Documents

President John Adams delivered this speech to Congress on May 16, 1797. He provided members of Congress with details on the XYZ Affair.

In response to the Sugar Act, the Boston Town Meeting sent a letter to its representatives in the Massachusetts legislature with instructions on how to respond to the new law. The letter was written by Samual Adams.

In 1774, Parliament passed the Boston Port Act as punishment for the Boston Tea Party. The Act closed the Port of Boston. When the news of the Act reached Boston, Samuel Adams wrote this letter to James Warren. Adams wrote this letter on May 14, 1774.

Samuel Adams wrote the "Rights of the Colonists" in 1772 for the Boston Committee of Correspondence. The document was the first part of the "Boston Pamphlet," which was written in protest of Britain's decision to pay the salaries of politicians and judges, instead of the colonial legislatures, which created a conflict of interest.

The Administration of Justice Act became law on May 20, 1774. It was one of the Coercive Acts passed by Parliament to punish Massachusetts and Boston for the Boston Tea Party. The act was designed to protect British officials from being tried for crimes committed in the colonies. It gave the Royal Governors the authority to send officials to Britain, or other territories in the British Empire, to stand trial in the event the governor believed the accused would not receive a fair trial.

The Articles of the Continental Association were agreed to by the First Continental Congress on October 20, 1774. The Articles included 14 resolutions of Non-Importation, Non-Consumption, and Non-Exportation against Britain, Ireland, and other territories in the British Empire. The Continental Association was formed in response to the Coercive Acts.

In 1774, Parliament passed the Boston Port Act as punishment for the Boston Tea Party. The Act closed the Port of Boston. When the news of the Act reached Boston, the Committee of Correspondence sent this Circular Letter to the other Colonies. Samuel Adams wrote this letter on May 13, 1774.

In 1774, Parliament passed the Boston Port Act as punishment for the Boston Tea Party. The Act closed the Port of Boston. When the news of the Act reached Boston, the Committee of Correspondence sent this Circular Letter to the Committees of Correspondence in Philadelphia and other cities. Samuel Adams wrote this letter on May 13, 1774.

In 1774, Parliament passed the Boston Port Act as punishment for the Boston Tea Party. The Act closed the Port of Boston. When the news of the Act reached Boston, the Committee of Correspondence sent letters to Committees in other towns and cities. Samuel Adams wrote this letter on May 12, 1774 to the Committee of Correspondence in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and asked for their support.

The Boston Port Act went into effect on June 1, 1774. It was one of the Coercive Acts passed by Parliament to punish Massachusetts and Boston for the Boston Tea Party. It closed the port of Boston until the city reimbursed the British East India Company for the tea destroyed during the Boston Tea Party, and paid for damages caused to British customs offices during the incident.

The First Continental Congress met in 1774 to discuss a unified trade boycott against Britain, in response to the Coercive Acts. On September 6, 1774, a committee was formed to write a document that stated the rights and grievances of the colonies. On October 14, Congress approved this document, which also outlined the steps the colonies would take if their grievances were not addressed by Britain.

The Currency Act of 1764 went into effect on September 1, 1764. It regulated currency in the colonies and abolished paper money in favor of a monetary system based on the pound sterling. The act was passed to help protect British merchants and creditors from depreciating paper money that was used in the colonies.

In July 1775, the Second Continental Congress issued a declaration that explained why the colonies felt they were forced to take up arms against the British forces in North America. It laid the blame for the start of the war on the conduct of General Thomas Gage, but also made it clear the colonies did not intend to establish independence.

The Declaratory Act received Royal Assent on March 18, 1766. It was issued by Parliament in order to assert its authority over the colonies and to pass laws governing them, including the right to levy taxes.

The French forced George Washington to sign these Articles of Capitulation on July 3, 1754. Due to an error in translation, Washington was apparently unaware that, by signing these Articles, he admitted to the French that he had assassinated Joseph Coulon de Villiers, Sieur de Jumonville. The text below is the English translation of the document.

This poem was written by a young Benjamin Franklin, around 1719. Franklin was twelve or thirteen years old at the time. The poem is based on accounts from newspapers about the capture and death of the notorious pirate, Blackbeard, at the hands of Captain Robert Maynard. The poem is also known as "The Downfall of Piracy."

Prince Hall presented this petition to the General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It protested the kidnapping of three free African Americans who were taken to the West Indies to be sold as slaves and argued the threat of being taken was keeping freemen from working in an industry where they could be employed.

Governor Stephen Hopkins of Rhode Island published the pamphlet in 1765, objecting to the Sugar Act.