At head of title: By order of Congress.
A reprint of the first Philadelphia issue.
Signatures: [A]² B-M⁴ N²
Bookseller's advertisement on p. [1] at end.
Rockefeller Library copy imperfect: half-title wanting.
Rockefeller Library copy from the library of James S. Copley.
]]>"Cushing, Lee and Dickinson were appointed, October 21, a committee to prepare this letter, the draft of which, both by common acceptance and by the statement in Dickinson's 'Writings' (published in 1801, under his supervision), is referred to Dickinson's pen; yet John Adams (Diary in 'Works,' II, 392), on October 4 writes, 'General Lee came to my lodgings, and showed me address from the C. to the people of Canada, which he had'--or, eleven days before Dickinson was elected to the Congress, and eighteen days before the committee was appointed."--Ford, P.L. Some materials for a bibl. of the ... Continental Congress, Boston, 1890, no. 7.
Originally intended to be part of: United States. Continental Congress. Extracts from the votes and proceedings of the American Continental Congress. Philadelphia, 1774 (Evans 13726).
Rockefeller Library copy with names of John Leeds and dates 1774-1790; John Leeds Bozman and dates 1790-1821 and John Bozman Kerr and date 1844.
]]>With a half-title.
Signatures: [a]⁴ b⁴; A⁴ B²; A-D⁴ E²
Printer's ornaments.
Signature on verso of half-title of Christopher Yeakle and date November 5, 1774.
]]>Printed document completed in manuscript.
]]>William Stone labored over his plate for three years before the copperplate was ready for printing. It is not known how Stone produced his plate, but the two most likely methods are by tracing or using a wet transfer process. The latter process would have removed some ink from the original further damaging it. Whatever the method employed, the State Department authorized the printing of 200 copies on vellum. These were distributed to surviving signers of the Declaration of Independence (John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and Charles Carroll), former President James Madison, various government officials, branches and departments of the government, the Marquis de Lafayette, governors of each state and territory, and colleges and universities in the United States. Stone kept one copy for himself, a common practice among engravers. About fifty copies are still in existence.
William James Stone (1798-1865) was born in London, England. After moving to America with his family in 1804, he trained as an engraver under the direction of the noted engraver and silversmith Peter Maverick. At seventeen, Stone moved to Washington, D.C. where he took frequent commissions from the federal government. In addition to producing passports, maps and certificates, Stone created the official facsimile copy of the Declaration of Independence at the request of then Secretary of State, John Quincy Adams.
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