Samuel Rhoads (1711 – April 7, 1784) was a leading citizen of 18th-century Philadelphia. He designed Pennsylvania Hospital and was a master of the Carpenters' Company of Philadelphia.
Rhoads's political career began in 1741, when he was elected to the Common Council of Philadelphia. In 1761 he was elected to the Pennsylvania Assembly, where he served two terms. Rhoads shared the revolutionary sentiment spreading through the city in the 1770s and was a delegate to the First Continental Congress. He was elected Mayor of Philadelphia in 1774.
An associate and friend of Benjamin Franklin, Rhoads played a role in many of the important institutions of colonial Philadelphia. He was an early Director of the Library Company of Philadelphia, a founding Director of the Contributionship for the Insurance of Houses from Loss by Fire, and a Vice-President of the American Philosophical Society.
Rhoads was the grandfather of the seventh Clerk of the House of Representatives, Walter S. Franklin, and the great-grandfather of American Civil War general William B. Franklin.
Famous quotes containing the word samuel:
“When you’re at the end of your rope, all you have to do is make one foot move out in front of the other. Just take the next step. That’s all there is to it.”
—Samuel Fuller, U.S. screenwriter, and Milton Sperling. Samuel Fuller. Merrill (Jeff Chandler)