Discovery of a Rare Declaration Copy
Michael Scurr, a volunteer at the National Archives in Kew, west London, experienced an unexpected discovery on a routine Thursday morning in late May. While cataloguing a previously unrecorded collection of documents from the British national collection, he opened a volume of 18th-century Royal Navy correspondence and recognized the opening words of a significant historical document.
“In Congress, July 4, 1776. A declaration by the representatives of the United States of America …”
What Scurr had uncovered was a "vanishingly rare" copy of an early printing of the US Declaration of Independence, found just weeks before the weekend marking the anniversary of its signing. He immediately called his supervisor over, describing the moment as "really thrilling."
The Exeter Printing and Its Unique Provenance
The document is a copy of the Exeter printing of the Declaration, one of only 11 surviving copies worldwide and the sole known example outside the United States. Graham Moore, a records specialist at the National Archives, emphasized the document's exceptional provenance, describing it as an "amazingly complete story" that reveals how news of the Declaration spread as the new nation asserted its independence.
The document was found among papers seized from the American privateer ship Dalton, captured by a British warship off the coast of Spain in December 1776. While other important documents, such as the ship’s commission signed by Continental Congress president John Hancock authorizing attacks on British vessels, were submitted to the Admiralty Court, the Declaration was merely catalogued as "another document" and remained overlooked in naval archives for over two centuries.
Context of the Printing and Distribution
The modest sheet was printed in Exeter, New Hampshire, between 16 and 19 July 1776, shortly after news of the Declaration’s signing in Philadelphia on 4 July had begun to spread. These broadsides, produced rapidly by printers in various cities, were intended for swift distribution and consumption by the public.
“This is about news in 1776,”
Moore explained, highlighting the urgency and purpose behind such printings.
Although the Dalton did not dock in Exeter, Moore suggested that the ship’s captain, Eleazer Johnson, likely acquired a copy in nearby Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where the vessel briefly stopped to recruit additional crew members.
Captain Johnson and the Crew’s Commitment
Captain Johnson was a dedicated American patriot. After his capture, he declared his US citizenship in a Plymouth, UK court, a statement considered treasonous by the British crown. Amanda Bevan, head of legal records, imagined Johnson reading the Declaration aloud to his diverse 120-man crew.
“I have this nice image of Eleazar Johnson on the ship … potentially reading out the declaration of independence to his 120-man crew of diverse nations to say: ‘This is why we’re doing it, this is why we’re putting our lives at risk, this is why we’re heading out into the ocean to take our chances again.’”
American privateers like the Dalton were commissioned by Congress to seize British vessels. The Dalton was notably the first American privateer captured in European waters.
The Crew and Their Stories
Additional documents, including the published diary of sailor Charles Herbert, provide insight into the crew’s composition. The 120 men included English, Irish, Scottish, French, and Danish sailors, alongside those identifying as American citizens. Among them was Daniel Cottle, described in the muster book as a black man.
“This is not uncommon in North America,”
Moore noted, suggesting Cottle was likely a free black man in 1776, as free black individuals fought on both sides during the Revolution.
Following capture, Cottle and the crew were transferred to a guard ship and later imprisoned in the Old Mill prison in Plymouth, England. Moore commented on the limited information about Cottle’s fate after imprisonment but expressed hope that further research might reveal more, especially since many crew members hailed from Newburyport, Massachusetts.
Significance and Transatlantic History
Saul Nassé, chief executive of the National Archives and keeper of public records, described the document as a "vanishingly rare" and powerful reminder of the fundamentally transatlantic nature of the American Revolution’s history.
“It’s the story that makes this copy so important. Not only is it one of 11 in the world, it also has provenance. From a print shop in Exeter, New Hampshire, to a privateer at sea, to its capture, and eventually to being part of our state’s archives. And that kind of provenance is exceptionally rare.”
