American Quotations by William J. Federer 2024

John Leland (May 14, 1754-January 14, 1841) was a popular Baptist preacher who preached over 3,000 sermons in Massachusetts, Virginia and various other locations during the era of America's independence and early formation. He almost ran for the first U.S. Congress, promised to endorse James Madison if Madison would promise to push a First Amendment to protect religious liberty, as Baptists had been particularly persecuted in the generation prior to the Revolution. This meeting was commemorated by Leland-Madison Park in Orange County, Virginia. The citizens of Cheshire, Massachusetts made a giant cheese and had John Leland deliver it to President...

Amos Farnsworth (April 28, 1754-Oct 29, 1847) was a corporal in the Massachusetts Militia during the Revolutionary War. Immediately after the Battle of Bunker Hill, June 17, 1775, he entered in his diary: <We within the entrenchment...having fired away all ammunition and having no reinforcements...were overpowered by numbers and obliged to leave....I did not leave the entrenchment until the enemy got in. I then retreated ten or fifteen rods. Then I received a wound in my right arm, the ball going through a little below my elbow, breaking the little shellbone. Another ball struck my back, taking a piece of skin about as...

Columbia University (1754) founded in New York City. Originally named Kings College in honor of King George II, it was renamed Columbia College, 1784, and Columbia University, 1896. It has grown to become one of the most influential universities in America. Its seal consisted of a seated woman and written above her head the Hebrew Tetragrammaton name of God, YHVH. The Latin motto inscribed across the top is Psalm 36:10, "In Thy light we see light." The Hebrew phrase Uri El, which is written on a ribbon, alludes to Psalm 27:1 "God is my light." Under the woman's feet is inscribed...

Dartmouth College (1754) was founded in New Hampshire by Reverend Eleazar Wheelock by a charter granted by George III. Its alumni included Daniel Webster, who defended the College's Charter before the U.S. Supreme Court, 1819. The Charter of Dartmouth College, 1754, stated: <Whereas...the Reverend Eleazar Wheelock...educated a number of the children on the Indian natives with a view to their carrying the Gospel in their own language and spreading the knowledge of the great Redeemer among their savage tribes. And...the design became reputable among the Indians insomuch that a larger number desired the education of their children in said school....Dartmouth-College...

James McHenry (November 16, 1753-May 3, 1816) was a physician, soldier and politician. He was one of the signers of the Constitution of the United States, a member of the Continental Congress, a Maryland State Legislator, and the U.S. Secretary of War, who supervised the establishment of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Fort McHenry, where, in 1812, the battle with Britain occasioned the writing of our national anthem, was named after him. James McHenry studied medicine under the renowned Dr. Benjamin Rush, himself a signer of the Declaration of Independence. James McHenry served with distinction under General Washington...