. If you are a fan of history, especially American history this is a must to complete your understanding of the war and surrounding events. They did not sign the Declaration of Independence and then just head home to wait out the war. This was deadly serious patriotism.