The American Colonists Library

ARRANGED IN CHRONOLOGICAL SEQUENCE (500 B.C.–1800 A.D.)

Ancient and Classical Literature Having Significant Influence Upon the American Colonists

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The American Colonists Library — Revised & Updated

• Classic Philosophers and Poets. Most of the founding fathers in America were thoroughly familiar with these Greco-Roman authors: e.g., Aristotle, Plato, Cicero, Virgil.
• The Latin Library, Cicero, Livy, Horace, et al. Ability to read these sources extemporaneously was an entrance requirement at colonial schools such as Harvard. Most of the prominent men in the colonies were fluent in Latin.
• The Vulgate. The Holy Bible in Latin.
• The Bible. The best Bible online, which allows the user to immediately discover the Hebrew and Greek words behind the English words.
• The Bible. This book was, of course, the most influential piece of literature in Colonial America.
• St. Augustine. Latin writings; the Church father of choice among American Puritans.
• St. Augustine. English translations of his Latin works on predestination, which greatly influenced the Puritans.

Major Medieval Sources Having Significant Influence Upon the American Colonists

• 

  William I (sometimes referred to as "William the Conqueror," or "William the Bastard,") was the first Norman King of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 1087.

  Ordinance of William the Conqueror. Sowing the seeds of separation of Church and State in the English world.
• Laws of William the Conqueror. The English settlers in America brought their legal heritage with them.
• Constitutions of Clarendon (1164). Established rights of laymen and the church in England.
• Assize of Clarendon (1166). Defined rights and duties of courts and people in criminal cases. Foundation of the principle of “due process.”
• Assize of Arms (1181). Defined rights and duties of people and militias.
• Magna Carta (1215). One of the American colonists’ most revered documents, the Magna Carta established the principle that no one, not even the king or a lawmaker, is above the law of God.
• De Legibus et Consuetudinibus Angliae, Henry de Bracton (1268). This text was the most important legal treatise written in England in the medieval period, as it organized, systematized, and explicated the principles of English Common Law later embraced by the American colonists.
• Summa Theologica, St. Thomas Aquinas (1265–1273). Pinnacle of Scholasticism. Covering a wide range of topics; by the colonial times, most educated people in the Western world were thoroughly familiar with this important text.
• Marco Polo’s Travels [excerpt] (c. 1300). Contains the description of the South Pacific that inspired Columbus to attempt to go to India by way of the Atlantic.
• The First Manual of Parliamentary Procedure (c. 1350).
• Medieval Law Library. The sources studied by many of the lawyers who founded the U.S.
• The Declaration of Arbroath (1320). Scotland’s declaration of independence from England. An early model for the U.S. Declaration, this document ends with a phrase parallel to that of the U.S. Declaration: “and to Him as the Supreme King and Judge we commit the maintenance of our cause, casting our cares upon Him and firmly trusting that He will inspire us with courage and bring our enemies to nought.”

Fifteenth and Sixteenth Century Sources Profoundly Impacting the History of America

• 

  The Malleus Maleficarum (Latin for “The Hammer of Witches”, or Der Hexenhammer in German) is a treatise on the prosecution of witches, written in 1486 by Heinrich Kramer, a German Catholic clergyman.

  Malleus Maleficarum. Directions for witch-hunting (1486).
• Journal, Christopher Columbus (1492). This document begins with Columbus’s statement that the reason why Isabella sponsored his voyage was for the sake of going to India to convert Khan to Roman Catholicism.
• Epistola de Insulis Nuper Inventis, Christopher Columbus (1493).
• Letter to the King and Queen of Spain, Christopher Columbus (1494).
• The Voyage of John Cabot to America (1497). Cabot was the first English sailor to come to New England.
• The Prince, Machiavelli (1513). Practical advice on governance and statecraft, with thoughts on the kinds of problems any government must be able to solve to endure.
• Works of Martin Luther. The father of the Protestant Reformation; his principles were a major part of the American colonists’ worldview.
• Writings of Martin Luther.
• On Secular Authority, Luther (1523). This document started the political discussion about religious liberty which led to the American Revolution. In this document Luther sets forth the idea of “two kingdoms;” one is political and the other is spiritual, and the two ought be separate. President James Madison commended this “due distinction, to which the genius and courage of Luther led the way, between what is due to Caesar and what is due to God” (Madison to F.L. Schaeffer, December 3, 1821).
• The Bondage of the Will, Luther (1524). Luther claimed that this particular document was the cornerstone of the Protestant Reformation; it argues the idea of predestination and God’s sovereignty, two principles which were paramount to many of the American colonists.
• Complete Works of Menno Simons. Founder of Anabaptism.
• The Act of Supremacy, Henry VIII (1534). By this act, the English Reformation began, and the Pope was stripped of his jurisdiction over the English Church. This allowed Lutheran principles to make their way into the English church, and led to the birth of Puritanism.
• Institutes of the Christian Religion, John Calvin (1540). Calvin’s magnum opus. The most celebrated American historian, George Bancroft, called Calvin “the father of America,” and added: “He who will not honor the memory and respect the influence of Calvin knows but little of the origin of American liberty.” To John Calvin and the Genevan theologians, President John Adams credited a great deal of the impetus for religious liberty (Adams, WORKS, VI:313). This document includes a justification for rebellion against tyrants by subordinate government officials; this particular justification was at the root of the Dutch, English, and American Revolutions.
• The Complete Works of John Calvin.
• Coronado’s Report to Mendoza (1540).
• Coronado to the King of Spain (1541).
• The Journey of Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca (1542).
• Brief Account of the Devastation of the Indies, Bartolomé de las Casas (1542).
• On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Bodies, Copernicus (1543). This document touched off the Scientific Revolution as it repudiated the geocentric theory and asserted a heliocentric theory of the solar system.
• The Council of Trent (1545). The Roman Catholic responses to the Protestant Reformation.
• Spiritual Exercises, Ignatius Loyola (1548). Rules for the Jesuits written by the founder of the Jesuit Order.
• The Magdeburg Bekenntnis or Magdeburg Confession (1550). A document written by followers of Luther stating a theological justification for resisting tyranny.
• A Vindication of the Doctrine that the Sacrifice of the Mass is Idolatry, John Knox (1550).
• Treatise on Prayer, John Knox (1553).
• A Faithful Admonition to the Professors of God’s Truth in England, John Knox (1554).
• The Genevan Book of Order (1556). The Form of Prayers and Ministration of the Sacraments, etc.; used in the English Congregation at Geneva.
• A Short Treatise on Political Power, John Ponet, D.D. (1556). President John Adams credited this Calvinist document as being at the root of the theory of government adopted by the the Americans. According to Adams, Ponet’s work contained “all the essential principles of liberty, which were afterward dilated on by Sidney and Locke,” including the idea of a three-branched government (Adams, Works, vol. 6, pg. 4). Published in Strasbourg in 1556, it is the first work out of the Reformation to advocate active resistance to tyrannical magistrates, after the Magdeburg Bekenntnis (the Magdeburg Confession).
• How Superior Powers Ought to Be Obeyed by Their Subjects, Christopher Goodman (1558). Justifying a Christian’s right to resist a tyrannical ruler.
• The First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstrous Regiment of Women, John Knox (1558). A vigorous critique of the tyranny of “Bloody Mary’s” reign in England, and a call to resist. A large portion of the Americans who fought in the American Revolution were adherents to Knox’s doctrines as set forth in this document.
• The Appellation from the Sentence Pronounced by the Bishops and Clergy, John Knox. Addressed to the Nobility and Estates of Scotland (1558).
• Act of Supremacy, Elizabeth I (1559). After the brief and bloody reign of her sister, Mary I, who executed numerous Protestants for the cause of Roman Catholicism, this document states Elizabeth’s intention to reaffirm the English church’s independence from Rome. Her beloved status among her subjects caused the first settlers of America to name their colony “Virginia” in honor of this virgin queen.
• Complete Works of Elizabeth I. Includes her letters and poems.
• Book of Common Prayer (1559).
• Writings and Speeches of Elizabeth I.
• Foxe’s Book of Martyrs (1563). Detailing the persecutions of Protestants during the reign of Mary I, this book was second only to the Bible in its popularity in the American colonies.
• Supralapsarian Calvinism, Theodore Beza (1570). Laying out the principle that God willed and predestined the fall of Adam and the existence of sin and evil. This assertion became the most controversial philosophical conflict among American colonists up through the 19th century.
• The Right of Magistrates Over Their Subjects, Theodore Beza (1574). Expanding upon Calvin’s political resistance theory set forth in the final chapters of his Institutes, this work by Calvin’s successor in Geneva, Theodore Beza, was published in response to the growing tensions between Protestants and Catholics in France, which culminated in the St. Bartholomew Day Massacre in 1572. This text suggests that it is the right of a Christian to revolt against a tyrannical King — a principle central to the American colonists’ cause.
• The Scholemaster (1570). Philosophy of education among English people, particularly with respect to the importance of learning Latin.
• The Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (1571). The official statement of faith of the Church of England; this document formally adopts the Calvinistic doctrine of predestination and repudiates the common notion of “free will.”
• Treasons Act (1571). Forbidding criticism of Queen Elizabeth.
• The St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre (1572).
• Of the Tabaco and of His Greate Vertues, Nicholas Monardes (1577).
• The Works of Sir Walter Raleigh. Sponsor of the First Settlements in Virginia.
• De Jure Regni apud Scotos, George Buchanan (1579). Considered the most important piece of political writing in the 16th century, as it articulated the doctrine of the rule of law.
• Vindiciae, Contra Tyrannos, or, A Vindication Against Tyrants (1579). This Calvinist document is one of the first to set forth the theory of “social contract” upon which the United States was founded. The idea was disseminated through the English Calvinists to the pen of John Locke, and eventually into the Declaration of Independence. John Adams reported the relevance of this document to the American struggle.
• The Dutch Declaration of Independence (1581). This Calvinist document served as a model for the U.S. Declaration of Independence. In his Autobiography, Jefferson indicated that the “Dutch Revolution” gave evidence and confidence to the Second Continental Congress that the American Revolution could likewise commence and succeed. Recent scholarship has suggested that Jefferson may have consciously drawn on this document. John Adams said that the Dutch charters had “been particularly studied, admired, and imitated in every State” in America, and he stated that “the analogy between the means by which the two republics [Holland and U.S.A.] arrived at independency... will infallibly draw them together.”
• A Briefe and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia, Thomas Hariot.
• Discourse of Western Planting, Richard Hakluyt (1584).
• First Voyage to Virginia, Arthur Barlowe (1584).
• Adam Winthrop’s Commonplace Book (1586). Early diary of a Puritan whose family eventually settled in America.
• The Colony of Roanoke, Ralph Lane (1586). The first English attempt at colonizing the New World.
• Return to Roanoake, John White (1590). Relating the surprise of the loss of the Roanoake colony and the few clues left regarding their fate.
• An Act Against Papists (1593). Parliament’s tough words against those who would attempt to depose Elizabeth for her Protestantism.
• Works of Richard Hooker (1593). Anglican political commentator and major influence upon John Locke.
• Letters of King James and Queen Elizabeth.
• Journey of Coronado (1596).
• A Trew Law of Free Monarchs, James I Stuart (1598). Championed the doctrine of divine right of kings. This oppressive political theory contributed to the exodus of the Puritans to America in 1630, and resistance to it was the ultimate goal of three revolutions: 1) the Puritan Revolution of the 1640s, 2) the Glorious Revolution of 1688, and 3) the American Revolution.
• The Dutie of a King, Sir Walter Raleigh (1599). Promoting the doctrine of divine right of kings.
• The Geneva Bible 1599. Update of the translation made by the Puritans in Geneva in 1560. This was the Bible of choice in New England. These are the footnotes which provide a Calvinist theological interpretation of the Bible. Goodman indicated that he had presented the thesis of this book to John Calvin, and Calvin endorsed it.

Seventeenth Century Sources Relating to American History

• Colonial Documents, Precursors to the U.S. Constitution.
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  “His Majesty's Colony of Georgia in America.” Map by George Jones, 1734.

  Colonial Maps.
• Charters of all the Colonies.
• Original Dictionaries of the 16th & 17th Centuries. Six bilingual dictionaries: John Palgrave (1530; English-French), Sir Thomas Elyot (1538; Latin- English), William Thomas (1550; Italian-English), Thomas Thomas (1587; Latin-English), John Florio (1598; Italian-English), and Randle Cotgrave (1611; French-English); four English hard-word dictionaries: Edmund Coote (1596), Robert Cawdrey (1604; courtesy of Raymond Siemens), John Bullokar (1616), and Henry Cockeram (1623); one English word-list: Richard Mulcaster (1582); and the first full, English-only dictionary: Thomas Blount (1656).
• Colonial Literature, Peter Force, editor. This collection was the most exhaustive source for colonial primary sources in its time.
• Secret Correspondence of King James I.
• Queen Elizabeth’s Farewell (1601).
• Instructions, by way of advice, for the intended Voyage to Virginia, John Smith, undated (probably early 1600s). In these Instructions, John Smith gives his recommendations as to how a plantation should be settled in Virginia. The document was most likely written during the first ten years of the colony’s settlement, but is not dated.
• The Works of King James I.
• Works of William Perkins.
• Politica, Althusius (1603). This treatise of political philosophy by a German Calvinist jurist contains all the principles that were later embraced by the founders of the United States.
• Voyages, Samuel de Champlain (1604).
• The Foundation of Quebec, Samuel de Champlain (1608).
• Primary Sources Pertaining to the Gunpowder Plot (1605).
• The First Virginia Charter (1606).
• Instructions for the Virginia Colony (1606).
• Works of Francis Bacon. Identified by Jefferson as one of his three most profound influences.
• Works of Francis Bacon (facsimile).
• Works of Shakespeare.
• A Discourse of Virginia, Edward Maria Wingfield (1608).
• A True Relation of Occurrences and Accidents in Virginia, John Smith (1608). John Smith’s account details the first voyage of exploration to Virginia sponsored by the Virginia Company of London.
• Full Text of Robert Juet’s Journal (1609).
• The Voyages to Virginia, 1609-1610 (Original Spelling Version | Modern Spelling Version). William Strachey describes the 1609 voyage to Virginia composed of a nine-ship convoy that ran into a hurricane. Two of the ships were wrecked off the coast of Bermuda, where survivors spent months building the Patience and Deliverance to sail to Jamestown. The voyage became the basis for William Shakespeare’s The Tempest.
• Nova Britannia, by R.I. (1609). This pamphlet promotes the Virginia Colony of London to investors and adventurers. It is addressed to Sir Thomas Smith, then Treasurer of the Virginia Company of London.
• The New Life of Virginea: Declaring the former successe and present estate of that plantation, by R.I. (1612). In the second part of “Nova Britannia,” R.I. defends Virginia against those who have maligned the colony.
• VIRGINIA richly valued by a Portuguese gentleman, translated out of Portuguese, Richard Hakluyt, the Elder [c. 1553–1616] (1609). This account by Richard Hakluyt, traveler and advocate of overseas colonization, promotes Virginia as a probable site for gold and minerals. He also provides a translation of an account of a Spanish expedition through Florida and the southeast of America from 1539–1542.
• The Second Virginia Charter (1609).
• John Smyth’s Confession (1609). The religion of a Baptist.
• King James’s Speech on Divine Right (1610).
• A True Declaration of the estate of the Colonie in Virginia, With a confutation of such scandalous reports as have tended to the disgrace of so worthy an enterprise, by the Council for Virginia (1610). This account is a report on the land and resources to be found in the Virginia colony.
• The Church At Jamestown, William Strachey (1610).
• A Short Relation made by the Lord De-La-Warre, Lord De-La-Warre (1611). Lord De-La-Warre became Governor of Virginia in 1610. The Virginia Company of London wanted him to standardize laws in Virginia and to help the colony recover from the “Starving Time.” This document is De-La-Warre’s description of the state of affairs in Virginia upon his departure due to ill health in 1611.
• The Third Virginia Charter (1612).
• A Map of Virginia, with a Description of its Commodities, People, Government, and Religion, John Smith (1612). Describes the state of affairs in the colony, the Indians, and the surrounding countryside.
• A True Relation, George Percy (1609–1612). George Percy served as governor of Virginia between September 1609 and May 1610, and from March 1611 to May 1611. This document is his relation of the “Starving Time” and the war with the Indians from 1609 to 1612.
• For the Colony in Virginea Britannia. Lawes Divine, Morall and Martiall, &c., William Strachey (1612). This document is William Strachey’s compilation of laws enacted by Sir Thomas Gates and Lord De-La-Warre.
• Good News From Virginia, Alexander Whitaker (1613).
• Relation of Virginia, Henry Spelman (1613). Describes the massacre of Captain Ratcliffe and other colonists by Powhatan Indians in 1609-10. Henry Spelman was one of the few men to survive the attack.
• A Plaine Description of the Barmudas, Now Called Sommer Ilands, by W.C. (1613). W.C.’s account includes a description of the shipwreck of Sir Thomas Gates’s ship on Bermuda, the resources and advantages of that colony, and additional supporting material written by residents of Bermuda.
• Good News from Virginia sent to the Counsell and Company of Virginia, resident in Virginia, Alexander Whitaker (1613). Alexander Whitaker was the Minister at Henrico Plantation, one of the larger plantations in Virginia. This document is his account of the state of affairs in Virginia. Whitaker wrote this document to counteract discouraging reports and rumors about the Colony.
• Letter of Don Diego de Molina (1613). Don Diego de Molina recounts his capture by the English in a letter to Don Alonzo de Velasco, the Spanish Ambassador in London. Molina also expresses concern about the potential growth of English colonies (especially Bermuda and Virginia). He notes the harsh conditions experienced by colonists at Jamestown and states his belief that it would be easy for the Spanish to capture the fort at Jamestown.
• Letter of Father Pierre Biard (1614). In this letter to the Reverend Father Claude Acquaviva, Father Pierre Biard details the 1613 capture of French Jesuits in New France by Englishmen from Virginia, his experiences while a prisoner, and his return to France.
• A True Discourse of the Present Estate of Virginia, Raphe Hamor (1614). Includes a description of the state of affairs in Virginia, settlements established in the colony, and the relationship between the colonists and the Indians up to 18th of June 1614. The document also contains a description of the christening of Powhatan’s daughter, Pocahontas, and her marriage to John Rolfe in the spring of 1614.
• John Rolfe’s Letter to Sir Thomas Dale (1614). John Rolfe explains his reasons for marrying Powhatan’s daughter, Pocahontas, in this letter to Sir Thomas Dale, the governor of Virginia.
• An Ordinance and Constitution of the Virginia Company in England for a Council (1621).
• Description of New England, John Smith (1616).
• John Smith’s Works: Volume 1. Includes “A Description of New England,” “New England’s Trials” (1620 and 1622), and the first part of “General History of Virginia.” Volume 2. Includes the remainder of “General History of Virginia,” plus “An Accidence for Young Seamen,” “The True Travels and Adventures of Captain Smith,” and “Advertisements for the Unexperienced Planters of New England.”
• John Pory’s Letter to Sir Dudley Carleton (1619). Describes life in Virginia, the commissioning of the ship the Treasurer to attack Spanish ships in the West Indies, and the state of agriculture in the colony.
• Proceedings of the Virginia Assembly (1619). These are the official records of the first elected Assembly to be held in Virginia in 1619. The Assembly consisted of two Burgesses from each of the colony’s four corporations and seven of the private plantations.
• Orders and Constitutions (1619, 1620). This document includes the laws governing the Virginia Company of London, the conduct of meetings and business, and the election of the governing body.
• A Declaration of the State of the Colonie and Affaires in Virginia, by His Majesty’s Council for Virginia (1620). This description of Virginia and its resources is an attempt by the members of the Council to counteract rumors of the colony’s unprofitability and barrenness.
• Comprehensive Laws of Virginia (1619).
• Pory to Carelton, from Jamestown (1619).
• Jamestown Laws.
• Works of Arminius. Arminius was a Dutchman who dared to challenge Luther and Calvin on the predestination issue. His writings led to a major controversy in Holland while the Pilgrims were residing there. Arminius’s views were adopted by Archbishop Laud of England, which greatly contributed to the English Calvinists’ desire to leave England in 1630.
• Canons of Dort (1619). The Synod at Dort in the Netherlands was called to respond to the views of the Arminians. Participating in this Synod moderated by Gomarus was the leader of the Pilgrims, as well as William Ames (the leading Puritan theologian of the day). As a result of this synod, the “five points of Calvinism” were developed. The “five points,” also called TULIP, became a centerpiece of Puritanism and were ardently defended by American Calvinists such as Jonathan Edwards. The conflict between Calvinists and Arminians was perhaps the most explosive debate in America in the early 18th century. On the Calvinist side, Americans such as Benjamin Franklin and Jonathan Edwards wrote philosophical defenses; on the Arminian side, John Wesley was the premiere mouthpiece. While Madison wrote in defense of Calvinism, Thomas Jefferson utterly repudiated it.
• Charter of New England (1620).
• Mayflower Compact (1620). The first political covenant of the New England migration.
• Of State and General Assembly (24 July 1621).
• Two Tragic Events: 1. The Seafight of Capt. Anthony Chester, 1621; 2. The Indian Massacre, 1622. This account describes a seafight between the William and Mary and two Spanish ships, the Indian Massacre of 1622, and the events that led up to the attack against the colonists.
• Of Plymouth Plantation (written 1630-1654; first published 1854). This is Governor William Bradford’s history of Plymouth, the most comprehensive primary source available on early Plymouth.
• Of Plymouth Plantation, William Bradford. An eyewitness history of the first English settlers of New England.
• Mourt’s Relation: A Journal of the Pilgrims at Plymouth (London, 1622). This journal, written by several Pilgrims — namely William Bradford and Edward Winslow — records events at Plymouth from the Mayflower’s arrival in November 1620 through the First Thanksgiving in October, 1621, and everything in between.
• The Sin and Danger of Self-Love (1621). There were no clergymen among the pilgrims at Plymouth when they first settled. This sermon was written and given by a layman, Robert Cushman, to the Plymouth congregation in December, 1621. Robert Cushman was a member of the Pilgrims church in Leyden, Holland, and came on (and returned in) the ship Fortune.
• Letters of the Plymouth Settlers.
• Last Wills and Testaments of the Settlers at Plymouth. We can tell a lot about a culture by looking at their wills.
• Pratt’s Memoir of the Wessagussett Plantation (1622/23).
• Richard Frethorne’s Letter to his Mother and Father, concerning the experiences of an indentured servant, by Richard Frethorne (1623). Richard Frethorne immigrated to Virginia as an indentured servant. In this letter, he describes his miserable experiences as an indentured servant and asks his parents send either money to buy out his indenture, or food to sustain him until his indenture ends.
• The Virginia Planters’ Answer to Captain Butler (1623). In this document, a group of Virginia planters refute the charges against the colony made by Captain Butler.
• Good Newes from New England (London, 1624). This book, authored by Edward Winslow, continues the journal in “Mourt’s Relation,” covering the years 1622 and 1623 at Plymouth.
• The Tragical Relation of the Virginia Assembly (1624). The members of the Virginia Assembly respond to Sir Thomas Smith’s attempts to discredit and bring about the dissolution of the Virginia Company of London.
• Of the Law of War and Peace, Hugo Grotius (1625). One of the first works on international law.
• The Discourse of the Old Company (1625). A Committee of the King’s Privy Council evaluates the Virginia Company and makes recommendations for the future of the Virginia Colony and the Virginia Company of London.
• Account of the Purchase of Manhattan (1626). The source of the $24 dollar legend.
• Richard Lowther Servant Indenture (1627). This document is an example of an indentured servant’s contract between Richard Lowther of Southill and Edward Hurd of London. Lowther contracted his labor to Hurd for four years in return for passage to Virginia and room and board while on Hurd’s plantation.
• The First Part of the Institutes of the Laws of England, Sir Edward Coke (1628). Written by a Puritan leader of Parliament, this document was almost the only textbook for lawyers (e.g., Jefferson) during the American Colonial Period. Coke’s influence over the minds of American politicians is inestimable. Clear traces between Coke and the U.S. Constitution are apparent in this work.
• The Petition of Right, Sir Edward Coke (1628). This document set forth complaints of the members of Parliament to King Charles I regarding rights of due process. Charles did not receive this complaint warmly. As a result, he shut down Parliament, which ultimately culminated in the English Civil War, and contributed to the exodus of 20,000 Puritans to New England.
• Protests of the House of Commons. Documents showing the growth of Parliament’s hatred for King Charles I, first complaining against his closet Catholicism, his Arminianism, and his presumptuousness in levying taxes without the consent of Parliament.
• The King Dissolves Parliament (1628).
• 

  John Winthrop (1588–1649), a wealthy English Puritan lawyer among the first wave of colonists to the New World in 1630. He served as governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony for twelve of the colony's first twenty years of existence. Painting by Charles Osgood (1809–1890, Salem, MA).

  Experiencia, John Winthrop. A Journal of Religious Experiences.
• The Library of John Winthrop’s Father. A catalogue of the books available for the Puritan Lawyer who founded Boston. The library was that of his father, John Winthrop, Harvard Hollisian Professor of Mathematics and Philosophy.
• Reasons for the Plantation in New England (circa 1628). This document states clearly and forcefully that the motivations of the Puritans who came to New England c. 1630 were fundamentally religious.
• Adventurers who founded the Massachusetts Bay Commonwealth (1628-1630).
• Savage’s Genealogical Dictionary of New England. This comprehensive source lists the entire families who lived in New England in the early 17th century.
• Savage’s Genealogical Dictionary (facsimile of the original).
• The Salem Covenant (1629).
• Charter of Massachusetts Bay (1629). This document sets forth the Puritans’ commission in New England.
• A Short and True Description of New England, by the Rev. Francis Higginson (1629).
• The Cambridge Agreement among the leaders of the settlement (1629).
• History of the First Settlements as told by Capt. John Smith, Admiral of New England (1629).
• The Constitution of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay (1629).
• The Works of William Ames.
• Medulla Theologica (The Marrow of Theology), William Ames (1629). The Medulla was the principal required textbook in the Ivy League in the American Colonial Period. One cannot adequately grasp the intellectual climate of New England without understanding the concepts in this book. The following two sections on the Decrees of God and Predestination highlight the central peculiarities of Puritan theology. Ames was unequivocal in stating that God controls the universe and that humans do not “change” or “determine” God’s behavior in any way.
• The Marrow of Theology, William Ames (1629). Excerpts.
• A Model of Christian Charity, by John Winthrop (1630). A sermon preached aboard one of the ships carrying the Puritans to New England.
• John Winthrop’s Letters.
• The Boston Covenant (1630).
• The Watertown Covenant (1630).
• The Humble Request of the Puritan emigrants (1630).
• The Oath of a Freeman, including a list of men who took this oath (1630–36).
• Advertisements to Planters of New England, by Capt. John Smith (1631).
• Letter to William Pond (1631).
• Dozens of Documents Pertaining to the Colony of Maryland.
• Manuscripts, Provincial Records, and Early Documents Pertaining to the Founders of Maryland.
• The Indictment of Galileo (1633). The height of the conflict between religion and science.
• The Glorious Work in Maryland, Andrew White, S.J. (1633).
• Account of a Maryland Jesuit (1634).
• Excerpts From Lion Gardiner’s Journal (1635).
• The Constitution of Plymouth Colony (1636).
• The Salem Covenant (1636).
• The Dedham Covenant (1636).
• A Modell of Christian Charity (1636). An account of his Christian experience by Boston Governor, John Winthrop.
• Works of John Cotton.
• Works of Thomas Hooker.
• John Cotton Condemns Democracy (1636).
• Transcript of The Trial of Anne Hutchinson (1636).
• Anne Hutchinson’s Trial (1636). Complete transcript.
• Records of the Maryland General Assembly (1637–1683).
• Revels in New Canaan, Thomas Morton (1637).
• Description of Indians, Thomas Morton (1637).
• Essay Against the Power of the Church to Sit in Judgement on the Civil Magistracy, John Winthrop, Esq. (1637). A treatise indicating an early desire among the Puritans to keep church and state separate.
• Officers of the Commonwealth from 1630 to 1686.
• Freemen of the Commonwealth. The complete rolls from 1630 to 1636.
• Sermons of Thomas Shephard.
• Residents of New Towne (later called Cambridge) from the original town Court records, 1632-1635, alphabetized.
• The Memoir of Capt. Roger Clapp (1609–1691). Events in Massachusetts Bay Colony to about the year 1640.
• Records of New Haven (1638–1649).
• The National Covenant (1639). Scotland’s declaration of resistance to Charles I.
• Fundamental Orders of Connecticut (1639). Acknowledged by scholars to be a prototype of the U.S. constitution.
• The New Hampshire Compact (1639).
• The Exeter Covenant (1639).
• Description of New England Indians, William Wood (1639).
• John Winthrop’s Journal, John Winthrop (excerpts). Valuable insights into the mind of the Puritan leader.
• Journal of John Winthrop.
• The Wicked Capitalism of Robert Keayne, John Winthrop (1639). A Boston merchant named Robert Keayne was squarely rebuked for profiteering by John Cotton and Governor Winthrop.
• A Brief Discourse Concerning the Power of Peers, John Selden (1640).
• The First Constitution of Rhode Island (1640). A document guaranteeing liberty of conscience.
• The Bay Psalm Book (1640). With an Introduction written by Richard Mather.
• New England’s First Fruits (c. 1640). The first written history regarding the founding of Harvard College.
• Records of the English Civil War.
• Tracts of the English Civil War. Including many other political writings the 17th-century Englishmen.
• Massachusetts Body of Liberties (1641.) Early written expression of the liberties asserted by the colonists in reaction to the oppression of European governments.
• The Citizen, Thomas Hobbes (1641–47). Discussion of the natural law foundations of government.
• Protestation (1641). An oath taken by British citizens loyal to the Puritan interests in Parliament.
• Act for the Attainder of the Earl of Strafford (1641).
• Act Against Dissolving Parliament Without its Own Consent (1641).
• Act Abolishing the Star Chamber (1641).
• Declaration to Justify Their Proceedings and Resolutions to Take Up Arms (1642). Thomas Jefferson, in his Autobiography,said that this Puritan “precedent” was an inspiration to the American cause.
• Massachusetts Bay School Laws (1642). Requiring that every father teach his children the Catechism; if not, the children shall be taken from the home.
• Extract from a manuscript collection of annals relative to Virginia, author unknown (1642). This extract relates the political maneuverings surrounding the Virginia colony’s successful attempt in 1639 to resist the reimposition of Company government instead of the prevailing royal government. The account is anonymous and undated.
• Harvard College Admission and Graduation Requirements (1642–1700).
• Jesuit Encounters with the Indians (1642–43).
• The Establishment of the United Colonies of New England (1643). The first attempt at a union of colonies, foreshadowing the United States. This document combines several colonies together for the primary purpose of national defense. This is the first document resembling a federal constitution in America.
• Religio Medici, Thomas Browne (1643). The title translates as “The Religion of a Physician.” The book shows the link between religion and Enlightenment science in the 17th century.
• The Bloody Tenet of Persecution for the Cause of Conscience, Roger Williams.
• A Plea for Religious Liberty, Roger Williams (1644). Early expression of the principle of religious tolerance by the founder of the colony of Rhode Island.
• The Solemn League and Covenant (1643–44). The document which allied the Scottish Presbyterians and the Puritans in their struggle against Charles I.
• Letter of Oliver Cromwell (1644).
• Works of Samuel Rutherford.
• Lex, Rex. This treatise (whose title means “the law is king”) systematized the Calvinistic political theories which had developed over the previous century. Rutherford was a colleague of John Locke’s parents. Most of Locke’s Second Treatise on Government is reflective of Lex, Rex. From Rutherford and other Commonwealthmen such as George Lawson, through Locke, these theorists provided the roots of the Declaration of Independence. This page provides the list of questions Lex, Rex addresses.
• Lex, Rex, Samuel Rutherford (1644). This excerpt shows Rutherford’s social contract theory and includes the Puritan theory of resistance to a tyrant.
• Areopagitica, John Milton (1644). A treatise arguing that true Christianity can win its own arguments, and does not need to worry about challenges from other points of view, and therefore, the Government should not prevent the publication of any ideas. This idea was later articulated by Locke in his Letter Concerning Toleration, and picked up by Madison and Jefferson in their establishment of religious liberty in the U.S.
• A Description of New Amsterdam, by Isaac Joques (1644).
• Description of the Iroquois, Rev. John Megapolensis (1644).
• Massachusetts Government VindicatedVindicated, John Winthrop (1644).
• On Liberty, John Winthrop (1645). Discusses liberties demanded by the colonists.
• Hypocricie Unmasked (London, 1646). This is a religious treatise written by Edward Winslow.
• The Character of a Puritan, John Geree (1646).
• The Westminster Confession of Faith (1646). In addition to being the decree of Parliament as the standard for Christian doctrine in the British Kingdom, it was adopted as the official statement of belief for the colonies of Massachusetts and Connecticut. Although slightly altered and called by different names, it was the creed of Congregationalist, Baptist, and Presbyterian churches throughout the English speaking world. Assent to the Westminster Confession was officially required at Harvard, Yale, and Princeton. Princeton scholar Benjamin Warfield wrote: “It was impossible for any body of Christians in the [English] Kingdoms to avoid attending to it.”
• The Westminster Catechism (1646). Second only to the Bible, the “Shorter Catechism” of the Westminster Confession was the most widely published piece of literature in the pre-revolutionary era in America. It is estimated that some five million copies were available in the colonies. With a total population of only four million people in America at the time of the Revolution, the number is staggering. The Westminster Catechism was not only a central part of the colonial educational curriculum, learning it was required by law. Each town employed an officer whose duty was to visit homes to hear the children recite the Catechism. The primary schoolbook for children, the New England Primer, included the Catechism. Daily recitations of it were required at these schools. Their curriculum included memorization of the Westminster Confession and the Westminster Larger Catechism. There was not a person at Independence Hall in 1776 who had not been exposed to it, and most of them had it spoon fed to them before they could walk.
• A Petition to Establish the Laws of England in America, by Robert Child (1646).
• A Moderate and Safe Expedient to Remove Jealousies and Fears, of Any Danger, or Prejudice to This State, by the Roman Catholicks of this Kingdome.
• New England’s Salamander Discovered (London, 1647). This is another religious treatise written by Edward Winslow.
• The Old Deluder Act (1647).
• The Simple Cobbler of Aggawamm in America, Nathaniel Ward (1647).
• An Agreement of the People (1647). A proposal for a republican government in England.
• The Laws of Massachusetts (1648).
• The Treaty of Westphalia (1648). An attempt at religious peace in Europe, concluding the Thirty Years War.
• Blue Laws, New Haven.
• The Original Indian Deed for East-Hampton (1648).
• A Description of the Province of New Albion, by Beauchamp Plantagenet (1648). A company of investors/planters sent Beauchamp Plantagenet to America to investigate lands for a new settlement. This account is his description of the area called New Albion, between Virginia and Maryland.
• A Voyage to Virginia, by Colonel Norwood (1649). Colonel Norwood was a Royalist who decided after the death of Charles I to immigrate to Virginia, where he had friends and relatives. This document describes his voyage to Virginia, in which he visited many different colonies and survived a massive storm which nearly wrecked his ship.
• The Cambridge Platform (1649).
• The Maryland Toleration Act (1649).
• A Law of Maryland Concerning Religion (1649).
• King Charles I’s Speech at His Trial (1649). Includes Judge Bradshaw’s response appealing to social contract theory.
• The Charges against King Charles I (1649).
• The Death Warrant for Charles.
• King Charles I’s Speech Just Before His Execution (1649).
• A Perfect Description of VIRGINIA, by John Farrer (?) or author unknown(1649). This account of Virginia was written in England from letters and accounts of colonists in order to emphasize the many excellent qualities of life in Virginia. The author provides this information in a convenient list format.
• A Voyage to Virginia, by Colonel Norwood (1649). Colonel Norwood was a Royalist who decided after the death of Charles I to immigrate to Virginia, where he had friends and relatives. This document describes his voyage to Virginia, in which he visited many different colonies and survived a massive storm which nearly wrecked his ship.
• Virginia Impartially examined, and left to publick view, to be considered by all Judicious and honest men, by William Bullock (1649). This account actively promotes the settlement of Virginia and Maryland, offering a road map of advice (despite the author’s never having been in Virginia) for how any and all potential settlers might best profit from the opportunities available in the colonies.
• Of the Non-Compelling of Heathens, Samuel Rutherford (1649). Exploring the extent to which a government can coerce religious conformity.
• An Agreement of the Free People of England (1649). The manifesto of the Levellers, the leaders of the 1649 English Civil War that deposed Charles I and brought a period of parliamentary rule. It expresses many of the ideals that later inspired the American Revolution.
• Act Abolishing the Kingship (1649).
• History of New England, John Winthrop (1649).
• The Tenure of Kings and Magistrates, by John Milton (1650). Defends the execution of Charles I by the British Parliament a few days after its occurrence. It includes an excellent evaluation and summation of the political literature produced on the Continent in the 16th Century. Charles I was the first monarch executed in Europe by his subjects, setting the stage for a religious struggle which would grip Britain for several decades to come. The language and spelling of this edition have been done directly from the 1650 edition.
• Works of John Milton.
• Leviathan, Thomas Hobbes (1651). Laid the basis for social contract theory, providing branching point for the theories of constitutionalism and fascism.
• Salem Residents. To the year 1651.
• The Gospel Covenant, Rev. Peter Bulkeley (1651).
• Sumptuary Laws in New England (1651). Laws regarding what one may and may not wear.
• The Deed Assignment to the Inhabitants of East-Hampton (1651).
• Navigation Act (1651).
• The Lord Baltimore’s Case, Concerning the Province of Avalon in Newfoundland, an Island in America (1651).
• Act to Settle Protestants in Ireland (1652). A major watershed that led to the Catholic-Protestant conflict which has ensued in Northern Ireland for hundreds of years.
• Works of John Owen. Teacher of John Locke.
• Letters and Speeches of Oliver Cromwell.
• The Instrument of Government (1653). The Constitution of the English Commonwealth under Oliver Cromwell. Many of the founders, such as Samuel Adams, considered Oliver Cromwell their hero, and considered the Commonwealth as the glory years of England.
• The Laws of Harvard College (1655).
• Healing Question, Sir Henry Vane (1656). ExpoundS the principles of civil and religious liberty, and proposes that method of forming a constitution, through a convention called for the purpose, which was actually followed in America after the Revolution.
• The Commonwealth of Oceana, James Harrington (1656). Outline of a plan for republican government.
• The Flushing Remonstrance (1657). Proclamation granting liberty to “Jews, Muslims, and Quakers” on Long Island, New York, on the grounds of New Testament graciousness. Extremely progressive for the American colonies.
• Records of the Town of East Hampton (1657). Includes the Goody Garlick witch trial.
• Forward to the Revision of the New Plymouth Laws (1658).
• A Treatise of Civil Power in Ecclesiastical Causes; Showing That it Is Not Lawful For Any Power on Earth to Compel in Matters of Religion, John Milton (1659). A formative influence upon the ideals of religious toleration adopted by John Locke, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison.
• The Declaration of Breda, King Charles II Stuart (1660). As the Stuart King was to be restored to the throne after the end of the reign of the Puritan Protectorate, one of his first decisions was to attempt to avoid another religious war, by granting religious liberty to “tender consciences,” so long as they did not disturb the peace.
• The Restoration of Charles II to the Throne of England, A Declaration of Both Houses of Parliament (1660).
• Excerpts from the Navigation Acts (1660–1696). The first Parliamentary legislation toward the colonies which would lead to the colonial rebellion of the eighteenth century.
• Institutes of Elenctic Theology [excerpt on predestination], Francis Turretin (1660). The principal textbook used by students in American colleges in the 18th century (used at Princeton into the late 19th century).
• Works of Turretin, Francis Turretin (1660).
• Narrative of the Pequot War, Lion Gardiner (1660).
• Narrative of the Pequot War, John Mason.
• The Status of Religion in Virginia (1661).
• Court Records Dealing with Runaway Slaves in Virginia.
• The Book of Common Prayer (1662). As the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell came to an end and Charles II was restored to the throne of England, the Church of England once again introduced a new Book of Common Prayer. This was the guiding document for many throughout the American colonies, particularly in Virginia.
• The Anglican Catechism (1662). The document which provided the religious training for many of the founding fathers of the U.S. (e.g., Washington, Madison, Henry, Wythe, Mason).
• Connecticut Colony Charter (1662).
• Deposition of Phineas Pratt (1662). Recounting the settlement at Plymouth.
• The Day of Doom and other Poems, Michael Wigglesworth (1662).
• Death Penalties in Maryland (1664).
• Fines and Punishments in Massachusetts (1664–1682).
• Witchcraft Trials in New York (1665).
• Colonial Laws of New York (beginning in 1664).
• A Description of Carolina, Robert Horne (1666).
• The Nicolls Patent (1666).
• Paradise Lost, John Milton (1667).
• Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina, John Locke (1669).
• Theologico-Political Treatise, Baruch de Spinoza (1670). Discussed the ultimate source of legitimate political power.
• Political Treatise, Baruch de Spinoza (1677). Constitutional considerations of various forms of government, including ideas that later influenced the Founders.
• Groton in Witchcraft Times, Samuel Green, ed. (c. 1671).
• De Jure Naturae et Gentium [On the Law of Nature and Nations], Samuel Pufendorf (1672, tr. Basil Kennett 1703). Bases law and right on natural law.
• The Whole Duty of Man According to the Law of Nature, Samuel Pufendorf (1673). The political theorist of choice among American Puritans in the early 18th century.
• Works of John Bunyan. According to Ben Franklin’s Autobiography, Bunyan was his “favorite author.”
• Quaker Documents I. A tremendous library of 17th and 18th century Quaker writings.
• Quaker Documents II.
• First Thanksgiving Proclamation (1676).
• A Compleat Body of Divinity, Samuel Willard. The primary textbook used at Harvard College.
• The New England Primer. The best-selling textbook used by children in the colonial period. Millions of copies were in print. Filled with Calvinist principles, the influence of this little document is inestimable.
• Memoir ... Dangers That Threaten Canada and the Means to Remedy Them (January, 1687).
• Bacon’s Declaration in the Name of the People (30 July 1676).
• On Bacon’s Rebellion, Governor William Berkely (19 May 1676).
• The Captivity of Mary Rowlandson (1676).
• Anne Bradstreet’s Poetry (1678).
• Poems for Her Husband, Anne Bradstreet (1678).
• Edward Taylor’s Poems.
• Habeas Corpus Act (1679). English Parliament established key right which was embraced in America.
• Findings of the New England Synod, a “Jeremiad” (1679).
• Patriarcha, Robert Filmer (1640; republished 1680). A treatise defending the “divine right of Kings.” This was the document which Locke and Sidney both had in mind as they wrote their political tracts which formed the American founders’ political theory. Although this was written around 1640 in defense of Charles I’s divine right, it was not published until 1680.
• Bill to Exclude the Duke of York (1680). Attempts by the Whig Party to keep James II off the throne.
• The Pueblo Revolt (1680).
• Proposals for the Carrying on the Negro’s Christianity, Morgan Goodwyn (1681).
• Plato Redivivus, Henry Neville (1681).
• Frame of Government of Pennsylvania, William Penn (1682). Early model for written constitutions.
• Some Fruits of Solitude in Reflections and Maxims, William Penn (1682).
• William Penn to His Family (1682).
• Petition for a Democratic Government (1682).
• A letter from the Chancellor of Maryland (1682).
• Condemnation of the Massachusetts Bay Company, Edward Randolph (12 June 1683).
• The Original Constitution of New York (1683).
• Algernon Sidney’s Speech before his Execution (1683).
• Records of the Maryland General Assembly (1684–1692).
• Causes of King Philip’s War, Edward Randolph (1685).
• Rules and Statutes at Harvard College (1686).
• Instructions to Sir Edmund Andros (1686).
• Charter of East Hampton (1686).
• Scottish Declaration of Toleration (1686).
• Commercial Orders to Governor Andros (1686–1687).
• Principia Mathematica Philosophiae Naturalis, Isaac Newton (1687). One of the three most significant influences upon Jefferson.
• James II Creates the Dominion of New England (April 7, 1688).
• Parliament Invites William of Orange to England (1688).
• Declaration of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal (1688). Parliament pledges its loyalty to William and Mary.
• Huntington Town Records (beginning 1688).
• Orders For Sending Sir Edmund Andros to England (1689).
• The King’s Oath (1689). Establishes the requirement that the monarch uphold “the Protestant reformed religion.”
• English Bill of Rights (1689). Early model for recognizing natural rights in writing. Much of its language appeared later in the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution.
• Works of John Locke.
• Second Treatise on Government, John Locke (1689). Principal proponent of the social contract theory which forms the basis for modern constitutional republican government.
• A Letter Concerning Toleration, John Locke (1689). Classic statement of the case for toleration of those holding different religious views.
• The Reasonableness of Christianity, John Locke.
• Toleration Act of William and Mary (1689).
• The Boston Uprising, Samuel Prince (1689).
• The London Baptist Confession of Faith (1689). Drawn from the Westminster Confession, this document set the beliefs of English Baptists during this era.
• The Address of the Representatives of Their Majestyes Protestant Subjects (August 26, 1689).
• The Re-Establishment of the Presbyterian Church in Scotland (1690).
• Journal of George Fox. Founder of the Quakers.
• Transcripts of the Salem Witch Trials (1692). This is one of the Web’s best and most complete primary source documents, containing all of the court records of the Salem Witch trials. An invaluable resource.
• Wonders of the Invisible World (excerpts), Cotton Mather (1693).
• Wonders of the Invisible World, Cotton Mather.
• Cases of Conscience Concerning Evil Spirits, Increase Mather (1693).
• The Character of a Good Ruler, Samuel Willard (1694).
• The Case of the Lord Baltimore (1696).
• Penn’s Plan for a Union (1697).
• Judge Samuel Sewall Repents His Participation in the Salem Witch Trials (1697).
• Memorable Providences, Relating to Witchcrafts and Possessions, Cotton Mather (1698).
• Discourses Concerning Government, Algernon Sidney (1698). Builds principles of popular government from the foundation of natural law and the social contract. This book has been considered by scholars the “textbook of the American Revolution.”
• The Story of Squanto, Cotton Mather (1698).
• The Execution of Hugh Stone, Cotton Mather (1698).
• An Account of West Jersey and Pennsylvania, Gabriel Thomas (1698).
• Fairfax Family Correspondence (1698).

Eighteenth Century Sources Which Profoundly Impacted American History

• One Hundred Documents Pertaining to Africans and Slavery in America. Massive collection of primary sources regarding slavery in America.
• The Selling of Joseph, Samuel Sewall (1700). An argument against the slave trade.
• His Excellency’s Speech to the Honourable General Assembly (April 26, 1700).
• The General Assembly’s Answer to His Excellency’s Speech (April 27, 1700).
• A Memorial Representing the Present State of Religion on the Continent of North America, Thomas Bray, D.D. (1700). Documents the Anglican view of the colonists, appended with a proposition to found the SPG (Society for Propagating the Gospel).
• King William Addresses Parliament on the French Question (31 December 1701).
• A Christian at His Calling, Cotton Mather (1701).
• Magnalia Christi Americana, Cotton Mather (1702).
• Lewis Morris letter to John Chamberlayne (1704).
• Robert Beverley on Bacon’s Rebellion (1704).
• Laws of Her Majesty’s Plantations (1704).
• Money and Trade Considered with a Proposal for Supplying the Nation with Money, by John Law (1705).
• Slave Laws in Virginia (1642–1705).
• The Repentance of a Salem Witchcraft Accuser, Ann Putnam (1706).
• Act of Union (1707). The document creating “Great Britain.”
• Philosophical Commentary, Pierre Bayle (1708). A writer recommended by Thomas Jefferson, Bayle criticizes French Catholic persecution of Protestants, and argues for toleration as a matter of Biblical principle.
• His Excellency’s Speech to the General Assembly (Nov. 29, 1708).
• The Assembly’s Answer to His Excellency’s Speech (Dec. 2, 1708).
• William Byrd’s Diary [excerpt] (1709).
• William Byrd’s Diary [excerpts regarding slave punishments] (1709).
• Theopolis Americana [God’s City: America], Cotton Mather (1709). This excerpt from Mather’s sermon shows how Mather, with other Puritans, believed that America was truly the “Promised Land.” This thinking led ultimately to the doctrine of Manifest Destiny.
• Awakening Truths Tending to Conversion, Increase Mather (1710). A sermon wrestling with the paradox between predestination and man’s effort toward salvation.
• About the Duties of Husbands and Wives, Benjamin Wadsworth (1712).
• Curriculum of the Boston Latin Grammar School (1712).
• The History of the Common Law of England, Matthew Hale (1713).
• Documents Concerning the Jacobite Rebellion.
• The North Carolina Biennial Act (1715).
• Vindication of the Government of New England Churches, John Wise (1717). A Puritan political sermon which included most of the principles of government embraced by the founders of the U.S.
• Works of Joseph Addison.
• Diary of Cotton Mather.
• The Angel of Bethesda, Cotton Mather. Here, Mather takes a position in favor of inoculation — a watershed in the history of medical science in America.
• Selections from Cato’s Letters, John Trenchard and Thomas Gordon (1720–23). English newspaper articles advocating Whig principles, which much influenced the American colonists.
• Constitution of the Iroquois Confederacy. A model for a federal system of government for several Native American nations.
• Statutes of the College of William and Mary (1727). The rules governing the college where Thomas Jefferson received his training.
• Massachusetts House of Representatives on the Governor’s Salary (11 September 1728).
• Governor Burnet of Massachusetts on the Governor’s Salary (17 September 1728).
• The Maryland Gazette (1728–1800).
• The Adopting Act of the Presbyterian Church.
• The Story of Venture Smith (1729–1809).
• Lord Baltimore’s Receipt Book (1729–1750).
• Plain Reasons for Presbyterians Dissenting from the Revolution, Andrew Clarkson (1731). Argues against unconditional submission to the National Church and magistrates.
• History of the Puritans, Daniel Neal (1731).
• Dissertation Upon Parties, Henry St. John Bolingbroke (1733). A heavy influence upon Jefferson.
• Documents Connected With the Early History of Georgia.
• Founding Vision for Georgia, General James Oglethorpe (1733).
• Negotiations Regarding the Settlement of the Georgia Colony, Count Zinzendorf (1733).
• Transcript of the Trial of Peter Zenger (1735).
• Letters on the Study and Use of History, Henry St. John Bolingbroke (1735).
• On Patriotism, Bolingbroke (1736).
• Governor Gabriel Johnston’s request to repeal the Biennial Act (18 October 1736).
• Letters and Papers Relating to the Provincial History of Pennsylvania.
• Disposition of the North Carolina Biennial Act (1737).
• The Idea of a Patriot King, Bolingbroke (1738).
• Discourse on the Five Points [of Calvinism], Daniel Whitby. The text which incited Jonathan Edwards to write his most important book, The Freedom of the Will.
• Works of John Gill, John Gill (1738). Defense of Calvinism by a celebrated English Calvinist.
• Intentions of the SPG [Society for the Propagation of the Gospel] (1740). The desire of this group to land an Anglican Bishop in the American colonies ignited the American Revolution.
• The True Scripture-Doctrine Concerning Some Important Points of the Christian Faith, Jonathan Dickinson (1741). Jonathan Dickinson was the first President of the College at Princeton, New Jersey. In this excerpt, Dickinson states that atheism is pure “stupidity” and “madness.” Dickinson’s opinion in this regard represented the consensus in America.
• The Works of Jonathan Edwards. Enlightenment philosopher, theologian, orator, and scientist, Edwards was the most important American-born Great Awakening preacher and defender of orthodox Calvinism.
• Sermons of George Whitefield. Known for his supreme oratory skills, Whitefield was the most famous inter-colonial celebrity during the Great Awakening. The inter-colonial nature of Whitefield’s ministry was an important step in the development of a sense of nationhood among the thirteen colonies.
• The Complete Works of John Wesley. An English preacher who visited America, Wesley developed the practice of itinerant preaching: out of doors, traveling long distances on horseback. Wesley was a strong opponent of the Calvinism that was prevalent here.
• The Works of John Wesley. Founder of Methodism.
• The Essential Rights and Liberties of Protestants, Elisha Williams (1744). A Boston minister who vigorously promoted liberty of conscience.
• Regulations at Yale College (1745). Showing the centrality of Calvinism and the Westminster Confession in colonial higher education.
• The Presence of Great God in the Assembly of Political Rulers, John Barnard (1746). An early warning against tyranny from one of Boston’s ministers.
• Narrative of the Deliverance of Briton Hammond (1747). An account of an African-American taken captive by Native Americans.
• The Principles of Natural Law, Jean-Jacques Burlamaqui (1748, tr. Thomas Nugent, 1752) This was the textbook on political theory used at Harvard. It was this book that gave James Otis, John Hancock, Samuel Adams, Joseph Warren, and John Adams their understanding of political science.
• The Principles of Politic Law, Jean-Jacques Burlamaqui (1748, tr. Thomas Nugent, 1752). Sequel to The Principles of Natural Law. Commentary on the ideas of Hugo Grotius, Thomas Hobbes, Samuel Pufendorf, Jean Barbeyrac, John Locke, Samuel Clarke, and Thomas Hutchinson.
• The Spirit of Laws, Charles de Montesquieu (1748, tr. Thomas Nugent, 1752). Laid the foundations for the theory of republican government, particularly the concepts of the separation of powers into legislative, executive, and judicial, a federal republic, representatives elected from political subdivisions, a bicameral legislature, and a system of checks and balances. Montesquieu was the most frequently cited political theorist during the founding of the U.S.
• An Inquiry into the Principles of Political Economy, James Steuart. Recommended by Jefferson as one of the best books on political science.
• History of Massachusetts Bay, Thomas Hutchinson. Excerpt regarding coinage.
• Remarks on the Fable of the Bees, Frances Hutcheson (1750).
• Indian Captivity Narrative, Mary Jemison (1750).
• A Discourse Concerning Unlimited Submission and Non-Resistance to the Higher Powers, Jonathan Mayhew (1750). About this document, John Adams wrote, “It was read by everybody; celebrated by friends, and abused by enemies... It spread an universal alarm against the authority of Parliament. It excited a general and just apprehension, that bishops, and dioceses, and churches, and priests, and tithes, were to be imposed on us by Parliament.” This sermon has been called the spark which ignited the American Revolution. This illustrates that the Revolution was not only about stamps and taxes, but also about religious liberty.
• Petition to Parliament: Reasons for Making Bar, as well as Pig or Sow-iron (c. 1750).
• Petition to Parliament: Reason Against a General Prohibition of the Iron Manufacture in Plantations.
• Memoir on the English Aggression (October 1750). Emphasizes the doctrine of predestination, which was the central controversy of the eighteenth century in the colonies. Colonists’ opinions were divided in this regard. Earlier in the century predestination was the majority view, but by the end of the century a belief in free will had become prevalent among many, such as Methodists.
• Memoir on the French Colonies in North America (December, 1750).

The Founding Era

• Adams, Franklin, and Madison: Accounts of Their Original Plans to be Christian Clergymen.
• THE INDEPENDENT REFLECTOR: William Livingston
  • No. XVIII. A Continuation of the Same Subject (March 29, 1753).
  • No. XIX. The Same Subject Continued (April 5, 1753).
  • No. XX. A Farther Prosecution of the Same Subject (April 12, 1753).
  • No. XXI. Remarks on the College, Continued (April 19, 1753).
  • No. XXII. The Same Subject Continued and Concluded (April 26, 1753).
• Of Party Divisions, William Livingston (1753).
• Patriotism.
• A Discourse on the Origin of Inequality, Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1754). Discussion on political inequality, its origins and implication.
• Advertisements of the Beginning of Tuition at King’s College, Samuel Johnson (1754).
• Complete Correspondence of Samuel Johnson.
• Objections to the Formation of King’s College (1754).
• A Discourse on Political Economy, Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1755). Discussion on the economic principles affecting the politics of a society.
• Dictionary, Samuel Johnson (1755). This was the standard dictionary of the late eighteenth century.
• The Value and Purpose of Princeton College, Samuel Davies and Gilbert Tennent (1754). An appeal to British citizens to support the seminary which became Princeton University.
• Religion and Patriotism the Constituents of a Good Soldier, Samuel Davies (1755). Davies, a Presbyterian preacher and president of the College at Princeton, here interprets the French and Indian war as a religious war. In this excerpt from a sermon preached in Virginia, Davies rouses the anti-Catholic sentiment of his hearers to rally them to arms against the French in the Ohio country.
• Jonathan Edwards to the Trustees of the College of New Jersey.
• Primary Sources Pertaining to the French and Indian War.
• Robertson’s History of Scotland.
• Poems by Jupiter Hammon (1760).
• The Social Contract, Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1762). Discusses legitimate government as the expression of the general will.
• The Statutes of King’s College (1763).
• The Curse of Cowardice, Samuel Davies (1758).
• Against the Writs of Assistance, James Otis (1761).
• The Role of the Indians in the Rivalry Between France, Spain, and England, Governor Glen (1761).
• Works, Lord Kames [Henry Home] (1762). Highly recommended by Jefferson, in this excerpt Kames discusses the problems with fiction.
• Preliminary Articles of Peace between England and France (1762).
• Treaty of Paris (1763). Ends the French and Indian War and gives the English control of all the land east of the Mississippi River.
• Acts of Parliament concerning the American Colonies
  • The Royal Proclamation of 1763. Forbade colonists from crossing the Appalachians.
  • The Currency Act, 1764.
  • The Sugar Act, 1764.
  • The Quartering Act, 1765.
  • The Stamp Act, 1765. Precipitated the “Stamp Act Crisis,” which fomented rebellion throughout the colonies.
  • The Declaratory Act, 1766. The English Parliament repealed the Stamp Act, but couldn’t leave well enough alone, and adopted this statement of parliamentary supremacy over the British colonies.
  • The Townshend Act, 1767.
  • The Tea Act, 1773.
  • The Administration of Justice Act, 1774.
  • The Boston Port Act, 1774.
  • The Massachusetts Government Act, 1774.
  • The Quebec Act, 1774.
  • The Quartering Act, 1774.
• The Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and Proved, James Otis (1764).
• John Jay vs. President Myles Cooper (1764).
• Laws of Maryland (1765).
• Blackstone’s Commentaries (1765). Considered the book that “lost the colonies” for England. This text delineates the legal principles of common law which ensure the fundamental rights of Englishmen. Blackstone was quoted by the colonists twice as often as Locke.
• Offenses Against God and Religion, William Blackstone (1765). Showing the common understanding that the integrity of the judicial system depends upon the participants’ belief in God.
• On Husband And Wife, William Blackstone (1765).
• Considerations, Daniel Dulany (October, 1765).
• The Objections to the Taxation Consider’d, Soame Jenyns (1765).
• Massachusetts Assembly to Governor Bernard (1765).
• The Resolutions of the Stamp Act Congress (October 19, 1765).
• The Declaration of Rights of the Stamp Act Congress (1765). Develops the concept that people could not legitimately be taxed except by their elected representatives.
• The Presbyterians Are at the Head of the Stamp Act Riots (1766). A letter from a stamp collector to London.
• William Pitt’s Speech on the Stamp Act (January 14, 1766).
• Letters of Horace Walpole.
• Examination of Benjamin Franklin in the House of Commons (1766).
• On Crimes and Punishments, Cesare Beccaria (1766). Sets out rights of the accused in criminal proceedings. Argues for crime prevention over punishment, and against the death penalty and torture.
• On the History of Civil Society, Adam Ferguson.
• John Dickinson’s Letters from a Farmer: Letter 2 (1767–1768).
• John Dickinson’s Letters from a Farmer: Letter 4 (1767–1768).
• On the Misfortune of Indentured Servants, Gottlieb Mittelberger.
• An Election Sermon, Daniel Shute. Delivered in Boston, Massachusetts-Bay (26 May 1768).
• Charter of Dartmouth College (1769).
• Virginia Nonimportation Resolutions (1769).
• Excerpts from Mary Cooper’s Diary (1769).
• Daniel Boone’s Journal.
• The Boston Massacre, The Boston Gazette (12 March 1770).
• Anonymous Account of the Boston Massacre (5 March 1770).
• Captain Thomas Preston’s account of the Boston Massacre (13 March 1770).
• The Hymnbook of Isaac Watts. After the Bible and the Catechism, this was the third most commonly used book in colonial New England.
• The Rights of the Colonists, Samuel Adams (1772). John Adams indicated that all the concepts which Jefferson later set forth in the Declaration of Independence were first introduced here.
• An Oration on the Beauties of Liberty, Reverend John Allen (1772).
• Manuscripts of the Earl of Darmouth. British Secretary of American Affairs.
• Oration Delivered at Boston, Joseph Warren (1772).
• Journal of John Woolman.
• An Election Sermon, Simeon Howard (1773). Demonstrates that an armed war against a tyrant is a Christian’s duty.
• The Sovereign Decrees of God, Isaac Backus (1773).
• Eyewitness Account of the Boston Tea Party, George Hewes (1773).
• Resolution of the Virginia House of Burgesses for Establishing an Intercolonial Committee of Correspondence (1773).
• Early Virginia Religious Petitions (1774–1802). Thomas Jefferson, a member of the Virginia Committee on Religion, was greatly impacted by these petitions in developing his thoughts about religious liberty.
• Boston Massacre Oration, John Hancock (1774).
• A Plea Before the Massachusetts Legislature, Isaac Backus (1774).
• Considerations on the Nature and Extent of the Legislative Authority of the British Parliament, James Wilson (1774).
• To the Inhabitants of the Several Anglo-American Colonies, William Livingston (1774).
• Sons of Liberty: The Presbyterian Junto (1774). A letter from New York.
• Declaration of Colonial Rights of the Continental Congress (1774). John Adams said that the Declaration of Independence was not much more than a recapitulation of this document.
• Resolves of the Continental Congress.
• First Prayer Given in the Continental Congress, Rev. Jacob Duche (1774).
• The Journal of Nicholas Cresswell (1774–1777). A loyalist.
• Diary and Letters of Governor Thomas Hutchinson.
• Journals of the Continental Congress, 34 Volumes. This invaluable collection of documents tells what took place in Philadelphia as the United States was being born.
• Resolution of the House of Burgesses in Virginia (1774). This resolution was inspired by similar resolutions made in the Puritan Revolution of 1641. The Burgesses resolved to commit their crisis to prayer and fasting.
• Sermon on Civil Liberty, Nathaniel Niles (1774). An example of how clergymen stoked the revolutionary spirit.
• The Olive Branch Petition (1774). This document is a last-ditch attempt to mend the tears between Britain and America, but George III never read it.
• A Plan for the Union of Great Britain and the Colonies, Joseph Galloway (1774).
• The Suffolk Resolves, Joseph Warren (1774).
• Phillis Wheatley to Samson Occom (1774).
• Papers of Henry Laurens. President of the Continental Congress.
• Facsimilies of Newspapers published during the era of the American Revolution.
• Authors Most Frequently Cited by the Founders.
• John Adams Discusses the Historic Sources Which Provided the Intellectual Foundations of American Political Theory.
• Documents of the Founding Fathers. This is the most comprehensive site online featuring the writings of the founding fathers.

Sermons Preached During the Founding Era

• Vindication of the Government of New England Churches, John Wise (1717; republished 1772).
• Government the Pillar of the Earth, Benjamin Colman (1730).
• Nineveh’s Repentence and Deliverance, Joseph Sewall (1740).
• The Essential Rights and Liberties of Protestants, Elisha Williams (1744).
• Britain’s Mercies, and Britain’s Duties, George Whitefield (1746).
• Civil Magistrates Must be Just, Ruling in the Fear of God, Charles Chauncy (1746).
• The Presence of Great God in the Assembly of Political Rulers, John Barnard (1746).
• A Discourse Concerning Unlimited Submission and Non-Resistance to the Higher Powers, Jonathan Mayhew (1750).
• The Mediatorial Kingdom and Glories of Jesus Christ, Samuel Davies (1756).
• Sermons by Samuel Davies, many heard and recited by Patrick Henry.
• The Presence of God With His People, Samuel Dunbar (1760).
• The Snare Broken, Jonathan Mayhew (1766).
• An Election Sermon, Daniel Shute (1768).
• An Humble Inquiry, John Joachim Zubly (1769).
• Oration Deliverd at Boston, Joseph Warren (1772).
• An Oration Upon the Beauties of Liberty, John Allen (1773).
• An Election Sermon, Simeon Howard (1773).
• An Appeal to the Public for Religious Liberty, Isaac Backus (1773).
• The Sovereign Decrees of God, Isaac Backus (1773).
• Scriptural Instructions to Civil Rulers, Samuel Sherwood (1774).
• Sermon on Civil Liberty, Nathaniel Niles (1774).
• Defensive War in a Just Cause Sinless, David Jones (1775).
• A Calm Address to our American Colonies, John Wesley (1775).
• A Constitutional Answer to Wesley's Calm Address, Anonymous (1775).
• America's Appeal to the Impartial World, Moses Mather (1775).
• The Church's Flight Into the Wilderness, Samuel Sherwood (1776).
• The Dominion of Providence Over the Passions of Men, John Witherspoon (1776).
• The Bible and the Sword, John Fletcher (1776).
• God Arising and Pleading His People's Cause, Abraham Keteltas (1777).
• Divine Judgments Upon Tyrants, Jacob Cushing (1778).
• Election Sermon, Phillips Payson (1778).
• A Sermon on the Day of the Commencement of the Constitution, Samuel Cooper (1780).
• A Sermon Preached at Lexington on the 19th of April [1781], Henry Cumings.
• A Dialogue Between the Devil, and George III, Tyrant of Britain, Anonymous (1782).
• The United States Elevated to Glory and Honor, Ezra Stiles (1783).
• Defensive Arms Vindicated, A Moderate Whig (Stephen Case?) (1783).
• A Sermon Preached on a Day of Thanksgiving, George Duffield (1784).
• A Sermon on Occasion of the Commencement of the New Hampshire Constitution, Samuel McClintock (1784).
• A Sermon Preached Before a Convention of the Episcopal Church, William Smith (1784).
• The Dangers of Our National Prosperity; and the Way to Avoid Them, Samuel Wales (1785).
• A Sermon on a Day Appointed for Publick Thanksgiving, Joseph Lathrop (1787).
• The Dignity of Man, Nathanael Emmons (1787).
• The Principles of Civil Union and Happiness Considered and Recommended, Elizur Goodrich (1787).
• The Republic of the Israelites an Example to the American States, Samuel Langdon (1788).
• A Century Sermon on the Glorious Revolution, Elhanan Winchester (1788).
• A Discourse on the Love of Our Country, Richard Price (1790).
• The African Slave Trade, James Dana (1791).
• A Sermon Delivered at the Annual Election, Israel Evans (1791).
• The Rights of Conscience Inalienable, John Leland (1791).
• A Sermon for the Day of General Election, David Tappan (1792).
• A Sermon Preached Before the Artillery Company, Peter Thacher (1793).
• A Sermon on the Anniversary of the Independence of America, Samuel Miller (1793).
• An Oration in Commemoration of the Independence of the United States of America, Enos Hitchcock (1793).
• The Necessity of the Belief of Christianity, Jonathan Edwards, Jr. (1794).
• The Wonderful Works of God are to be Remembered, David Osgood (1794).
• The Revolution in France, Noah Webster (1794).
• Manifestations of the Beneficence of Divine Providence Towards America, Bishop James Madison (1795).
• Sermon Before the General Court of New Hampshire at the Annual Election, Stephen Peabody (1797).
• A Discourse, Delivered at the Roman Catholic Church in Boston, John Thayer (1798).
• The Duty of Americans, at the Present Crisis, Timothy Dwight (1798).
• Four Discourses on the General First Principles of Deism, Samuel E. McCorkle, D.D. (1798).
• A Sermon Occasioned by the Death of Washington, Henry Holcombe (1800).
• On the Evils of a Weak Government, John Smalley (1800).
• The Voice of Warning to Christians, John Mitchell Mason (1800). A sermon endorsing John Adams for President.
• A Solemn Address to Christians and Patriots, Tunis Wortman (1800). A sermon endorsing Thomas Jefferson for President.

Works of Benjamin Franklin

• Benjamin Franklin’s Papers. The premiere site.
• The Writings of Benjamin Franklin. A site containing Franklin’s complete works.
• Religious Writings
  • Theodicy.
  • Franklin’s Doctrine.
  • Providence.
  • Franklin’s Articles of Belief.
  • Divine foreknowledge implies determinism.
  • Against Bishops in America.
  • Don’t Criticize Religion.
  • Humans are Spiritual Beings.
  • Franklin Requests Prayer at the Constitutional Convention.
• A Dissertation on Liberty and Necessity (1725). A little-known theological work in which Franklin makes a metaphysical argument for predestination and against free will. Franklin concludes that all things are ultimately good, because God is in total control and God is good.
• Franklin’s Advice Concerning His Friend’s Sexual Affairs (1745). Illustrates a side of Franklin’s character that is seldom exposed.
• Poor Richard’s Almanack
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1733).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1734).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1735).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1736).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1737).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1738).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1739).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1740).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1741).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1742).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1743).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1744).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1745).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1746).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack (1747).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack Improved (1748).
  • Poor Richard’s Almanack Improved (1752).
• Observations and Suppositions Towards Forming a New Hypothesis for Explaining the Several Phenomena of Thunder Gusts (1749). The insights that led to Franklin’s famous Kite experimentation, which, in turn, gave Franklin his international reputation, which mattered greatly as the U.S. was being born.
• Observations on the Increase of Mankind, Peopling of Countries, & Etc. (1751).
• Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.
• Albany Plan for a Union (1754). Franklin’s first attempt to unite the States.
• In Defense of a Plan for Colonial Union (1754). Arguments in favor of the Albany Plan of Union, which was rejected as too democratic.
• How I Became a Printer in Philadelphia.
• Franklin’s Motion for Prayer at the Constitutional Convention.
• Franklin’s Advice to Paine about Publishing against Religion. In this letter, Franklin advises Paine to burn his manuscript because it undermines religious ideals.
• Franklin’s Tentative Approval of the Constitution.
• Franklin’s last Letter to Ezra Stiles. Details Franklin’s religious opinions.
• Ben Franklin’s Will.

Works of Sam Adams

• Writings of Samuel Adams. One of the most thorough internet sites of its kind, including numerous letters and newspaper articles.

Works of George Washington

• Prayer Journal. used by Washington.
• Papers of George Washington, Library of Congress. This is the most comprehensive source on the web for documents authored by George Washington.
• Papers of George Washington, Jared Sparks Edition.
• Letters to George Washington, Jared Sparks.
• Rules for Civility (1744).
• Journal (1754).
• Braddock’s Defeat (1755).
• Religious Oath Taken by Washington (1762).
• Letter to Presbyterians.
• Letter to State Governments.
• General Orders (July 2, 1776).
• Letter to John Hancock (September 24, 1776).
• The Battle of Trenton (1776).
• George Washington Attended Communion.
• Testimony about George Washington Praying at Valley Forge (1778).
• Letter to George Chapman (December 15, 1784). On the importance of education.
• Letter to Robert Morris (April 12, 1786). On the abolition of slavery.
• Letter to the President of the Continental Congress (September 17, 1787). On the Union, the New Constitution, and preserving our liberty.
• Fragments from the Drafts of the First Inaugural Address (1789).
• Letter to the General Assembly of Presbyterian Churches (May, 1789). Heaven as a source of all our blessings.
• Letter to the United Baptist Churches in Virginia (May 10, 1789). Religious freedom.
• First Annual Message (January 8, 1790). Order of business for a young Union.
• Letter to the Vice President (November 15, 1794).
• Letter to the Commissioners of the District of Columbia (January 28, 1795). On education and establishment of a university.
• Farewell Address (September 19, 1796). Public opinion should be enlightened.
• Letter to Lewis Nicola (May 22, 1782). On the incompatibility of a monarch and a free regime.
• Speech to the Officers of the Army at Newburgh (March 15, 1783).
• Letter to Henry Knox (December 26, 1786).
• Washington’s Inauguration as conveyed by eyewitnesses, by Rufus Wilmot Griswold (1854).
• First Inaugural Address (April 30, 1789). On the poor effect of the laws under the articles of confederation and the ordained course of nature.
• National Day of Thanksgiving (October 3, 1789).
• Letter to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport (August 18, 1790). On what is a just and good government.
• Address from the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, Rhode Island to George Washington (August 17, 1790).
• Last Will and Testament.
• Address to the Members of the Volunteer Association and Other Inhabitants... (December 2, 1783).
• Washington’s Diaries.
• Proclamation of Neutrality (1793).
• The Diary of George Washington (30 September–19 October 1794).
• Papers of George Washington, Yale Library.
• George Washington’s Religion.
• Washington’s Record as a Church Vestryman (also via Google Books).
• Washington’s Nephew Witnesses his Morning Devotions (also via Google Books.
• Last Will And Testament of George Washington (1799).
• Several Obituaries of George Washington.
• George Washington’s Adopted Daughter Discusses Washington’s Religious Character. Nelly Custis lived with the Washingtons at Mt. Vernon for twenty years (1779–1799). As a daily observer of his life, she was qualified perhaps more than anyone else to assess George Washington’s religion.
• Mason Weems’s Biography of George Washington (1800). The classic source for most of the greatest stories about George Washington, including the “cherry tree” story.
• Life of George Washington, Washington Irving.

Works of John Adams

• The Papers of John Adams. This is the best source of material written by John Adams that is available on the web.
• The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations, by Charles Francis Adams
  • Volume 1.
  • Volume 2.
  • Volume 3.
  • Volume 4.
  • Volume 5.
  • Volume 6.
  • Volume 7.
  • Volume 8.
  • Volume 9.
  • Volume 10.
• Diary of John Adams. Excerpts illustrating Adams’s sentiments regarding religion.
• Liberty of Conscience Traced to Back Calvin’s Geneva (1776).
• Correspondence between John and Abigail Adams (March–April, 1776). On nature and liberty.
• “Discourse on Davila—XV,” (1776). Contrast of natural equality and inequalities.
• “Thoughts on Government” (1776). On republican government.
• A Dissertation on the Canon and Feudal Law. On man’s standing in the order of creation.
• Appendix to the Defence of the Constitutions (1787). On the good effects of local institutions.
• Message to the Senate on the Death of George Washington (December 23, 1799).
• Letter to Evans (June 8, 1819). The founding’s opposition to slavery.
• Letter to H. Niles (February 13, 1818). On the Revolution as a revolution of ideas and principles.
• Letter to James Sullivan (May 26, 1776). On women and voting rights.
• Letter to Zabdiel Adams (June 21, 1776). On reason, honor, and love of liberty.
• Letter to Abigail Adams (July 3, 1776).
• Correspondence with Abigail.
• Novanglus.
• A Defence of the Constitutions of the United States of America.
• Defense of the American Constitutions. An important excerpt in which Adams recommends various writings of Protestant political theorists.
• John Adams’s Inaugural Address (1797).
• The Constitution is Inadequate to Govern Atheists (1798).
• Letters to Benjamin Rush and Samuel Miller. Illustrates Adams’s hatred for Thomas Paine and his admiration for Calvinists.
• American Independence Achieved Upon the Principles of Christianity (1813).
• Letter to Timothy Pickering (August 6, 1822). Details Adams’s recollection of the production of the Declaration of Independence. According to Adams, the substance of the Declaration is contained in the Declaration of Colonial Rights of the Continental Congress, and in The Rights of the Colonists, written before the first Congress met, by Samuel Adams.

Works of Thomas Jefferson

• Papers of Thomas Jefferson. This is the best site online that contains documents authored by Thomas Jefferson.
• Principal Works
  • Autobiography.
  • Notes on the State of Virginia.
  • Jefferson’s draft of the Declaration of Independence.
  • Declaration of Independence (4 July 1776).
  • Jefferson’s Bible.
  • Jefferson’s Manual For Parliamentary Procedure.
  • Draft for a Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom (1779).
  • Letter to the Danbury Baptists (1802). Source of the phrase “wall of separation between church and state.”
• Annual and Special messages to Congress
  • First Annual Message to Congress.
  • Second Annual Message to Congress.
  • Third Annual Message to Congress.
  • Fourth Annual Message to Congress.
  • Fifth Annual Message to Congress.
  • Sixth Annual Message to Congress.
  • Seventh Annual Message to Congress.
  • Eighth Annual Message to Congress.
  • Special Message on the Burr Conspiracy.
  • Special Message on Gun-Boats.
• Inaugural Addresses
  • First Inaugural Address (1801).
  • Second Inaugural Address (1805).
• Messages to Congress
  • Message to the Senate of April 8, 1802, Regarding Article 6 of the Jay Treaty.
  • Message to the House of December 30, 1802, Transmitting a letter from Manuel de Salcedo, Governor of Louisiana to William Claiborne Regarding the Treaty with Spain of 1795.
  • Message to the Senate of January 11, 1803, Regarding Louisiana.
  • Message to the Senate of October 17, 1803, Regarding the Louisiana Purchase.
  • Message to the Senate and House of October 21, 1803, Regarding the Louisiana Purchase.
  • Message to the Senate and House of January 16, 1804, Regarding the Louisiana Purchase.
• Indian Addresses
  • To the Brothers of the Choctaw Nation.
  • To Brother Handsome Lake.
  • To Brother John Baptist de Coigne.
  • To the Chiefs of the Cherokee Nation.
  • To the Wolf and People of the Mandan Nation.
• Miscellaneous Papers
  • Draft Constitution for Virginia.
  • Draft Declaration and Protest of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
  • Draft on an Amendment to the Constitution (1803).
  • Draft of the Kentucky Resolutions
  • Kentucky Resolution (1799).
  • From the Minutes of the Board of Visitors, University of Virginia (1822–1825).
  • Observations on the Whale Fishery.
  • Opinion on the Constitutionality of a National Bank.
  • Opinion on the French Treaties.
  • Plan for Establishing Uniformity in the Coinage, Weights, and Measures of the United States.
  • Report on the Privileges and Restrictions on the Commerce of the United States in Foreign Countries.
  • Report on Government for Western Territory.
  • Resolutions of Congress on Lord North’s Conciliatory Proposal.
  • A Summary View of The Rights of British America.
• Letters
  • Letters of Thomas Jefferson (alphabetical list).
  • Letter to Mr. Hammond (annexed to the Jay Treaty).
  • Jefferson’s Letters.
  • Letters to Cabell Concerning the University of Virginia.

Works of James Madison

• Works of James Madison. Probably the best such source available online at this time.
• Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787, James Madison. These are the proceedings of the Constitutional Convention held in Philadelphia — an essential guide to interpreting the intent of the Framers.
• James Madison, First Inaugural (1809).
• James Madison, Second Inaugural (1813).
• The Federalist Papers, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay (1787–88). Arguments for ratification of the proposed Constitution.
• Memorial and Remonstrance (Virginia, 1785).
• James Madison, speech proposing the Bill of Rights (June 8, 1789).
• Detached Memoranda (after 1817). Details Madison’s views of the importance of no religious establishments.
• Letter to F.L. Schaeffer (1821). Madison credits Martin Luther with leading the way for the appropriate distinction between church and state.

Works of Alexander Hamilton

• The Works of Alexander Hamilton in Twelve Volumes, Second Edition, edited by Henry Cabot Lodge, Volume One.
• Volume Two.
• Volume Three.
• Volume Four.
• Volume Five.
• Volume Six.
• Volume Seven.
• Volume Eight.
• Volume Nine.
• Volume Ten.
• Volume Eleven.
• Volume Twelve.

The Works of Thomas Paine

• The Works of Thomas Paine.
• The American Crisis (1776–1783).
• Common Sense (1776)
• African Slavery in America (1775).
• The Age of Reason (1795).
• The Age of Reason, Part 1. Paine argues the absurdity of the word of God’s existing in print. As a Deist, Paine believed that the true word of God is nature.
• The Age of Reason, Part 2. Paine argues that neither the Old nor the New Testament can be the word of God.
• Agrarian Justice.
• Answer to Bishop LLandaff. Publication of The Age of Reason generated a storm of controversy. One of Paine’s critics was Bishop Llandaff, who published a detailed rebuttal. This is Paine’s reply.
• Biblical Blasphemy.
• An Essay on Dream (1807).
• Examination of the Prophecies (1807).
• The Existence of God.
• Letter to Andrew Dean (1806). Thomas Paine on death and Christianity.
• Letters Concerning The Age of Reason (1797–1803). Paine’s correspondence concerning The Age of Reason. Includes correspondence with Samuel Adams.
• Of the Religion of Deism Compared with the Christian Religion. In this hard-hitting article, Paine argues that Deism is superior to Christianity.
• Origin of Free-Masonry (1818).
• Predestination.
• Prospect Papers (1804).
• Rights of Man (1792).
• Worship and Church Bells (1797).

Works of Fisher Ames

• Works of Fisher Ames.

American Revolution Military Documents

• First-hand Account of the Midnight Ride, Paul Revere (1775).
• The Royal Proclamation of Rebellion (1775).
• Diary of the American Revolution. A massive collection of primary sources compiled by Frank Moore.
• Diary of the American Revolution, Volume Two.
• Military Records of the American Revolution.
• Espionage Documents of the American Revolution.
• New Materials for the History of the American Revolution.
• Daniel Morgan’s Autobiography.
• The Battle of Bunker Hill, Major-General Sir John Burgoyne to Lord Stanley (June, 1775).
• The Battle of Bunker Hill, Lieutenant J. Waller, First Royal Marine Battalion, to His Brother, Camp of Charlestown Heights (22 June 1775).
• The Battle of Trenton, George Washington (1776).
• The Recruiting Service, Captain Alexander Graydon (1776).
• Army Life, Captain Georg Pausch (8 September 1776).
• Yankee Doodle. The anthem of the Continental Army.
• Journal of Elias Cornelius.
• Christopher Vail’s Journal (1775–1782).
• Nathan Hale’s Execution (1776).
• The Battle of Saratoga, Hessian Account (1777).
• Letters from the Hessians at Saratoga.
• Saratoga, Major-General Burgoyne to his nieces (Albany, 20 October 1777).
• From the Diary of a Surgeon at Valley Forge, Albigence Waldo (1777).
• Letters from Valley Forge (1778).
• Maryland Loyalist Documents.
• Sabine’s Loyalists. The principal source for loyalist biography.
• Letters of James Murray, Loyalist.
• Alliance with France (1778).
• Papers of General Nathaniel Greene.
• Treaties With France.
• Comments on Hessian Troops, Lieutenant W. Hale (Philadelphia, 23 March 1778).
• Monmouth Court House, Lieutenant Hale (4 July 1778).
• Treaty with the Delawares (1778).
• Benedict Arnold’s Letters (1775–1780).
• Washington’s Headquarters, François Jean, Marquis de Chastellux (1780).
• Documentary History of The Revolution in South Carolina, Letters and Documents (1780–82).
• The Norfolk Chronicle (Saturday, February 17, 1781).
• The Surrender of Cornwalis (1781).
• From the Diary of Ebenezer Denny (1781). Describes the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown.
• Contract Between the King and the Thirteen United States of North America, signed at Versailles July 16, 1782.
• Preliminary Articles of Peace, U.S. and Great Britain (30 November 1782).
• Declarations for Suspension of Arms and Cessation of Hostilities, Signed at Versailles January 20, 1783.
• Journal, John Paul Jones. Naval Hero.
• Treaty of Paris (1783).
• George III Laments the Loss of the Colonies.
• History of New York During the Revolution, Thomas Jones (loyalist).
• General History of Connecticut, Samuel Peters (loyalist).
• History of the American Revolution, David Ramsay (1789). The first complete treatment of the American Revolution by an eyewitness.
• History of the Rise, Progress, and Termination of the American Revolution, Mercy Otis Warren (1804). Full-length, eyewitness account of the American Revolution by a relative of James Otis and Joseph Warren.

Miscellaneous

• Letters of the Founding Fathers. The most comprehensive source for letters written by the members of the Continental Congress.
• American Archives. Peter Force’s massive collection of primary source documents from the American Revolution.
• The Diary of Ezra Stiles, Volume One.
• The Diary of Ezra Stiles, Volume Two.
• Letters of Episcopal Ministers of Massachusetts.
• Letters of Episcopal Ministers, showing their loyalty to Britain.
• Sermons Preached During the Revolutionary Period. An online collection of dozens of sermons that fueled the American Revolution.
• The American Revolution in New Jersey. An abundance of primary sources.
• The American Revolution in New York. An exhibit of primary material.
• Speech of Governor William Franklin of New Jersey (1775). Loyalist son of Benjamin Franklin.
• Letters of a Westchester Farmer, Rev. Samuel Seabury (1775). Loyalist perspective.
• The Farmer Refuted, Alexander Hamilton (1775). In this defense of the American cause in response to an Anglican minister’s criticism of the revolution, Hamilton states that laws, rights, and political principles are all based in the existence and law of God.
• A Candid Examination, Joseph Galloway (1775).
• John Newton Criticizing Arminians (1775). A letter from the author of “Amazing Grace,” claiming that repentance is the key to atonement.
• Daniel Leonard’s Letter of January 9, 1775.
• Defensive War in a Just Cause Sinless, David Jones (1775). Sermon justifying the revolution.
• Speech on Conciliation with America, Edmund Burke (March 22, 1775). Burke describes the character of the American colonists and links their commitment to liberty to their Protestantism.
• Cousin America has Eloped with a Presbyterian Parson, Horace Walpole (1775).
• Government Corrupted by Vice, and Recovered by Righteousness, Samuel Langdon (May 31, 1775). This sermon, preached a year before Jefferson wrote his declaration, includes this phrase: “By the law of nature, any body of people, destitute of order and government, may form themselves into a civil society, according to their best prudence, and so provide for their common safety and advantage.”
• On Civil Liberty, Passive Obedience, and Nonresistance, Jonathan Boucher (1775).
• A Calm Address to our American Colonies, John Wesley (1775).
• The American Vine, Jacob Duche (1775).
• The Charlotte Town Resolves (1775). Resolutions of Presbyterians of Mecklenberg, North Carolina.
• Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death, Patrick Henry (1775). Famous oration which motivated Southerners to join in the battle already taking place in New England.
• Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking up Arms, Jefferson and Dickinson (July 6, 1775). This document was inspired by the Puritan Declaration of August, 1642, “Declaration of the Lords and Commons to Justify Their Taking Up Arms,” available in John Rushworth, ed., Historical Collections of Private Passages of State, Weighty Matters in Law, Remarkable Proceedings in Five Parliaments (1680–1722), vol. 4, pp. 761–768.
• The Church’s Flight into the Wilderness, Samuel Sherwood (January 17, 1776). A sermon that labels British tyranny Satanic.
• The Virginia Declaration of Rights, George Mason (1776). Unquestionably, a document which Jefferson had in mind when writing the Declaration of Independence.
• Concord Town Resolutions (1776).
• Sources of the Declaration of Independence (1776). Documents that prove Jefferson modeled the Declaration largely upon the 1689 Declaration of Rights.
• The Dominion of Providence Over the Passions of Men, John Witherspoon (May, 1776). This sermon was preached by a member of the Second Continental Congress during the period in which the members were deciding upon American Independence.
• The Declaration of Independence (1776). According to recent scholarship, this document was modeled after the Dutch Calvinist Declaration of Independence. In other words, this statement of basic principles was simply a restatement of what Protestant political theorists and preachers had been saying for some time.
• This Has Been a Presbyterian War from the Beginning, William Jones (1776). An Address to the British Government.
• Reflections on the Mood at the time of the Signing, Benjamin Rush.
• State Constitutions. A collection of the constitutions of each colony.
• Religious Clauses of State Constitutions. Demonstrate that most states had establishments of religion.
• On the Right to Rebel against Governors, Samuel West (1776).
• The True Interest of America Impartially Stated, Charles Inglis (1776). A statement by an American loyal to the King.
• History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Edward Gibbon (1776).
• Political Works of Richard Price.
• Papers of Charles Lee.
• Letters of Charles Lee.
• Letters Pertaining to Aaron Burr.
• The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith (1776). The manual for capitalism, the economic backbone of the United States. Jefferson said this was the best book of its kind.
• The American Journal of Ambrose Serle, Secretary to Lord Howe (1776).
• The Philosophical Works of David Hume.
• The Plain Truth, James Chalmers (Candidus) (1777).
• Divine Judgements Upon Tyrants, Jacob Cushing (April 20, 1778). A sermon on the third anniversary of the war.
• Election Sermon, Phillips Payson (1778).
• Journal of Loyalist Louisa Susannah Wells.
• Journal of Loyalist Samuel Rowland Fisher.
• Defensive Arms Vindicated (1779). A sermon vindicating the activity of General George Washington.
• A Sermon on the Day of the Commencement of the Constitution, Samuel Cooper (1780).
• Correspondence of Edward Winslow (1780–1789).
• U.S. Articles of Confederation. The first Constitution of the United States.
• The Origins and Progress of the American Revolution, Peter Oliver (1781). Oliver, a Tory, names the persons he feels are most responsible for the rebellion. James Otis and the Calvinist clergy ("black regiment") were the chief culprits.
• United States Articles of Confederation (1781).
• Annuit Coeptis (1782). The religious motto for the U.S.A. that was approved by the founding fathers.
• Letters from an American Farmer, Crèvecoeur (1782).
• General History of Connecticut, Samuel Peters, loyalist (1782).
• History of New York During the Revolutionary War, Thomas Jones, loyalist.
• Reed–Cadwalader Correspondence.
• Essay on Money, John Witherspoon. Presbyterian theologian and president of Princeton University.
• Reason: the Only Oracle of Man, Ethan Allen (1784). Revolutionary War hero and Deist.
• Charter of Columbia College (1784).
• Sketches of American Policy, Noah Webster (1785).
• Memorial and Remonstrance, James Madison (1785). Championing the principle of religious liberty.
• Land Ordinance of 1785, Thomas Jefferson. Detailing the manner in which the Northwest Territory shall be partitioned and sold.
• The Annapolis Convention (1786). Prelude to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.
• The Federalist Papers. Madison, Jay, and Hamilton’s defense of federalism.
• Diary and Letters of Gouverneur Morris. Author of the U.S. Constitution.
• Letters of Elbridge Gerry.
• Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787, James Madison. These are the proceedings of the Constitutional Convention held in Philadelphia — an essential guide to interpreting the intent of the Framers.
• Denominational Affiliations of the Framers of the Constitution. This chart shows that — contrary to the myth — only three out of the 55 Framers classified themselves as Deists.
• Records of the Constitutional Convention (Farrand’s Records).
• United States Constitution (1787).
• Elliot’s Debates in the Several State Conventions on the Adoption of the Federal Constitution.
• Northwest Ordinance (1787). Detailing the manner in which new states may be added to the United States.
• Shay’s Rebellion (1787).
• Laws of Maryland (1787).
• Letter from Boston (1788).
• Slave Trade and the Middle Passage, Alexander Falconbridge (1788).
• History of the American Revolution, David Ramsay (1789). The first complete treatment of the American Revolution by an eyewitness.
• The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano (1789). A slave’s autobiography.
• Debates in the First Federal Congress Regarding a Religious Amendment to the Constitution, edited by Jim Allison (1789). An important source for understanding the intention of the Framers concerning religious liberty. Mr. Allison has collected together the debates in the House and the Senate on this most important subject.
• Federal Statutes.
• Federal Legislative Documents.
• Records of the First Sixteen Federal Congresses.
• Writings of John Leland. Champion of religious disestablishment. Friend and influence upon James Madison.
• Of the Natural Rights of Individuals, James Wilson (1790–91).
• On the Equality of the Sexes, Judith Sargent Murray (1790).
• Bill of Rights and the Amendments to the Constitution (1791). The concession to the Anti-Federalists to win their acceptance of the Constitution.
• The Funeral of Arminianism, William Huntington (1791).
• Fugitive Slave Law of 1793.
• Greenville Treaty with a number of Indian Tribes (1795).
• Enquiry Concerning Political Justice, William Godwin (1793). Part of Jefferson’s library of political works.
• William Godwin’s Works.
• Treaty of Tripoli (1795).
• Washington’s Farewell Address.
• The Sedition Act (1798).
• On the Mode of Education Proper in a Republic, Benjamin Rush (1798). Rush, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, emphasizes the religious foundation and goal of all education.
• Four Discourses on the General First Principles of Deism, Samuel E. McCorkle, D. D. (1798). The biggest intellectual controversy of the 1790s was called the “deist controversy.” On the one side were the followers of Thomas Paine; on the other side were orthodox Christians as represented here by the Rev. McCorkle.
• The Kentucky Resolutions (1799).
• Obituaries of George Washington.

 

This library is maintained by Dr. Richard Gardiner, Director of History Education, Columbus State University

The providers of the resources on this page encourage you to view and download these documents for personal use. Most of these texts are so old that they are unquestionably in the public domain. In a few cases, however, they may be copyrighted. When in doubt about republication rights, please consult the webmaster of the page you are interested in republishing.

Links Updated: August 2, 2015

Last Updated: September 18, 2018