May 14, 2020 | 18th Century, Law, North America
Codifying Enslavement The Virginia Slave Code of 1705 As Virginia entered the new century, the legislature set out to make slavery law in a way it hadn’t before. The new law was the most detailed slave code the colony had produced yet, and would vastley...
May 1, 2020 | 18th Century, Book, North America, Transcription
A New Englander Speaks Samuel Sewall – The Selling of Joseph (1700) While not a pamphlet that would consistently continue to catch the attention of others after its publication, The Selling of Joseph represents the first published attack on slavery in New...
Apr 29, 2020 | 18th Century, Manuscript, North America, Transcription
The Declaration of Independence Thomas Jefferson’s Draft of the Declaration of Independence The Declaration is a foundational document in American history. Its own history, however, is often forgotten. It was as much a product of debate, revision, and political...
