Edward Langworthy Becomes The Point Man In Revolutionary Georgia
Edward Langworthy was a low key Founding Father who devoted most of his life to educating children and publishing nonfiction works.
His brief time in the Second Continental Congress led to his most notable achievement, signing the Articles of Confederation.
Langworthy is another Founder whose information is difficult to come by (ugh, two days in a row!) but I've tried to highlight the important moments as best I can. Don't fret, as tomorrow we will be focusing on one of THE MOST underrated Founders...George Wythe.
Edward Langworthy
In 1738, the colony of Georgia was only five years old. It had been founded with grand designs, but many of the residents were prisoners shipped there to reduce the expense of Britain's jails.
At this time, new arrivals in America had to be 'seasoned’. This basically meant they needed to survive an entire year without dying. Newcomers to the land could very easily succumb to the diseases of their new environment.
Two prisoners came to Georgia, had a child, and then passed away.
That child was Edward Langworthy.
Education
Edward Langworthy was raised in the Bethesda Orphan House. This institution was created due to the influx of orphans who lost their parents while 'seasoning.'
The orphanage gave Langworthy a good education and he became a teacher there himself when he reached maturity.
Revolutionary
Having learned the importance of taking care of oneself, Edward was not happy when London began instituting unfair taxes. He joined Georgia’s Committee of Safety.
When the Revolutionary War began, the Committee of Safety became the de facto government, with Langworthy working as it's secretary. In this position, he was responsible for keeping track of all discussions, votes and correspondence in the State. He earned enough trust from his peers to be sent as their representative to the Continental Congress.
Continental Congress
By the time Langworthy arrived, independence had already been declared.
The Congress was working on a new government, the Articles of Confederation. When Georgia sent their approval, Edward had the honor of signing the Articles on their behalf.
After two years in the Continental Congress, Langworthy returned to Georgia and state politics.
Afterwards
After the war, Langworthy relocated to Baltimore where he worked for a newspaper. Additionally, he resumed teaching children.
His final contribution to the Founding was a publication of the memoirs of General Charles Lee. A friend of Lee’s, Langworthy's book was one of the earliest that recounted the life of a Founder. He began a long tradition of Revolutionary History that continues with this very article.
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To learn more about the American Revolution from a revolutionary's point of view, try out Lee's Memoirs, compiled by Edward Langworthy. Links on this site go to our affiliate Amazon.
