| NATION |
| CONNECTICUT AND THE BIRTH OF OUR NATION |
| During the first 4 years of Jonathan Griffin's life, the colonies battled for independence from the British rule. One major Revolutionary War battle was fought in Connecticut. This was at New London. On September 6, 1781, British forces under Benedict Arnold landed at New London on the banks of the Thames River. They captured Fort Griswold and burned many buildings in the town. Perhaps Connecticut's greatest contribution to the war was the fact that it furnished many supplies to the Continental Army. To General George Washington, Connecticut was "The Provision State." Items supplied included beef, salt, flour and gunpowder. When Lord Cornwallis surrendered to General Washington at Yorktown, Virginia, on October 19th, 1781, the fighting was over. The people of Connecticut must have been glad to return to their peaceful way of life. Soldiers and sailors returned home, and all of the wartime laws were ended. People could farm and trade without fear. In the Peace Treaty of Paris, signed April 30, 1783, the British agreed that the colonies were independent. In 1787, Connecticut sent three representatives to the Philadelphia Constitutional Convention; Oliver Ellsworth, William Samuel Johnson and Roger Sherman. They made a great contribution to the new Constitution by proposing the "Connecticut Compromise." This compromise settled the issue of representation in the new congress. In the Senate all states would be represented equally. In the House of Representatives they would be represented according to the size of their populations. This compromise is still part of the United States Constitution. On January 9, 1788, the Convention at Hartford approved the Federal Constitution by a vote of 128 to 40. Connecticut became the fifth state to ratify the Constitution and to become a state in the United States of America. In that year, Jonathan Griffin turned 11 years of age. He was surely old enough to be aware of the exciting events of the formation of the new nation. We know that he was educated, most likely in Connecticut. |
 |