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He was an excellent politician, an unsuccessful brewer, and a poor businessman. His early public office as a tax collector might have made him suspect as an agent of British authority, however he made good use of his understanding of the tax codes and wide acquaintance with the merchants of Boston. Samuel was a very visible popular leader who, along with John, spent a great deal of time in the public eye agitating for resistance. In 1765 he was elected to the Massachusetts Assembly where he served as clerk for many years.
It was there that he was the first to propose a continental congress. He was a leading advocate of republicanism and a good friend of Tom Pain. In 1774, he was chosen to be a member of the provincial council during the crisis in Boston. He was then appointed as a representative to the Continental Congress, where he was most noted for his oratory skills, and as a passionate advocate of independence from Britain. In 1776, as a delegate to the Continental Congress, he signed the Declaration of Independence.
Adams retired from the Congress In 1781 and returned to Massachusetts to become a leading member of that state’s convention to form a constitution. In 1789 he was appointed lieutenant governor of the state. In 1794 he was elected Governor, and was re-elected annually until 1797 when he retired for health reasons. He died In the morning of October 2, 1803, In his home own of Boston. Strong opponent of British taxation, he helped organize resistance to the Stamp Act (1765) and played a vital role In organizing the Boston Tea Party.
Samuel was a second cousin to U. S. President John Adams, with whom he urged a final break from Britain and signed the U. S. Declaration of Independence. “It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an Irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires In people’s minds. ” -Samuel Adams Adams became a Democratic- Republicans (following Thomas Jefferson) when formal American political parties were created In the late 1790 s. Samuel Adams By Alicia-flask of Massachusetts, 1789; Elected Governor of Massachusetts. 1794-97.