It’s almost Independence Day. And in surfing the Web, I came across this small snippet by Ariela Pelaia that talks about a Jewish connection to this uniquely-American celebration.
“Many Jews came to the New World following their expulsion from Spain in 1492. By the time the War of Independence erupted some 200 years later there were more than 2,000 Sephardic Jews living in America. Two of the most famous Jews who played a role in the revolution were Francis Salvador and Haym Solomon.
Francis Salvador was the first American Jew to die in the revolution, fighting for his country on the South Carolina frontier. A representative to Congress who was one of the earliest champions for Independence, his involvement on the battlefront began when the British started encouraging Indians to attack frontier families as a diversionary tactic. The first attack took place on July 1, 1776, and Salvador sounded the alarm by racing his horse to Major Andrew Williamson’s doorstep 28 miles away. He then took part in the battles that followed, fighting bravely until he was shot and scalped by Indians at 29 years of age.
The son of a rabbi, Hayim Solomon was a Polish Jew who coordinated the majority of the war aid that revolutionaries received from France and Holland. He also supported members of the Continental Congress, including James Madison and James Wilson. There are a number of unsubstantiated legends about Solomon, including the claim that he designed The Great Seal of the United States and that he placed the Star of David above the eagles head.
President George Washington later remembered the role Jews played in the Revolution in a August 1790 letter to the Touro Synagogue of Newport, R.I, writing:
“May the children of the stock of Abraham who dwell in the land continue to merit and enjoy the goodwill of the other inhabitants. While everyone shall sit safely under his own vine and fig-tree and there shall be none to make him afraid.”
As we celebrate the Fourth of July, not only should we remember the Jewish connection, but let us pause and give thanks to all those — past and present — who risk(ed) their lives so we might live in freedom.
