Adams, Andrew, 1736-1797

Andrew Adams (January 7, 1736 – November 26, 1797) was an American Founding Father, lawyer, jurist, and political leader in Litchfield, Connecticut, during the American Revolutionary War. He was a delegate for Connecticut to the Continental Congress, signatory of the Articles of Confederation, and later Chief Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court.

Born in Stratford, Connecticut, he attended Yale and graduated in 1760 before reading law with his father. After first practicing in Stamford, Adams was named the King's attorney for Litchfield County in 1772. He moved to Litchfield in 1774 and made his home there for the rest of his life. He received the degree of LL.D. from Yale in 1796. With the coming of the American Revolution, Adams was a member of Connecticut's Committee of Safety. He served in the Connecticut House of Representatives from 1776 until 1781 and was its speaker in 1779 and 1780. During the Revolutionary War, he also served as a colonel in the Connecticut militia. He was appointed to the Second Continental Congress in 1778, signed the Articles of Confederation, and is considered a Founding Father.

After leaving the Continental Congress in 1788, a year later Adams had been named a member of the Connecticut executive council by Trumbull. Adams was also granted a seat as a judge that same year, and he was granted the position of chief justice in 1793, which was the position he kept until his death in Litchfield. Adams lies buried in the West Cemetery there.