Adams, Samuel

(born Sept. 27, 1722, Boston, Mass.—died Oct. 2, 1803, Boston, Mass., U.S.) American Revolutionary leader. A cousin of John Adams, he graduated from Harvard College in 1740 and briefly practiced law. He became a strong opponent of British taxation measures and organized resistance to the Stamp Act. He was a member of the state legislature (1765–74), and in 1772 he helped found the Committees of Correspondence. He influenced reaction to the Tea Act of 1773, organized the Boston Tea Party, and led opposition to the Intolerable Acts. A delegate to the Continental Congress (1774–81), he continued to call for separation from Britain and signed the Declaration of Independence. He helped draft the Massachusetts constitution in 1780 and served as the state's governor (1794–97).