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Samuel Ward was the distinguished Governor of the Colony of Rhode Island in the period leading up to the Revolutionary War, a cause he famously supported. An able and efficient administrator, Ward would oversee Rhode Island during a period of both economic and social development. The overarching matter however would not be simple growth of the province: public opposition to the stamp taxation of the ruling British administration placed Ward in a difficult position - whether to enforce the measures enacted by the British rulers, or oppose them. In choosing the latter, Ward set an example of civil disobedience and emboldened the Revolutionary movement. Retiring from his position in 1767, Ward nevertheless stayed informed of political goings on. Summoned as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1774, Ward died of smallpox mere months before hostilities commenced with the Declaration of Independence in 1776 - posthumously, his foreshadowing role and patriotism received praise among Americans. Though relatively brief, this biography summarizes the main achievements of Governor Ward, being well-researched with sources including George Washington's writings.

Excerpt from Life of Governor Samuel Ward The generation who peopled New England during the middle of the eighteenth century were witnesses of a series of events, whose im portance in shaping the subsequent character and the ultimate destiny of the colonies can scarcely be estimated too highly. It was the age, in which was brought to a close the pro tracted struggle between England and France for ascendency upon this continent; in which were suffered the worst evils of the ill-devised legislation of the Parliament, and the earliest aggressions of the British ministry upon the rights of the colonies; and in which were seen the first acts of resistance that terminated at length in the war of American independence. To this generation belonged Governor samuel ward, the subject of the present sketch; and in the colony with which he was connected he was among the foremost of the patriotic actors in the stirring scenes of the age. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.