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“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…” Summary:
This newspaper gave many Bostonians their first view of Thomas Jefferson’s immortal words. Especially displayable, with the entire text of the Declaration on the front page. In Boston, the seat of the Revolution, the earliest record of the Declaration’s arrival from Philadelphia is July 13. Town officials held a public reading from the state house balcony on July 18. This issue of The New-England Chronicle was published the same day, matched by John Gill’s publication in the city’s Continental Journal. Boston’s broadside printing was produced by Powars and Willis in partnership with Gill. It either followed soon after or preceded it by at most a few days. The remaining pages of this July 18, 1776 issue provide full context of that critical month. Articles detail the “acclamations of joy” following the reading of the Declaration to Continental troops in New York, the arrival of Connecticut reinforcements in New York City (“as fine a body of men as any engaged in the present grand struggle for Liberty and Independence”), a report from Trenton that up to 10,000 British troops had landed on Staten Island, a famous act of patriotic vandalism in today’s Wall Street area (“Last Monday evening the statue of King George the Third, on horseback, in the Bowling-green was taken down, broken to pieces, and its honor levelled with the dust”), fears of biological warfare by the British “barbarians,” and the cancellation of Harvard College’s commencement “in Consideration of the difficult and unsettled State of our public Affairs,” among other news and advertisements of the day. Only nine copies of this issue are known, seven of which are held by institutions. This is one of just two on the market in the past 40 years. Declaration of Independence. The New-England Chronicle, July 18, 1776, Vol. VIII No. 413. Newspaper, with the entire text of the Declaration on page 1 of 4. Subscriber’s name “Mr Jacob Willard” written at top of page 1. Boston: printed by Powars & Willis. Inventory# 21074 $190,000 Priority of printing:
Starting on July 5, 1776, an official broadside printing of the Declaration prepared by John Dunlap was sent by the Continental Congress in Philadelphia to officials of the 13 states (the last Dunlap on the market sold in June 2000 for $8,140,000). The next day, the text was printed in Philadelphia’s Pennsylvania Evening Post – the first newspaper publication of the Declaration (a trimmed copy sold in 2007 for $360,000). The Declaration was circulated as thoroughly and quickly as possible that Revolutionary summer. Timeliness of publication depended on how long the initial copies spent in transit, as well as the newspapers’ printing schedules. By the end of August 1776, the Declaration had been printed in at least 29 newspapers and 14 broadsides (all are extremely rare on the market). In Massachusetts, the first printing appeared at Salem, the state capital, in the July 16, 1776 issue of Ezekiel Russell’s American Gazette. The next day, the Massachusetts council ordered an official printing sent to all parish ministers for public reading, and then to all town clerks to keep in the public record. That broadside was also printed by Russell (one sold in 2004 for $456,000).
In Boston, the seat of the Revolution, the earliest record of the Declaration’s arrival is July 13, although copies had been sent to the area by members of Congress as early as July 5. Town officials held a public reading of the momentous resolve from the state house balcony on July 18. This issue of Edward E. Powars and Nathaniel Willis’s New-England Chronicle was published the same day, along with John Gill’s simultaneous publication in the city’s Continental Journal. Both papers easily beat out the official state printing of the Declaration. That broadside, prepared in Salem by Ezekiel Russell, was not distributed until later July or early August. Abigail Adams heard it read in her Boston church on August 11 – three weeks after Powars and Willis published their scoop. Other content:
The pages of The New-England Chronicle contain reports on the Declaration and the news that “The Congress for ‘the State of New-York have resolved unanimously, that they will, at the risque of their lives and fortunes, join with the other Colonies in supporting the Declaration.’” A letter from Lieut. Col. Archibald Campbell of the 71st Regiment of Highlanders to General Howe provides an eyewitness account of the capture of his battalion by an American fleet of privateers in Boston Harbor. He apologizes for having “fallen into the hands of the American.” Since our captivity I have the honor to acquaint you, that we have experienced the utmost civility and good treatment from the people of power at Boston, insomuch, Sir, that I should do injustice to the feelings of generosity, did I not make this particular information with pleasure and satisfaction…. (p. 2, cols. 1-2) Campbell adds a request to General Howe to negotiate a release for his men and himself, if possible. That release was consequential, as it turned out: Campbell went on to lead the 3,500 British troops that captured the city of Savannah, Georgia in December 1778. Other pieces focus on fears of biological warfare – smallpox within Boston and in the Continental Army. “A. B.” writes: The Small-Pox has ever been a most formidable foe to New-England and its armies. Our enemies knowing this, have taken inhuman pains to propagate it among us; for no barbarians could exceed them in the methods they have employed to distress and destroy us. In this, Heaven has permitted them to succeed, but at the same time has given us in innoculation an astonishing means of robbing this disease of its terror and fatality. At this critical season, we cannot be too speedy or diligent in every where applying this inestimable gift of Heaven for our own security. (p. 3, col. 2) On the last page, notices from Samuel Langdon, president of Harvard College, announce the cancellation of public commencement ceremonies “in Consideration of the difficult and unsettled State of our public Affairs” and set a date for examinations of prospective students. Historical Background: In the wake of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, followed by King George’s proclamation that the colonies were “engaged in open and avowed rebellion,” the Continental Congress decided enough was enough. The committee appointed to draft a statement declaring independence turned the task over to their most eloquent writer, Thomas Jefferson. In Philadelphia on July 4, 1776, after some revision, Congress formally adopted his declaration. Church bells rang in Philadelphia, and word slowly was spread throughout the colonies. Thus a new nation was born. Printed copies of the Declaration had been sent from Philadelphia starting on July 5th by John Hancock and others. The earliest copies arrived in Boston on Saturday, July 13th, according to Dr. Samuel Cooper, patriot pastor of Brattle-Street Church. On the same day that The New-England Chronicle published it, the Declaration was proclaimed by Col. Thomas Crafts from the balcony of the State House in Boston. …great attention was given to every word. As soon as he ended, the cry from the Belcona, was God Save our American States and then 3 cheers which rended the air, the Bells rang, the privateers fired, the forts and Batteries, the cannon were discharged, the platoons followed and every face appeard joyfull. Mr. Bowdoin then gave a Sentiment, Stability and perpetuity to American independance. After dinner the kings arms were taken down from the State House and every vestage of him from every place in which it appeard and burnt in King Street. Thus ends royall Authority in this State, and all the people shall say Amen. (Abigail Adams to John Adams, July 21-22, 1776). Multiple thirteen-gun salutes honored the Union of thirteen colonies. Boston had only recently driven occupying British troops from the city after a prolonged confrontation lasting from July 1775 to March 1776. The siege of Boston ended when American troops fortified Dorchester Heights overnight with artillery trained on British ships in the harbor. The fleet sailed away in defeat and General Howe turned his efforts to capturing New York. Washington anticipated this strategy and strengthened his forces in New York in preparation for its defense. This newspaper also addresses fears of biological warfare. The British had long been suspected of using smallpox as a weapon. During the French and Indian War (1754-1767), the commander of British forces in North America had proposed infecting hostile Indian tribes. (Because smallpox was rampant in Britain, most of the troops had gained immunity.) One article in this issue claims that the British had now attempted to infect Continental troops, by leaving blankets behind when they evacuated Fort Johnston in North Carolina. For the Americans, inoculation was an option with considerable drawbacks. The procedure used a live virus, causing a mild form of the disease that could spread contagion. Washington, himself a smallpox survivor, was reluctant to endorse inoculation because his troops would be incapacitated during recovery; Benedict Arnold issued an order in February 1776 forbidding it. Since the army was already infected, new recruits quickly fell victim to the disease. During the 1775 siege of Quebec, up to a third of the American troops were ill with smallpox, signaling that the disease itself could affect the course of the war. By the winter of 1777 at Valley Forge, General Washington had reversed his policy. That decision was pivotal in winning the war in the South, providing an army of fighting men who were immune to the scourge of smallpox. Bostonians were particularly fearful of smallpox. In 1721, an epidemic had infected half of Boston’s 12,000 citizens. This newspaper prints the texts of two recent acts, one to restrict travel in and out of the city by recently inoculated persons or those who still had active cases of the disease, and the other to provide for the establishment of hospitals where inoculations could be supervised and inoculees quarantined. Violators would be subject to stiff fines, whipping, or imprisonment. The acts were passed in the hope that they “may tend greatly to the preservation of the lives of the good people of this Colony.” References: Brigham, Clarence S. History and Bibliography of American Newspapers. Worcester, MA: American Antiquarian Society, 1947. Diamond, Jared. Guns, Germs, and Steel. New York: W. W. Norton, 2005. Franke-Ruta, Garance. “George Washington's Bioterrorism Strategy: How We Handled It
Last Time,” Washington Monthly (Dec. 2001) Hazelton, John H. Declaration of Independence, Its History. NY: Dodd, Mead, 1906. Massachusetts Historical Society, Adams Family Papers, Letter from Abigail Adams to James Adams, 21-22 July 1776, found at www.masshist.org/DIGITALADAMS/AEA/cfm/doc.cfm?id=L17760721aa. Reidel, Stefan, M.D., Ph.D. “Edward Jenner and the History of Smallpox and Vaccination.” Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings (Jan. 2005) 18(1):21-25. Shields, Robin. “Publishing the Declaration of Independence,” found at
www.loc.gov/rr/program/journey/declaration.html.
Walsh, Michael J. “Contemporary Broadside Editions of the Declaration of
Independence.” Harvard Library Bulletin 3 (1949).
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