View source for Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence

{{Short description|Memorial in the Constitution Gardens, Washington, D.C.}}
{{Infobox protected area
| name = Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence
| photo = 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence Memorial (2dc161f6-4699-4bac-8437-bdd5e198b6ba).jpg
| photo_caption = Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence
| map = District of Columbia#United States Washington, D.C. central#USA
| map_caption =
| location = Washington, D.C., United States
| nearest_city =
| coordinates = {{coord|38|53|28.14|N|77|2|35.052|W|region:US-DC|display=inline,title}}
| cords =
| area =
| established = Authorized: 1978 <br> Dedicated: 1984
| visitation_num =
| visitation_year = fcfxt/td/td
| governing_body = [[National Park Service]]
| website =
}}
The '''Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence''' is a memorial depicting the signatures of [[Signing of the United States Declaration of Independence|the 56 signatories]] to the [[United States Declaration of Independence]].  It is located in the [[Constitution Gardens]] on the [[National Mall]] in [[Washington, D.C.]] The memorial is accessible to the public by crossing a wooden bridge onto a small island set in the lake between [[Constitution Avenue]] and the [[Reflecting Pool]], not far from the [[Vietnam Veterans Memorial]].

== History ==
Public Law 95-260 was passed by Congress in 1978 to create a memorial to the signers of the Declaration of Independence. The memorial is a gift from the [[American Revolution Bicentennial Administration]] and consists of 56 stone blocks, each with a facsimile of the signer's actual signature, his occupation, and his home town.  It was dedicated on July 4, 1984, exactly 208 years after the Congress voted to approve the Declaration of Independence.<ref>{{cite journal| title=56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence| url=https://www.nps.gov/places/000/56-signers-of-the-declaration-of-independence-memorial.htm| date=July 4, 2012| first=Edward| last=Fleming| website=National Park Service| access-date=September 16, 2020}}</ref>
[[File:CloseUpConstitutionNames.JPG|thumb|center|Each memorial stone includes the delegate's signature, name, occupation, and place of residence.]]
==Memorialized signers==
Fifty-six delegates to the [[Second Continental Congress]] signed the Declaration of Independence and are honored at this Memorial:

{{Col-start}}
{{Col-1-of-3}}
[[President of the Continental Congress|President of Congress]]
:1.  [[John Hancock]] (Massachusetts)

[[New Hampshire]]
:2.  [[Josiah Bartlett]]
:3.  [[William Whipple]]
:4.  [[Matthew Thornton]]

[[Massachusetts]]
:5.  [[Samuel Adams]]
:6.  [[John Adams]]
:7.  [[Robert Treat Paine]]
:8.  [[Elbridge Gerry]]

[[Rhode Island]]
:9.  [[Stephen Hopkins (politician)|Stephen Hopkins]]
:10.  [[William Ellery]]

[[Connecticut]]
:11.  [[Roger Sherman]]
:12.  [[Samuel Huntington (statesman)|Samuel Huntington]]
:13.  [[William Williams (signer)|William Williams]]
:14.  [[Oliver Wolcott]]

[[New York (state)|New York]]
:15.  [[William Floyd]]
:16.  [[Philip Livingston]]
:17.  [[Francis Lewis]]
:18.  [[Lewis Morris]]

{{Col-2-of-3}}
[[New Jersey]]
:19.  [[Richard Stockton (Continental Congressman)|Richard Stockton]]
:20.  [[John Witherspoon]]
:21.  [[Francis Hopkinson]]
:22.  [[John Hart (New Jersey politician)|John Hart]]
:23.  [[Abraham Clark]]

[[Pennsylvania]]
:24.  [[Robert Morris (financier)|Robert Morris]]
:25.  [[Benjamin Rush]]
:26.  [[Benjamin Franklin]]
:27.  [[John Morton (American politician)|John Morton]]
:28.  [[George Clymer]]
:29.  [[James Smith (delegate)|James Smith]]
:30.  [[George Taylor (Pennsylvania politician)|George Taylor]]
:31.  [[James Wilson (Founding Father)|James Wilson]]
:32.  [[George Ross (delegate)|George Ross]]

[[Delaware]]
:33.  [[George Read (signer)|George Read]]
:34.  [[Caesar Rodney]]
:35.  [[Thomas McKean]]

[[Maryland]]
:36.  [[Samuel Chase]]
:37.  [[William Paca]]
:38.  [[Thomas Stone]]
:39.  [[Charles Carroll of Carrollton]]

{{Col-3-of-3}}
[[Virginia]]
:40.  [[George Wythe]]
:41.  [[Richard Henry Lee]]
:42.  [[Thomas Jefferson]]
:43.  [[Benjamin Harrison V|Benjamin Harrison]]
:44.  [[Thomas Nelson, Jr.]]
:45.  [[Francis Lightfoot Lee]]
:46.  [[Carter Braxton]]

[[North Carolina]]
:47.  [[William Hooper]]
:48.  [[Joseph Hewes]]
:49.  [[John Penn (Continental Congress)|John Penn]]

[[South Carolina]]
:50.  [[Edward Rutledge]]
:51.  [[Thomas Heyward, Jr.]]
:52.  [[Thomas Lynch, Jr.]]
:53.  [[Arthur Middleton]]

[[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]]
:54.  [[Button Gwinnett]]
:55.  [[Lyman Hall]]
:56.  [[George Walton]]
{{Col-end}}
==See also==
{{Portal|United States}}
* [[Robert R. Livingston]], who helped to draft the Declaration as a member of the [[Committee of Five]] but was recalled by the state of New York before he could sign the document
* [[John Rogers (Continental Congress)|John Rogers]], Maryland delegate who voted for the Declaration of Independence but left Philadelphia before [[Signing of the United States Declaration of Independence|the signing]].
* [[Matthew Tilghman]], Maryland delegate who voted for the Declaration of Independence but left Philadelphia before the signing.
* [[Henry Wisner]], New York delegate who voted for the Declaration of Independence but left Philadelphia before the signing.
* [[Charles Thomson]], Secretary of the [[Continental Congress]]
* [[Timothy Matlack]] engrossed the Declaration of Independence, which was then signed by the Founders.
* [[Founding Fathers of the United States]]
* [[Physical history of the United States Declaration of Independence]]
** [[Independence Hall]]
** [[Syng inkstand]]
* [[List of public art in Washington, D.C., Ward 2]]
* [[Adams Memorial]] (proposed)
* [[Benjamin Franklin National Memorial]]
* [[Jefferson Memorial]]
* [[Signers Monument]]
* [[Washington Monument]]
* [[Architecture of Washington, D.C.]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

* [https://www.ncpc.gov/memorials/detail/1/ Memorial to the 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence – Constitution Gardens] – National Capital Planning Commission

== External links ==
{{Commonscat}}
* {{GNIS|529396|The 56 Signers of the Declaration of Independence Memorial}}

{{Signers of the U.S. Declaration of Independence}}
{{Navboxes
|title=Signers related articles
|list=
{{John Adams}}
{{Samuel Adams}}
{{Benjamin Franklin}}
{{John Hancock}}
{{Thomas Jefferson}}
{{Richard Henry Lee}}
{{Robert Morris}}
{{Roger Sherman}}
}}
{{Washington DC landmarks}}
{{Public art in Washington, D.C.}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1978 establishments in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1984]]
[[Category:Monuments and memorials on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:National Mall]]
[[Category:National Mall and Memorial Parks]]
[[Category:United States Declaration of Independence]]
[[Category:Monuments and memorials to Thomas Jefferson]]
[[Category:John Adams]]
[[Category:Samuel Adams]]
[[Category:Benjamin Franklin]]
[[Category:John Hancock]]
[[Category:Richard Henry Lee]]
[[Category:United States Declaration of Independence in art]]
[[Category:United States Bicentennial]]
[[Category:Monuments and memorials to United States Founding Fathers]]