President John Hancock
 |
| Click Here to view the US Mint & Coin Acts 1782-1792 Third President of the Continental Congress United Colonies of America May 25, 1775 to July 1, 1776 First President of the Continental Congress United States of America July 2, 1776 to October 29, 1777 Seventh President of the United States in Congress Assembled November 23, 1785 to June 5, 1786 |
“The public mind seems not to be yet settled on the Vice President. The question has been supposed to lie between Hancock & Adams. The former is far the more popular man in N. England, but he has declared to his lady, it is said, that she had once been the first in America, & he wd. never make her the second.” -- James Madison, October 28, 1788
On May 25, 1775 the United Colonies Continental Congress elected John Hancock, President. On July 2, 1776 United Colonies Continental Congress declared independence from Great Britain. On July 4th, 1776 United States Continental Congress passed the Declaration of Independence with John Hancock executing the resolution as President. On November 23, 1785 the United States in Congress Assembled (USCA) elected John Hancock President.
John Hancock was born in Quincy, Massachusetts, on January 12, 1737 and died there October 8, 1793. Hancock’s father, the Reverend John Hancock, was an ordained minister who was a graduate of Harvard College. Hancock’s grandfather, also named the Reverend John Hancock, was so revered that he was often called “Bishop” or “Sir Hancock” and was described as a "man of stern Puritanic stuff, but a lover of a good story and a cheerful word nevertheless.” This religious influence did not escape John Hancock’s character who was encouraged to adhere to the strict Christian principles that permeated 18th Century Massachusetts. Hancock’s father died when he was seven and his Uncle Thomas, a wealthy merchant as evidence by the following family account, raised young John as a son.
Mr. Thomas Hancock had built in 1737 a handsome house on Beacon Street. The grounds extended from Mt. Vernon to Joy Street. The garden was laid out with extreme care, filled with rare trees and shrubs, for which Mr. Hancock showed a great predilection, sending abroad to obtain the choicest varieties. The interior of the mansion was adorned with all that wealth could procure from England to add to the comfort and elegance of a home. The numerous orders of Mr. Thomas Hancock comprised wall paper, the designs to be animals, birds and flowers; the best sterling Madeira wines for his own use. And he wrote, " I don't stand for any price, provided the quality of the wine answers to it." Everything must be of the first quality, from the " best new rose May butter " to the “eiderdown bed cover;" and "the best quart bottles of champagne" to "the best of paper."
Negroes were the servants at that time, being most kindly cared for by this family. Thomas Hancock willed several to his widow; and one, from attachment for his faithful services, was buried in the Hancock plot.
Thomas Hancock's generous heart, overflowing with love for his nephew, liberally indulged him, which did not result in the wreck of a fine man, as might have been expected, because of the solid foundation of his character.
On the education front, John Hancock followed in his father’s footsteps being admitted to Harvard and graduating in 1754. He did not, however, school in the ministry focusing rather on liberal arts and business. Upon graduation he invoked on a career in working with his Uncle Thomas in Boston. In 1760, he was introduced to politics by embarking on a foreign tour with the Royal Governor of Massachusetts Thomas Pownal, who was close friend of Uncle Thomas. On October 29, 1760 while in London, he wrote to his Uncle:
“Sunday last the Prince
of Wales was proclaimed King thro' ye city with pomp and joy. His coronation, I
am told, will not be till April; that I can't yet determine whether I shall
stay to see it, but rather think I shall, as it is the grandest thing I shall
ever meet with." [2]
Young
John Hancock did attend the coronation ceremony and was presented to King
George III by his royal Governor. John
received a snuff-box on which was engraved with the likeness of the new Kling. He wrote the Rev.
Daniel Perkins from London:
“I shall with
satisfaction bid adieu to this grand place, with all its pleasurable enjoyments
and tempting scenes, r more substantial pleasures, which I promise myself in
the enjoyment of my friends in America."[3]
John
Hancock returned to Boston with a new understanding of European business and
culture. Three years later, on August
1, 1764,[4] Thomas
Hancock the wealthiest man in Boston and senior member on the Massachusetts
Council died. Having no children left his thriving business
as well as a sizable fortune to John Hancock who was now 27.
John Hancock became active in Colonial
politics shortly after the Stamp Act was enacted. On November 1, 1765, in an effort to recoup
loss revenues due to the war, the British Parliament, imposed a direct tax on
the American Colonies. This tax was to be paid directly to King George
III to replenish the royal treasuries coffers emptied by his father during the
height of the Seven Years War. Under the British Stamp Act, all printed
materials including broadsides, newspapers, pamphlets, bills, legal documents,
licenses, almanacs, dice and playing cards, were required to carry a revenue
stamp. Americans who for 160 years faithfully paid taxes to their respective
colonial governments were, for the first time, expected to pay this additional
tax directly to Great Britain.
 |
| President John Hancock Oil Painting Forgotten Founders Collection |
The colonists, in opposition to King
and Parliament, convened the Stamp Act Congress in New York City on October 19,
1765. They passed a resolution which made “the following declarations
of our humble opinion, respecting the most essential rights and liberties Of
the colonists, and of the grievances under which they labour, by reason of
several late Acts of Parliament” [5] calling
on King George III to repeal the Act. The Act was repealed on March 18, 1766
but it was replaced with the Declaratory Act. This Act asserted that the
British government had absolute authority over the American colonies which
further divided the two political systems.
In 1766, John Hancock was chosen to represent Boston in
the Massachusetts House of Representatives with James Otis, Thomas Cushing, and
Samuel Adams. In that House, Eliot reports that Hancock "blazed a Whig of the first
magnitude" [6]
defying the taxes of the British Empire. The seizure of Hancock’s sloop,
the "Liberty," for an alleged evasion of the laws of trade,
caused a riot in Massachusetts, with customs’ royal commissioners barely
escaping with their lives.
In 1767, in another attempt to obtain
revenue from the colonies, the Townshend Revenue Acts [7]
were passed by Parliament, taxing imported paper, tea, glass, lead and
paints. In February of 1768, Samuel Adams and James Otis drafted and the
Massachusetts Assembly adopted a circular letter to be sent to the other
American Assemblies protesting these taxes. They expressed the hope that
redress could be obtained through petitions to King George III. The
letter called for a convention to thrash out the issue of taxation without
representation and issue a unified address to the Crown. The British
government, however, provoked a confrontation by ordering the Massachusetts
Assembly to rescind the letter and ordered Governor Bernard to dismiss the
assembly if they refused.
In protest to this and other British
laws, John Hancock and other Selectman called for a statewide “town
meeting” at Faneuil Hall on September 23, 1768, 96 towns answered Hancock’s
call to address taxation and self-government grievances against the British
Crown n September 28th. The circular produced by Hancock calling for the
meeting read:
 |
| John Hancock "No Taxation Without Representation Broadside" Image Courtesy of the Stan Klos Collection [8] |
“YOU are already too well acquainted
with the _hreatenin [sic] and very alarming Circumstances to which this
Province, as well as America in general, is now reduced. Taxes equally
detrimental to the Commercial interests of the Parent Country and her Colonies,
are imposed upon the People, without their Consent; - Taxes designed for the
Support of the Civil Government in the Colonies, in a Manner clearly unconstitutional,
and contrary to that, in which ‘till of late, Government has been supported, by
the free Gift of the People in the American Assemblies or Parliaments; as also
for the Maintenance of a large Standing Army; not for the Defence [sic] of the
newly acquired Territories, but for the old Colonies, and in a Time of Peace.
The decent, humble and truly loyal Applications and Petitions from the
Representatives of this Province for the Redress of these heavy and very
_hreatening [sic] Grievances, have hitherto been ineffectual…The only
Effect…has been a Mandate…to Dissolve the General Assembly, merely because the
late House of Representatives refused to Rescind a Resolution of a former
House, which imply’d nothing more than a Right in the American Subjects to
unite in humble and dutiful Petitions to their gracious Sovereign, when they
found themselves aggrieved…
“The Concern and Perplexity into which
these Things have thrown the People, have been greatly aggravated, by a late
Declaration of his Excellency Governor BERNARD, that one or more Regiments may
soon be expected in this Province…
“Deprived of the Councils of a General
Assembly in this dark and difficult Season, the loyal People of this Province,
will, we are persuaded, immediately perceive the Propriety and Utility of the
proposed Committee of Convention…”.
Signed
“John Hancock,” also signed “Joseph Jackson,” “John Ruddock,” “John Rowe,” and
“Samuel Pemberton” as Selectmen of Boston.” [9]
This particular Hancock document
had a demonstrable effect, “it changed the world,” as the governor
called for British reinforcements. Hancock’s convention composed a list of
grievances, passed several resolutions, and adjourned. Two days later, royal
transports unloaded British troops at the Long Wharf and began a military
occupation of Boston that would last until March 17, 1776. It was the beginning
of the end of British Colonialism in America.
Eighteen months later, on March 5th,
1770, Hancock would be drawn in again to anti-crown politics by attending the
funeral of the Bostonians slain in an affray known as the “Boston
Massacre." [10]
Here it is reported by various historians
that Hancock eloquently delivered a speech to the mourning citizens that fearlessly
condemned the conduct of the soldiers and their crown. His words were so
critical of the British Authorities that it greatly offended the Colonial
Governor who ordered his arrest. Hancock's speech was printed in key
American newspapers broadening his notoriety throughout the colonies.[11] This author could not find any 1770 account
of the speech ever being given by John Hancock in newspapers, broadsides or
letters at the funeral for the slain Bostonians. What was uncovered is this account of the
funeral by a Boston newspaper on March 12, 1770:
Last
Thursday, agreeable to a general request of the inhabitants and by the consent
of parents and friends, were carried to their grave in succession the bodies of
Samuel Gray, Samuel Maverick, James Caldwell, and Crispus Attucks, the unhappy
victims who fell in the bloody massacre of the Monday evening preceding!
On
this occasion most of the shops in town were shut, all the bells were ordered
to toll a solemn peal, as were also those in the neighbouring towns of
Charlestown, Roxbury, etc. The procession began to move between the hours of
four and five in the afternoon, two of the unfortunate sufferers, viz. Messrs.
James Caldwell and Crispus Attucks who were strangers, borne from Faneuil Hall
attended by a numerous train of persons of all ranks; and the other two, viz. Mr.
Samuel Gray, from the house of Mr. Benjamin Gray (his brother) on the north
side the Exchange, and Mr. Maverick, from the house of his distressed mother,
Mrs. Mary Maverick, in Union Street, each followed by their respective
relations and friends, the several hearses forming a junction in King Street,
the theatre of the inhuman tragedy, proceeded from thence through the Main
Street, lengthened by an immense concourse of people so numerous as to be
obliged to follow in ranks of six, and bought up by a long train of carriages
belonging to the principal gentry of the town. The bodies were deposited in one
vault in the middle burying ground. The aggravated circumstances of their
death, the distress and sorrow visible in every countenance, together with the
peculiar solemnity with which the whole funeral was conducted, surpass
description.[12]
There are also numerous 18th
Century accounts of John Hancock delivering a fourth Anniversary Speech of the
Boston Massacre in 1774 … “Let this sad
tale of death never be told without a tear; let not the heaving bosom cease to
burn with a manly indignation at the barbarous story . . .”. This speech has been reported by numerous 19th
– 21st Century scholars as the one reported given at the 1770
funeral which did not occur. Never-the-less, the text of the March 5, 1774
provides exemplary “rebel rhetoric”
eloquently criticizing both the Crown and the British Authorities occupying
Boston. His demeanor during this speech
was reported as:
“without
shrinking or demur, on this occasion calmly faced the assemblage before him.
Though the streets were full of British soldiers, and some collected to hear
him, he denounced the conduct of the administration in its various oppressive
acts, and especially in sending an armed force to be stationed in the capital
in time of peace. He was bold and eloquent, exciting the astonishment alike of
his friends and foes” [13]
In
1774 Hancock was elected, with Samuel Adams, to the Provincial congress at
Concord, Massachusetts. John Hancock was unanimously elected president and
presided over its Committee of Safety. Contrary to popular belief John Hancock
was not elected on June 14, 1774 as a delegate to the Continental Congress
because his Provincial Congress President office required him to remain in Boston.
Under Hancock’s Presidency,
Massachusetts organized bands of "minutemen",
Colonial militiamen ready in a minute’s notice, to oppose the British. Hancock
also presided over the organized effort to boycott tea imported by the British
East India Company.
Resolved,
That the Honourable John Hancock,
Esquire, Doctor Joseph Warren,
Doctor Benjamin Church, Junior,
Mr. Richard Devens, Captain Benjamin White, Colonel Joseph Palmer, Mr. Abraham Watson, Colonel Azor Orne, Mr. John Pigeon, Colonel William Heath, and Mr. Jabez Fisher, be, and hereby are,
appointed a Committee of Safety, to continue until the further order of this,
or some other Congress, or House of Representatives of this Province, whose
business and duty it shall be, most carefully and diligently to inspect and
observe all and every such person or persons, as shall at any time attempt to
carry into execution, by force, an Act of the British Parliament, entitled "An Act for the better
regulating the Government of the Province of the Massachusetts Bay, in New
England," or who shall attempt to carry into execution, by force,
another Act of the British
Parliament, entitled "An Act for the Impartial Administration of Justice
in the cases of persons questioned for any act done by them in the execution of
the Law, or for the suppression of Riots and Tumults in the Province of the Massachusetts Bay;" which said
Committee, or any five of them, (provided always, that not more than one of the
said five shall be an inhabitant of the Town of Boston,) shall have power, and they are hereby empowered and
directed, when they shall judge that such attempt or attempts are made to
alarm, muster, and cause to be assembled, with the utmost expedition, and
completely armed, accoutred, and supplied with provisions sufficient for their
support in the march to the place of rendezvous, such and so many of the
Militia of this Province, as they shall judge necessary for the end and purpose
of opposing such attempt or attempts, and at such place or places as they shall
judge proper, and them to discharge, as the safety of the Province shall
permit. And this Congress do most earnestly recommend to all the Officers and
Soldiers of the Militia in this Province, who shall from time to time, during
the commission of the said Committee, receive any call or order from the said
Committee, to pay the strictest obedience thereto, as they shall regard the
liberties and lives of themselves and the people of this Province, any order or
orders of any form Congress varying therefrom notwithstanding.
Resolved,
That the Honourable Jedediah Preble,
Esquire, Honourable Artemas Ward,
Esquire, Colonel Seth Pomeroy,
Colonel John Thomas, and
Colonel William Heath, be, and
they hereby are appointed General Officers, whose business and duty it shall
be, with such and so many of the Militia of this Province as shall be assembled
by order of the Committee of Safety, effectually to oppose and resist such
attempt or attempts as shall be made for carrying into execution, by force, an
Act of the British Parliament, entitled
"An Act for the better regulating the Government of jhe Province of the Massachusetts Bay, in New England;" or who shall
attempt the carrying into execution, by force, another Act of the British Parliament, entitled "An
Act for the more Impartial Administration of Justice in the cases of persons
questioned for any act done by them in the execution of the Law, or for the
suppression of Riots and Tumults in the Province of the Massachusetts Bay," so long as the said Militia shall be
retained by the Committee of Safety, and no longer; and the said General
Officers shall, while in the said service, command, lead, and conduct in such
opposition, in the order in which they are above named, any order or orders of
any former Congress, varying therefrom notwithstanding.[14]
These minutemen became crucial in
dealing with General Thomas Gage who was named Royal governor and
commander-in-chief, of Massachusetts by the Crown in 1774. At
first, Gage governorship was a welcome change in Boston due to the unpopularity
of Governor Thomas Hutchinson. Only two
months earlier on the cold evening of December 16, 1773 Bostonians dressed as
Mohawks boarded three English ships, the Dartmouth, the Eleanor and the Beaver
Loaded with tea from the East India Company and dumped their contents into the
water as a protest against the Crown’s tax on tea. This occurred because protesters, who had
successfully prevented the unloading of taxed tea in three other colonies, did
not succeed in having the King’s tea returned to England. Instead Royal
Governor Thomas Hutchinson permitted the tea remain on board three ships at Griffin's Wharf in Boston.
John Hancock, personally, had a hand
in this “Boston Tea Party.” When the duties were levied upon the
importation of foreign merchandise by the British Government John Hancock, who
headed the committee, formed an association to prohibit the importation of
British goods. This association formulation was followed by many of the other
colonies. This association eventually led to its leaders inciting a group of men, some dressed in the Mohawk
warrior disguises, to boarded the three vessels British tea vessels in Boston
Harbor. In three hours the men dumped all 342 chests of tea into the water.
An account of Hancock’s involvement is given by Major Thomas Maxwell.
“In
1773 I went with my team to Boston. I loaded at John Hancock's warehouse, and
was about to leave town when Mr. Hancock requested me to drive my team up into
his yard, and ordered his servants to take care of it, and requested me to be
on Long Wharf at 2 o'clock P. M., and informed me what was to be done. I went
accordingly, joined the band under one Captain Hewes; we mounted the ships and
made tea in a trice. This done I took my team and went home, as an honest man
should.'' [15]
General Gage arrived in the midst of
the colonial chaos caused by the Boston Tea Party. His mission, aside from
restoring respect for the King’s law, included strictly enforcing the
confiscation of war-making materials. In
September 1774 Gage carried out his orders and adeptly seized the gunpowder stockpile
stored in Somerville, Massachusetts.
This success gave rise to the effectiveness of the “Sons of Liberty” who kept a close eye on Gage’s activities
successfully warning other arsenals when British were coming.
General Thomas Gage’s military
strategy of seizing colonial arsenals and rooting out revolutionaries resulted
in what is now known as the Battle of Lexington and Concord. The British's
Troops April 18, 1775 advance on Concord to seize its arsenal resulted in
Joseph Warren calling out the "Minute Men." Upon learning of
the British plans which included the capture of John Hancock and Samuel Adams, Warren dispatched Paul Revere who wrote
"About 10 o'clock, Dr. Warren
Sent in a great haste for me, and begged that I would immediately Set off for
Lexington, where Messrs. Hancock and Adams were..." [16]
Revere was rowed across the Charles
River to Charlestown by two friends where he checked first with members of the
Sons of Liberty that Warren's call to arms Old Church signals had been seen.
Revere then borrowed a horse from Deacon Larkin and began his famous ride.
Revere reported on his ride north along the Mystic River:
"I awakened the Captain of the
minute men; and after that I alarmed almost every house till I got to
Lexington. I found Messrs. Hancock and Adams at the Rev. Mr. Clark's; I told
them my errand ...”[17]
Revere then helped Adams and Hancock
escape, and at 4:30am he wrote that
"Mr Lowell asked me to go to the
Tavern with him, to git a Trunk of papers belonging to Mr. Hancock. We went up
Chamber; and while we were giting the Trunk, we saw the British very near, upon
a full March." [18]
It was at that time, while collecting
the trunk that Revere recalls hearing "The shot heard 'round the
world" on the Lexington Green. Revere wrote,
"When we got about 100 Yards from
the meeting-House the British Troops appeared on both Sides... I saw and heard
a Gun fired... Then I could distinguish two Guns, and then a Continual roar of
Musquetry; Then we made off with the Trunk.” [19]
The
militias were outnumbered in Lexington and fell back, enabling British troops
to proceed on to Concord, where they searched for the supplies. Hancock and
Adams both escaped the British unharmed.
The militia regrouped and at Concord’s North Bridge they engaged and
defeated three companies of the King's troops. The outnumbered regulars fell
back from the minutemen after a pitched battle in open territory as more men
swelled the militia’s numbers. The British expedition was rescued by reinforcements
under Brigadier General
Hugh Percy. The combined force, now of about 1,700 men, marched back to Boston
under heavy fire in a tactical withdrawal and eventually reached the safety of
Charlestown. The accumulated militias blockaded the narrow land accesses to
Charlestown and Boston, starting the Siege of Boston.
Following the April battles at
Lexington and Concord, the British soldiers returned to Boston quartering the
community. On June 12th General Gage issued a proclamation offering pardons to
all the rebels, excepting Samuel Adams
and John Hancock,
"whose offences," it was
declared, "are of too flagitious a nature to admit of any other
consideration than that of condign punishment." [20]
On June 16th Colonel William Prescott
was ordered onto the Charlestown Peninsula to occupy Bunker Hill to defy the
British occupation of Boston. For reasons that are still not entirely clear,
the colonists took possession of neighboring Breed's Hill and constructed
defense fortifications. General William Howe quickly assembled a force of 3,000
soldiers to the foot of the American position. Two uphill assaults were
launched and repulsed by Colonel Prescott who reputedly cautioned his men "not
to fire until they saw the whites of their eyes" but this phrase was attributed earlier to
British General James Wolfe who issued the same order at the Battle of Quebec
in 1759. The assaults resulted in heavy losses for the British
forcing Howe to call for 400 additional soldiers.
The British third charge caught the
Americans low on powder and unable to oppose the overwhelming numbers of fixed
British bayonets. Prescott ordered the retreat down the north slope of Breed's
Hill. Many were shot in the back during this escape across the Neck. A key
causality was Dr. Joseph
Warren, who was among the last to leave his position. He was killed
instantly by a musket ball in the back of his head. A full report of the
Battle was given to … including this excerpt on the causalities:
The
loss of the New-England Army amounted, according to an exact return, to one
hundred and forty-five killed and missing, and three hundred and four wounded.
Thirty of the first were wounded and taken prisoners by the enemy. Among the
dead was Major General Joseph Warren, a man whose memory will be endeared to his
countrymen, and to the worthy in every part and age of the world, so long as
virtue and valour shall be esteemed among mankind. [21]
Joseph Warren’s death provided a
political vacuum that John Hancock would fill leading to a U.S. 1776 prominence
second only to George Washington.
Mr. Hancock was elected a delegate
from Massachusetts to the Continental Congress on December 5, 1775.
Resolved,
that the proceedings of the American continental Congress held at Philadelphia,
on the fifth day of September last, and Reported by the honble Delegates from
this Colony, have with the deliberation due to their high importance been
considered by us; and the American Bill of rights therein contained, appears to
be formed with the greatest Ability and Judgment; to be founded on the
immutable Laws of Nature and reason, the principles of the English
constitution, and respective Charters and constitutions of the Colonies, and to
be worthy of their most vigorous support, as essentially necessary to liberty.
Likewise the ruinous and eniquitous measures, which, in violation of these
RIGHTS, at present convulse and threaten destruction to America, appear to be
clearly pointed out, and judicious plans adopted for defeating them.
Resolved,
That the most grateful acknowledgments are due to the truly honorable and
patriotic Members of the Continental Congress, for their wise and able
exertions in the cause of American Liberty; and this Congress, in their own
Names, and in behalf of this Colony, do hereby, with the utmost Sincerity, express
the same.
Resolved,
That the Hon. John Hancock, Hon. Thomas Cushing, Esquires, Mr. Samuel Adams,
John Adams, and Robert Treat Paine, Esquires, or any three of them, be, and
they hereby are appointed and authorized to represent this Colony, on the tenth
of May next, or sooner if necessary, at the American Congress, to be held at
Philadelphia, with full power, with the Delegates from the Other American
Colonies, to concert, agree upon, direct and order such farther measures, as
shall to them appear to be best calculated for the recovery and establishment
of American rights and Liberties, and for restoring harmony between
Great-Britain and the Colonies.[22]
The Second Continental Congress opened
on May 10, 1775 with Peyton Randolph
serving as President. As in 1774, Randolph was called to Virginia for a
Burgesses session and forced to abandon his presiding chair. Henry Middleton declined to serve as
President a second time due to ill health. Samuel
Adams and his cousin John Adams champion
the cause of their wealthy benefactor John Hancock who was elected President on
May 25th, 1775. It is reported by
several 19th and 20th Century Hancock biographers that Benjamin Harrison, of Virginia, with
Southern warmth and fervency, threw his arms around John Hancock and placed him
in the vacant Presidential chair, exclaiming,
We
will show Mother Britain how little we care for her by making a Massachusetts
man our President, whom she has excluded from pardon and offered a reward for
his head [23]
I was unable to find any 18th
century documents, newspapers of letters to corroborate the passage.
President Hancock, soon after his
election, stepped up his courting of 27 year old Dorothy Quincy who was also
being pursued by Aaron Burr while she was
residing in his Uncle’s Family Mansion in New York.[24] Dorothy "Dolly" Quincy, was born on May 10, 1747, in Braintree, Massachusetts, and was the daughter of Justice Edmund and Elizabeth (Wendell) Quincy. On June
10, 1775, John Hancock wrote to Miss Quincy:
I
am almost prevailed on to think that my letters to my aunt and you are not
read, for I cannot obtain a reply. I have asked a million questions and not an
answer to one. ... I really take it extremely unkind. Pray, my dear, use not so
much ceremony and reservedness. Why can't you use freedom in writing? Be not
afraid of me. I want long letters. ... I beg, my dear Dolly, you will write me
often and long letters. I will forgive the past if you will mend in future. Do
ask my aunt to make me up and send me a watch-string, and do you make up
another? I want something of your doing.[25]
The Coupled were married on August 28,
1775. The New York Post gives a detailed
account which, occurred at the Burr Mansion in New York, in part:
It
is diffuse in particulars of the “blue blood “present and the great gathering
of guests from the town and from afar, which added unusual brilliancy to the
scene. This wedding created, evidently, a social flurry: and unbounded interest
was expressed throughout the northern colonies, the papers publishing notices
of the event.[26]
 |
John Singleton Copley (1738–1815) Portrait of Dorothy Quincy, Circa 1772. Dorothy "Dolly" Quincy, was born on May 10, 1747, in Braintree, Massachusetts, was the daughter of Justice Edmund and Elizabeth (Wendell) Quincy. On August 28, 1775, At the age of 28, Miss Quincy married John Hancock at the Thaddeus Burr Mansion in Fairfield, Connecticut. Together, they had two children, Lydia Henchman Hancock (1776 - 1777) and John George Washington Hancock (1778 - 1787). After John Hancock's death, Dorothy was courted and married by Captain James Scott in 1796. Their marriage ended with Captain Scott's death in 1809. Dorothy would remain a widow until her death, aged 83, on February 9, 1830. |
The Pennsylvania Gazette of September
6, 1775 reported:
Under
date of August 29, Fairfield, New York: Last evening was married at the seat of
Thaddeus Burr, Esq., by the Rev. Mr. Elliott, the Hon. John Hancock, Esq.,
President of the Continental Congress, to Miss Dorothy Quincy, daughter of
Edmund Quincy. Esq., of Boston. Florus informs us that, ' in the second Punic
war, when Hannibal besieged Rome, and was very near making himself Master of
it, a field upon which part of his army lay was offered for sale, and was
immediately purchased by a Roman, in a strong assurance that the Roman valour
and courage could soon raise the siege.'
Equal
to the conduct of that illustrious citizen was the marriage of the Hon. John
Hancock, Esq., who. with his amiable Lady, has paid as great a compliment to
American valour, and discovered equal Patriotism, by marrying now, while all
the colonies are as much convulsed as Rome when Hannibal was at her gates.[27]
Hancock’s wealth, young bride and
position were enhanced by the selection of a house elegantly Philadelphia home
chosen to entertain foreign and domestic dignitaries. The Adams, steadfast
liberals at that time, regretted their decision to back his Presidency because
Hancock aligned himself with fellow merchant delegates who were, at best, tepid
in the cause of independence. President Hancock also used his office in an
opulent fashion much to the disappointment of his Massachusetts Colleagues.[28]
Moreover, when Peyton Randolph
returned to Congress Hancock made no overture to surrender the Presidency,
despite many delegates charging his election was only to serve during
Randolph’s absence.[29]
Students and Teachers of US History this is a video of Stanley and Christopher Klos presenting America's Four United Republics Curriculum at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School. The December 2015 video was an impromptu capture by a member of the audience of Penn students, professors and guests that numbered about 200.
The Hancock presidency was most
eventual in the Continental Congress’ history starting with a July 6, 1775
resolution, "Declaration of the Causes and Necessities of Taking Up
Arms," which, rejected independence but asserted that Americans were
ready to die rather than be enslaved. In this resolution that justified it war
with Great Britain, the United Colonies Continental Congress openly invoked
their Christian God stating:
“Our cause is just. Our union is
perfect. Our internal resources are great, and, if necessary, foreign
assistance is undoubtedly attainable. -- We gratefully acknowledge, as signal
instances of the Divine favour towards us, that his Providence would not permit
us to be called into this severe controversy, until we were grown up to our
present strength, had been previously exercised in warlike operation, and possessed
of the means of defending ourselves. With hearts fortified with these animating
reflections, we most solemnly, before God and the world, declare, that,
exerting the utmost energy of those powers, which our beneficent Creator hath
graciously bestowed upon us, the arms we have been compelled by our enemies to
assume, we will, in defiance of every hazard, with unabating firmness and
perseverence, employ for the preservation of our liberties; being with one mind
resolved to die freemen rather than to live slaves.” [30]
On June 14, debate opened in Congress
on the appointment of Commander-in-Chief of Continental forces. John Hancock
made it known to all the delegates that he wanted the high office and as
President he expected to be nominated. He was astounded when his fellow
Massachusetts delegate, John Adams, moved to
appoint George Washington:
“Accordingly When congress had assembled I rose in my place and in as short a Speech as the Subject would admit, represented the State of the Colonies, the Uncertainty in the Minds of the People, their great Expectations and Anxiety, the distresses of the Army, the danger of its dissolution, the difficulty of collecting another, and the probability that the British Army would take Advantage of our delays, march out of Boston and spread desolation as far as they could go. I concluded with a Motion in form that Congress would Adopt the Army at Cambridge and appoint a General, that though this was not the proper time to nominate a General, yet as I had reason to believe this was a point of the greatest difficulty, I had no hesitation to declare that I had but one Gentleman in my Mind for that important command, and that was a Gentleman from Virginia who was among Us and very well known to all of Us, a Gentleman whose Skill and Experience as an Officer, whose independent fortune, great Talents and excellent universal Character, would command the Approbation of all America, and unite the cordial Exertions of all the Colonies better than any other Person in the Union. Mr. Washington, who happened to sit near the Door, as soon as he heard me allude to him, from his Usual Modesty darted into the Library Room. Mr. Hancock, who was our President, which gave me an Opportunity to observe his Countenance, while I was speaking.”[31]
On June 17th, 1775 the Continental
Congress passed the following resolution appointing George Washington as Commander-In-Chief:
Resolved unanimously upon the question, Whereas, the delegates of all the colonies, from Nova-Scotia to Georgia, in Congress assembled, have unanimously chosen George Washington, Esq. to be General and commander in chief, of such forces as are, or shall be, raised for the maintenance and preservation of American liberty; this Congress doth now declare, that they will maintain and assist him, and adhere to him, the said George Washington, Esqr., with their lives and fortunes in the same cause.[32]
John
Adams wrote his wife this concerning the appointment:
I can now inform you that the Congress
have made Choice of the modest and virtuous, the amiable, generous and brave
George Washington Esqr., to be the General of the American Army, and that he is
to repair as soon as possible to the Camp before Boston.[33]
Colonel George Washington was chosen because he was, a delegate of the wealthiest and most populous colony had extensive combat experience during the French and Indian War. His health and age, 43, were ideal to conduct long campaigns, which Congress knew would be part of the protracted conflict. Washington's fellow Virginians, especially former Continental Congress President Peyton Randolph, lobbied numerous delegates maintaining that his military professionalism and dedication to the patriot cause qualified him, above all others, for the appointment. Washington, who attended Congress in impeccable military dress, was determined to defend colonial rights and had a burning desire to obtain the Commander-in-Chief commission.
 |
June 23rd, 1775: the Colonial
Continental Congress resolved
“that a sum not
exceeding two millions of Spanish milled dollars be emitted by the Congress in bills of Credit, for the defense of America in the following form:”
49,000 bills of 8 dollars each ... $392,000
49,000 do. of 7 dollars each ... $343,000
49,000 do. of 6 dollars each ... $294,000
49,000 do. of 5 dollars each ... $245,000
49,000 do. of 4 dollars each ... $196,000
49,000 do. of 3 dollars each ... $147,000
49,000 do. of 2 dollars each ... $98,000
49,000 do. of 1 dollars each ... $49,000
11,800 do. of 20 dollars each ... $236,000
|
That a postmaster General be
appointed for the United Colonies, who shall hold his office at Philadelphia,
and shall be allowed a salary of 1000 dollars per annum for himself, and 340
dollars per annum for a secretary and Comptroller, with power to appoint such,
and so many deputies as to him may seem proper and necessary.
That a line of posts be appointed
under the direction of the Postmaster general, from Falmouth in New England to
Savannah in Georgia, with as many cross posts as he shall think fit.
That the allowance to the deputies in
lieu of salary and all contingent expenses, shall be 20% on the sums they
collect and pay into the General post office annually, when the whole is under
or not exceeding 1000 Dollars, and 10% for all sums above 1000 dollars a year.
That the rates of postage shall be 20%
less than those appointed by act of Parliament1. That the several deputies
account quarterly with the general post office, and the postmaster general
annually with the continental treasurers, when he shall pay into the receipt of
the Sd Treasurers, the profits of the Post Office; and if the necessary
expense of this establishment should exceed the produce of it, the deficiency
shall be made good by the United Colonies, and paid to the postmaster general
by the continental Treasure.
The Congress then proceeded to the
election of a postmaster general for one year, and until another is appointed
by a future Congress, when Benjamin
Franklin, Esquire was unanimously chosen. [35]
In November of 1775 Congress
established both the Continental Marines and Navy on the news of Continental
Army’s Victory in Montreal. December of 1775 brought the disastrous news
that Generals Richard
Montgomery and Benedict Arnold's
attack on the key to Canada, Quebec City failed. General Montgomery was killed
and Benedict Arnold was forced to make
a hasty retreat into New York. This loss put a great strain on troops and
resources while shifting the main thrust of the war back to the Colonies.
In
New England, additional troops were desperately needed during the Siege of
Boston. Following the battles at Lexington, Concord, and Bunker Hill, the effort
to drive the British out of Boston had reached something of an impasse. The
Americans effectively controlled and defended the land routes around the city,
but the British had control of the harbor, allowing them to receive provisions
and military stores without interruption.
 |
Continental Congress Oath of Secrecy - That every member of this Congress considers himself under the ties of virtue, honor and love of his Country, not to divulge, directly or indirectly, any matter or thing agitated or debated in Congress - November 9, 1775 from the American Archives |
On
November 29, 1775, George Washington
wrote to the Massachusetts General Court requesting an emergency conference to
address a severe shortage of troops. Connecticut troops had reneged on an
agreement to stay beyond their original term of service, and many new recruits
had been promised furloughs “by way of Encouragement,
& to afford opportunity of providing necessaries for themselves and
Families.” The “Considerable
diminution of our force, at a time when so capitol a change is taking Place in
the face of an Enemy, Increasing in Strength,” warned Washington, “cannot but be attended with extreme
hazard…I think our Situation Critical, and delays dangerous.” The
Massachusetts legislators did not hesitate, passing the resolution just two
days later. A copy of the resolution was sent to General Washington on December
7, 1775.[36]
Washington
was satisfied with the response. “The
Militia are coming fast,” he told John Hancock on December 11th. “I am much pleased, with the Alacrity which
the good people of this Province [Massachusetts]…have Shewn upon this occasion”
These very short-term enlistments were only intended to temporarily fill
gaps in the line. By January 1, 1776, less than half of the anticipated yearly
enlistments had materialized. Washington summed up the dire situation to
Hancock:
It is not in the pages of History
perhaps, to furnish a case like ours; to maintain a post within Musket Shot of
the Enemy for Six months…and at the same time to disband one Army and recruit
another, within that distance, of Twenty odd British regiments, is more
probably than ever was attempted; But if we succeed as well in the last, as we
have heretofore in the first, I shall think it the most fortunate event of my
whole life.[37]
Under
these circumstances, an American assault on the well-trained British troops
embedded in Boston had little chance of success. Fortunately, a daring
overnight coup allowed Washington to avoid that option. On March 4, 1776 the
Americans seized Dorchester Heights, which overlooked Boston, arming it with
captured artillery dragged down from Fort Ticonderoga by Henry Knox and his men. The
British, under General William Howe, were forced to evacuate, and the fleet
sailed to Nova Scotia later that month.[38] [39]
On January 16th, 1776 the Continental
Congress approved the enlistment of "free negroes." [40] This
led to the establishment of the First Rhode Island Regiment, composed of 33
free-negroes and 92 slaves.[41]
The regiment distinguished itself at the Battle of Newport and the slaves were
freed at the end of the war. Also in January Thomas Paine publishes "Common
Sense",[42] which
was a contemptuous attack on King George III's reign over the colonies.
Paine's work united many Americans in the Revolutionary Cause by successfully
arguing that the Colonists now had a moral obligation to reject monarchy.
Paine's first edition sold out quickly
and within three months, it is estimated that over 120,000 copies had been
printed. Signer Benjamin Rush recalled that
"Its effects were sudden and
extensive upon the American mind. It was read by public men, repeated in
clubs, spouted in Schools, and in one instance, delivered from the pulpit
instead of a sermon by a clergyman in Connecticut.” [43]
The work so inspired George Washington who declared that
Paine swept away all his remaining allegiance to King George III stating that Common
Sense offered "...sound doctrine and unanswerable reasoning."
[44] for
independence.
Paine's provocative pamphlet was
translated into French and appeared first in Quebec. John Adams wrote that "Common Sense was
received in France and in all Europe with Rapture.” Common Sense was
translated into German, Danish, and Russia. It was estimated that over 500,000
copies were sold during the initial years of the Revolutionary War.
John Hancock's Congress capitalized on
this ground swell of Paine Patriotism by invocating the aid of God in this
moral cause for independence. This time the name of Jesus Christ was included
in the official congressional resolution passed on March 16th, 1776. This
proclamation signed by President Hancock set May 17, 1776:
"Day of Humiliation, Fasting and
Prayer" throughout the colonies. The Continental Congress urged its
fellow citizens to "confess and bewail our manifold sins and
transgressions, and by a sincere repentance and amendment of life, appease his
[God's] righteous displeasure, and through the merits and mediation of Jesus
Christ, obtain his pardon and forgiveness."[45]
The Colony of Massachusetts followed
suit almost immediately ordering a "suitable number" of these
proclamations to be printed so "that each of the religious Assemblies
in this Colony, may be furnished with a Copy of the same" and added
the motto "God Save This People" as a substitute for "God
Save the King."
Common Sense changed the political climate in
America as the pamphlet ignited debates where the people spoke openly and often
for independence. The Second Continental Congress would take to heart Paine's
suggestion:
“To conclude: However strange it may
appear to some, or however unwilling they may be to think so, matters not, but
many strong and striking reasons may be given, to show, that nothing can settle
our affairs so expeditiously as an open and determined declaration for
independence.” [46]
Common Sense was expertly peppered with evocations
to Almighty God and biblical quotes that theologically makes a case for
Independence from Great Britain. Clearly, the Day of Humiliation, Fasting and
Prayer resolution passed by Congress in the Spring
of 1776 draws strongly from the popular Judeo-Christian verbiage in Paine's
best-selling pamphlet. Specifically the
1776 Journals of Congress record the resolution as:
Mr. W[illiam] Livingston, pursuant to
leave granted, brought in a resolution for appointing a fast, which & par
being taken into consideration, ∥ was agreed to as follows:
In times of impending calamity and
distress; when the liberties of America are imminently endangered by the
secret machinations and open assaults of an insidious and vindictive
administration, it becomes the indispensable duty of these hitherto free and
happy colonies, with true penitence of heart, and the most reverent devotion,
publickly to acknowledge the over ruling providence of God; to confess and
deplore our offences against him; and to supplicate his interposition for
averting the threatened danger, and prospering our strenuous efforts in the
cause of freedom, virtue, and posterity.
The Congress, therefore, considering
the warlike preparations of the British Ministry to subvert our invaluable
rights and priviledges, and to reduce us by fire and sword, by the savages of
the wilderness, and our own domestics, to the most abject and ignominious
bondage: Desirous, at the same time, to have people of all ranks and degrees
duly impressed with a solemn sense of God's super intending providence, and of
their duty, devoutly to rely, in all their lawful enterprizes, on his aid and
direction, Do earnestly recommend, that Friday, the Seventeenth day of May
next, be observed by the said colonies as a day of humiliation, fasting, and
prayer; that we may, with united hearts, confess and bewail our manifold sins
and transgressions, and, by a sincere repentance and amendment of life, appease
his righteous displeasure, and, through the merits and mediation of Jesus
Christ, obtain his pardon and forgiveness; humbly imploring his assistance to
frustrate the cruel purposes of our unnatural enemies; and by inclining their
hearts to justice and benevolence, prevent the further effusion of kindred
blood. But if, continuing deaf to the voice of reason and humanity, and inflexibly
bent, on desolation and war, they constrain us to repel their hostile invasions
by open resistance, that it may please the Lord of Hosts, the God of Armies, to
animate our officers and soldiers with invincible fortitude, to guard and
protect them in the day of battle, and to crown the continental arms, by sea
and land, with victory and success: Earnestly beseeching him to bless our
civil rulers, and the representatives of the people, in their several
assemblies and conventions; to preserve and strengthen their union, to inspire
them with an ardent, disinterested love of their country; to give wisdom and
stability to their counsels; and direct them to the most efficacious measures
for establishing the rights of America on the most honourable and permanent
basis--That he would be graciously pleased to bless all his people in these
colonies with health and plenty, and grant that a spirit of incorruptible
patriotism, and of pure undefiled religion, may universally prevail; and this
continent be speedily restored to the blessings of peace and liberty, and
enabled to transmit them inviolate to the latest posterity. And it is
recommended to Christians of all denominations, to assemble for public worship,
and abstain from servile labour on the said day. Resolved, That the foregoing resolve
be published.
John Hanock, President
Charles Thomson, Secretary[47]
This proclamation was printed in full
in the Pennsylvania Gazette, 20 March, 1776. There were many more 1776
events in Hancock's Congress that are noteworthy in the march towards
Independence but all are reduced to historical footnotes due to Richard Henry Lee's June resolution and Thomas Jefferson's pen on the cause of
independence. Despite his attempts to thwart revolution, John Hancock was caught up in the "Common
Sense" fervor and ended-up presiding over the Continental Congress who
would vote to abolish all ties with Great Britain.
In Congress Wednesday, April 3, 1776.
Instructions to the Commanders of Private Ships or Vessels of War, which
shall have Commissions or Letters of Marque and Reprisal, authorizing them to
make captures of British Vessels and Cargoes.
I. You may, by force of arms, attack,
subdue, and take all ships and other vessels belonging to the inhabitants of
Great Britain on the high seas, or between high-water and low-water marks,
except ships and vessels bringing persons who intend to settle and reside in
the United Colonies, or bringing arms, ammunition, or warlike stores to the
said Colonies, for the use of such Inhabitants thereof as are friends to the
American cause, which you shall suffer to pass unmolested, the commanders
thereof permitting a peaceable search, and giving satisfactory information of
the contents of the ladings and distinctions of the voyages.
II. You may, by force of arms, attack,
subdue, and take all ships and other vessels whatsoever, carrying soldiers,
arms, gunpowder, ammunition, provisions, or any other contraband goods to any
of the British armies or ships-of-war employed against these Colonies.
III. You shall bring such ships and
vessels as you shall take, with their guns, rigging, tackle, apparel, furniture
and ladings, to some convenient port or ports of the United Colonies, that
proceedings may thereupon be had in due form before the Courts which are, or
shall be there appointed, to hear and determine causes civil and maritime.
IV. You, or one of your chief officers,
shall bring or send the Master and Pilot, and one or more principal person or
persons of the company of every ship or vessel by you taken, as soon after the
capture as may be, to the Judge or Judges of such Court as aforesaid, to be
examined upon oath, and make answer to the interrogatories which may be
propounded touching the interest or property of the ship or vessel and her
lading; at the same time you shall deliver, or cause to be delivered, to the
Judge or Judges, all passes, sea-briefs, charter-parties, bills of lading,
cockets, letters, and other documents and writings found on board, proving the
said papers by the affidavit of yourself or some other person present at the
capture, to be produced as they were received, without fraud, addition, subduction,
or embezzlement.
V. You shall keep and preserve every
ship or vessel and cargo by you taken, until they shall, by sentence of a Court
properly authorized, be adjudged lawful prize; not selling, spoiling, wasting,
or diminishing the same, or breaking the bulk thereof, nor suffering any such
tiling to be done.
VI. If you, or any of your officers or
crew, shall, in cold blood, kill or maim, or by torture or otherwise cruelly,
inhumanly, and contrary to common usage and the practice of civilized nations
in war, treat any person or persons surprised in the ship or vessel you shall
take, the offender shall be severely punished.
VII. You shall, by all convenient
opportunities, send to Congress written accounts of the captures you shall
make, with the number and names of the Captains, copies of your Journal from
time to time, and intelligence of what may occur or be discovered concerning
the designs of the enemy, and the destinations, motions, and operations of
their fleets and armies.
VIII. One-third, at least, of your
whole company shall be landsmen.
IX. You shall not ransome any prisoners
or Captains, but shall dispose of them in such manner as the Congress, or if
that be not sitting in the Colony whither they shall be brought, as the General
Assembly, Convention, or Council, or Committee of Safety of such Colony shall
direct.
X. You shall observe all such further,
instructions as Congress shall hereafter give in the premises, when you shall
have notice thereof.
XI. If you shall do anything contrary
to these Instructions, or to others hereafter to be given, or willingly suffer
such things to be done, you shall not only forfeit your Commission and be
liable to an action for breach of the condition of your bond, but be
responsible to the party grieved for damages sustained by such malversation.
By order of Congress;
JOHN HANCOCK, President.
The Declaration of Independence
The most important resolution to emerge from John Hancock’s Presidency is the Declaration of Independence. In the spirit of brevity this summary has been developed on the Declaration’s History and its early printings.
The most important resolution to emerge from John Hancock’s Presidency is the Declaration of Independence. In the spirit of brevity this summary has been developed on the Declaration’s History and its early printings.
On June 7th, 1776 Richard Henry Lee brought the following
resolution before the Continental Congress of the United Colonies:
``Resolved, That these United Colonies
are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states, that they are
absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political
connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be,
totally dissolved.'' [48]
On Saturday, June 8th, Lee's
resolution was referred to a committee of the whole (the entire Continental
Congress), and they spent most of that day as well as Monday, June 10th
debating independence. The chief opposition for independence came mostly from
Pennsylvania, New York and South Carolina. As Thomas Jefferson said, they "were
not yet matured for falling from the parent stem." Since Congress
could not agree more time was needed:
"to give an opportunity to the delegates from those colonies which had not yet given authority to adopt this decisive measure, to consult their constituents .. and in the meanwhile, that no time be lost, that a committee be appointed to prepare a declaration". [49]
Who was the first U.S. President?
Accordingly, on June 11th a Committee
of Five was chosen with Thomas Jefferson
of Virginia being picked unanimously as its first member. Congress also
chose John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston,
and Roger Sherman. The
committee assigned Jefferson the task of producing a draft declaration, as
proposed in Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, for its consideration.
John Adams in his autobiography
recalls this of Jefferson’s selection as Chairman:
“Mr.
Jefferson had been now about a Year a Member of Congress, but had attended his
Duty in the House but a very small part of the time and when there had never
spoken in public: and during the whole Time I satt with him in Congress, I
never heard him utter three Sentences together. The most of a Speech he ever
made in my hearing was a gross insult on Religion, in one or two Sentences, for
which I gave him immediately the Reprehension, which he richly merited. It will
naturally be enquired, how it happened that he was appointed on a Committee of
such importance. There were more reasons than one. Mr. Jefferson had the
Reputation of a masterly Pen. He had been chosen a Delegate in Virginia, in
consequence of a very handsome public Paper which he had written for the House
of Burgesses, which had given him the Character of a fine Writer. Another
reason was that Mr. Richard Henry Lee was not beloved by the most of his
Colleagues from Virginia and Mr. Jefferson was sett up to rival and supplant
him. This could be done only by the Pen, for Mr. Jefferson could stand no
competition with him or anyone else in Elocution and public debate.”[50]
Jefferson's writing of the original
draft took place in seventeen days between his appointment to the committee
until the report of draft presented to Congress on June 28th. Thomas Jefferson
drew heavily on George Mason's Virginia Declaration of Rights (passed on June
12, 1776), Common Sense, state and local calls for independence, and his
own work on the Virginia Constitution.
Jefferson's
original rough draft was first submitted to Benjamin Franklin and John Adams
for their thoughts and changes. Jefferson wrote,
"… because they were the two
members of whose judgments and amendments I wished most to have the benefit
before presenting it to the Committee".[51]
The entire committee reviewed the
Declaration after Franklin and Adams's changes. After much discussion 26
additional changes were made from Jefferson's original draft. The Committee
presented it to Congress on Friday June 28th which ordered it to lie on the
table. According to historian John C.
Fitzpatrick the Declaration's
"... genesis roughly speaking, is
the first three sections of George Mason's immortal composition (Virginia
Declaration of Rights), Thomas Jefferson's Preamble to the Virginia
Constitution, and Richard Henry Lee's resolution..."[52]
Congress was called to order on July
1st at 9 am and heated debate consumed most of that hot and humid Monday.
Late in the day it was apparent that the delegates from Pennsylvania and South
Carolina were not ready to pass the Lee resolution for Independence.
Additionally the two delegates from Delaware were split so debate was postponed
until the following day. On July 2, 1776 both Robert Morris and John
Dickinson deliberately “abstained” by
not attending the session and the remaining Pennsylvania delegation voted for
independence.[53] Henry
Middleton’s son, Arthur Middleton,
chose to ignore his absent father’s wish and changed the colony's position to yes
on independence. Finally the great patriot Caesar Rodney, summoned by fellow
delegate Thomas McKean,[54] suffering from a serious facial cancer and
afflicted with asthma reportedly rode 80 miles through the rain
and a lightning storm arriving in time to break the Delaware 1 to 1 deadlock
by casting the third vote for independence. Thus all 12 colonies voted on July
2nd and adopted the resolution, introduced by Richard Henry Lee and John
Adams, declaring independence from Great Britain.
 |
| Resolution for Independency which was passed on July 2, 1776. |
 |
| United Colonies of America, July 2, 1776 manuscript naming the historic resolution: "Resolution for Independency" which is clearly marked on this original Continental Congress manuscript passed on July 2, 1776. The roll indicates that New Hampshire was the first State to vote for Independence |
 |
| United Colonies of America Resolution For Independency with roll call vote results written on the July 2, 1776 - Image courtesy of the Papers of the Continental Congress, 1774-1783; Records of the Continental and Confederation Congresses and the Constitutional Convention, 1774-1789, Record Group 360; National Archives |
 |
| United Colonies of America roll call vote result written on the July 2, 1776 "Resolution for Independency" which is clearly marked on this original Continental Congress manuscript passed on July 2, 1776. The roll indicates that New Hampshire was the first State to vote for Independence. Mew York is not listed as the delegation abstained from the vote - Image courtesy of the Papers of the Continental Congress, 1774-1783; Records of the Continental and Confederation Congresses and the Constitutional Convention, 1774-1789, Record Group 360; National Archives |
John Adams would write 29 years later
on this debate that resulted in a vote for Independence:
“The
Subject had been in Contemplation for more than a Year and frequent discussions
had been had concerning it. At one time and another, all the Arguments for it
and against it had been exhausted and were become familiar. I expected no more
would be said in public but that the question would be put and decided. Mr.
Dickinson however was determined to bear his Testimony against it with more
formality. He had prepared himself apparently with great Labour and ardent
Zeal, and in a Speech of great Length, and all his Eloquence, he combined
together all that had before been written in Pamphlets and News papers and all
that had from time to time been said in Congress by himself and others. He
conducted the debate, not only with great Ingenuity and Eloquence, but with
equal Politeness and Candour: and was answered in the same Spirit. No Member
rose to answer him: and after waiting some in hopes that some one less
obnoxious than myself, who was still had been all along for a Year before, and
still was represented and believed to be the Author of all the Mischief, I
determined to speak.
It
has been said by some of our Historians, that I began by an Invocation to the
God of Eloquence. This is a Misrepresentation. Nothing so puerile as this fell
from me. I began by saying that this was the first time of my Life that I had
ever wished for the Talents and Eloquence of the ancient Orators of Greece and
Rome, for I was very sure that none of them ever had before him a question of more
Importance to his Country and to the World. They would probably upon less
Occasions than this have begun by solemn Invocations to their Divinities for
Assistance but the Question before me appeared so simple, that I had confidence
enough in the plain Understanding and common Sense that had been given me, to
believe that I could answer to the Satisfaction of the House all the Arguments
which had been produced, notwithstanding the Abilities which had been displayed
and the Eloquence with which they had been enforced. Mr. Dickinson, some years
afterwards published his Speech. I had made no Preparation beforehand and never
committed any minutes of mine to writing.
Before
the final Question was put, the new Delegates from New Jersey came in, and Mr.
Stockton, one of them Dr. Witherspoon and Mr. Hopkinson, a very respectable
Characters, expressed a great desire to hear the Arguments. All was Silence: No
one would speak: all Eyes were turned upon me. Mr. Edward Rutledge came to me
and said laughing, Nobody will speak but you, upon this Subject. You have all
the Topicks so ready, that you must satisfy the Gentlemen from New Jersey. I
answered him laughing, that it had so much the Air of exhibiting like an Actor
or Gladiator for the Entertainment of the Audience, that I was ashamed to
repeat what I had said twenty times before, and I thought nothing new could be
advanced by me. The New Jersey Gentlemen however still insisting on hearing at
least a Recapitulation of the Arguments and no other Gentleman being willing to
speak, I summed up the Reasons, Objections and Answers, in as concise a manner
as I could, till at length the Jersey Gentlemen said they were fully satisfied
and ready for the Question, which was then put and determined in the
Affirmative.” [55]
John Adams wrote Abigail Adams on July 3, 1776:
Yesterday
the greatest Question was decided, which ever was debated in America, and a
greater perhaps, never was or will be decided among Men. A Resolution was
passed without one dissenting Colony "that these united Colonies, are, and
of right ought to be free and independent States, and as such, they have, and
of Right ought to have full Power to make War, conclude Peace, establish
Commerce, and to do all the other Acts and Things, which other States may
rightfully do."
You
will see in a few days a Declaration setting forth the Causes, which have
impell'd Us to this mighty Revolution, and the Reasons which will justify it,
in the Sight of God and Man. A Plan of Confederation will be taken up in a few
days. On July 2, 1776 the Association known as United Colonies of America
officially became the United States of America.[56]
Consequently, it was the date of July
2, 1776 that John Adams thought would be celebrated by future generations of
Americans writing to his wife Abigail Adams a second letter on July 3,
1776:
But the Day is past. The Second Day of
July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America.
I am apt to believe that it will be
celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It
ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion
to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews,
Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this
Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.
You will think me transported with
Enthusiasm but I am not. -- I am well aware of the Toil and Blood and Treasure,
that it will cost Us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these
States. -- Yet through all the Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and
Glory. I can see that the End is more than worth all the Means. And that
Posterity will tryumph in that Days Transaction, even altho We should rue it,
which I trust in God We shall not.[57]
After the resolution was passed, the
Continental Congress turned to the debate over the language in the Committee of
Five's formal Declaration of
Independence. Time was short and Congress adjourned until Wednesday the
third. The debates of July third and fourth altered the manuscript and
with these changes the Declaration of Independence was approved. Thomas
Jefferson was disappointed by the "depredations" made by
Congress writing:
"The pusillanimous idea that we
had friends in England worth keeping terms with, still haunted the minds of
many. For this reason those passages which conveyed censure on the people
of England were struck out, lest they should give them offense. The clause too,
reprobating the enslaving the inhabitants of Africa, was struck out in
compliance to South Carolina and Georgia, who had never attempted to restrain
the importation of slaves, and who on the contrary still wished to continue it.
Our Northern brethren also I believe felt a little tender under these censures;
for tho' their people have very few slaves themselves yet they had been pretty
considerable carriers of them to others." [58]
 |
| Thomas Jefferson Draft of the Declaration of Independence Image Courtesy of the Library of Congress |
Despite
these July 4th changes and previous committee edits Jefferson is rightfully
considered the main author of the Declaration of Independence. John Adams in
his autobiography recalls this of Jefferson’s pen:
The
Committee had several meetings, in which were proposed the Articles of which
the Declaration was to consist, and minutes made of them. The Committee then
appointed Mr. Jefferson and me, to draw them up in form, and cloath them in a
proper Dress. The Sub Committee met, and considered the Minutes, making such
Observations on them as then occurred: when Mr. Jefferson desired me to take
them to my Lodgings and make the Draught. This I declined and gave several
reasons for declining. 1. That he was a Virginian and I a Massachusettesian. 2.
that he was a southern Man and I a northern one. 3. That I had been so
obnoxious for my early and constant Zeal in promoting the Measure, that any
draught of mine, would undergo a more severe Scrutiny and Criticism in
Congress, than one of his composition. 4thly and lastly and that would be
reason enough if there were no other, I had a great Opinion of the Elegance of
his pen and none at all of my own. I therefore insisted that no hesitation
should be made on his part. He accordingly took the Minutes and in a day or two
produced to me his Draught.[59]
Late in the afternoon on July 4th,
1776 twelve of the thirteen colonies reached agreement to formally proclaim
themselves as free and independent nations. Only New York was the lone holdout
and it was due to the fact the Delegates were not granted the authority to vote
yes or no on Independence.
Was Delaware, Virginia, or New Hampshire the first US State?
This Declaration was a Proclamation
that was long overdue as the fighting between the American colonists and the
British forces had been going on for over a year. The Declaration, on July 4th,
1776, firstly memorialized what history has judged to be a just, moral and
most persuasive treatise on why the colonies had the right to declare their
independence from Great Britain. The July 2nd vote put the world on notice of
the Colonies’ independence. It was, however, the Declaration’s proclamations
that were designed to win the hearts and minds of the American Colonists who
would be asked to continue a seemingly insuperable war against King and
country. Therefore, it was essential that the Delegates not rely on the newspapers to disseminate its message to the people as most colonists could not afford the
cost of purchasing a paper. Consequently, in the evening of July 4, 1776 John
Hancock's Congress ordered:
“That the declaration be authenticated
and printed That the committee appointed to prepare the declaration superintend
and correct the press. That the copies of the declaration be sent to the
several assemblies, conventions and committees, or councils of safety, and to
the several commanding officers of the Continental troops, and that it be
proclaimed in each of the United States, and at the head of the army.” [60]
In
accordance with the above order Philadelphia printer John Dunlap was given the
task to print broadside copies of the agreed-upon declaration to be signed in
type only by Continental Congress President John Hancock and Secretary Charles
Thomson.
 |
| Broadside Produced during the night of July 4, 1776, by printer John Dunlap - Courtesy of the National Archives |
John Dunlap is thought to have printed
200 Broadsides that July 4th evening which were distributed to the members of
Congress on July 5th. It is a known fact that John Hancock sent a copy on July
5th, 1776 to the Committee of Safety of Pennsylvania, a copy to the Convention
of New Jersey, and a copy to Colonel Haslet with instructions to have it read
at the head of his battalion. In addition John Adams sent one copy, and
Elbridge Gerry two copies, to friends.
The Declaration, as affirmatively
voted on July 4th, was not signed on that day by the attending delegates. The
New York Delegates were required by their legislature to abstain from voting or
signing any instrument of independence. President John Hancock, in an attempt
to quickly gain the unanimous consent from all thirteen colonies, sent a
Dunlap broadside off to the New York Provincial Congress on Saturday July 6th.
On July 9th the New York Provincial Congress assembled in the White Plains
Court House and adopted the resolution heartedly supported by Delegate John Jay
who had rushed from New York City to preside over the body:
That reasons assigned by the
Continental Congress for declaring The United Colonies Free and Independent
States are cogent and conclusive, and that now we approve the same, and will at
the risque of our lives and fortunes, join with the other colonies in
supporting it. [61]
The New York Resolution was laid
before the Continental Congress on July 15th so then and not before the
document was re-titled “The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen States of
America."
Today only twenty-five of the July 5,
1776 Dunlap broadsides are known to exist. The original working copy of the
Declaration of Independence that was signed by Hancock and Thomson on July 4,
1776 is lost. All we have left from the actual July 4th event are the
congressional drafts and printings of John Dunlap. One of these unsigned "Dunlap
Broadsides", is reported to have sold for $8.14 million in an August
2000 New York City Auction.[62]
This copy was discovered in 1989 by a man browsing in a flea market who purchased a painting for four dollars because he was interested in the frame. Concealed
in the backing of the frame was an original Dunlap Broadside of the
Declaration of Independence.
The other printings of the Dunlap
Broadside known to exist are dispersed among private owners, American and
British institutions. The following are the current know locations of the
Dunlap Broadsides.
1.
Harvard University, Houghton Library
2.
Massachusetts Historical Society
3.
Yale University, Beinecke Rare Book
& Manuscript Library
4.
New York Historical Society
5.
New York Public Library
6.
American Philosophical Society
7.
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
8.
Independence National Historical Park
9.
Maryland Historical Society
10.
Library of Congress, Rare Book and
Special Collections Division
11.
Library of Congress, Manuscript
Division
12.
National Archives and Records Service
13.
Indiana University, Lilly Library
14.
University of Virginia, Alderman
Library
15.
Public Record Office, London, England
(Admiralty Records)
16.
Public Record Office, London, England
(Colonial Office 5)
17.
Chicago Historical Society
18.
Maine Historical Society
19.
William H. Scheide, Scheide Library,
Princeton, New Jersey
20.
Ira G. Corn, Jr., and Joseph P.
Driscoll, Dallas, Texas
21.
Anonymous, New York, New York
22.
Chew Family, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania
23.
John Gilliam Wood, Edenton, North
Carolina
24.
Anonymous, purchased at Southeby's,
December 1990
In 1776 as the Delegates returned home
with their personal copies of the Dunlap Broadside each State decided on how to
disseminate the Declaration of Independence to its citizens. Some states, like
Virginia, chose newspapers while others ordered official State Broadsides to be
printed from the Dunlap Declaration of Independence. The official printing, for
instance, ordered by Massachusetts was to be distributed to ministers of all
denominations, to be read to their congregations. News of the declaration was
proclaimed in every parish of Massachusetts via this state printed broadside.
In the absence of other media, broadsides such as this were subsequently
distributed out among the colonies and tacked to the walls of churches and
other meeting places to spread news of America's independence. These state
broadsides all had the July 4th date but many adding the corrected language "Unanimous
Declaration" to their headings with NY's ascension on July 9th.
Another Philadelphia Printer, Henrich
Millers, produced a German Newspaper in 1776 called the Pennsylvanisher
staatsbote. On July 9, 1776 the newspaper printed a full German translation
of the American Declaration of Independence and reported:
"Yesterday at noon, the
Declaration of Independence, which is published on this news paper's front
page, was publicly proclaimed in English from an elevated platform in the
courtyard of the State House. Thereby the United Colonies of North America were
absolved from all previously pledged allegiance to the king of Great Britain,
they are and henceforth will be totally free and independent. The proclamation
was read by Colonel Nixon, sheriff Dewees stood by his side and many members of
the Congress, of the [Pennsylvania] Assembly, generals and other high army
officers were also present. Several thousand people were in the courtyard to
witness the solemn occasion. After the reading of the Declaration there were
three cheers and the cry: God bless the free states of North America! To this
every true friend of these colonies can only say, Amen. " [64]
Miller did prepare a full printing of
the Declaration of Independence in a German-language broadside on July 9th but
historian Karl J.R. Arndt of Clark University claims Miller was trumped by
German printers Cist and Steiner. According to Clark, Cist and Steiner
produced an ordinary laid paper German Declaration of Independence broadside,
without a watermark, measuring 16 inches by 12 3/4 inches as early as July
6th, the day after Dunlap's printing .The author had the privilege to inspect
and hold this historic broadside that is now in the archives of Gettysburg
College. At the bottom center of the Declaration there is an imprint appears as
"Philadelphia: Gedruckt bey Steiner und Cist, in der
Zweyten-strasse."
Contrary to popular belief, two
original July 5th, 1776 Dunlap printed broadsides with only Hancock and
Thomson's names were the actual documents delivered to King George III
notifying him of the resolution to absolve all ties with Great Britain. King
George III never received a signed copy with a John Hancock’s signature large
enough for him to read without his spectacles. The other names of the signers
were not made public until 1777.
In 1776, the Continental Congress had
fled to Baltimore, Maryland due to mounting British victories Congress
re-convened on 20 December 1776 and stayed in session until March 4th, 1777. On
January 18th, 1777, after victories at Trenton and Princeton, John Hancock's
Congress ordered a true copy of the Declaration of Independence printed
complete with the names of all the signers. Mary Katherine Goddard, a
Baltimore Postmaster, Printer and publisher, was given the original engrossed
copy of the Declaration to set the type in her shop. A copy of the Goddard printing was ordered to be sent to each state so the people would know the
names of the signers:
Ordered,
That an authenticated copy of the Declaration of Independency, with the names
of the members of Congress subscribing the same, be sent to each of the United
States, and that they be desired to have the same put upon record.[65]
Today, there are nine known Goddard
broadsides that can be found.
Library
of Congress, Connecticut State Library of the late John W. Garrett, Maryland
Hall of Records, Maryland Historical Society, Massachusetts Archives, New York
Public Library, Library Company of Philadelphia, Rhode Island State Archives.[66]
 |
| Declaration of Independence, January 18th, 1777 Mary Katherine Goddard printing |
The Engrossed Declaration of Independence
After the Continental Congress learned
N.Y. agreed to the declaration they ordered, on July 19, 1776 that the
Declaration:
be fairly engrossed on parchment, with
the title and stile [sic] of 'The unanimous declaration of the thirteen United
States of America,' and that the same, when engrossed, be signed by every
member of Congress.[67]
Timothy Matlack, a Pennsylvanian who
had assisted the Secretary of the Congress, Charles Thomson prepared the
official document in a large, clear hand. Matlack was also the "scribe"
who wrote out George Washington's commission as commanding general of the
Continental Army which was also signed by President John Hancock. Finally on
August 2, 1776 the journal of the Continental Congress record reports: "The
declaration of independence being engrossed and compared at the table was
signed." which contradicts the popular belief that the Declaration was
executed by all the delegates in attendance on July 4, 1776. According to the -- National Archives and
Records Administration:
John Hancock, the President of the
Congress, was the first to sign the sheet of parchment measuring 24¼ by 29¾
inches. He used a bold signature centered below the text. In accordance with
prevailing custom, the other delegates began to sign at the right below the
text, their signatures arranged according to the geographic location of the
states they represented. New Hampshire, the northernmost state, began the list,
and Georgia, the southernmost, ended it. Eventually 56 delegates signed,
although all were not present on August 2. Among the later signers were
Elbridge Gerry, Oliver Wolcott, Lewis Morris, Thomas McKean, and Matthew
Thornton, who found that he had no room to sign with the other New Hampshire
delegates. A few delegates who voted for adoption of the Declaration on July 4 were
never to sign in spite of the July 19 order of Congress that the engrossed
document "be signed by every member of Congress.
Non-signers included John Dickinson,
who clung to the idea of reconciliation with Britain, and Robert R. Livingston,
one of the Committee of Five, who thought the Declaration, was premature. [68]
With the signatures of 56 brave
delegates, this new nation born in freedom with an indivisible spirit,
proclaimed on a singular piece of hand written parchment their Unanimous Declaration of Independence from
Great Britain. The Declaration of Independence was safeguarded all throughout
the revolutionary war traveling with the Continental Congress to maintain its
safety. The National Archives lists the following locations of the Traveling Declaration
since 1776:
Philadelphia: August-December 1776
Baltimore: December 1776-March 1777
Philadelphia: March-September 1777
Lancaster, PA: September 27, 1777
York, PA: September 30, 1777-June 1778
Philadelphia: July 1778-June 1783
Princeton, NJ: June-November 1783
Annapolis, MD: November 1783-October 1784
Trenton, NJ: November-December 1784
New York: 1785-1790
Philadelphia: 1790-1800
Washington, DC (three locations): 1800-1814
Leesburg, VA: August-September 1814
Washington, DC (three locations): 1814-1841
Washington, DC (Patent Office Building): 1841-1876
Philadelphia: May-November 1876
Washington, DC (State, War, and Navy Building): 1877-1921
Washington, DC (Library of Congress): 1921-1941
Fort Knox*: 1941-1944
Washington, DC (Library of Congress): 1944-1952
Washington, DC (National Archives): 1952-present *
Baltimore: December 1776-March 1777
Philadelphia: March-September 1777
Lancaster, PA: September 27, 1777
York, PA: September 30, 1777-June 1778
Philadelphia: July 1778-June 1783
Princeton, NJ: June-November 1783
Annapolis, MD: November 1783-October 1784
Trenton, NJ: November-December 1784
New York: 1785-1790
Philadelphia: 1790-1800
Washington, DC (three locations): 1800-1814
Leesburg, VA: August-September 1814
Washington, DC (three locations): 1814-1841
Washington, DC (Patent Office Building): 1841-1876
Philadelphia: May-November 1876
Washington, DC (State, War, and Navy Building): 1877-1921
Washington, DC (Library of Congress): 1921-1941
Fort Knox*: 1941-1944
Washington, DC (Library of Congress): 1944-1952
Washington, DC (National Archives): 1952-present *
*Except that the document was
displayed on April 13, 1943, at the dedication of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial
in Washington, D. C.[69]
The original Declaration, now
exhibited in the Rotunda of the National Archives Building in Washington, DC,
has faded badly -- largely because of poor preservation techniques during the
19th century and the wet ink transfer process of 1820 utilized to make vellum
copies.
The
Wet Ink Transfer of the Declaration
It is important we digress here to
explain the history and process that virtually eradicated most of the ink on
the one and only engrossed signed Declaration of Independence that has become
our national icon.
By 1820 the condition of the only
signed Declaration of Independence was rapidly deteriorating. In that year John
Quincy Adams, then Secretary of State, commissioned William J. Stone of
Washington to create exact copies of the Declaration using a "new"
Wet-Ink Transfer process. Unfortunately this Wet-Ink Transfer greatly
contributed to the degradation of the only engrossed and signed Declaration of
Independence ever produced.
On April 24, 1903 the National Academy
of Sciences reported its findings, summarizing the physical history of the
Declaration:
"The instrument has suffered very
seriously from the very harsh treatment to which it was exposed in the early
years of the Republic. Folding and rolling have creased the parchment. The wet
press-copying operation to which it was exposed about 1820, for the purpose of
producing a facsimile copy, removed a large portion of the ink. Subsequent
exposure to the action of light for more than thirty years, while the instrument was placed on exhibition, has resulted in the fading of the ink, particularly
in the signatures. The present method of caring for the instrument seems to be
the best that can be suggested
The committee does not consider it
wise to apply any chemicals with a view to restoring the original color of the
ink, because such application could be but partially successful, as a
considerable percentage of the original ink was removed in making the copy
about 1820, and also because such application might result in serious
discoloration of the parchment; nor does the committee consider it necessary or
advisable to apply any solution, such as collodion, paraffin, etc., with a view
to strengthening the parchment or making it moisture proof.
The committee is of the opinion that
the present method of protecting the instrument should be continued; that it
should be kept in the dark, and as dry as possible, and never placed on
exhibition." [70]
The Wet-Ink Transfer Process called
for the surface of the Declaration to be moistened transferring some of the
original ink to the surface of a clean copper plate. Three and one-half years
later under the date of June 4, 1823, the National Intelligencer reported that:
"the City Gazette informs us that
Mr. Wm. J. Stone, a respectable and enterprising (sic) engraver of this City
has, after a labor of three years, completed a facsimile of the Original of the
Declaration of Independence, now in the archives of the government, that it is
executed with the greatest exactness and fidelity; and that the Department of
State has become the purchaser of the plate. The facility of multiplying copies
of it, now possessed by the Department of State will render furthur (sic)
exposure of the original unnecessary." [71]
On May 26, 1824, a resolution by the
Senate and House of Representatives provided:
"That two hundred copies of the
Declaration, now in the Department of State, be distributed in the manner
following: two copies to each of the surviving Signers of the Declaration of
Independence (John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Charles Carroll of Carrollton); two
copies to the President of the United States (Monroe); two copies to the
Vice-President of the United States (Tompkins); two copies to the late
President, Mr. Madison; two copies to the Marquis de Lafayette, twenty copies
for the two houses of Congress; twelve copies for the different departments of
the Government (State, Treasury, Justice, Navy, War and Postmaster); two copies
for the President's House; two copies for the Supreme Court room, one copy to
each of the Governors of the States; and one to each of the Governors of the
Territories of the United States; and one copy to the Council of each
Territory; and the remaining copies to the different Universities and Colleges
of the United States, as the President of the United States may direct."[72]
The 201 official parchment copies
struck from the Stone plate carry the identification "Engraved by W. J.
Stone for the Department of State, by order" in the upper left corner
followed by "of J. Q. Adams, Sec. of State July 4th 1824." in
the upper right corner. "Unofficial" copies that were struck
later do not have the identification at the top of the document or are the
printed on vellum. Instead the engraver identified his work by engraving "W.
J. Stone SC. Washn." near the lower left corner and burnishing out the
earlier identification. Today approximately 40 of the 201 Stone facsimiles
printed in 1823 are known to exist.[73]
Additionally, three 1823 “proof”
paper strikes of the Declaration have recently appeared in public auctions in
2005, 2006 and 2007.
 |
| 1823 Vellum Wet Ink Transfer Declaration of Independence Stan Klos Collection |
After the 1823 printing, the original
plate was altered for Peter Force to include rice paper copies in a series of
books entitled AMERICAN ARCHIVES:
Containing a Documentary History of the United States Of America Series 4, Six
Volumes and Series 5. The purpose of this book was to compile the History
of the United State 1774 through 1783. American Archives were also to include
the reproduction of key founding documents of the United States. For that
occasion the "Wet Ink" copper plate was removed from storage
and altered to reflect the Rice Paper printing. These documents were then
folded and inserted into Volume 1 of The American Archives collection. It is believed that Force printed between 900
and 1200 copies of the rice paper printings for insertion into the 1848
Volumes. The Archival costs of the publication limited the number of clients.
It is not known precisely how many "rice wet ink transfers" survive. Nor is it know on how many copies were truly
printed and in what time frames.
 |
| William Stone Copper Plate and 1976 Printing Photo Courtesy of the National Archives |
Among
the resolutions passed by the Continental Congress on July, 4th 1776 was one that called for the
President John Hancock to send to several commanding
officers of the Continental army copies of the Declaration of Independence, Hancock sent a copy of the resolutions
together with the "Dunlap
Broadside" of the Declaration to General George Washington on July 6,
1776. Washington had the Declaration read to his assembled troops in New York on
July 9th. Later that night, the Americans destroyed a bronze and lead statue of
King George III, which stood at the foot of Broadway on the bowling green in
celebration of the Nation’s Independence. Washington's personal copy of the
Dunlap printing of the Declaration of Independence remains in the Manuscript
Division's George Washington Papers.[75]
The Traveling Government of the United States of America
President John Hancock’s accommodations in Philadelphia were akin to his wealthy station and home in Boston. When Congress was forced to flee to Baltimore in December 1776 due to Washington’s losses on Long Island, Manhattan, and New Jersey, John Hancock was unable to find quarters to meet his usual life style in Baltimore. In a letter to Robert Morris dated January 14th, 1777 he writes:
I have got to Housekeeping, but really my Friend in a very poor house, and but just furniture enough to liver tolerably descent tho' when I tell you I give 25 pounds this currency Philadelphia you would judge it to be amply furnished. I have only two rooms and one of them I am obliged to let my servants occupy…. [76]
On February 29th, 1777 Hancock found himself on the road again as the Congress moved back to Philadelphia and reconvened on March 4th. While moving from meeting place to meeting place John Hancock faithfully conducted business as the presiding officers executed hundreds of letters and orders on a weekly basis.
In September 1777, the British were on the march again to conquer Philadelphia. On September 14th Congress resolved that if it should be necessary to remove from Philadelphia, “Lancaster shall be the place which they shall meet.” John Hancock and his fledgling Confederation Congress was forced to flee the city once again. Robert Morton, a Philadelphia Tory wrote,
Sept. 19, 1777. This morning about 1 o'clock an express arrived to Congress giving an account of the British Army having got to the Swedes Ford on the other side of Schuylkill, which so much alarmed the gentlemen of the Congress, the military officers, and other friends to the general cause of American Freedom, that they decamped with the utmost precipitation and in the greatest confusion; insomuch that one of the delegates, by name of Fulsom, was obliged in a very Fulsome manner to ride off without a saddle. Thus we have seen the men, from whom we have received, and from whom we still expect protection, leave us to fall into the hands of (by their accounts) a barbarous, cruel and unrelenting enemy.[77]
The members rode off to a small river town in central Pennsylvania called Lancaster. The route many of the members took was circuitous. For example the future Continental Congress President, Henry Laurens of South Carolina, traveled by carriage on September 19th first to Bristol to collect the recuperating French Officer Marquis de Lafayette who was wounded in the Battle of Brandywine. Laurens was then forced by British Patrols to travel north to Bethlehem. His carriage then moved south west through the Lehigh Valley into Reading and finally headed south to Lancaster.
Laurens discovered that the Lancaster Inns were already overcrowded as the citizens of Philadelphia flooded in the small community along with the State government of Pennsylvania. Delegate Laurens wrote:
"Here [Lancaster] Congress were soon convened but hearts were still fluttering in some bosoms & a motion made for adjourning to this Town [York-Town]," [78]
On the other side of the mighty Susquehanna, a river offering a protective natural barrier like the Delaware which impeded a surprise British Invasion of Philadelphia, sat the small hamlet of York-Town (now known as York, Pennsylvania). York had an underutilized courthouse that could readily be used to reconvene Congress in safety. York also offered numerous accommodations to house the delegates comfortably. On September 31st the Continental Congress moved into this 35-year-old town of about 300 dwellings and 2,000 residents.
John Adams, once settled in York Town to the time to write Abigail:
“It is now a long Time, since I had an Opportunity of writing to you, and I fear you have suffered unnecessary Anxiety on my Account. -- In the Morning of the 19th. Inst., the Congress were allarmed, in their Beds, by a Letter from Mr. Hamilton one of General Washington’s Family, that the Enemy were in Possession of the Ford over the Schuylkill, and the Boats, so that they had it in their Power to be in Philadelphia, before Morning. The Papers of Congress, belonging to the Secretary's Office, the War Office, the Treasury Office, &c. were before sent to Bristol. The President, and all the other Gentlemen were gone that Road, so I followed, with my Friend Mr. Merchant [Marchant] of Rhode Island, to Trenton in the jersies. We stayed at Trenton, untill the 21. when We set off, to Easton upon the Forks of Delaware. From Easton We went to Bethlehem, from thence to Reading, from thence to Lancaster, and from thence to this Town, which is about a dozen Miles over the Susquehannah River. -- Here Congress is to sit.
In order to convey the Papers, with safety, which are of more Importance than all the Members, We were induced to take this Circuit, which is near 180 Miles, whereas this Town by the directest Road is not more than 88 Miles from Philadelphia. This Tour has given me an Opportunity of seeing many Parts of this Country, which I never saw before.”[79]
The work in York was prodigious as the delegates were in the final stages of formulating the first U.S. Constitution, the Articles of Confederation, while anxiously awaited news from Battle of Saratoga. The letters of the delegates report that Congress typically met from 10am to 1pm and recessed until 4 pm. The after recess sessions often lasted well into the evening while committee duties filled the remaining free time. John Hancock wrote to his wife Dorothy during this period:
I sat in the Chair yesterday & Conducted the Business Eight hours, which is too much, and after that had the Business of my office to attend to as usual … I cannot Stand it much longer in this way. [80]
John Adams wrote to Abigail Adams of his tenure in York,
War has no Charms for me … If I live much longer in Banishment, I shall scarcely know my own Children. Tell my little ones, that if they will be very good, Pappa will come home. [81]
Charles Carroll of Carrollton, a Maryland Delegate initially wrote of his York experience that "the Congress still continues the same noisy, empty & talkative assembly it always was since I have known it," As the Delegates grew painfully aware that aid would not be forthcoming to their cause without an unanimously ratified Confederation Constitution the atmosphere of dread could only be changed with the crafting of such a document that would surely "give us great strength & new vigor."
John Hancock needed new strength and vigor as the burdens of the office, a constantly fleeing Congress, heated deliberations on the Articles of Confederation, political rifts with his own State’s delegation and the Gout were all taking their toll. In York Hancock only sought a two month leave of absence to Boston not a full resignation. The Delegates, however, preferred Hancock resign permanently and a new member elected to the Presidency. On October 17, 1777 John Hancock wrote George Washington on his intentions to resign his office as President:
…since I have had the honor of presiding in Congress, and I should esteem myself happy to have it in my power to render further service to my country in that department; but the decline of health, occasioned by so long and unremitted an application to the duties of my office, both in Congress and out of Congress, joined to the situation of my own private affairs, has at length taught me to think of retiring for two or three months; and I have determined to take my leave the ensuing week, and set out immediately for Boston after this express returns. As the Congress will doubtless proceed to appoint a successor in my stead, on him therefore will devolve the business of the chair. The politeness and attention I have ever experienced from you, in the course of our correspondence, will always be a source of the most pleasing satisfaction to me. [82]
Shortly after writing this letter unofficial news of a battle in Saratoga reached President John Hancock on October 19, 1777. British General John Burgoyne and his entire British force had offered his surrender to General Horatio Gates. For nine days President Hancock awaited the official dispatches of General Gates while he presided over an ever anxious Congress painstakingly debating the articles of the 1st U.S. Constitution, the Articles of Confederation.
On October 22, 1777 John Hancock received this reply from George Washington who was too anxious to hear more of the surrender at Saratoga:
It gives me real pain to learn, that the declining state of your health, owing to your unwearied attention to public business, and the situation of your private affairs, oblige you to relinquish a station, though but for a time, which you have so long filled with acknowledged propriety. Motives as well of a personal as of a general concern make me regret the necessity that compels you to retire, and to wish your absence from office may be of as short a duration as possible. In the progress of that intercourse, which has necessarily subsisted between us, the manner in which you have conducted it on your part, accompanied with every expression of politeness and regard to me, gives you a claim to my warmest acknowledgments. I am not so well informed of the situation of things up the North River, as to be able to give you any satisfactory advice about your route. I should rather apprehend it might be unsafe for you to travel that way at this time, and would recommend, if you can do. [83]
On Thursday, October 23, 1777, Congress resumed consideration of the Articles of Confederation with Gout Stricken John Hancock presiding over the debate, as reported by the committee of the whole.
The sixth article was read; whereupon it was moved to strike out the word "hereafter," in the second line, and to add to the article ∥paragraph under debate on Tuesday, these words, "in pursuance of any treaties already proposed by Congress to the courts of France and Spain;" and, the question being put, the same was agreed to. On the question put, the 6th article as amended passed. The seventh article was read, and on the question put, Resolved, in the affirmative, N. C. D. The eighth article being read, and the question put, Resolved in the affirmative, N. C. D. The last sentence in the 9 article being read, and the question put, Resolved in the affirmative, N. C. D. The Tenth article being read and the question put, Resolved in the affirmative, N. C. D.; The eleventh article was read, whereupon it was moved, after the word "reprisal" in the 8th line, to insert "Unless such state be infested by pirates, in which case vessels of war may be fitted out for that occasion and kept so long as the danger shall continue or till the united states in Congress assembled shall determine otherwise." And the question being put, the same was agreed to. The question being then put on the 11th article, as amended, Resolved in the affirmative; The 14 article was read, and debated by paragraphs, and the question being put severally thereon, the 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5 paragraphs were agreed to. It was then moved after the word "captures" at the end of the 11th line, to insert "provided that no member of Congress shall be appointed a judge of any of the said courts. The united States in Congress assembled shall also have the sole and exclusive right and power of." And the question being put, Resolved in the affirmative. The 6 and 7 paragraphs as amended were agreed to.; It was moved, after the word, "alliances," in the 13 line, to insert, "provided, that no treaty of commerce shall be made whereby the legislative power of the respective states shall be restrained from imposing such imposts and duties on foreigners as their own people are subjected to, or from prohibiting the exportation or importation of any species of goods or commodities whatsoever" after debate the motion was divided, and the yeas and nays being required on the first part, as far as the disjunctive "or;" So it was resolved in the affirmative. [84]
Work on the Constitution of 1777 progressed steadily under the last few days of John Hancock’s Presidency with amendments and changes being agreed on in the sessions of October 27, 28 and even the 29th when he tendered his official resignation. So intent was Congress on completing the Constitution that they re-convened immediately after Hancock’s departure under the Chairmanship of Charles Thomson. The Journals report:
Congress resumed the consideration of the 14 article of confederation, whereon it was moved to strike out the words "general officers" in the 24 line, and insert "all officers:" and to add after "United States," "excepting regimental officers." And on the question put, the same was agreed to. It was then moved to strike out the next paragraph, and in the following paragraph, after the word "forces" to insert these words, "and commissioning all officers whatever." And on the question put, the same was agreed to.
The president having taken leave of Congress. Four O'Clock, p. m.
Met at 4’ O’clock, Resolved, That the secretary officiate as president until a new choice is made. On motion, Ordered, That the secretary wait upon the president and request him to furnish the house with a copy of the speech with which he took leave of Congress. [85]
Congress would meet only once more, on October 30th, 1777 to debate and revise the Articles of Confederation with Charles Thompson presiding. The Articles would not be approved, however, until a new President of the Continental Congress took office. The Journals report a flurry of activity in Congress after Hancock’s departure mostly due to the great news flowing in from Saratoga delaying the Constitution’s approval until November 15, 1777. An engrossed copy was prepared and once again, Hancock’s signature was so large the King did not require his spectacles.
On Friday, October 31, 1777 the address that Hancock delivered on the 29th, requesting two months of leave was place in the record:
Gentlemen: Friday last compleated two years and five months since you did me the honour of electing me to fill this chair. As I could never flatter myself your choice proceeded from any idea of my abilities, but rather from a partial opinion of my attachment to the liberties of America, I felt myself under the strongest obligations to discharge the duties of the office, and I accepted the appointment with the firmest resolution to go through the business annexed to it in the best manner I was able. Every argument conspired to make me exert myself, and I endeavoured, by industry and attention, to make up for every other deficiency.
As to my conduct, both in and out of Congress, in the execution of your business, it is improper for me to say anything. You are the best judges. But I think I shall be forgiven if I say I have spared no pains, expence, or labour, to gratify your wishes, and to accomplish the views of Congress.
My health being much impaired, I find some relaxation absolutely necessary, after such constant application; I must therefore request your indulgence for leave of absence for two months.
But I cannot take my departure, gentlemen, without expressing my thanks for the civility and politeness I have experienced from you. It is impossible to mention this without a heartfelt pleasure.
If, in the course of so long a period as I have had the honour to fill this chair, any expressions may have dropped from me that may have given the least offence to any member, as it was not intentional, so I hope his candor will pass it over.
May every happiness, gentlemen, attend you, both as members of this house and as individuals; and I pray heaven, that unanimity and perseverance may go hand in hand in this house; and that everything which may tend to distract or divide your councils be forever banished.[86]
John Hancock was not granted the two months leave. Instead it was then moved:
that the thanks of Congress be presented to John Hancock, Esqr. for the unremitted attention and steady impartiality which he has manifested in discharge of the various duties of his office, as president, since his election to the chair on the 24th day of May, 1775.[87]
There was much debate over this and was the subject of unfavorable comment among the republican faction of Congress. Samuel Adams in a letter to James Warren criticized it and then had Hancock deliver the letters. On the 29th he wrote:
This will be delivered to you by Mr. Hancock who has Leave of Absence till the first of January next. I hope the Person to be elected in my Room will have understanding enough to know when the Arts of Flattery are playd upon him, and Fortitude of mind sufficient to resist & despise them. This I mention inter Nosmetipsos. In this evil World there are oftentimes large Doses prepared for those whose Stomacks will bear them. And it would be a disgrace to human Nature to affirm there are some who can take the fullest Cup without nauseating. I suppose you have by this time finishd a form of Government. I hope the greatest Care will be taken in the Choice of a Governor. He, whether a wise Man or a Fool, will in a great Measure form the Morals & Manners of the People. I beg Pardon for hinting the Possibility of one of the last Character being chosen; But alas! Is there not such a Possibility! But I assure myself of better things. I believe my Country will fix their Eyes and their Choice on a Man of Religion and Piety; who will understand human Nature and the Nature and End of political Society-who will not by Corruption or Flattery be seducd to the betraying, even without being sensible of it himself, the sacred Rights of his Country.” [88]
On the 30th of October Samuel Adams wrote:
Mr. H. who had several times before given Notice to Congress of his Intention to return to Boston agreeable to Leave he had obtaind at Philadelphia, made a formal Speech to Congress in which he reminded them of his having served them as President more than two years; whether he had conducted to their Approbation or not, was left to them; but he had the Testimony of his own Mind that he had done it to the best of his Ability. He thanked them for the Civility they had shown him, and if in the Course of Business he had faild in due Respect to any Member, as it was not intentional, he hoped it would be overlookd. It is likely as I have taken it from Memory upon hearing it once read, that I have not done it Justice in point of Expression. But it is not improbable that you may have a Copy of it; for a Motion was made in the Afternoon by Mr D of N.Y. that a Copy should be requested, and Thanks returnd for his great Services, & a Request that he would return and take the Chair. This Motion was opposd by several Members, but it obtaind so far as to request the Copy, & this Day the latter Part of the Motion will be considerd. I have given you this merely as a Peice of News, leaving you to judge of the Tendency & probable Effect of the Speech and Motion. We have had two Presidents before, Neither of whom made a parting Speech or receivd the Thanks of Congress.[89]
The Journals then record on the 31st:
It was then moved to resolve, as the opinion of this Congress, that it is improper to thank any president for the discharge of the duties of that office; And the yeas and nays being required: [The States were Split] The question being then put on the first motion, and the yeas and nays required: So it was resolved in the affirmative.[90]
One of the most respected biographers this period of history wrote of Hancock’s request for a two month furlough:
Towards the end of October, 1777, Hancock resigned the Presidency, which he had held for two years and five months. A motion of thanks customary on such occasions was offered; but as Hancock had incurred the dislike of most of the New England delegations, an effort was made to deny him this formal compliment by having a motion put that "it is improper to thank any President for the discharge of the duties of that office." New England, except Connecticut, voted solidly in the affirmative, as did three members from other States, among whom was Laurens. The motion failed by a tie. The original motion was then put and Mr. Hancock received his thanks, only Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania voting no. Laurens's position, unlike that of the New Englanders, was without personal bias, as is shown by his refusal to humiliate Hancock personally after the general motion against thanks had failed, which can be stated of no other member who voted for the general proposition of no thanks. [91]
John Hancock received thanks but not what he requested, a two month furlough. The historical record, in contradiction to Lauren’s Biographer’s claim it was a resignation. This is probably due to the cold realty he was not granted the leave of absence as there was resistance to Hancock returning as the President. Congress would, however, grant a two month leave of absence to John and Samuel Adams on November 7, 1777. [92]
John Hancock was also ridiculed by the liberal contingent of Congress for accepting George Washington’s offer to supply an escort to protect him on his rather dangerous trip back to Boston. Hancock had only responded positively to General Washington’s offer to provide Dragoons.
As I proposed setting out on Monday and shall go thro' Bethlehem, I request that the Escort of Horse you so politely offered to attend me, may meet me there should I reach Bethlehem before then, I shall wait their arrival. In the present critical State of my affairs, I believe I should decline setting not for a five days, but having asked Mrs. Hancock to meet me at some distance from Boston, I am under a Need of beginning my journey on Monday morning. [93]
George Washington furnished the former President with twelve dragoons and undoubtedly the Massachusetts delegation who voted no on giving Hancock a vote of thanks must have found this escort to Boston infuriating.
Mrs. Hancock’s biographer writes:
Along the route he was received with continuous indications of the high esteem in which -he was held an approval of his efficient work. Mrs. Hancock hastened to meet her sick husband to cheer him over the rough roads and weariness that, as an invalid, he had to endure.
A notice from Hartford, November 18, says: ‘On Friday passed through this town, escorted by a party of Light Dragoons, the Hon. John Hancock, Esq., President of the American Congress, with his lady, on his way to Boston after an absence on public business of more than two years and a half.’
On his arrival in Boston the bells were rung, cannon fired by artillery at Fort Hill and from the shipping in the harbor. He received the compliments of gentlemen of all orders, and every indication was given of the sense the public has of his important services to the American cause. [94]
President Hancock, on his return to Boston, was met by fellow Declaration of Independence signer William Ellery who wrote in his diary on November 7th, 1777:
In our way to the Ferry we met President Hancock in a Sulkey, escorted by one of his Secy's and two or three other Gentlemen, and one Light-horseman. This Escort surprised us as it seemed inadequate to the Purpose either of Defence or Parade. But our Surprise was not of long Continuance, for we had not rode far before we met six or eight Light-horsemen on the Cantor and just as we reached the Ferry, a Boat arrived with as many more. These with the Lighthorsemen and the Gentlemen before mentioned made up the Escort of Mr. President Hancock. Who would not be a great Man? I verily believe that the President, as he passes through the Country thus escorted, feels a more triumphant Satisfaction than the Col. of the Queen's Light Dragoons attended by his whole Army and an Escort of a thousand Militia. [95]
John Hancock’s Presidency was indeed an event to be celebrated by Bostonians as he presided of over numerous and exceptionally remarkable events in U.S. History during his two years and five months as President including the enactment of the Declaration of Independence. The last months of his Presidency were no less extraordinary culminating in the British Surrender at Saratoga and the passage of the 1st Constitution of the United States, the Articles of Confederation. John Hancock's Continental Congress Presidency Chronology is summarized as follows: [96]
The Congressional Evolution of the United States of America
Continental Congress of the United Colonies Presidents
Continental Congress of the United Colonies Presidents
Sept. 5, 1774 to July 1, 1776
September 5, 1774
|
October 22, 1774
| |
October 22, 1774
|
October 26, 1774
| |
May 20, 1775
|
May 24, 1775
| |
May 25, 1775
|
July 1, 1776
|
Commander-in-Chief United Colonies & States of America
George Washington: June 15, 1775 - December 23, 1783
Continental Congress of the United States Presidents
July 2, 1776 to February 28, 1781
July 2, 1776
|
October 29, 1777
| |
November 1, 1777
|
December 9, 1778
| |
December 10, 1778
|
September 28, 1779
| |
September 29, 1779
|
February 28, 1781
|
Presidents of the United States in Congress Assembled
March 1, 1781 to March 3, 1789
March 1, 1781 to March 3, 1789
March 1, 1781
|
July 6, 1781
| |
July 10, 1781
|
Declined Office
| |
July 10, 1781
|
November 4, 1781
| |
November 5, 1781
|
November 3, 1782
| |
November 4, 1782
|
November 2, 1783
| |
November 3, 1783
|
June 3, 1784
| |
November 30, 1784
|
November 22, 1785
| |
November 23, 1785
|
June 5, 1786
| |
June 6, 1786
|
February 1, 1787
| |
February 2, 1787
|
January 21, 1788
| |
January 22, 1788
|
January 21, 1789
|
Presidents of the United States of America
D-Democratic Party, F-Federalist Party, I-Independent, R-Republican Party, R* Republican Party of Jefferson & W-Whig Party
(1789-1797)
|
(1933-1945)
| |
(1865-1869)
| ||
(1797-1801)
|
(1945-1953)
| |
(1869-1877)
| ||
(1801-1809)
|
(1953-1961)
| |
(1877-1881)
| ||
(1809-1817)
|
(1961-1963)
| |
(1881 - 1881)
| ||
(1817-1825)
|
(1963-1969)
| |
(1881-1885)
| ||
(1825-1829)
|
(1969-1974)
| |
(1885-1889)
| ||
(1829-1837)
|
(1973-1974)
| |
(1889-1893)
| ||
(1837-1841)
|
(1977-1981)
| |
(1893-1897)
| ||
(1841-1841)
|
(1981-1989)
| |
(1897-1901)
| ||
(1841-1845)
|
(1989-1993)
| |
(1901-1909)
| ||
(1845-1849)
|
(1993-2001)
| |
(1909-1913)
| ||
(1849-1850)
|
(2001-2009)
| |
(1913-1921)
| ||
(1850-1853)
|
(2009-2017)
| |
(1921-1923)
| ||
(1853-1857)
|
(20017-Present)
| |
(1923-1929)
|
*Confederate States of America
| |
(1857-1861)
| ||
(1929-1933)
| ||
(1861-1865)
|
United Colonies Continental Congress
|
President
|
18th Century Term
|
Age
|
Elizabeth "Betty" Harrison Randolph (1745-1783)
|
09/05/74 – 10/22/74
|
29
| |
Mary Williams Middleton (1741- 1761) Deceased
|
Henry Middleton
|
10/22–26/74
|
n/a
|
Elizabeth "Betty" Harrison Randolph (1745–1783)
|
05/20/ 75 - 05/24/75
|
30
| |
Dorothy Quincy Hancock Scott (1747-1830)
|
05/25/75 – 07/01/76
|
28
| |
United States Continental Congress
|
President
|
Term
|
Age
|
Dorothy Quincy Hancock Scott (1747-1830)
|
07/02/76 – 10/29/77
|
29
| |
Eleanor Ball Laurens (1731- 1770) Deceased
|
Henry Laurens
|
11/01/77 – 12/09/78
|
n/a
|
Sarah Livingston Jay (1756-1802)
|
12/ 10/78 – 09/28/78
|
21
| |
Martha Huntington (1738/39–1794)
|
09/29/79 – 02/28/81
|
41
| |
United States in Congress Assembled
|
President
|
Term
|
Age
|
Martha Huntington (1738/39–1794)
|
03/01/81 – 07/06/81
|
42
| |
Sarah Armitage McKean (1756-1820)
|
07/10/81 – 11/04/81
|
25
| |
Jane Contee Hanson (1726-1812)
|
11/05/81 - 11/03/82
|
55
| |
Hannah Stockton Boudinot (1736-1808)
|
11/03/82 - 11/02/83
|
46
| |
Sarah Morris Mifflin (1747-1790)
|
11/03/83 - 11/02/84
|
36
| |
Anne Gaskins Pinkard Lee (1738-1796)
|
11/20/84 - 11/19/85
|
46
| |
Dorothy Quincy Hancock Scott (1747-1830)
|
11/23/85 – 06/06/86
|
38
| |
Rebecca Call Gorham (1744-1812)
|
06/06/86 - 02/01/87
|
42
| |
Phoebe Bayard St. Clair (1743-1818)
|
02/02/87 - 01/21/88
|
43
| |
Christina Stuart Griffin (1751-1807)
|
01/22/88 - 01/29/89
|
36
|
Constitution of 1787
First Ladies |
President
|
Term
|
Age
|
April 30, 1789 – March 4, 1797
|
57
| ||
March 4, 1797 – March 4, 1801
|
52
| ||
Martha Wayles Jefferson Deceased
|
September 6, 1782 (Aged 33)
|
n/a
| |
March 4, 1809 – March 4, 1817
|
40
| ||
March 4, 1817 – March 4, 1825
|
48
| ||
March 4, 1825 – March 4, 1829
|
50
| ||
December 22, 1828 (aged 61)
|
n/a
| ||
February 5, 1819 (aged 35)
|
n/a
| ||
March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841
|
65
| ||
April 4, 1841 – September 10, 1842
|
50
| ||
June 26, 1844 – March 4, 1845
|
23
| ||
March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849
|
41
| ||
March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850
|
60
| ||
July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853
|
52
| ||
March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857
|
46
| ||
n/a
|
n/a
| ||
March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865
|
42
| ||
February 22, 1862 – May 10, 1865
| |||
April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869
|
54
| ||
March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877
|
43
| ||
March 4, 1877 – March 4, 1881
|
45
| ||
March 4, 1881 – September 19, 1881
|
48
| ||
January 12, 1880 (Aged 43)
|
n/a
| ||
June 2, 1886 – March 4, 1889
|
21
| ||
March 4, 1889 – October 25, 1892
|
56
| ||
June 2, 1886 – March 4, 1889
|
28
| ||
March 4, 1897 – September 14, 1901
|
49
| ||
September 14, 1901 – March 4, 1909
|
40
| ||
March 4, 1909 – March 4, 1913
|
47
| ||
March 4, 1913 – August 6, 1914
|
52
| ||
December 18, 1915 – March 4, 1921
|
43
| ||
March 4, 1921 – August 2, 1923
|
60
| ||
August 2, 1923 – March 4, 1929
|
44
| ||
March 4, 1929 – March 4, 1933
|
54
| ||
March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945
|
48
| ||
April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953
|
60
| ||
January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961
|
56
| ||
January 20, 1961 – November 22, 1963
|
31
| ||
November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1969
|
50
| ||
January 20, 1969 – August 9, 1974
|
56
| ||
August 9, 1974 – January 20, 1977
|
56
| ||
January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981
|
49
| ||
January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989
|
59
| ||
January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993
|
63
| ||
January 20, 1993 – January 20, 2001
|
45
| ||
January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009
|
54
| ||
January 20, 2009 to date
|
45
|
Capitals of the United Colonies and States of America
Philadelphia
|
Sept. 5, 1774 to Oct. 24, 1774
| |
Philadelphia
|
May 10, 1775 to Dec. 12, 1776
| |
Baltimore
|
Dec. 20, 1776 to Feb. 27, 1777
| |
Philadelphia
|
March 4, 1777 to Sept. 18, 1777
| |
Lancaster
|
September 27, 1777
| |
York
|
Sept. 30, 1777 to June 27, 1778
| |
Philadelphia
|
July 2, 1778 to June 21, 1783
| |
Princeton
|
June 30, 1783 to Nov. 4, 1783
| |
Annapolis
|
Nov. 26, 1783 to Aug. 19, 1784
| |
Trenton
|
Nov. 1, 1784 to Dec. 24, 1784
| |
New York City
|
Jan. 11, 1785 to Nov. 13, 1788
| |
New York City
|
October 6, 1788 to March 3,1789
| |
New York City
|
March 3,1789 to August 12, 1790
| |
Philadelphia
|
Dec. 6,1790 to May 14, 1800
| |
Washington DC
|
November 17,1800 to Present
|
Book a primary source exhibit and a professional speaker for your next event by contacting Historic.us today. Our Clients include many Fortune 500 companies, associations, non-profits, colleges, universities, national conventions, PR and advertising agencies. As a leading national exhibitor of primary sources, many of our clients have benefited from our historic displays that are designed to entertain and educate your target audience. Contact us to learn how you can join our "roster" of satisfied clientele today!
Hosted by The New Orleans Jazz Museum and The Louisiana Historical Center
Hosted by The New Orleans Jazz Museum and The Louisiana Historical Center
Historic.us
A Non-profit Corporation
A Non-profit Corporation
Primary Source Exhibits
727-771-1776 | Exhibit Inquiries
202-239-1774 | Office
202-239-0037 | FAX
Dr. Naomi and Stanley Yavneh Klos, Principals
Naomi@Historic.us
Stan@Historic.us
Primary Source exhibits are available for display in your community. The costs range from $1,000 to $35,000 depending on length of time on loan and the rarity of artifacts chosen.
 |
| U.S. Dollar Presidential Coin Mr. Klos vs Secretary Paulson - Click Here |
The United Colonies of North America Continental Congress Presidents (1774-1776)
The United States of America Continental Congress Presidents (1776-1781)
The United States of America in Congress Assembled Presidents (1781-1789)
The United States of America Presidents and Commanders-in-Chiefs (1789-Present)
The United States of America Continental Congress Presidents (1776-1781)
The United States of America in Congress Assembled Presidents (1781-1789)
The United States of America Presidents and Commanders-in-Chiefs (1789-Present)
