Francis Lewis
From Ffaith
Signatory of the American Declaration of Independence, Francis Lewis, was the son of a Welsh clergyman and was born in Llandaff in 1713. He was orphaned at the age of four or five and went to live with an Aunt who taught him to speak Welsh. Soon afterwards he waas sent to Scotland where he acquired Gaelic. His scholarly grasp of languages were later to save him from an untimely death.
He left Britain for the new world in 1735 and set about making his fortune in foreign trade. He travelled extensively, twice surviving shipwrecks. During the French Canadian War he became an agent for supplying British troops and was captured by French troops after the seige of Oswego Fort. He was one of 30 men handed to the Indians who had helped the siege "to do with what they would".
It is said that Lewis was able to communicate with the Indians due to some similarity of Welsh with the North American Native language and was able to negotiate his release. Back in the hands of the French he was sent to France and held for ransom, which was eventually paid.
Although Lewis was not born in America he was among the first to rebutt British colonial rule and was an early agitator for Independance. He became active in politics and was elected to the Continental Congress in 1775, remaining in office for many years.