Imagine for a moment what it would feel like to stumble upon an old copy of the United States Declaration of Independence. I'm talking about finding an actual copy of the Declaration from the same year that it was written, 1776! Well, that apparently just recently happened. Michael Scurr, a retired insurance broker living in London, England has been volunteering at the National Archives in London for more than a decade. This past May, Scurr was cataloging boxes of a Royal British Navy ship captain's correspondence from the American Revolutionary War period. While unfolding an old document, he noted the word "Declaration" at the top and immediately called his supervisor, who confirmed Scurr's discovery.
Experts at the National Archive confirmed that Scurr had found a rare copy of the Declaration that was printed in Exeter, New Hampshire and published in the New Hampshire Gazette or Exeter Morning Chronicle between July 16 and 19 of the year 1776. Only ten other copies of the so-called Exeter Declarations are known to exist today, and apparently all of them have been found in the United States, making this the first and only copy to have been found outside the United States.
The newly discovered copy is thought to have belonged to an American privateer named Eleazer Johnson, who was the captain of the Dalton. He likely read the Declaration aloud to his crew after reading his commission and orders, so that his men knew what they were fighting for. The Dalton was captured by the Royal British Navy ship HMS Raisonnable off the coast of Portugal on December 24, 1776. Captain Johnson threw all of the ship's written records, log books, and code books into the water before the British sailors came aboard, saving only three documents: his commission, his orders from the Continental Congress, and the copy of the Declaration.
Thomas Fitzherbert, the captain of the HMS Raisonnable, sent the copy of the Declaration to the Admiralty, which subsequently forwarded the document to the National Archives, where it was finally discovered by chance by Scurr earlier this year. The document is believed to be the only copy of the United States Declaration of Independence to be captured in a military action. The newly discovered Exeter Declaration is currently on display at the National Archives.
All of this makes for a very interesting story, particularly as it happened around the same time that all of us in America were celebrating the 250th anniversary of the signing of our founding document, the Declaration of Independence. I have been personally celebrating our nation's 250th birthday this year by reading about our history, particularly the events that happened leading up to the American Revolution. I came across mention of what is called the Sherman copy of the Declaration of Independence. The so-called Sherman Copy is a rare, early draft of the Declaration of Independence likely used by Roger Sherman in June of 1776.
As many of you may know, the Continental Congress commissioned a "Committee of Five" to draft the Declaration of Independence - John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Robert Livingston, and Roger Sherman. Everyone remembers Adams, Franklin, and Jefferson, though few probably know about Livingston's and Sherman's contributions to the Declaration. Notably, Sherman should be recognized for the fact that he and Robert Morris are the only two Founders who signed all three of our founding documents, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the United States Constitution.
The Sherman Copy contains several edits to the document, as well as a short note, likely written by John Adams (who, based on handwriting analysis is thought to have copied the entire draft from an earlier draft), stating simply, "A beginning perhaps – Original with Jefferson – Copied from Original with T.P.'s permission." Who was Adams referring to when he said, "...with T.P.'s permission"? Some scholars believe that he was referring to Founder Thomas Paine.
I don't know about you, but I didn't learn very much about Thomas Paine, other than the fact that he wrote the pamphlet Common Sense, which was published anonymously on January 10, 1776 and became an immediate sensation. In fact, the 47 page pamphlet is still being published today and thought to be the number one selling American publication of all time. Common Sense made an excellent case that the American colonists should be pushing for complete separation, i.e. independence, from England. It would be fair to say that Paine had as much, and in some cases, more, influence on American independence than the other, better known founders. Even John Adams said, "Without the pen of Paine, the sword of Washington would have been wielded in vain."
So why then do we Americans know so little about Thomas Paine, at least when compared to Founders such as George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, the Adams cousins (John and Sam), Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton? For one, Paine was more radical than some of his fellow Founders, particularly when it came to how much power should be given to the people. Madison was famously wary of the so-called "tyranny of the majority" and designed our government with the goal of limiting the influence of the popular majority in order to protect the rights of the minority. Paine argued for a strict democracy based on the popular will of the majority. Many of the Founders recognized that giving to much power to the majority could lead to tyranny, as manifest during the French Revolution of 1789 which evolved in subsequent years to a "Reign of Terror". Paine himself was both a hero in France for his political views, as well as a participant in the French Revolution (ironically, he was later imprisoned during the "Reign of Terror" and narrowly escaped the guillotine). Finally, Paine was later condemned for his religious views - he was particularly vocal about his opposition to any form of organized religion, though he still believed in God. At least at that time in America, that was not the popular sentiment.
All of this is to say that there is a lot more to learn and know about our American history. I do think it is our duty as citizens of the United States to learn both the good and the bad about our history as a nation. We should take this opportunity during the year of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence to learn more about all the men and women who helped make our country what it is today. In order to understand where we are going as a country, we absolutely need to fully understand where we came from.
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