These two military veterans were Founding Fathers in their own right: John Paul Jones of Virginia, Father of the American Navy, and Abraham Baldwin of Connecticut and Georgia, Father of the University of Georgia.
Jones disrupted British shipping on the East Coast and Caribbean, captured two enemy ships of war, raided the British coast, was the first commissioned captain in U.S. Naval history and was honored with a sword by France’s King Louis XVI. Baldwin served as a Continental chaplain, a delegate to Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention, founded modern-day University of Georgia, and served in both the U.S. House and Senate. Despite their uncommon backgrounds, Jones and Baldwin exemplified the kind of talented men who not only served the Patriot cause but built America militarily and academically.
John Paul Jones
• Veteran of New Providence, West Indies, Isle Royal, British Isles
• Captured enemy vessels Drake, Serapis
• First commissioned captain in U.S. history
• John Paul Jones Arena at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville and a U.S. Naval vessel are named in his honor
Abraham Baldwin
• Continental Army veteran
• Delegate to Continental Congress
• Founder of modern-day University of Georgia
• Delegate to Constitutional Convention
• State politician
• Congressman
• U.S. senator
• Baldwin Counties in Georgia and Alabama, and the Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia, are named in his honor
FORGOTTEN FOUNDING FATHERS TOURNAMENT BRACKET
Washington Bracket
1. George Mason 68%
- Caesar Rodney 32%
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4. John Witherspoon 64%
- Casimir Pulaski 36%
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- Daniel Morgan 38%
6. Frederick Muhlenberg 62%
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2. William Penn 80%
- William Blount 20%
Jefferson Bracket
1. Nathanael Greene 60%
- Robert R. Livingston 40%
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- William Paterson 42%
5. Edmund Randolph 58%
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3. John Carroll 67%
- Henry Muhlenberg 33%
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2. Richard Henry Lee 70%
- John Trumbull 30%
Madison Bracket
1. Roger Williams 77%
- David Rittenhouse 23%
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4. Isaac Shelby 52%
- Joseph Warren 48%
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3. Henry Knox 50%
- George Wythe 50%
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2. Roger Sherman 75%
- George Clinton 25%
Franklin Bracket
1. John Jay 89%
- Pierre Charles L’Enfant 11%
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- James Otis 47%
5. John Dickinson 53%
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- John Paul Jones
- Abraham Baldwin
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- Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben
- Samuel Nicholas
FFFs and match-ups are determined by my interpretation of who I believe were the 32 greatest FFFs. Personal politics, favoritism and reader response was NOT a factor in selection or seeding. As for the tournament itself: each match-up will be conducted every 24 hours with a synopsis written by yours truly and readers can determine using the poll function who the winner should be for that match-up; there is no #1 overall seed; FFFs retain their seeds throughout; the winner of the Washington bracket will face the winner of the Jefferson bracket, and the winner of the Madison bracket will face the winner of the Franklin bracket; after having the first tie, I've decided the higher seed will win ties. I am not voting nor will I pick sides in discussion. I wish I could somehow do a more rigid time duration period for each round but there’s no guarantee I’ll be on a computer or awake at that time so I’m gonna say polling lasts until I post the next match-up, or roughly 24 hours later. Readers may choose whichever FFF contestant they wish, but the point of the tournament is to select the greatest Forgotten Founding Father — the most influential, most important, most impactful, who contributed the most to the Revolution and/or seeds of American liberty. Have fun!