Key Takeaways
- A volunteer at Britain’s National Archives uncovered a rare early copy of the Declaration of Independence hidden in an 18th‑century Royal Navy captain’s letters.
- The document is an Exeter printing from July 16‑19, 1776, one of only eleven known copies and the sole example found outside the United States.
- It was captured aboard the American privateer Dalton and likely read aloud to the crew to explain why they were fighting for independence.
- The Dalton’s crew endured harsh imprisonment after being seized by HMS Raisonnable off Portugal, yet many survived, leaving personal accounts of their ordeal.
- Historians in the United States celebrate the find as a tangible link to the Revolutionary War’s maritime dimension and a reminder that many secrets of the era remain undiscovered.
Background of Michael Scurr and the Discovery
Michael Scurr, a retired insurance executive, has spent the past eleven years volunteering every Thursday morning at Britain’s National Archives, meticulously cataloguing documents for future researchers. In May of last year, while sifting through the correspondence of an 18th‑century Royal Navy captain, he noticed an enclosure labelled merely “another paper” attached to a report on the capture of the American privateer Dalton on Christmas Eve 1776. Curiosity prompted him to unfold the fragile sheet, and the bold printed word “Declaration” at the top immediately caught his eye. Scurr recalled thinking, “Oh, right, OK, this is definitely a Declaration of Independence,” and described the moment as thrilling. His volunteer diligence turned a routine archival task into a historic breakthrough that would soon attract international attention.
Identification of the Document
After Scurr’s chance finding, National Archives specialists examined the paper and confirmed it as a rare early copy of the Declaration of Independence. The document is an Exeter printing, produced in Exeter, New Hampshire, between July 16 and July 19, 1776—just days after the original parchment was signed on July 4. Researchers noted that only eleven copies of this particular Exeter edition are known to survive, making each one a precious artifact of the nation’s founding. Importantly, this copy is the sole identified example located outside the United States, underscoring its transatlantic significance. The Archives announced the discovery ahead of the 250th anniversary of American independence, highlighting both its age and its unique provenance.
Historical Significance of the Exeter Printing
The Exeter printing holds particular historical value because it represents one of the earliest dissemin‑ations of the Declaration to a broader audience. Printed in New Hampshire shortly after the Continental Congress adopted the text, it, the Exeter version helped spread the revolutionary ideals across the colonies and beyond. Its survival outside America suggests that copies were carried abroad—perhaps by diplomats, merchants, or, as in this case, by naval vessels—serving as a tangible proclamation of the new nation’s break from Britain. The fact that this copy survived the perils of sea travel and wartime capture adds to its rarity, offering scholars a concrete link between the ideological origins of the Revolution and its practical, wartime expression.
Context of Capture: The Privateer Dalton
The document was discovered among the papers of Captain Thomas Fitzherbert, commander of the sixty‑four gun HMS Raisonnable, which chased and captured the American privateer Dalton on Christmas Eve 1776 off the coast of Portugal. The Dalton, an eighteen‑gun vessel, operated as a privateer under the auspices of the newly formed Continental Congress, tasked with harassing British trade and supplementing the fledgling American navy. Its mission was backed by orders signed by John Hancock, President of the Continental Congress, underscoring the official sanction behind privateering efforts. The capture of the Dalton thus represents a direct intersection of naval warfare, political directive, and the revolutionary propaganda encapsulated in the Declaration of Independence.
Use of the Declaration Aboard Ship
Amanda Bevan, head of the National Archives’ project cataloguing Royal Navy captains’ correspondence during the American Revolution, noted that finding the Declaration on board a warship suggests how it might have been employed. She believes the Dalton’s captain would have read aloud both his orders and the Declaration to the crew, a customary practice before embarking on a mission. By hearing the document’s lofty language—asserting natural rights, the consent of the governed, and the justification for rebellion—the sailors would have understood their struggle not merely as a grievance against specific British policies but as a fight for an enduring ideal. Bevan emphasized that this connection transforms the crew’s motivation from personal dissatisfaction to a collective commitment to a universal cause, making the discovery especially poignant.
Fate of the Dalton and Its Crew
After its capture, the Dalton’s 120‑man crew was taken to Plymouth, England, where they endured harsh imprisonment for more than two years. One of the sailors, Charles Hebert, who was just nineteen at the time of his capture, kept a detailed journal describing chronic hunger, illness, and repeated punishment. Despite the bleak conditions, many of the prisoners survived and were eventually released in a prisoner exchange. Hebert’s account, along with other survivor testimonies, provides a human dimension to the maritime theater of the Revolution, illustrating the sacrifices made by those who chose to fight on the high seas rather than on land. Their perseverance underscores the broader narrative that the Revolutionary struggle was fought not only in fields and forts but also across oceans.
Reaction from US Historians
Historians in the United States welcomed the National Archives’ announcement with enthusiasm. Matthew Skic, director of collections and exhibitions at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia, called the find “an artifact” rather than merely a document. He stressed that holding the paper today offers a tangible conduit to 1776, allowing modern audiences to feel the baton of liberty being passed across centuries. Skic also highlighted that the discovery reinforces the idea that the Revolutionary War still holds untold secrets; even after 250 years, new materials continue to surface, reminding scholars that the past is far from fully excavated. The excitement among American scholars reflects both the symbolic weight of the Declaration and the scholarly value of uncovering its material manifestations in unexpected places.
Implications and Ongoing Research
The identification of this Exeter copy aboard a captured privateer enriches our understanding of how the Declaration function of parchment; it became a tool for morale and ideological reinforcement in wartime settings. Moreover, the find underscores the importance of maritime history in the Revolution—a facet often eclipsed by land‑based narratives such as Valley Forge. As researchers continue to examine the National Archives’ trove of Royal Navy logs, letters, and prize court records, further insights into how revolutionary ideas traveled, were interpreted, and motivated sailors may emerge. The discovery serves as a reminder that history is a living record: every volunteered hour in an archive, every careful unfolding of a fragile sheet, can illuminate a previously hidden chapter of our shared past.