When Samuel Adams' father died, Samuel also had to fight off the British over a banking scheme his father had. It was popular among the people, but deemed illegal by the British. Samuel Adams was on the brink of having to hand over his estate, but he prevailed and the British were eventually run out of town anyway. Samuel also received the run of his father's maltsing business after his death. That was another failure for Adams.
As history shows us, Samuel Adams was not some poor unfortunate who was just no good at anything. The brewing discontent in the colonies gave him the perfect opportunity to showcase his talents. When Christopher Sieder was shot, Samuel Adams was quick to publicize the outrage. Some say his speeches were such that he was something of an agent provocateur, though on the same side as those provoked. Indeed, the Boston Massacre occurred little more than a week after the event. Samuel Adams was also giving speeches before the Boston Tea Party. Suspicious? Historians think so. One thing is certain, instigator or not, he was one of the best orators in Boston before the American Revolution.
In 1765 -- five years before the Boston Massacre -- Samuel Adams became a member of the Massachusetts Assembly. As revolution became inevitable, he served on the Massachusetts Provincial Congress and later the Continental Congress. He was positioned politically to be one of the men instrumental in creating the new nation. He signed the Declaration of Independence and helped draft the Articles of the Confederation.
In 1781, Samuel Adams retired from Congress and helped develop the Massachusetts Constitution. Eight years later, he became Lieutenant Governor. Five years after that, he became the Governor of Massachusetts. He remained governor until his health dictated that he rest in 1797. He died in Boston on October 2, 1803.
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