Tall Ships Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain, official ambassadors of Washington state, will visit Antioch from March 27th – 31st and offer exciting Adventure Sails, Battle Sails and Vessel Tours from the dock. Vessel Tours open the ships to the public for a suggested donation of $5 per person. Come check out the ship and meet her crew!

Sailing guests will embark on a two or three-hour experience. Adventure Sails feature sailing as it was done for hundreds of years. Join in a sea shanty, enjoy breathtaking views, and meet the modern-day crew that travels the west coast. Battle Sails feature fast-paced maneuvering and live black powder cannon fire as the ships vie to win the battle.

A ticket is required for all sailing passengers, including babies. Children 16 and under must be accompanied by an adult. Refreshments are not provided, but guests are welcome to bring their own (no glass containers, please). Accessibility is addressed on a case-by-case basis, so please talk to us ahead of time to be sure we can accommodate your needs.

Call 1-800-200-5239 for tickets and information or click here. A ticket is not required for Vessel Tours.

Antioch City Marina

5 Marina Plaza, Antioch

March 27 to March 31, 2018

Schedule

March 27-29 
Closed for crew training

March 30 (Friday)
Vessel Tours: 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. ($5 donation)
Evening Sail: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. ($42-$49)

March 31 (Saturday)
Vessel Tours: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. ($5 donation)
Adventure Sail: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. ($42-$49) Sailing on Hawaiian Chieftain
Battle Sail: 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. ($42-$79)

April 1 (Sunday)
Boats depart Antioch to Crescent City

From military.com

Veterans Day, formerly known as Armistice Day, was originally set as a U.S. legal holiday to honor the end of World War I, which officially took place on November 11, 1918. In legislation that was passed in 1938, November 11 was “dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be hereafter celebrated and known as ‘Armistice Day.'” As such, this new legal holiday honored World War I veterans.

In 1954, after having been through both World War II and the Korean War, the 83rd U.S. Congress — at the urging of the veterans service organizations — amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word “Armistice” and inserting the word “Veterans.” With the approval of this legislation on June 1, 1954, Nov. 11 became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

In 1968, the Uniforms Holiday Bill ensured three-day weekends for federal employees by celebrating four national holidays on Mondays: Washington’s Birthday, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Columbus Day. Under this bill, Veterans Day was moved to the fourth Monday of October. Many states did not agree with this decision and continued to celebrate the holiday on its original date. The first Veterans Day under the new law was observed with much confusion on Oct. 25, 1971.

Finally, on September 20, 1975, President Gerald R. Ford signed a law which returned the annual observance of Veterans Day to its original date of Nov. 11, beginning in 1978. Since then, the Veterans Day holiday has been observed on Nov. 11.

Celebrating the Veterans Day Holiday

If the Nov. 11 holiday falls on a non-workday — Saturday or Sunday — the holiday is observed by the federal government on Monday (if the holiday falls on Sunday) or Friday (if the holiday falls on Saturday). Federal government closings are established by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. State and local government closings are determined locally, and non- government businesses can close or remain open as they see fit, regardless of federal, state or local government operation determinations.

United States Senate Resolution 143, which was passed on Aug. 4, 2001, designated the week of Nov. 11 through Nov. 17, 2001, as “National Veterans Awareness Week.” The resolution calls for educational efforts directed at elementary and secondary school students concerning the contributions and sacrifices of veterans.

The difference between Veterans Day and Memorial Day

Memorial Day honors servicemembers who died in service to their country or as a result of injuries incurred during battle. Deceased veterans are also remembered on Veterans Day but the day is set aside to thank and honor living veterans who served honorably in the military – in wartime or peacetime.

From the Herald – thank you to our military veterans for your service. We know freedom isn’t free and without your service and sacrifice Americans wouldn’t enjoy the freedoms we do, today. Remembering that and honoring you, today.

 

Historic vessel will dock at Antioch City Marina through Nov. 6

Few are familiar with the term “tall ship”, but the Washington-based nonprofit Grays Harbor Historical Seaport is on a mission to change that. Their historic sailing ships, the Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain, travel the west coast year-round introducing the public to maritime history.

“Some people imagine a modern ship, or a Navy cutter,” says Executive Director Brandi Bednarik. “’Pirate ship’ comes pretty close, but it leaves out the truth of why ships like these sailed-mostly for trade, exploration, and in military action. Our mission is to share this history with the American public.”

From October 31st to November 6th, the Lady Washington will dock in Antioch City Marina (5 Marina Plaza, foot of L Street, Antioch). Dockside visitors can expect to tour the vessel and talk with the crew, while sailing passengers will experience the crew in action and the ship under wind power. The vessel’s public program schedule is as follows:

October 31 (Tuesday)

ARRIVAL in Antioch

November 1 (Wednesday)

Tours: 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. ($5 donation)

November 2 (Thursday)

Tours: 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. ($5 donation)

November 3 (Friday)

Tours: 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. ($5 donation)

November 4 (Saturday)

Tours: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. ($5 donation)

Adventure Sail: 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. ($42-$49)

November 5 (Sunday)

Tours: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. ($5 donation)

Adventure Sail: 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. ($42-$49)

November 6 (Monday)

Passage: Antioch to Monterey

Est. Trip Time: 26 hours

Aside from the rare opportunity to see a historic sailing vessel in action, a point of interest is often the crew themselves. The Lady Washington typically has a crew of 10-14, from paid officers to volunteer deckhands to participants in our two-week maritime training program. Some sail for the fun of it, others to learn the job skills of the maritime industry. The nonprofit recently announced a new job skills training program, Sea School, which will launch in 2018.

Launched in 1989 as part of Washington State’s centennial, the wooden-hulled Lady Washington has appeared in several motion pictures and TV shows, including Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, and Once Upon A Time.

If you’re ready to run away to sea, a full schedule of events, tickets, and volunteering information can be found on the organization’s website, www.historicalseaport.org. For the seasickness-prone but curious, free walk-aboard tours never leave the dock.

The vessel will be docked at Antioch City Marina, 5 Marina Plaza at the foot of L Street in Antioch.

Please call (800) 200-5239 for directions. For tickets visit: http://www.historicalseaport.org/public-tours-sails/sailing-schedule/antioch-california/

Constitution Day is September 17 – Take the Preamble Challenge

PHILADELPHIA –– Many Americans are poorly informed about basic constitutional provisions, according to a new national survey by the Annenberg Public Policy Center.

The annual Annenberg Constitution Day Civics Survey finds that:

• More than half of Americans (53 percent) incorrectly think it is accurate to say that immigrants who are here illegally do not have any rights under the U.S. Constitution;
• More than a third of those surveyed (37 percent) can’t name any of the rights guaranteed under the First Amendment;
• Only a quarter of Americans (26 percent) can name all three branches of government.

“Protecting the rights guaranteed by the Constitution presupposes that we know what they are.

The fact that many don’t is worrisome,” said Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) of the University of Pennsylvania. “These results emphasize the need for high-quality civics education in the schools and for press reporting that underscores the existence of constitutional protections.”

Illegal immigration and constitutional rights

The APPC survey, conducted Aug. 9-13 among 1,013 adults in the United States, finds that 53 percent think that people who are here illegally do not have any rights under the Constitution. That incorrect belief is especially strong among self-identified political conservatives – 67 percent think it is accurate, compared with 48 percent of moderates and 46 percent of liberals.

In fact, immigrants who are in the United States illegally share some constitutional protections with U.S. citizens. More than a century ago, in Yick Wo v. Hopkins (1886), a case involving an undocumented Chinese immigrant, the Supreme Court ruled that non-citizens were entitled to due process rights under the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause. Other cases have expanded upon those rights. (For more on Yick Wo, see this video on Annenberg Classroom’s website.)

Most respondents, though not all, know that under the Constitution, U.S. citizens who are atheists or Muslim have the same rights as all other citizens. Seventy-nine percent of respondents know it is accurate to say that U.S. citizens who are atheists have the same rights as other citizens, and 76 percent know it is accurate to say that citizens who are Muslim have the same rights as other citizens.

What does the First Amendment say? 

Nearly half of those surveyed (48 percent) say that freedom of speech is a right guaranteed by the First Amendment. But, unprompted, 37 percent could not name any First Amendment rights. And far fewer people could name the other First Amendment rights: 15 percent of respondents say freedom of religion; 14 percent say freedom of the press; 10 percent say the right of assembly; and only 3 percent say the right to petition the government.

The First Amendment reads:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Contrary to the First Amendment, 39 percent of Americans support allowing Congress to stop the news media from reporting on any issue of national security without government approval. That was essentially unchanged from last year. But the survey, which followed a year of attacks on the news media, found less opposition to prior restraint (49 percent) than in 2016 (55 percent).

Many don’t know the branches of government 

Only 26 percent of respondents can name the three branches of government (executive, judicial, and legislative), the same as last year. People who identified themselves as conservatives were significantly more likely to name all three branches correctly than liberals and moderates. The 26 percent total was down significantly from APPC’s first survey on this question, in 2011, when 38 percent could name all three.

In the current survey, 33 percent could not name any of the three branches, the same as in 2011.

The phone survey, conducted for APPC by the research firm SSRS, has a margin of error of ±3.7 percent. For more on the methodology and questions click here.

Constitution Day and the Civics Renewal Network

APPC’s Annenberg Classroom, presented by the Leonore Annenberg Institute for Civics, has created a series of free, award-winning videos for educators and the public, including Yick Wo and the Equal Protection Clause, The Role of the Courts, and Freedom of the Press: New York Times v. United States.

Annenberg Classroom has joined with 30 other nonpartisan organizations to create the Civics Renewal Network, which offers free, high-quality educational materials online. Among CRN’s partners are the Library of Congress, the National Archives, the National Constitution Center, the U.S. Courts, the NEH’s EDSITEment Project and iCivics.

Constitution Day (Sept. 17) will be observed Monday, Sept. 18. To mark it, the U.S. Courts are holding naturalization ceremonies nationwide and educators will lead students in the “Preamble Challenge,” celebrating the Preamble to the Constitution.

The Annenberg Public Policy Center was established in 1994 to educate the public and policy makers about the media’s role in advancing public understanding of political, health and science issues at the local, state and federal levels. Find APPC on Facebook and Twitter: @APPCPenn. Follow the Civics Renewal Network: @CivicsRenewal.

Starting its second decade of honoring Antioch’s “Best of the Best”, the Antioch Sports Legends, a program of the Antioch Historical Society, will be honoring its eleventh class of Inductees. Legends Weekend kicks off with the Sports Legends Alumni Golf Tournament, open to all golfers, on October 6th at 12:00 Noon. A welcome reception will follow at 6:00 PM and the culmination of the weekend will be the Induction Gala the following night at 6:00 PM. All events will be at the Lone Tree Golf and Event Center.

This year they celebrate and recognize a stellar and diverse group of athletes, a team, a coach and a community service recipient. Antioch Sports Legends Class of 2017 Inductees are:

Brian Boccio, Football AHS 1993  

The speedy running back held school records in single season and career rushing yards and touchdowns for 22 years until Najee Harris eclipsed both.  He was a two- time All-BVAL running back and team MVP as a senior. Boccio went on to the University of Nevada at Reno where he earned three varsity letters and became the Wolfpack’s starting outside linebacker

Daniel Denham, Baseball, DVHS  2001

With a blazing fastball Daniel Denham dawned the young Deer Valley baseball program in 1998. He was a four-year starting pitcher and earned All-BVAL 1st Team in 1999, 2000 and 2001.  Denham was named All-State and 2nd team All-American his senior year.  He was drafted with the 17th pick in the 1st round by the Cleveland Indians and pitched professionally for nine years and was named to three All-Star teams.

Brian White, Cross-Country   AHS 1991

Two-time team MVP White had an amazing senior year finishing 6th overall at the State Cross-Country Championships and followed that up with a blistering track season where he set school records in the 2 Mile and 5,000 Meter Runs.  He won the 1,600 and 3,200 at the BVAL meet and ran the 3,200 at the State Track Meet.   White later went on to DVC and set a school record in the 10,000 Meters and ran in the state community college championships in both sports.

Willis Ball, Track and Field Coach AHS

Ball coached track and field at Antioch High for over 25 years and was instrumental in the growth of so many athletes. His specialty was the Shot Put and Discus and his athletes won over 50 individual league or section titles. Six of his athletes finished in the top eight at the California State Meet.   In 1990 Ball was recognized by his peers as the Honor Track Coach of the North Coast Section.

Angela Lindsay, Water Polo AHS 1996

Lindsay was named to back to back All-BVAL and East Bay first teams and garnered Honorable Mention All-American Honors.  In her senior year, she was one of only 13 players nationally to be selected and play for the Under 17 USA Water Polo team.  Lindsay was a two-time team MVP and selected twice to the Top 50 Female Athletes by the CC Times.  She earned five varsity letters at UC Davis in Water Polo and Swimming.

Horace “Zedo” Catollico, Community Service Recipient

“Zedo” as he is known to so many, started coaching little league baseball in 1970 and his coaching career would continue through the turn of the century.  His teams won over six championships and he led three all-star teams to post season success.  Catollico was also a director for the Junior Giants and Junior Warriors programs and worked with the Antioch Recreation Department for 18 years setting up baseball and softball fields.

Tasha Cupp, Softball AHS 1994

Cupp was named 1st Team All-BVAL and All-East Bay in 1994.  She was the team and leagues Most Valuable Player.  Upon graduation Cupp enrolled at Harvard University and rewrote the Crimson softball record books.   She was named to four All-Ivy League teams and in 1998 she led Harvard to its first post season appearance in school history while earning League Pitcher of the year.  Her perfect game that year is still listed as a top 25 moment in Harvard sports.  Cupp was inducted into the Harvard Varsity Club’s Hall of Fame in 2013.

Herb Miles, Wrestling  AHS 1965

A three-sport star at AHS, Miles excelled on the wrestling mat winning the DVAL Championships and placing 2nd at North Coast and going on to wrestle in the Northern California Championships his senior season. After playing baseball for two years at DVC, he embarked on a boxing career that earned him a Golden Gloves Championship and an invitation to the Olympic Trials in 1976 where after two victories a broken hand ended his career.   He was a sparring partner of Heavyweight Champion of the World, George Foreman.

Sheree Ogden,  Track and Field   AHS 1987

Regarded as one of the top weight throwers in Antioch High history. This three time DVAL champion became the first AHS track athlete to qualify for the State Meet in both the Shot Put and Discus in 1987, where her 7th place finish in the discus is the highest ever for a AHS female thrower.  Thirty years later Ogden is still ranked in the top three all time in both events.

Kris Gravelle, All-Around Female Athlete    AHS 1991

A six-time All-BVAL performer, Gravelle mastered three sports Volleyball, Basketball and Softball and capped a fabulous junior season by being named All- League in all three sports.   She then catapulted that success into a three-year varsity Volleyball career at UC Davis.   At UC Davis Gravelle earned All-Conference First Team, and Honorable Mention, was named to the All-Region and All-District Academic teams while leading her Aggie teams to three straight conference titles and NCAA post season appearances.

Chris Hurd, Football    DVHS 2001

The four-year starting quarterback for Deer Valley High earned All-State underclassmen honors as a sophomore and ALL-BVAL as a senior in addition to being named honorable mention “Best in the West”.  His career passing yards of 4,804 is the most ever by any quarterback in Antioch history.  Hurd earned a full ride scholarship to Washington State University where he was a member of the 2003 Rose Bowl team.

Chuck Stapleton, Football     AHS  1948

Stapleton was an All-Contra Costa County Athletic League selection on both offense and defense his junior and senior seasons.   This rugged tackle was a foundation for three of legendary coach Jack Danilovich’s teams of the late 40’s   He was selected to the All-Northern California team in 1946 and ‘47 and was team MVP his senior season. He later went on to be a very successful local business owner and community leader.

Shannon Felix, Wrestling    AHS 1982

Felix was a three-time DVAL Champion, a three-time place winner at North Coast Section and wrestled at the State Meet in 1982.  He followed up his stellar prep career by being named a Junior College All-American in 1984 and earned a scholarship to San Jose State University where he finished third at the Western Athletic Conference Championships in 1985.

Tom Rhoads, Track and Field     AHS 1976

Rhoads won the Diablo Valley Athletic League and North Coast Section Division championships in the discus his senior year setting the stage for a brilliant 5th place finish at the State Meet in 1976 and was named the Contra Costa Times Field Athlete of the Year. After 41 years, Rhodes’ top mark of 173’ 7” is still second-best discus throw of all time at AHS.

Ryan Walker, All-Around Male Athlete     AHS 1991

This amazing all-around athlete was a three-time BVAL and two-time North Coast Section champion in Wrestling and placed 4th at the State Meet in 1991.  He also was a Second Team All-BVAL performer as a ferocious hitting strong safety in football.  Walker capped his amazing senior year by winning the BVAL Diving Championship and took 5th at North Coast.  He accepted a wrestling scholarship to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo after turning down football scholarships from Hawaii and UNLV.

1995 AHS Boys Volleyball Team

Coach Lou Panzella’s fabulous team rode a perfect 10-0 league record and three Invitational Tournament Championships into the North Coast Section Playoffs where they ran through to the title match versus top-seeded College Park.  The mighty Panthers were too tough that day and downed the Falcons to earn its first NCS Banner.   The team was led by Larry Lentz II, Lawrence Lentz III, Joe Peck, Matt Dunn and Jon Tiernan.

The Class of 2017 will be enshrined on October 7th at the Induction Gala at 6:00 PM at the Lone Tree Golf and Event Center. A limited amount of tickets are available for $65 from September 1-17 or when sold out. Checks can be made out to Antioch Sports Legends and sent to Joanne Bilbo, 234 Flagstone Drive, Antioch, CA  94509.

For details on the alumni golf tournament, open to all golfers, contact Steve Parks at (925) 550-3819 or sdparks43@gmail.com

More information about Antioch Sports Legends, the Induction Gala, Golf Tournament and becoming a volunteer is available at www.antiochsportslegends.com  or the ASL Office at (925) 757-1326 Ext. 12.

To be honored at October dinner

From the Antioch Sports Legends Facebook page:

We are very proud to announce the Class of 2017 Inductees into the Antioch Sports Legends Hall of Fame. The Induction Gala will be held on Saturday, October 7th, culminating Legends Weekend. A limited amount of tickets will be available to the public later this month. Stay tuned here on our Fan Page for updates. We encourage all of you to “Like” our Fan Page and invite your friends to “Like” the page as well.

Congratulations to the Hall of Fame Inductees of the Class of 2017…..

Willis Ball, Track & Field Coach Brian Boccio, Football Horace “Zedo” Cattolico, Community Service Recipient Tasha Cupp, Softball Daniel Denham, Baseball Shannon Felix, Wrestling Kris Gravelle, All-Around Female Athlete Chris Hurd, Football Angela Lindsay, Water Polo Herb Miles, Wrestling Sheree Ogden, Track & Field Tom Rhoads, Track & Field Chuck Stapleton, Football Ryan Walker, All-Around Male Athlete Brian White, Cross-Country and Track & Field, and the 1994-95 AHS Boys Volleyball team

We again congratulated this stellar class of athletes and look forward to Legends Weekend, kicking off with the ASL Alumni Golf Tournament on October 6th at Lone Tree Golf and Event Center. The tournament is open to all golfers.

The Antioch Sports Legends Hall of Fame is located in the Antioch Historical Society Museum at 1500 West 4th Street in Antioch and is open Wednesdays and Saturdays from 1:00-4:00 p.m. For more information call (925) 757-1326 or visit www.antiochsportslegends.com. Volunteer and sponsorship opportunities available.

Following is the text of the Declaration of Independence in celebration of Independence Day, July 4th, 2017:

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

The 56 signatures on the Declaration appear in the positions indicated:

Column 1

Georgia:

Button Gwinnett

Lyman Hall

George Walton

Column 2

North Carolina:

William Hooper

Joseph Hewes

John Penn

South Carolina:

Edward Rutledge

Thomas Heyward, Jr.

Thomas Lynch, Jr.

Arthur Middleton

Column 3

Massachusetts:

John Hancock

Maryland:

Samuel Chase

William Paca

Thomas Stone

Charles Carroll of Carrollton

Virginia:

George Wythe

Richard Henry Lee

Thomas Jefferson

Benjamin Harrison

Thomas Nelson, Jr.

Francis Lightfoot Lee

Carter Braxton

Column 4

Pennsylvania:
Robert Morris

Benjamin Rush

Benjamin Franklin

John Morton

George Clymer

James Smith

George Taylor

James Wilson

George Ross

Delaware:
Caesar Rodney

George Read

Thomas McKean

Column 5

New York:

William Floyd

Philip Livingston

Francis Lewis

Lewis Morris

New Jersey:

Richard Stockton

John Witherspoon

Francis Hopkinson

John Hart

Abraham Clark

Column 6

New Hampshire:

Josiah Bartlett

William Whipple

Massachusetts:

Samuel Adams

John Adams

Robert Treat Paine

Elbridge Gerry

Rhode Island:

Stephen Hopkins

William Ellery

Connecticut:
Roger Sherman

Samuel Huntington

William Williams

Oliver Wolcott

New Hampshire:

Matthew Thornton

From the website: www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration.html

Happy Independence Day from the Antioch Herald!

Download the ticket form, here: BBQ-Beerfest2017