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Lindsey
July 3rd, 2009, 04:06 PM
The British National Archives has just discovered (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jcFZGF_TArNMHGexwmrexNNjrqyQD996E1K80) a rare original copy of the Declaration of Independence in its collection.

I gather from the article that the group of printed copies to which this belongs, known as the Dunlap Broadside, included those that were read to the Continental troops in the vicinity of New York City, on Washington's orders, on July 9th. If so, my 4g-grandfather would have been among those standing on the Common in New York City (now the site of City Hall Park) that day to hear the words of the Declaration for the first time, read from a document identical to the one in this article. Kinda makes my spine tingle.

Judy G. Russell
July 4th, 2009, 12:22 AM
my 4g-grandfather would have been among those standing on the Common in New York City (now the site of City Hall Park) that day to hear the words of the Declaration for the first time, read from a document identical to the one in this article. Kinda makes my spine tingle.Very very cool. My 4th great grandfather and the 3rd Virginia were at the Battle of Gwynn's Island 8-10 July 1776, so I'm not sure when he would have heard of it.

Lindsey
July 4th, 2009, 02:06 AM
Very very cool. My 4th great grandfather and the 3rd Virginia were at the Battle of Gwynn's Island 8-10 July 1776, so I'm not sure when he would have heard of it.

Probably not too long afterward -- it's really amazing how fast they managed to spread important news through the colonies.

Judy G. Russell
July 4th, 2009, 11:58 AM
Probably not too long afterward -- it's really amazing how fast they managed to spread important news through the colonies.And I imagine getting word like that to troops in the field was given the highest priority.

Lindsey
July 4th, 2009, 11:19 PM
And I imagine getting word like that to troops in the field was given the highest priority.

Yes, Washington felt very strongly that it would be an inspiration for the troops. He wasn't a natural speaker, and was not big on addressing the troops himself, but on at least two occasions in 1776, he urged the reading of inspirational documents to the troops: the Declaration of Independence in July, and then in December, he had the officers read out Thomas Paine's first installment of "The Crisis," which had only just been printed in Philadelphia a few days before, as they were preparing to march on Trenton. That's the one that starts out "These are the times that try mens' souls...", and it certainly fit the occasion. (Paine had been travelling with the army as it marched through New Jersey, so he knew exactly what desperate shape they were in.)

(I just used Google to check out some specifics, and I stumbled on a Freeper thread from January discussing Obama's inaugural address. He had made an oblique reference to that reading from "The Crisis" on the eve of the Battle of Trenton, and the chatter from those know-it-all-know-nothings was both maddening and funny. They were convinced that, of course, Obama must have gotten the historical references all mixed up, because they were confused by it, and in their pontification on where he went wrong (actually, he had it right), they made it clear that their confusion was the result of their own woeful ignorance of American history.)

Judy G. Russell
July 5th, 2009, 07:54 PM
in December, he had the officers read out Thomas Paine's first installment of "The Crisis," which had only just been printed in Philadelphia a few days before, as they were preparing to march on Trenton. That's the one that starts out "These are the times that try mens' souls...", and it certainly fit the occasion. (Paine had been travelling with the army as it marched through New Jersey, so he knew exactly what desperate shape they were in.)My fourth great grandfather David Baker was at Trenton. He lost his brother Richard in that battle.

Lindsey
July 7th, 2009, 06:55 PM
My fourth great grandfather David Baker was at Trenton. He lost his brother Richard in that battle.

Ah! Yes, that's right, I remember now that you had said that. Of all of the battles in the war, that's the one that moves me the most. And while there were other important battles (Saratoga, Yorktown), I think Trenton was the most critical one. It was like a desperate shot from behind the half court line as the buzzer sounded. And unbelievably, the ball swished into the net.

Judy G. Russell
July 7th, 2009, 09:15 PM
Ah! Yes, that's right, I remember now that you had said that. Of all of the battles in the war, that's the one that moves me the most. And while there were other important battles (Saratoga, Yorktown), I think Trenton was the most critical one. It was like a desperate shot from behind the half court line as the buzzer sounded. And unbelievably, the ball swished into the net.They call it the 10 days that changed the world, those 10 days in late December 1776 and early January 1777.

For my family, it was bittersweet. Trenton was a spectacular victory with very few American casualties. As one of Washington's officers wrote: "Dec.26, 3 p.m. -- . . . We have taken nearly 1000 prisoners, six cannon, more than 1000 muskets, twelve drums, and four colors. About forty Hessians were killed or wounded. Our loss is only two killed and three wounded. . . ."

One of those killed was Richard Baker, David's younger brother.

Lindsey
July 9th, 2009, 01:08 AM
One of those killed was Richard Baker, David's younger brother.

Bittersweet, indeed. I think there must have been a few other American casualties, though -- not that that is any great consolation. There was at least one person, and I think it might have been two, who froze to death on the march to Trenton -- they had made the fatal mistake of stopping to rest.

And, as you of course know, one of those wounded, and nearly fatally, was James Monroe. Luckily for him, there was a very capable New Jersey physician nearby who had only just joined with Monroe's company as the army marched by his house on the way to Trenton the night before. He was able to clamp off a severed artery and prevent him from bleeding to death.

Judy G. Russell
July 11th, 2009, 12:32 AM
Bittersweet, indeed. I think there must have been a few other American casualties, though -- not that that is any great consolation. There was at least one person, and I think it might have been two, who froze to death on the march to Trenton -- they had made the fatal mistake of stopping to rest.Yes, it appears that there were two or three killed and two who froze to death. I have long been of the view that since David Baker used the term "was killed" to describe his brother's death, rather than "died", that Richard was one of the KIAs.

And, as you of course know, one of those wounded, and nearly fatally, was James Monroe. Luckily for him, there was a very capable New Jersey physician nearby who had only just joined with Monroe's company as the army marched by his house on the way to Trenton the night before. He was able to clamp off a severed artery and prevent him from bleeding to death.I do indeed know, as Monroe was the Lieutenant in Captain John Thornton's Fourth Company of the 3rd Virginia Regiment. Serving as that unit's corporal -- my fourth great grandfather, David Baker.

Lindsey
July 11th, 2009, 02:19 AM
Yes, it appears that there were two or three killed and two who froze to death. I have long been of the view that since David Baker used the term "was killed" to describe his brother's death, rather than "died", that Richard was one of the KIAs.

Yes, since he was in the same unit as Monroe, and since that unit seems to have taken the heaviest casualties of the day (the only other officer wounded was Capt. William Washington, also with the 3rd Virginia), I think that's a reasonable assumption.