Annotated Works Cited
"Avalon Project - Great Britain : Parliament - The Stamp Act, March 22, 1765." Avalon P roject. Yale School of Law, n.d. Web. 13
Apr. 2016.
This primary sources provides original language from the Stamp Act of 1765. The need to repeatedly define paper as “For every skin or piece of vellum or parchment, or sheet or piece of paper,” over and over is a stark reminder of the importance of paper in colonial United States. Moreover, it is a legal document that attempts to confine the many usages of paper. In the act of doing so, it provides an exemplary job of how paper could not and cannot be contained to any one single definition. GB passed this law in an attempt to tax the colonists. Being in a new territory meant that paper production was essential – especially considering the amount of new land being acquired, as well as the pressing need, for legal documents.
Basbanes, Nicholas A. On Paper: The Everything of Its Two-thousand-year History. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.
This book is written by noted bibliophile Nicholas Basbanes. It documents the history of paper – starting at its conception and moving towards present day. Often times, people here talk of a paperless society, but the average human engages in 30 objects per day made out of paper. Paper has been and will be how people grant identity, bind legal contracts, and communicate through endless means, including art. Understanding not just the history of paper, but how mankind has interacted with it is the central thesis through the book; more specifically, Basbanes argues that “without paper, modern hygienic practice would be unimaginable” both as currency and as a tool of expression. Basbanes book also uses modern day examples to drive his argument and prove his case that paper is central to the human.
Frasca, Ralph. “BENJAMIN FRANKLIN'S PRINTING NETWORK AND THE STAMP ACT”. Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies 71.4 (2004): 403–419. Web...
This journal follows the printing network of Benjamin Franklin. It argues that Benjamin Franklin asserted a middle ground in opposition to the Stamp Act. On one hand he opposed it, but on the other, he did not want American dissent. He walked the middle ground and attempted to use the crisis as an opportunity to gain social capital. In a diplomatic effort, Franklin’s print network worked with him, but also against him. The journal discusses how various printers in Franklin’s network reacted to the stamp act crisis. It also shows how England’s attempt to control paper was a grave one that cost them a colony.
Morgan, Edmund S.. “Thomas Hutchinson and the Stamp Act”. The New England Quarterly 21.4 (1948): 459–492. Web...
This journal follows a brief biographical journey of Thomas Hutchinson. aka a British loyalist but more so moderate. Through the scope of a paper manuscript written by Hutchinson, the author argues that Hutchinson’s moderate views regarding the stamp act and his confusion to distinguish constitutional rights eventually led him to a life of exile. This piece is pertinent because it includes the manuscript, Hutchinson’s Essay on Colonial Rights. Paper was so fundamental to the livelihood of the colonies that many prominent governing figures wrote extensively on the stamp act affected colonial rights. Additionally, this journal publication also touches on how atmosphere and treatment of those who were in favor of the stamp act. It helps unravel the political complications and makes sense of liberals, moderates, and loyalists.
"Papermaking Moves to the United States." Papermaking Moves to the United States. Robert C. Museum of Paper Making, 13 June 2013. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
This source gives a brief yet concise overview of papermaking in the United States. It begins by detailing the first mill in American which was establish in 1690 by William Rittenhouse near Germantown, PA. Rittenhouse was a native from Holland and had immigrated to Philadelphia. This initial move was strategic in that Rittenhouse moved near to the local print shop run by William Bradford. Two factors that are important to note: First, most new papermakers were immigrants, and as a result, they brought with them European style of papermaking. Second, this new papermakers had to take into account the geography of the surrounding area as papermaking required copious amounts of both water and trees. Additionally, papermills depended on a close-knit circuit of print shops and book/newspaper sellers. The first newspaper in the colonies was the Boston Gazette (1719). To provide a source for this publication by Andrew Bradford, his father, William Bradford started a paper mill in New Jersey (1726). All the paper making eventually led to the Stamp Act of 1726, GB tried to raise the tax on the paper. This caused a battle between GB and the Colonists to gain control over papermaking.
Priest, Claire. "THE STAMP ACT AND THE POLITICAL ORIGINS OF AMERICAN LEGAL AND ECONOMIC INSTITUTIONS." Digitalcommons. Yale School of Law 2015. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.
This source gives a very detailed account of the Stamp Act and its legal implications in addition to its political and economic origins. In short, it argues that the Stamp Act was an effort to assert control on legal documents. In a new colony where documents decided every matter, it was imperative that GB tax these legal documents. This source also acknowledges both the proponents of the Stamp Act and how they viewed it as well as the opponents of the Stamp Act. This scholarly account is also important because it takes into consideration the taxation without representation as a driving force for dissent amongst the colonies. One quote in particular stood out (in regard to paper): “The Stamp Act's cost depended on the amount of paper consumed. This seems an elementary point, but it meant that the Act offered a disincentive not only for litigation, but also for various aspects of the legal process that affected it…”
"Stamp Act of 1765." Land of the Brave. Land of the Brave, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
This website provides condensed and pertinent information regarding the Stamp Act of 1765. Arguably this act was GB first major attempt to control colony life by means of controlling paper. “The act mandated that paper items such as licenses, documents, diplomas and nearly every paper item to be printed on stamped of embossed paper in the American colonies.” The Stamp Act was also a financial recovery strategy implemented by British Prime Minister, George Grenville to help ease the GB national debt, most of which, was accrued from the 7 years war and Grenville thought passed legislation to have the Stamp Act raise revenue and alleviate the war debt. The stamps created for the stamp act are not the usual types of stamps often associated with postage. Instead, they are printed or embossed emblems that were put directly on the paper. The stamps had to be purchased from the local government office. The Stamp Act of 1765 was not received well by the colonists and it caused a contentious political and social climate.
"Stamp Act Lesson Plan Central Historical Question: Why Were the Colonists Upset about the Stamp Act?" Stanford History Education Group (n.d.): n. pag. Sheg.stanford.edu. Stanford. Web. 16 Apr. 2016.
Stamp Act Lesson Plan is a teachers guide to lecturing on the Stamp Act, but it provides 3 primary sources from the Boston Gazette. This was a magazine that affected by the Stamp Act, but also wrote on how the colonists responded to it. Each of these three primary sources is a solid and objective indicator on how to gauge the political and social climate during the time when the Stamp Act was being implemented. Source A comes from an opponent, source B comes from a neutral party, and source C comes from a proponent. These sources also provides instructions for how to analyze context and examine the documents with an objective historical lens.
Schlesinger, Arthur M. "The Colonial Newspapers and the Stamp Act." The New England Quarterly, Inc. 8.1 (1935): n. pag. Jstor, Mar. 1935. Web. 15 Apr. 2016.
This journal takes the prospective of propaganda and specifically looks at how newspapers as an information circuit fueled the opposition to the stamp act. The author argues that for the most part, printers of newspapers had sided on liberty but also had obedience to the government. However, when “but it saddled the burden directly upon the backs of the printers, lawyers, and merchants who
(along with the clergy) formed the most literate and articulate section of the colonial public. “ (65) things became contested very quickly. When the newspaper industry united, they used propaganda to raise awareness of the stamp act and its implications to constitutional rights.
Thompson, Todd. “Invectives...against the Americans": Benjamin Franklin's Satiric Nationalism in the Stamp Act Crisis”. The Journal of the Midwest Modern Language Association 40.1 (2007): 25–36. Web...
This piece focuses on identity in a unique way. By following the logic of defining British-ness, English-ness, and American-ness, Benjamin Franklin wrote satirical letters in an attempt to find identity amidst the stamp act crisis. In the heated political climate, Franklin saw an opportunity to argue a case for American identity. This ultimately allowed the colonists a common ground to unite upon and gather forces against GB. Satirically, Franklin spends a great deal of time defining British-ness versus English-ness. It was to him – a double standards of sorts. GB did not want to view Americans as proper English metropolitan citizens, but expected them to behave by customs of British colonial rule. However, with the stamp act, what truly was the purpose of attempting to fit into either category? This is the central thesis to Thompson’s piece.
Apr. 2016.
This primary sources provides original language from the Stamp Act of 1765. The need to repeatedly define paper as “For every skin or piece of vellum or parchment, or sheet or piece of paper,” over and over is a stark reminder of the importance of paper in colonial United States. Moreover, it is a legal document that attempts to confine the many usages of paper. In the act of doing so, it provides an exemplary job of how paper could not and cannot be contained to any one single definition. GB passed this law in an attempt to tax the colonists. Being in a new territory meant that paper production was essential – especially considering the amount of new land being acquired, as well as the pressing need, for legal documents.
Basbanes, Nicholas A. On Paper: The Everything of Its Two-thousand-year History. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.
This book is written by noted bibliophile Nicholas Basbanes. It documents the history of paper – starting at its conception and moving towards present day. Often times, people here talk of a paperless society, but the average human engages in 30 objects per day made out of paper. Paper has been and will be how people grant identity, bind legal contracts, and communicate through endless means, including art. Understanding not just the history of paper, but how mankind has interacted with it is the central thesis through the book; more specifically, Basbanes argues that “without paper, modern hygienic practice would be unimaginable” both as currency and as a tool of expression. Basbanes book also uses modern day examples to drive his argument and prove his case that paper is central to the human.
Frasca, Ralph. “BENJAMIN FRANKLIN'S PRINTING NETWORK AND THE STAMP ACT”. Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies 71.4 (2004): 403–419. Web...
This journal follows the printing network of Benjamin Franklin. It argues that Benjamin Franklin asserted a middle ground in opposition to the Stamp Act. On one hand he opposed it, but on the other, he did not want American dissent. He walked the middle ground and attempted to use the crisis as an opportunity to gain social capital. In a diplomatic effort, Franklin’s print network worked with him, but also against him. The journal discusses how various printers in Franklin’s network reacted to the stamp act crisis. It also shows how England’s attempt to control paper was a grave one that cost them a colony.
Morgan, Edmund S.. “Thomas Hutchinson and the Stamp Act”. The New England Quarterly 21.4 (1948): 459–492. Web...
This journal follows a brief biographical journey of Thomas Hutchinson. aka a British loyalist but more so moderate. Through the scope of a paper manuscript written by Hutchinson, the author argues that Hutchinson’s moderate views regarding the stamp act and his confusion to distinguish constitutional rights eventually led him to a life of exile. This piece is pertinent because it includes the manuscript, Hutchinson’s Essay on Colonial Rights. Paper was so fundamental to the livelihood of the colonies that many prominent governing figures wrote extensively on the stamp act affected colonial rights. Additionally, this journal publication also touches on how atmosphere and treatment of those who were in favor of the stamp act. It helps unravel the political complications and makes sense of liberals, moderates, and loyalists.
"Papermaking Moves to the United States." Papermaking Moves to the United States. Robert C. Museum of Paper Making, 13 June 2013. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
This source gives a brief yet concise overview of papermaking in the United States. It begins by detailing the first mill in American which was establish in 1690 by William Rittenhouse near Germantown, PA. Rittenhouse was a native from Holland and had immigrated to Philadelphia. This initial move was strategic in that Rittenhouse moved near to the local print shop run by William Bradford. Two factors that are important to note: First, most new papermakers were immigrants, and as a result, they brought with them European style of papermaking. Second, this new papermakers had to take into account the geography of the surrounding area as papermaking required copious amounts of both water and trees. Additionally, papermills depended on a close-knit circuit of print shops and book/newspaper sellers. The first newspaper in the colonies was the Boston Gazette (1719). To provide a source for this publication by Andrew Bradford, his father, William Bradford started a paper mill in New Jersey (1726). All the paper making eventually led to the Stamp Act of 1726, GB tried to raise the tax on the paper. This caused a battle between GB and the Colonists to gain control over papermaking.
Priest, Claire. "THE STAMP ACT AND THE POLITICAL ORIGINS OF AMERICAN LEGAL AND ECONOMIC INSTITUTIONS." Digitalcommons. Yale School of Law 2015. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.
This source gives a very detailed account of the Stamp Act and its legal implications in addition to its political and economic origins. In short, it argues that the Stamp Act was an effort to assert control on legal documents. In a new colony where documents decided every matter, it was imperative that GB tax these legal documents. This source also acknowledges both the proponents of the Stamp Act and how they viewed it as well as the opponents of the Stamp Act. This scholarly account is also important because it takes into consideration the taxation without representation as a driving force for dissent amongst the colonies. One quote in particular stood out (in regard to paper): “The Stamp Act's cost depended on the amount of paper consumed. This seems an elementary point, but it meant that the Act offered a disincentive not only for litigation, but also for various aspects of the legal process that affected it…”
"Stamp Act of 1765." Land of the Brave. Land of the Brave, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2016.
This website provides condensed and pertinent information regarding the Stamp Act of 1765. Arguably this act was GB first major attempt to control colony life by means of controlling paper. “The act mandated that paper items such as licenses, documents, diplomas and nearly every paper item to be printed on stamped of embossed paper in the American colonies.” The Stamp Act was also a financial recovery strategy implemented by British Prime Minister, George Grenville to help ease the GB national debt, most of which, was accrued from the 7 years war and Grenville thought passed legislation to have the Stamp Act raise revenue and alleviate the war debt. The stamps created for the stamp act are not the usual types of stamps often associated with postage. Instead, they are printed or embossed emblems that were put directly on the paper. The stamps had to be purchased from the local government office. The Stamp Act of 1765 was not received well by the colonists and it caused a contentious political and social climate.
"Stamp Act Lesson Plan Central Historical Question: Why Were the Colonists Upset about the Stamp Act?" Stanford History Education Group (n.d.): n. pag. Sheg.stanford.edu. Stanford. Web. 16 Apr. 2016.
Stamp Act Lesson Plan is a teachers guide to lecturing on the Stamp Act, but it provides 3 primary sources from the Boston Gazette. This was a magazine that affected by the Stamp Act, but also wrote on how the colonists responded to it. Each of these three primary sources is a solid and objective indicator on how to gauge the political and social climate during the time when the Stamp Act was being implemented. Source A comes from an opponent, source B comes from a neutral party, and source C comes from a proponent. These sources also provides instructions for how to analyze context and examine the documents with an objective historical lens.
Schlesinger, Arthur M. "The Colonial Newspapers and the Stamp Act." The New England Quarterly, Inc. 8.1 (1935): n. pag. Jstor, Mar. 1935. Web. 15 Apr. 2016.
This journal takes the prospective of propaganda and specifically looks at how newspapers as an information circuit fueled the opposition to the stamp act. The author argues that for the most part, printers of newspapers had sided on liberty but also had obedience to the government. However, when “but it saddled the burden directly upon the backs of the printers, lawyers, and merchants who
(along with the clergy) formed the most literate and articulate section of the colonial public. “ (65) things became contested very quickly. When the newspaper industry united, they used propaganda to raise awareness of the stamp act and its implications to constitutional rights.
Thompson, Todd. “Invectives...against the Americans": Benjamin Franklin's Satiric Nationalism in the Stamp Act Crisis”. The Journal of the Midwest Modern Language Association 40.1 (2007): 25–36. Web...
This piece focuses on identity in a unique way. By following the logic of defining British-ness, English-ness, and American-ness, Benjamin Franklin wrote satirical letters in an attempt to find identity amidst the stamp act crisis. In the heated political climate, Franklin saw an opportunity to argue a case for American identity. This ultimately allowed the colonists a common ground to unite upon and gather forces against GB. Satirically, Franklin spends a great deal of time defining British-ness versus English-ness. It was to him – a double standards of sorts. GB did not want to view Americans as proper English metropolitan citizens, but expected them to behave by customs of British colonial rule. However, with the stamp act, what truly was the purpose of attempting to fit into either category? This is the central thesis to Thompson’s piece.