1
Kyle Monroe
Dr. Payne
Public History
Dec. 3, 2004
The Glorious Lessons exhibit is open to the general public at the Regina A Quick Center
for the Art at St. Bonaventure University from Sep. 24, 2004 through March 20, 2005.
Admittance is $0.25 per person and $0.12 for children under 12.
Asher B. Durand’s engraving, a replica of John Trumbull’s painting called The
Declaration of Independence, is one of America’s most familiar icons. The original
painting can still be observed hanging in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol. The engraving
shows a depiction of five of the most significant authors of the Declaration of
2
Independence, John Adams, Ben Franklin, Robert R. Livingston, Roger Sherman, and
Thomas Jefferson, presenting their document to the President of the Congress, John
Hancock. Trumbull had hired Durand to engrave a copy of his famous painting for
$3,000 in hopes that he could sell the engraving for a profit like other artists had done.
However, as happy as Trumbull was with Durand’s finished product, the engravings
didn’t sell as well as expected.
According to the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts’ exhibition packet, in 1824
Congress was allowing facsimile copies of the Declaration of Independence to be
produced because of high demand and also because the document itself was beginning to
deteriorate. The checklist further states that William J. Stone was commissioned to
engrave the document using a “Wet Ink” transfer process making it possible for him to
engrave onto a copper plate, which could then be used to stamp copies. The pamphlet
states that there were 201 copies made and today only 31 are known to be in existence.
Knowing this, the copy that appears in the exhibit isn’t one of Stones 201
originals. It is a copy of stone engraving done by Peter Force. The pamphlet states that in
1843 Force took Stones copperplate to print more copies of the Declaration on rice paper
for his inclusion in his own book, American Archives. Congress was said to have allowed
the production of 1,500 copies.
3
The Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was written by five major figures in American
history. The first and probably the most well known is Thomas Jefferson followed by
Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston. However,
the important task of drafting the Declaration would fall into the hands of Thomas
Jefferson. Jefferson began the drafting and finishing his own draft of the Declaration of
independence between June 11th and June 28th in 1776 in the Graff House located in
Virginia.
The Declaration that is present today is quite different from the one that Jefferson
originally drafted himself. The document would go through three stages of alterations
before Congress finally adopted the finished product. The first draft was drafted mostly
by Jefferson, revised by Franklin and Adams, and finally the committee of five submitted
their Declaration to the Congress July 2, 1776, and on July 4th Congress adopted the epic
document.
“The Second Day of July 1776 will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of
America…. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games,
Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires, and Illuminations from one end of this Continent to the
other from this Time forward forever more.”
--John Adams to Abigail Adams, July 3, 1776
4
Thomas Jefferson
Jefferson’s original draft of the Declaration of Independence tried to show that
“Independence had become necessary- which implies there was no reasonable
alternative… The Declaration of Independence was distinguished from its American and
English relatives in part by its efforts to prove that George III was a tyrant, which led to
other distinctions such as the extraordinarily large number of grievances it listed” (Maier,
p. 123). In Jefferson’s original draft he stated that the people of the American colonies
had the right to overthrow government if it infringed on any of the people’s natural rights.
Natural rights, according to John Locke, are “rights that are God given and can never be
taken or given away”. His draft also contained direct accusations that King George had
violated the natural rights that the people of the colony should have. Jefferson also goes
on in attacking the English people, who had elected a parliament, which worked together
with the king ultimately, denying the people of the colonies their natural rights.
When Congress got hold of Jefferson’s draft they decided that the harsh language
directed at the British people be removed as well as cutting out one of Jefferson’s
grievances to the King, which dealt with the removal of slavery and the slave trade.
Congress knew that southern slave states such as South Carolina and Georgia would not
go along with the Declaration if it made direct attacks on slavery plus they knew such a
change to remove slavery from the colonies cold not happen overnight. Even though
Jefferson attacked the slave trade in his original draft Congress knew that the colonies
were not quite ready for abolishing slavery. Therefore, the natural rights that were
established in the colonies were not intended for slave even though they too were people
who should also be given these rights. “The Americans were destined to receive criticism
enough for asserting the ‘inalienable’ rights to ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’
while themselves owning slaves” (Maier, p.146). Therefore they decided to remove this
portion of Jefferson’s draft.
5
John Locke
Jefferson is often criticized for copying the ideas of John Locke in order to use his
words in the American Declaration of Independence. “The Declaration of Independence,
which is often cited in the media as a marvel of originality, is nothing but a trite
paraphrase of the leading ideas in John Locke’s 1693 Concerning the True Original
Extent and the End of Civil Government” (Anesi, p.1). Jefferson felt that he himself was a
man of the Enlightenment and was greatly inspired by the works of John Locke. Jefferson
did not intend to steal the ideas of Locke he simply used them in order to justify the
colonies reason for revolution and that it was necessary because King George III was
indeed withholding the colonist’s natural rights.
Contents of the Declaration of Independence
“The Declaration of Independence is made up of five distinct parts: the
introduction; the preamble; the body, which can be divided into two sections; and a
conclusion” (National Archives Experience, p. 2). The introduction of the Declaration
speaks of the need of the American colonies to break away from King George III and the
British empire, and that the cause for such an action will be stated in the document.
The preamble “sets out principles that were already recognized to be ‘selfevident’ by most 18th- century Englishmen, closing with the statement that ‘a long train
of abuses and usurpations… evinces a design to reduce [a people] under absolute
Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide
new Guards for their future security’” (National Archives Experience, p. 2). This part of
the declaration also contains the famous statement “That all men are created equal, that
they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are
Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness”, very similar to Locke’s quote, “Life, Liberty
and Property”.
The first section of the body deals with the grievances that the King has bestowed
on the American Colonies. And the second part of the bodies states that the people of the
colonies have tried to take action of the grievances with the King but have not reached
6
the ideal results they requested. The Declaration then concludes itself by stating “these
United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are
Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection
between them and the state of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved”. This
statement seals the fate of the colonies and state to Britain that is no longer part of the
British Empire; it is now a self-proclaimed, independent entity.
7
Bibliography
Anesi, Chuck. John Locke and Thomas Jefferson: Plagiarism. www.anesi.com
/q0033.htm. 1997.
Constitutional Rights Foundation. The Declaration of Independence and
Natural Rights. www.crf-usa.org/Foundation_lesson_declaration.htm.
2001.
Maier, Pauline. American Scripture: Making the Declaration of Independence.
New York: Alfred A. Knopf Inc., 1998.
The National Archives Experience. Declaration of Independence: A History.
www.archives.gov/national_ archives_experience/charters/declaration
_history.html. 2004
Wills, Gary. Inventing America: Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence.
New York: Double Day & Company, Inc., 1978
Pictures:
Graff House-www.ushistory.org/declaration/graff/index.htm
Trumbull Painting- http://xroads.virginia. Edu/~CAP/DESOTO/trumbull.html
Engraving- http://www.monticello.org/jefferson/dayinlife/entrance/trumbull.html
Declaration of Independencewww.archives.gov/national_archives_experience/charters/declaration.html
John Lockehttp://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/history/core/pics/0253/img0002.htm
Thomas Jefferson- http://www.enchantedlearning.com/history/us/pres/jefferson/