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Washington's Farewell Address: The President’S Address To The People Of The United States, Announcing His Intention Of Retiring From Public Life At The Expiration Of The Present Constitutional Term Of Presidency, George Washington

Electronic Texts in American Studies

This is a digital “facsimile” edition of a contemporary pamphlet version of President George Washington’s “Farewell Address,” first issued in the Philadelphia Daily Advertiser newspaper on September 19, 1796. Co-authored with James Madison and Alexander Hamilton, it expresses Washington’s decision to decline a third term of the presidency and offers his parting advice to his “friends and fellow-citizens.”

Washington’s “farewell address” emphasizes the importance of Union, the danger of partisanship, the threat of parties allied to foreign countries or interests, the accomplishment of a national government, the precedence of national over sectional interests, the maintenance of the public credit, the …

'Farewell' Address To The People Of The United States, Announcing His Intention Of Retiring From Public Life At The Expiration Of The Present Constitutional Term Of Presidency, George Washington

Zea E-Books in American Studies

President George Washington’s farewell address “To the People of the United States” was delivered to the public through the medium of the Philadelphia Daily Advertiser newspaper and was immediately reprinted in other newspapers and in pamphlet form throughout the country, and in England, Ireland, and Scotland as well. All contemporary editions derived directly or indirectly from the Daily Advertiser newspaper source.

The composition of the address was a collaborative effort, with James Madison co-authoring with Washington an early draft that was reviewed and revised at least twice to incorporate suggestions by Alexander Hamilton. The final draft, in Washington’s handwriting, was …

The Case, Trevett Against Weeden

Library Archive

Wherein the Rights of the People to Trial by Jury, &c. are dated and maintained, and the Legislative, Judiciary and Executive Powers of Government examined and denned.

Briefe Einer Reisenden Dame Aus Der Schweitz, Sophie Von La Roche

Prose Nonfiction

No abstract provided.

The Discovery, Settlement And Present State Of Kentucke (1784) : An Online Electronic Text Edition, John Filson, Paul Royster (Editor)

Electronic Texts in American Studies

This is an open-access electronic text edition of Filson’s seminal work on the early history of Kentucky, including the first published account of the life and adventures of Daniel Boone. Filson’s work was an unabashedly optimistic account of the western territory, where Filson had acquired large land claims, whose value he sought to enhance by the publication of this advertisement and incitement for further settlement. Scarcely two years after the violent and tragic British and Indian invasion of 1782, Filson portrayed Kentucky as a natural paradise, where peace, plenty, and security reigned. Of some significance is Filson’s recognition that the …

The United States Elevated To Glory And Honor (1783), Ezra Stiles D.D., Reiner Smolinski , Editor

Electronic Texts in American Studies

Stiles' best-known work is this 1783 election sermon, which was delivered at Hartford, Connecticut, at the annual election of the governor, state representatives, and senators. True to the spirit of his Puritan ancestors, Stiles sounds a number of time-honored American themes newly adapted to the rising prospects of the young United States of America. What was once a tribal Errand into the Wilderness of New England Stiles now translates into God’s federal covenant with all citizens of the United States—no matter what their parochial creed or particular denomination: “The political welfare of God’s American Israel” is “allusively prophetic of the …

The French Gazette, Norman Desmarais, Carl Becker

Primary Sources

The French Gazette is an English translation of the Gazette Françoise, the French newspaper published in Newport, RI by the French fleet that brought the Count de Rochambeau and 5800 French troops to America in July, 1780. The newspaper intended to translate various news items printed in American newspapers to keep the officers and men abreast of political events in this emerging nation. It is the first known service newspaper published by an expeditionary force. The French facsimile edition is also available elsewhere on this site.

Gazette Francoise

Primary Sources

The Gazette Françoise is a facsimile edition of the French newspaper published in Newport, RI by the French fleet. The newspaper intended to translate various news items printed in American newspapers to keep the officers and men abreast of political events in this emerging nation. It is the first known service newspaper published by an expeditionary force. The English translation is available elsewhere on this site.

Lectures By Doctor Hugh Blair, Profesor [Sic] Of Rhetoric Belles Lettres In The University Of Edinburgh, James Wilson

Manuscript of Lectures by Doctor Hugh Blair

Handwritten notes taken by James Wilson from a lecture by Doctor Hugh Blair, who served as the Regius Professor of Rhetoric and Belles Lettres at the University of Edinburgh from 1762-1784. His appointment marked the beginning of the teaching of English Literature at Edinburgh University and the birth of the oldest English department in the world. Learn more: https://archives.collections.ed.ac.uk/agents/people/1903

The Life And Spiritual Sufferings Of That Faithful Servant Of Christ Jane Hoskens, A Public Preacher Among The People Called Quakers, Jane Fenn Hoskens

Zea E-Books in American Studies

In 1712, nineteen-year-old Jane Fenn left her home, family, and friends in London to obey an inner voice that said ——“Go to Pennsylvania! ” Arrived in Philadelphia, she was soon cast into debtors’ prison for refusing to sign an indenture dictated by the man who had arranged her passage. Redeemed by a group of Quakers from Plymouth County who wished to employ her as a schoolteacher, she spent three years in their community and began to absorb their teachings and their ways.

Her narrative chronicles her inward struggles with her own sense of unworthiness, the temptations of Satan, her distaste …

The Life And Spiritual Sufferings Of That Faithful Servant Of Christ Jane Hoskens, A Public Preacher Among The People Called Quakers, Jane Fenn Hoskens, Paul Royster Editor

Historical Quaker Books

In 1712, nineteen-year-old Jane Fenn left her home, family, and friends in London to obey an inner voice that said ——“Go to Pennsylvania! ” Arrived in Philadelphia, she was soon cast into debtors’ prison for refusing to sign an indenture dictated by the man who had arranged her passage. Redeemed by a group of Quakers from Plymouth County who wished to employ her as a schoolteacher, she spent three years in their community and began to absorb their teachings and their ways.

Her narrative chronicles her inward struggles with her own sense of unworthiness, the temptations of Satan, her distaste …

The Life And Spiritual Sufferings Of That Faithful Servant Of Christ Jane Hoskens, A Public Preacher Among The People Called Quakers (1771), Jane Fenn Hoskens, Paul Royster , Editor

Electronic Texts in American Studies

In 1712, nineteen-year-old Jane Fenn left her home, family, and friends in London to obey an inner voice that said ——“Go to Pennsylvania! ” Arrived in Philadelphia, she was soon cast into debtors’ prison for refusing to sign an indenture dictated by the man who had arranged her passage. Redeemed by a group of Quakers from Plymouth County who wished to employ her as a schoolteacher, she spent three years in their community and began to absorb their teachings and their ways.

Her narrative chronicles her inward struggles with her own sense of unworthiness, the temptations of Satan, her distaste …

Rb 004 Guide To Cora And Webb Mading Collection On Public Health, John P. Mcgovern Historical Collections & Research Center

Rare Books Finding Aids

The Cora and Webb Mading Collection focuses on public health and contains over 1,500 books and pamphlets on urban sanitation in the United States and communicable diseases. Two important aspects of the collection are the large number of early twentieth century city and state health department reports and the nineteenth century pamphlets on specific contagious diseases. See more at RB 004.

Memoir Of The Indian Wars, John Stuart

Primary Sources

No abstract provided.

The Journal Of Major George Washington (1754), George Washington, Paul Royster , Editor

Electronic Texts in American Studies

The Journal of Major George Washington, Sent by the Hon. Robert Dinwiddie, Esq; His Majesty’s Lieutenant-Governor, and Commander In Chief Of Virginia, to the Commandant of the French Forces on Ohio. To Which Are Added, the Governor’s Letter, and a Translation of the French Officer’s Answer.

In October of 1753, George Washington, a 21-year-old major in the Virginia militia, volunteered to carry a letter from the governor of Virginia to the French commander of the forts recently built on the headwaters of the Ohio River in northwestern Pennsylvania. The French had recently expanded their military operations from the Great Lakes …

The Journal Of Major George Washington, George Washington

Zea E-Books in American Studies

In October of 1753, George Washington, a 21-year-old major in the Virginia militia, volunteered to carry a letter from the governor of Virginia to the French commander of the forts recently built on the headwaters of the Ohio River in northwestern Pennsylvania. The French had recently expanded their military operations from the Great Lakes into the Ohio country, and had spent the summer of 1753 building forts and roads along the Allegheny River, with the design of linking their trade routes and sphere of influence down the Ohio to the Mississippi. Virginia governor Robert Dinwiddie believed them to be in …

De Bestiis Marinis Or, The Beasts Of The Sea, Georg Wilhelm Steller

Zea E-Books in American Studies

Steller’s classic work, published in Latin in 1751 and in German in 1753, contains the only scientific description from life of the Steller’s sea cow (Hydrodamalis gigas), as well as the first scientific descriptions of the fur seal or “sea bear” (Callorhinus ursinus), Steller’s sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus), and the sea otter (Enhydra lutris).

Steller’s sea cow was a sirenian, or manatee, inhabiting the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea. It was first discovered by Europeans in 1741 and rendered extinct by 1768. It was a 30-foot long, plant-eating aquatic mammal, weighing …

A Narrative Of The Captivity Of Nehemiah How In 1745-1747, Nehemiah How, Victor Hugo Paltsits

Electronic Texts in American Studies

Nehemiah How was captured by a raiding party of Abenaki Indians October 11, 1745, outside the fort at Great Meadow (now Vermont). He was taken to Quebec and held captive until his death from "fever" on May 27, 1747. He was among several hundred English colonists taken prisoner during the war. His account recalls his treatment and records the comings and fates of dozens of other prisoners held at Quebec during what was known as King George's War, part of the global War of Austrian Succession.

Minutes, Ga: 1703-1747

General Assemblies

No abstract provided.

The Tryal Between J.G. Biker, Plaintiff; And M. Morley, Doctor Of Phyfic, Defendant; For Criminal Conversation With The Plaintiff’S Wife; On Tuefday The 30th Of June At Guildhall, London, Sword &. Buckler Court

Special Collections Miscellanea

An account of a civil suit, including witness testimony, of charges of assault and criminal conversation against the defendant for having unlawful martial relations with the plaintiff’s wife. The evidence presented during the trial suggests witness tampering took place on the part of the plaintiff, which resulted in a verdict for the defendant. Printed for J. Huggonson in Sword and Buckler Court, Ludgate-Hill. 1741.

A Divine And Supernatural Light, Immediately Imparted To The Soul By The Spirit Of God, Shown To Be Both A Scriptural, And Rational Doctrine, Jonathan Edwards, Reiner Smolinski

Electronic Texts in American Studies

The early stirrings of the Great Awakening were intensified by Edwards’ famous sermon A Divine and Supernatural Light, Immediately Imparted to the Soul by the Spirit of God (1734). Through a fascinating process of canceling out his opponents’ positions, Edwards clearly defines the workings of God’s grace in the human soul. He distinguishes between “Common Grace” (intrinsic to virtually all unregenerate), which acts upon the mind of natural man and assists the faculties of the soul in their natural course; and “Special Grace” (intrinsic to true saints only), which acts in the human heart and unites with the mind of …

The Constitutions Of The Free-Masons, James Anderson, Benjamin Franklin

Zea E-Books in American Studies

This is an online electronic edition of the the first Masonic book printed in America, which was produced in Philadelphia by Benjamin Franklin in 1734, and was a reprint of a work by James Anderson (who is identified as the author in an appendix) printed in London in 1723. This is the seminal work of American Masonry, edited and published by one of the founding fathers, and of great importance to the development of colonial society and the formation of the Republic. The work contains a 40-page history of Masonry: from Adam to the reign of King George I, including, …

The Threefold Paradise Of Cotton Mather: An Edition Of "Triparadisus", Reiner Smolinski

Electronic Texts in American Studies

No other American Puritan has fueled both the popular and academic imagination as has Cotton Mather (1663-1728). Colonial America's foremost theologian and historian, Mather was also one of its most powerful voices advocating millennialism. His lifelong preoccupation with this subject culminated in his definitive treatise, "Triparadisus" (1726/1727), left unpublished at his death. In it, Mather justified his ideological revisionism; his response to the philological, historical, and scientific challenges of the Bible as text by English and continental deists; and his hermeneutical break from the orthodox exegeses of his father, Increase Mather, and Joseph Mede. In his critical introduction to this …

Abigail Pemberton, Israel Pemberton, March 17, 1702, Abigail Pemberton

Pemberton Correspondence Transcriptions

Letter dated March 17, 1702 (March 6, 1701 Old Style) from Abigail Pemberton to her brother, Israel Pemberton. She asks his help in stopping a rumor about her.

Phineas Pemberton, Alice Hodgson Pemberton, May 28, 1700, Phineas Pemberton

Pemberton Correspondence Transcriptions

Letter dated May 29, 1700 (May 18, 1700 Old Style) from Phineas Pemberton to his wife, Alice Pemberton. The contents of the letter include trouble with Phineas' affairs which have lengthened his stay and business conducted with Thomas Clark.

Phaenomena Quaedam Apocalyptica Ad Aspectum Novi Orbis Configurata. Or, Some Few Lines Towards A Description Of The New Heaven (1697), Samuel Sewall, Reiner Smolinski , Editor

Electronic Texts in American Studies

SAMUEL SEWALL (1652-1730) is best remembered as a colonial judge during the Salem Witchcraft trials, as a significant diarist, and as an ardent millenarian, who published a number of eschatological tracts on his favorite obsession. Apart from his political achievements in the colonial judicature, Sewall published a number of significant works. The Selling of Joseph (1700) is one of the earliest abolitionist documents in American history. His famous Diary of Samuel Sewall, 1674-1729 (1878-82) is a Puritan document par excellence and a window on a crucial period in the development of the colony. His millenarian tract Proposals Touching the Accomplishment …

Phaenomena Quaedam Apocalyptica Ad Aspectum Novi Orbis Configurata. Or, Some Few Lines Towards A Description Of The New Heaven, Samuel Sewall, Reiner Smolinski

Zea E-Books in American Studies

SAMUEL SEWALL (1652-1730) is best remembered as a colonial judge during the Salem Witchcraft trials, as a significant diarist, and as an ardent millenarian, who published a number of eschatological tracts on his favorite obsession. Apart from his political achievements in the colonial judicature, Sewall published a number of significant works. The Selling of Joseph (1700) is one of the earliest abolitionist documents in American history. His famous Diary of Samuel Sewall, 1674-1729 (1878-82) is a Puritan document par excellence and a window on a crucial period in the development of the colony. His millenarian tract Proposals Touching the Accomplishment …

Ralph Ridgway, Phineas Pemberton, December 31, 1696, Ralph Ridgway

Pemberton Correspondence Transcriptions

Letter dated December 31, 1696 (December 21, 1696 Old Style) from Ralph Ridgway to Phineas Pemberton.

New Yorke Considered And Improved A.D. 1695, John Miller, Victor Hugo Paltsits, Paul Royster (Depositor)

Electronic Texts in American Studies

The following work is essentially a line-for-line facsimile of Victor Hugo Paltsits’ edition of John Miller’s New Yorke Considered and Improved A.D. 1695. Miller’s work was written during his tenure as chaplain to the British soldiers stationed in New York from June 1692 until July 1695. His first draft was thrown overboard to avoid its falling into the hands of the French privateers who captured the ship in which he was returning to England. Miller re-wrote his work while imprisoned in France, finished it after his return to England in 1696, and presented it as a report to his …

A Narrative Of The Planting Of The Massachusets Colony Anno 1628. With The Lords Signal Presence The First Thirty Years. Also A Caution From New-Englands Apostle, The Great Cotton, How To Escape The Calamity, Which Might Befall Them Or Their Posterity. And Confirmed By The Evangelist Norton With Prognosticks From The Famous Dr. Owen. Concerning The Fate Of These Churches, And Animadversions Upon The Anger Of God, In Sending Of Evil Angels Among Us. Published By Old Planters, The Authors Of The Old Mens Tears., Joshua Scottow, Paul Royster (Transcribed & Edited By)

Joshua Scottow Papers

This edition of A Narrative of the Planting of the Massachusets Colony Anno 1628 is based on the first edition published in Boston in 1694. The spelling, orthography, punctuation, and capitalization of the original have been retained; only obvious typographical errors have been corrected. Scottow's Narrative is the sequel to Old Mens Tears for their Own Declensions, published three years earlier. It is an expansion of the argument that God and history are being unkind to New England because its churches have strayed from the strict practice of the unanimously-minded early founders of the Congregational Way. Scottow treats of …