James Otis, Jr.

James Otis, Jr. was born on February 5, 1725 in Massachusetts. He was so important to the cause of the American Revolution that he would be forever honored as "the Patriot." He graduated from Harvard in 1743 and began practicing law in 1748. In 1750, he moved to Boston and five years later married Ruth Cunningham.

James Otis, Jr. had important brothers and a sister. His sister, Mercy Otis Warren, was a writer. Her huge history of the Revolutionary War was the first book of its kind written by an American. His brother Joseph was a general in the war and known for his quick temper and wild behavior. His other brother, Samuel, became Secretary of State and held the Bible for George Washington when he took his oath of office in 1789.

In 1761, Otis was one of four representatives to the General Court. He gave his famous speech against the Writs of Assistance. The Writs were made by the British saying that it was legal to go into homes, businesses and ships at sea to search for illegal goods. This four-hour speech got his fellow patriots fired up about the revolution. Three years later, he was head of the Massachusetts branch of the Committees of Correspondence.

Otis gave another speech against taxation without representation. His ideas were turned into The Stamp Act Congress in 1765. He warned the colonists not to buy paper and other British goods. The people began to repeat his words. Patrick Henry and James Otis, Jr. nearly went to prison for speaking out against the British.

In 1769, James Otis, Jr. was badly beaten by a group of British customs officials who didn't like his speeches. He survived, but his brain was damaged. He started to go mad. Once, he accidentally escaped his home and joined the Battle of Bunker Hill. Somehow he survived it. Later, he went to live on the farm of a friend. While he was talking to some people outside, a storm started up and a bolt of lightning struck him. In 1783, James Otis, Jr., one of the most important patriots, died.