At the urging of George Washington and drafted primarily by George Mason, the Fairfax Resolves were adopted on July 18, 1774—asserting the rights of the American colonies and rejecting Parliament’s authority over local governance. Among the Alexandria signers was Robert Adam, a Scottish-born merchant and civic leader who had long partnered with John Carlyle and done business with Washington himself.
By signing the Resolves, Adam joined Virginia’s early resistance to British policies following the Boston Port Act. The document laid the intellectual groundwork for independence, making Alexandria one of the first communities in the colonies to endorse coordinated resistance.
Though often overlooked, the Fairfax Resolves served as a crucial precursor to the Declaration of Independence—marking Alexandria as a key spark in America’s revolutionary path.
While Robert Adam has no marked grave, his name appears on the Adam family obelisk in Alexandria’s Presbyterian Cemetery, and it is presumed he is buried there.
To read a PDF copy of the Fairfax Resolves, click here: Fairfax Resolves PDF.
