Roger Sherman of Connecticut is remembered on this day in history 23 July 1793. He was one of the members of the Committee of Five to draft the Declaration of Independence. However, we ought to recall that he was the only person to sign all four great state papers of the United States: the Continental Association, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution. It is said that Sherman’s state-craft was influenced by the isolationist politics of the time. That is, Connecticut was not very involved in the politics of the region.
A shoemaker educated in his father’s library became a civic leader. Married twice and father of 15. Sherman died of typhoid in New Haven, CT and is now buried in Grove Street Cemetery. Jonathan Edwards Jr. delivered the funeral sermon on July 25, 1793. Edwards recalled Sherman’s “contributions to his friends, family, town, and country, noting Sherman’s piety and excellence in study.”