Princeton University Library Collection of American Revolution Materials

Consists of an open collection of miscellaneous correspondence, statements of accounts, receipts, and other materials, spanning from the mid-1760s through the early 1780s, that relate to the U.S. Continental Congress and the American Revolutionary War era. While many materials concern the state of New Jersey, others pertain to other parts of colonial and early America. The bulk of the material comprises accounts of forage for the army's horses, provisions for the soldiers, items needed for the soldiers' uniforms such as buttons and vests, receipts for salaries paid to army generals or other army personnel, including a pay receipt for a deceased soldier who was likely African American, and reports of the Commissioners of the Loan Office. There are also extracts of minutes of the U.S. Continental Congress regarding the sale of un-appropriated land before the end of the war. These extracts are dated September 14, and October 29 and 30, 1779, and signed by George Bond for Charles Thomson, who was secretary of the Congress (1774-1789). At the end of the first document is a list of names of the delegates who voted for or against the resolution; among them are John Fell, William C. Houston, Nathaniel Scudder, and John Witherspoon, representing New Jersey. Also present are a 12-page manuscript of a poem, "The Revolt," written in 1776 by Loyalist Thomas Williamson; an affidavit about an incident which occurred during the time of the Revolution; a draft declaration dated August 1780; and three Revenue Stamps (including no. RM11a) issued under the "Stamp Act" of 1765.

This collection was formerly known as the "American Revolution Collection."

This collection was formed as a result of a Departmental practice of combining into one collection material of various accessions relating to a particular person, family, or subject. Materials have been acquired through multiple purchases and gifts. These include:

Gift of Herbert H. Kimball, Princeton Class of 1924, on January 24, 1979 (AM 79-99).

Gift of Cyrus Hall McCormick, Princeton Class of 1879, in March 1947 (Continental Congress material, Various AM).

Additional gifts and purchases: AM 3 Pyne-Henry; AM 220 Pyne-Henry; AM 79-56; AM 85-61; AM 7705; AM 12868; AM 13223; AM 13744; AM 16496; AM 22077; AM 13365; AM 2017-157. The two revenue stamps that were added in 2026 were found in repository (AM 2027-035).

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Folder inventory added by Hilde Creager '15 in 2012.

Finding aid updated by Kelly Bolding in June 2017 and by Lauren C. Williams in October 2026.

No appraisal information is available.

Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Preferred Citation

Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Princeton University Library Collection of American Revolution Materials, Box and Folder Number; Special Collections, Princeton University Library.

Publisher

Manuscripts Division

Date

2009

Creator

Princeton University. Library. Special Collections

Subject

American loyalists -- 18th century -- Poetry

Organization

United States. Continental Army

United States. Continental Congress

Great Britain. Stamp Act (1765)

Place

New Jersey -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775 -- Sources

United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- African American troops

United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- Economic aspects

United States -- Politics and government -- 1775-1783

Language

English

Form

Correspondence -- 18th century

Documents -- 18th century

Poems. -- 18th century

Receipts -- 18th century