Sherman, Roger, 1721-1793

Declaration of Independence signer from Connecticut.

Roger Sherman was born in 1721 in Newton, Massachusetts, and early moved to Stoughton, Massachusetts, where he attended the public schools and later learned the shoemaker's trade. He moved to New Milford, Connecticut, in 1743 and became surveyor of New Haven County in 1745. During this period Sherman was engaged in the study of law and was admitted to the bar in 1754. He was a member of the Connecticut Assembly in 1755, 1756, 1758-61 and 1764-66. As Justice of the Peace for Litchfield County (1755-1761), he issued the warrant for the arrest of Timothy Hurlburt. He served as judge of the New Haven Superior Court and was a member of the State Senate. He served as Treasurer of Yale College from 1765 to 1776. He was a member of the Continental Congress 1774-1781, 1783, and 1784, and signed the Declaration of Independence as a member of the committee which drafted it. He was also on the committee which drafted the Articles of Confederation, and a delegate to the Constitutional Convention of 1787. As such he became the only person to sign all the great American state papers: the Articles of Association, of 1774, the Declaration of Independence of 1776, the Articles of Confederation in 1783, and the Constitution in 1787.

Sherman, a native of Massachusetts, moved to Connecticut in his early twenties. Over the years he had several occupations, including store owner, surveyor, lawyer, and mayor of New Haven, Connecticut. Sherman is also well known for his participation in the formation of the government of the United States. He is the only person to have signed all four of the following: the United States Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Association, the Articles of Confederation, and the United States Constitution.

American lawyer and merchant.

Sherman was a signer of the U. S. Articles of Association, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution.

Born in Newton, Mass. on 19 April 1721; moved to New Milford, Conn. in 1743. Served as town clerk of New Milford; represented New Milford in the Connecticut legislature; member of the committee appointed to draft the Declaration of Independence; member of the Constitutional Convention of 1787.

American jurist and statesman.

Sherman signed all four great state papers.

Surveyor of New Haven County, 1745; admitted to the bar in 1754; member of the Connecticut Assembly 1755, 1756, 1758-1761, 1764-1766; Justice of the Peace for Litchfield County, 1755-1761; judge of the New Haven Superior Court; member of the State Senate; member of the Continental Congress 1774-1781, 1783, 1784.

At this time, Roger Sherman was a U. S. Senator from Connecticut. Robert Morris was the Superintendent of Finances of the United States from 1781-1784. During this time he helped establish the National Bank. At this time, he was a U. S. Senator from Pennsylvania.

Delegate to the Continental Congress, U.S. senator and representative, and jurist from Connecticut.

Sherman was the only member of Continental Congress who signed all four great state papers: Declaration of 1774, Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, U.S. Constitution.

This Century Art Gallery - Williamsburg exhibits a wide variety of contemporary paintings, sculpture, and crafts by outstanding regional and national artists. The Gallery, adjacent to Merchants Square and the Historic Area in Williamsburg, Virginia, occupies a unique 1920 Sears Roebuck house that was modernized in the 1980s.

The Gallery is a nonprofit organization that is wholly volunteer-operated. Members give their time generously to manage Gallery business and to run the many programs it offers.

Membership fees and sales help support the Gallery. Major exhibitions open monthly with a preview reception for members and their guests.

The Gallery was named Twentieth Century Gallery when it opened in 1959 and is affiliated with the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

--From the Web site for This Century Art Gallery, July 2007