Known as a peace-loving man, Thomas Stone lived in the small, mostly rural area of southern Maryland for most of his life. Yet, when the decade-long turmoil between Great Britain and the 13 American colonies erupted into armed conflict in 1775, Stone set aside his comfortable existence as a country lawyer to serve the fledgling nation as a member of the Continental Congress. In 1776, Thomas Stone found himself as one of the 56 men who affixed their signatures to a document that changed the history of the world – the Declaration of Independence.

At Thomas Stone National Historic Site, you can learn about the life of this little-known patriot and discover how a man who was moderate in his personal beliefs, risked everything he held dear – family, land, and status – to sign a document that could have meant death if the outcome of the Revolutionary War had been different. Read more at www.nps.gov

Logo courtesy National Park Service