In memory of
John Rogers (1723 - 1789)
John Rogers, a prominent lawyer and patriot, resided in Upper Marlboro during the 1760s and 1770s. He represented Prince George's County at the Maryland Conventions of 1774 and 1775, and on July 25, 1775, signed the "Association of the Freemen of Maryland". On December 9, 1775, he was elected by the Maryland Convention as a delegate to the Continental Congress. John Rogers was one of only three Maryland delegates to the Continental Congress who voted on July 2, 1776, to declare America's independence and on July 4, 1776, to approve the Declaration of Independence. On July 4, 1776, the Maryland Convention in Annapolis elected Charles Carroll of Carrollton to replace Rogers, who was ill. Because the Declaration was not signed by anyone until August 2, 1776, it was Carroll's name and not that of John Rogers which appears on this most revered American document. John Rogers is the only delegate to the Continental Congress who voted for the Declaration of Independence, but was denied the privilege of signing it. John Rogers served as Chancellor of Maryland from 1778 to 1789 and was elected as a U.S. Presidential Elector from Maryland in 1788, receiving more votes than any other candidate in the state.
Presented by the Prince George's County American Revolution Bicentennial Commission 1977
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