Rare copy of US Declaration of Independence found by volunteer in UK archives
North AmericaPoliticsHigh confidence — 97/100
The document was uncovered by a volunteer in February while cataloguing the papers of Royal Navy captains from the American Revolutionary War.
It is one of 11 copies printed in Exeter, New Hampshire in July 1776 to spread news of American independence through the colonies before it was seized by British forces.
As he opened a volume of 18th-century Royal Navy correspondence, however, Scurr unfolded a document whose opening words he recognised.
Confirmed
The document was uncovered by a volunteer in February while cataloguing the papers of Royal Navy captains from the American Revolutionary War.
It is one of 11 copies printed in Exeter, New Hampshire in July 1776 to spread news of American independence through the colonies before it was seized by British forces.
Unverified
As he opened a volume of 18th-century Royal Navy correspondence, however, Scurr unfolded a document whose opening words he recognised.