The Founding Fathers are usually remembered through portraits, monuments, and speeches, but their final days were often far messier than the legends around them.
Alexander Hamilton died after being shot in a duel with Aaron Burr, with the bullet passing through his liver and lodging near his spine.
George Washington died from a severe throat infection after his doctors drained a massive amount of blood from his body in a desperate attempt to save him.
Some of the deaths were almost hard to believe - Gouverneur Morris died after reportedly trying to treat a urinary blockage with a whalebone from his wife’s corset, which caused injuries that became infected.
Patrick Henry, suffering from stomach cancer, swallowed liquid mercury as a treatment and reportedly watched the poison spread beneath his fingernails as his condition worsened.
The strangest part is how many of these deaths came with eerie timing.
Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both died on July 4, 1826, exactly 50 years after the Declaration of Independence was adopted.
Jefferson had been asking if it was the Fourth, while Adams’ last words were said to be, “Thomas Jefferson survives,” not knowing Jefferson had died hours earlier.
James Monroe later died on July 4 as well, making him the third president to die on Independence Day.
No comments:
Post a Comment