Have you ever heard about how John Hancock left such a big signature on the Declaration of Independence so that "King George would be able to read it without his glasses"? Do you believe it? If so, you might also believe that the Declaration of Independence was signed on the 4th of July, and if you believe that, you probably also think that the handwritten Declaration with all 56 signatures was the first copy of it.

My point is that we're all taught a whole lot of things that plainly weren't true, at no fault of our own. I'm happy to share that the real stories are far more interesting and make way more sense though. The truth is, without John Hancock, there probably couldn't have been a revolution.

This episode is the origin story of John Hancock, who will continue to be near the center of many stories on the path to liberty. Without understanding where someone came from, how can we understand how they got to their destinations?

Key Players:

First John: John Hancock's grandfather

Second John: John Hancock's father

Third John: The John Hancock with the signature

Thomas Hancock: Previously mentioned, signature having, John Hancock

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