John Hancock was the richest man in Boston and a central figure in the making of the United States, but today we mostly remember him for his flamboyant signature on the Declaration of Independence.
Was he a true patriot interested in “no taxation without representation” or merely a self-interested privateer?
His tomb in Boston’s Granary Burial Ground is near Paul Revere. Hancock was a much more significant person in our history and almost became the first Commander-in-Chief and President, losing out both times to George Washington. Yet we remember Paul Revere much more clearly today. Maybe the permanence of one’s ideas and contributions has to do with popular culture, whether a Longfellow writes a mythical poem about you.
The Idea Works 