An Intolerable Act: The Boston Port Bill

This year marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and in celebration of that anniversary, the State Library launched the exhibit Raising the Alarm: Revolutionary Broadsides at the State Library. Using broadsides from 1773 through 1779, the exhibit tells part of the story of the American Revolution in Massachusetts while also highlighting a significant primary source resource in our collection. Due to the nature of the cases, the exhibit utilizes facsimiles, but each month for the duration of the exhibit, one featured broadside will be on display in our Collection Spotlight – this month we’re sharing a broadside notice issued on September 27, 1774 after a meeting held by the town committee of Boston and surrounding towns in response to the Boston Port Bill.

The Boston Port Bill was one of the Coercive Acts (later known as the Intolerable Acts). Following the Boston Tea Party, British Parliament enacted five punitive acts against the colonists. The Boston Port Bill took effect on June 1, 1774, enacting a blockade on the Port of Boston until colonists paid for the destroyed tea. The only imported items allowed through the blockade were provisions for the British Army and necessary goods. This broadside, issued by a Joint Committee of Boston and various surrounding towns, refers to “the detested and oppressive port-bill” under which citizens had been living for almost four months, and noted that residents of Boston and Charlestown were “suffering unspeakable distress” due to the blockade and the erecting of formidable fortifications at the entrance to Boston. It further describes Bostonians’ outrage at the “harassing, insulting, and vilifying” treatment they received from the occupying British troops. Residents would have had a fair amount of interaction with British troops due to another of the Coercive Acts, the Quartering Act, which allowed British troops to be quartered in unoccupied dwellings at the colonists’ expense (though not in their private homes).

(The above broadside cropped and rotated for viewing)

Ultimately, the Joint Committee of towns resolved that colonists should withhold labor and supplies from British troops, and that anyone supplying said troops would be deemed enemies of the people. This broadside, issued just over six months prior to Battles of Lexington and Concord, illustrates the rising turmoil in Massachusetts. By passing the Coercive Acts, British Parliament was deepening any hard feelings and mistrust that the colonists had towards the Crown, which they felt increasingly alienated from and targeted by. Tensions in the colonies had been rising, and this “intolerable” approach to making the colonists pay back the cost of the destroyed tea did even more to separate them from the Crown. And for those wondering, the cost of the destroyed tea was never repaid.

Step back into September 1774 by visiting us from September 2 through October 8 to see this broadside on display. Click here to read about the previously shared Raising the Alarm broadsides.


Elizabeth Roscio
Preservation Librarian

American Goldfinches in the Library

Our road trip through the thirteen original colonies in honor of the 250th continues this month with the the American Goldfinch (Audubon plate 33).

Also commonly known as the Eastern Goldfinch, this is the New Jersey State Bird, established as such on June 1935.

We know from the bright yellow feathers that the male goldfinches shown in this print are depicted in summer! In the winter, their feathers turn a more dull grey/brown. The goldfinches are shown amongst the blooms of the common thistle.

The American Goldfinch is found throughout all of Massachusetts year-round. Click through to the Mass Audubon website to read more, including a transcription of Henry David Thoreau's observation of a goldfinch from A Week On the Concord and Merrimack Rivers

Be sure to round out your summer by visiting the library from August 11 through September 8 to see the American Goldfinch on display.

Elizabeth Roscio

Preservation Librarian

A Call for Supplies in 1775

This year marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and in celebration of that anniversary, the State Library launched the exhibit Raising the Alarm: Revolutionary Broadsides at the State Library. Using broadsides from 1773 through 1779, the exhibit tells part of the story of the American Revolution in Massachusetts while also highlighting a significant primary source resource in our collection. Due to the nature of the cases, the exhibit utilizes facsimiles, but each month for the duration of the exhibit, one featured broadside will be on display in our Collection Spotlight – this month we’re sharing a broadside notice issued by the Provincial Congress on July 9, 1775 that calls for towns within Massachusetts to provide articles of clothing for the newly formed Continental Army.

By the time this broadside was issued, the first major battles of the Revolutionary War had already been waged – Lexington and Concord in April and Bunker Hill in June. You are likely familiar with “minutemen” which were locally organized and trained militia members that would be ready on a minute’s notice, and it was these individuals who engaged in the battles at Lexington and Concord. In the immediate aftermath of Lexington and Concord, the Provincial Congress had authorized the raising of a colonial army in Massachusetts. In June 1775 in Philadelphia, the Second Continental Congress followed suit, establishing the Continental Army under the command of General George Washington. It was in the following month that this notice was issued by Massachusetts’ Provincial Congress, seeking supplies for the newly formed Continental Army and asking towns within Massachusetts to contribute.

In this notice, towns are tasked with supplying a specific number of shirts, breeches, stockings, and shoes for the soldiers. Urgency is stressed, and individuals are instructed to provide these items to a town representative, who would then supply them with a receipt for the item and an agreed upon sum which would be dispersed within forty days. Individuals from each county are selected as the receivers of the garments, and the bottom portion of the notice lists the towns and the quantity of articles they are responsible for supplying. The garments were then to be transferred to Watertown, where the Provincial Congress was based, where they would be exchanged for payment from the public treasury to reimburse the townspeople.

While this is possibly one of the earliest calls for supplies to be issued to local communities, it is a practice that would continue throughout the war. Towns were asked to provide clothing, shoes, blankets, food rations, and more. It emphasizes the many ways that individuals supported the war efforts, even if they were not a “Founding Father” or actively engaging in battles.

Step back into summer 1775 by visiting us from August 4 through September 2 to see this broadside on display. Click here to read about the Oath of Allegiance broadside shared last month.


Elizabeth Roscio
Preservation Librarian

Ezekiel Russell, the Printer behind our Declaration Broadside

Ezekiel Russell’s woodcut portraits of

George Washington and Horatio Gates.

Image courtesy of the Library of Congress

Ezekiel Russell is featured in our Revolutionary Broadsides exhibit currently on display outside Room 341, and we thought it would be fun to do some more digging into this printer’s backstory for the blog.

Ezekiel Russell was born in Boston in 1745, the son of Captain Benjamin Russell and Elizabeth Belknap. In 1765, Russell traveled to New Hampshire to learn printing with his brother Joseph, who had partnered in publishing the Portsmouth Mercury and Weekly Advertiser. Shortly thereafter, he returned to Boston to pursue his own printing career.

Russell married Sarah Hood in 1773. According to Isaiah Thomas’s History of Printing, Sarah assisted him closely in his printing business. She learned the trade, wrote memorial verses for broadsides, and even took over running the business after his death. Together, the Russells issued Phillis Wheatley’s first proposal for a collection of poems and James Swan’s argument to abolish slavery. They published disabled young almanac-maker Daniel George and poets Hannah Wheaton and Jenny Fenno.

Controversially, Russell was also the printer (though not the publisher) of short-lived magazine The Censor, supporting the royal administration in the early 1770s. His willingness to print for the British government gained him an unfavorable reputation among patriots in Boston by 1773. Russell changed course by the following year, establishing himself as a printer for the patriot cause in Salem.

One of Ezekiel Russell’s most famous prints was titled Bloody Butchery, by the British Troops; of the Runaway Fight of the Regulars. It was published on April 21, 1775, and recounted the events at Lexington and Concord and included a funeral elegy likely written by his wife, Sarah. Of course, Russell would become even more well known for his printing of the Declaration of Independence.

Image courtesy of Massachusetts Historical Society

via Digital Commonwealth

Inscription on the back of
our Declaration broadside

After the Second Continental Congress approved the final wording of the Declaration, the text was sent to Philadelphia printer John Dunlap, who printed two hundred copies as broadsides. The text was then distributed to the thirteen colonies, where it was printed in newspapers and as broadsides. These were sent to ministers to share with their congregants at the next Sunday service. Ezekiel Russell was authorized to print the Declaration at his shop and distribute it to ministers throughout the North Shore. Written in iron gall ink on the back of the broadside is the notation “To the Rev. Mr. Holyoke, Boxford” so we know which congregation received this specific version. You can read even more information about our Declaration broadside in this previous blog post written by our Preservation Librarian.

 

Ezekiel Russell also had success printing almanacs, including the Bickerstaff's Boston Almanac series, which were the first in Massachusetts to use illustrations. He was the first printer in Salem and one of the first in Massachusetts to use portrait woodcuts. Shown here is a 1776 woodcut from Bickerstaff’s featuring a man with an astrolabe looking at the stars, surrounded by astronomer’s instruments. In 1777, Russell moved his printing business from Salem to a building connected to the Bell Tavern, located in what was then part of Danvers but is in present-day Peabody.

From Harriet Silvester Tapley’s Salem Imprints, 1768-1825, on Ezekiel Russell’s printing legacy:

“...we are indebted to him for some of the most interesting broadsides that have come down to us from the Revolutionary period. The product of his press during his residence of seven years in Salem and Danvers is surprisingly large. There being no newspaper in Salem during the most ominous years of the war, it gave him an opportunity, which he shrewdly embraced, to engage in the printing of these ephemeral sheets. They announced the most important public events as they happened, serving as the newspaper ‘extras’ of the time, and, of course, were eagerly sought.”

Alyssa Persson
Special Collections Processing Archivist

Sources:

• J.L. Bell’s Boston 1775 Blog
• Salem Imprints, 1768 – 1825: A History of The First Fifty Years of Printing in Salem, Massachusetts by Harriet Silvester Tapley
• The History of Printing in America by Isaiah Thomas

The Baltimore Oriole Detours from Fenway to the State Library!

Our 250th road trip continues this month as we head to another colonial state; we're going south to Maryland, with the Baltimore Oriole! Just like the city, this bird is named after Lord Baltimore, Maryland's first proprietor, since its plumage was reminiscent of the colors in Lord Baltimore's coat-of-arms. And as you likely know, the city of Baltimore's baseball team has also adopted it as their name and mascot.

In the print, the male is shown with bright orange and black feathers, while the female is a more subdued brown. But the female is perched on another interesting feature in this print, the inclusion of the nest. Oriole nests are distinctive and impressive! They are hanging pouches, woven by female orioles and designed to hold seven to eight eggs. You can read more about them on the Audubon Society website. Also note the flowering blooms of the tulip tree. 

The Baltimore Oriole was on display last year during Women's History Month, with an interesting connection to a female artist and ornithologist sometimes referred to as "the other Audubon." Check that post out here, and visit us through August 11 to see the oriole on display! Since it has already been on display, after this exhibition, it will return to storage for the foreseeable future.

Elizabeth Roscio

Preservation Librarian

New Exhibit: Raising the Alarm

The State Library of Massachusetts joins the rest of the country in celebrating our 250th anniversary in 2026, and we are excited to announce that our new exhibit, Raising the Alarm: Revolutionary Broadsides at the State Library, is now open!

Boston and the surrounding area are known as the “Cradle of Liberty,” staking its claim as the birthplace of the American Revolution. And while many of the thirteen original colonies could make similar claims, the first battles and protests were waged within Massachusetts, the Sons of Liberty sprung up from its citizenry, and the first Committees of Correspondence, an integral system of communication employed during the war, were established here by Massachusetts’ own Samuel Adams.

Exhibit cases outside of the Library

Displayed chronologically, Raising the Alarm uses a selection of broadsides dating from 1773 through 1779 to interpret the Revolutionary War period in Massachusetts, providing a historical overview and examining how news was shared during the war, while also highlighting a significant primary source resource in our collection. Beginning in 2017, the State Library focused on a multi-year effort to conserve and digitize the 18th century broadsides in our collection. Recognizing the significance they hold in documenting the Revolutionary period, our Special Collections Department worked with the Northeast Document Conservation Center in Andover, Massachusetts to treat 70 broadsides. 

Ten broadsides are featured in our exhibit, like the one shown here from April 17, 1776. In this broadside, the topic of equal representation is raised by members of the Committees of Correspondence of Salem and Marblehead who acknowledge the loosening connection with Great Britain and looked towards the growing possibility that “we may soon be obliged to take up Independency for ourselves . . . as undoubtedly a Republic or Commonwealth will be our Form of Government.”

In the final case, the broadsides are complemented by other 18th century items found in Special Collections, including newspapers, almanacs, directories, and more. The exhibit also explores the Committee of Correspondence and some of the well-known patriots in its ranks, and gives special notice to one of our most famous broadsides, the Declaration of Independence, published by Ezekiel Russell in Salem on July 17, 1776.

Raising the Alarm is on view in the display cases outside of the library (Room 341) and is available during our open hours, Monday through Friday from 9:00 to 5:00, through spring 2027.

Elizabeth Roscio, Preservation Librarian
Exhibits Working Group

The State Library Celebrates the 250th!

Join us on Wednesday, July 1 to celebrate the Declaration of Independence! We are pleased to announce our upcoming event in honor of the 250th, where we will have our broadside version of the Declaration of Independence, printed by Ezekiel Russell in Salem on July 17, 1776, on display in the Collection Spotlight case in our main reading room (room 341 in the State House).

Special Collections staff will be on hand to share the Declaration along with the ten broadsides featured in our new exhibit, Raising the Alarm: Revolutionary Broadsides at the State Library. Though the exhibit features facsimiles, the originals, which date from 1773 through 1779, will be pulled from storage for this special event so that visitors can see them up close and imagine themselves as members of the Committee of Correspondence, distributing word of the Revolutionary War.

This event is free and open to the public; stop by the State Library between 11:00 and 1:00 to see these stirring documents on display as the country approaches its 250th birthday. Reach out to us at special.collections@mass.gov with any questions, and we hope to see you there!

As a patriotic bonus to in-person visitors, we are giving out free Pocket Constitutions and Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) rulers while supplies last. The Pocket Constitutions also include the Declaration of Independence, and the FDLP Ruler is an 8" ruler and its reverse shows the presidents of the United States in chronological order. Please note the Library has a limited supply and visitors are limited to one copy of each per person. Stop by the reference desk to pick them up!

First a Declaration of Independence, Then an Oath of Allegiance

This month, the country is gearing up for the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. To coincide with that historic milestone, we are sharing An Act for Prescribing and Establishing an Oath of Fidelity and Allegiance in our Collection Spotlight case. Visit us from June 16 through August 4 to see this item on display.

Published on February 3, 1778, this is a broadside printing of an Act that was enacted by the Council and the House of Representatives in the General Court. As the new country was establishing its independence, oaths of allegiance were commonly administered by the colonies as a means to confirm loyalty from its citizens while affirming separation from Great Britain. This act recommends the manner in which an oath of allegiance should be established and enforced within Massachusetts. It begins with these stirring words:

Whereas the King of Great-Britain hath abdicated the Government of this and the other United States of America, by putting them out of his Protection and unjustly levying War against them, and the said United States by their Representatives in General Congress assembled by a Declaration bearing the date of the fourth day of July, A.D. 1776, for the Reasons therein mentioned, solemnly declared, that the United Colonies of North-America, are and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political Union between them and the State of Great-Britain is, and ought to be totally dissolved; which Declaration has been solemnly Ratified and Adopted by this State.

As this Act harkens back to the language of the Declaration of Independence, it seems a fitting broadside to display as we come upon the July 4 anniversary. The Act then goes on to describe how an oath should be administered, under what circumstances, and by whom. If an individual was presented with an oath and refused to take it, then the county’s Justice of the Peace could commit them to the county jail. Forty days after refusal, the individual would then be removed to a port within the “Dominions of the King of Great Britain, at their own expense."

The Act also includes the language of the oath, as follows:

I, A.B. do swear (or affirm as the Case may be) that I will bear true Faith and Allegiance to the State of Massachusetts-Bay, and will faithfully support and maintain and defend the same against George the Third King of Great-Britain, his Abettors and all other Enemies and Opposers whatsoever, and will discover all Plots and Conspiracies that shall come to my Knowledge against said State, or any other of the United States of America. So Help Me God.

It is interesting to note a line included at the bottom of the Act, that allows Quakers to omit the word “defend” and the phrase “So help me God” should the Oath be administered to them, as it is language that is against their religious beliefs.

We are excited to share that this broadside is part of our upcoming exhibit Raising the Alarm: Revolutionary Broadsides at the State Library, which opens on June 17 and will be on display in the cases outside of the Main Library (Room 341). Due to the nature of the cases, the exhibit utilizes facsimiles, but each month for the duration of the exhibit, one featured broadside will be on display in our Collection Spotlight case – beginning with this Act! The exhibit utilizes broadsides published from 1773 through 1779 to provide a historical overview of the Revolutionary War period in Massachusetts, while also highlighting a significant primary source resource in our collection. Stay tuned for more information about the exhibit later this month!

We would also invite you to join us for a special event on July 1 as the State Library celebrates the 250th! Come to our Main Reading Room (Room 341) between 11:00 and 1:00 to see our copy of the Declaration of Independence, printed in Salem on July 17, 1776, on display in our Collection Spotlight Case. Special Collections staff will be on hand to share the Declaration, and for this special event, all of the original broadsides featured in our new exhibit will be pulled from storage, giving visitors the rare opportunity to see them up close and imagine themselves receiving news of the Revolutionary War directly from the Boston Committee of Correspondence.

Our July 1st event is free and open to the public and we hope you join us to see these stirring documents on display as the country approaches its 250th birthday. Reach out to us at special.collections@mass.gov with any questions.


Elizabeth Roscio
Preservation Librarian

A Double-Duty State Bird

Our next state bird deserves extra credit! Within the thirteen original colonies, the cardinal is the state bird of both Virginia and North Carolina. In fact, this popular bird is the state bird of five other states, too - Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and West Virginia. The North Carolina State Assembly established the Northern Cardinal as its state bird in 1943, and seven years later, Virginia did the same on January 25, 1950.

Even though the cardinal is not our state bird, you can still spot them around Massachusetts. They are year-round residents, found from Cape Cod to Western Mass.

In this print, Audubon depicted the Cardinal Grosbeak (plate 159), with the vibrant male shown above and the more subdued female below. Both are shown in the branches of the wild almond tree. The cardinal was previously on display in January 2025, so after it is displayed for just three weeks this month, it will return to storage for the foreseeable future. Visit us from June 9 through June 30 for your chance to see it now.

We are also excited to share that as a special treat, the Bird of Washington will be on limited display from June 30 through July 14, in celebration of the country's 250th birthday!

Elizabeth Roscio

Preservation Librarian

Wrens Alight and Delight in the Library!

We're heading south this month, as we continue to commemorate the thirteen original colonies by displaying their state bird in our Audubon case. This month's print depicts the Great Carolina Wren (plate 78), which is South Carolina's state bird. But despite its name, the Carolina Wren has a large range and can be seen up and down the east coast.

Milder winters have contributed to the Carolina Wren venturing further north, and now you can spot these petite brown birds with a white stripe in both suburban landscapes and wilderness thickets here in Massachusetts. Read more and hear their call on the Mass Audubon website. And look closely at the wren at the top of this print, he looks like he is caught mid-call! 

We all know that "April showers bring May flowers" so in keeping with that theme for this month, this print was also selected for display because the Carolina Wren is shown in the vibrant flowering branches of the dwarf red buckeye (Aesculus pavia). Unfortunately, this shrub is native to the southern and eastern part of the country, so we aren't likely to see it here in Massachusetts. All the more reason to visit the library from May 12 through June 9 to see this print on display!

Elizabeth Roscio

Preservation Librarian

Welcome Spring with the American Robin!

Traveling through the thirteen original colonies by highlighting their state birds brings us to Connecticut this month! We're featuring the American Robin, which was designated as the state bird of Connecticut by the General Assembly in 1943. Audubon's print (plate 131) depicts the male, female, and young, all in the branches of the chestnut oak tree.

You may have seen images of the European Robin, which has similarities to the American Robin, but is a different group of bird entirely. So how did these two birds end up with the same name? The answer is that colonists thought the bird they were seeing in New England resembled the robin they knew at home, and started calling it by that name. 

Robins are sometimes considered to be a sign of spring, and as Massachusetts thaws out from a snowy winter, they are a welcome sight. Visit us from April 8 through May 12 to see the American Robin on display in our Audubon case.

This is our fourth state bird in our series, and you can catch up with all of those that have been featured here.

Elizabeth Roscio

Preservation Librarian

Bluebirds Visit for March

Our trip through the thirteen original colonies by way of their state birds continues this month with the bluebird (Audubon plate 113). The Eastern Bluebird was established as the New York State Bird in 1970. Shown in this print is the vibrant male soaring above, and the female below, feeding a young bluebird.

Highlighting the bluebird in March serves double-duty. March is Women's History Month, and a few years ago we featured Audubon's print 393, the Townsend Warbler, Arctic Blue-bird, and Western Blue-bird, to bring attention to the fact that in 1915, suffragettes in Massachusetts used the bluebird as a symbol of their movement. Read more about bluebirds for suffrage in our previous blog post.

We're excited for the chance to share a different bluebird print from Birds of America both for suffrage and as part of our state bird series. Visit us from March 10 through April 7 to see this vibrant print on display. And catch up on all featured state birds here.

Elizabeth Roscio

Preservation Librarian

Our Northern Neighbor on Display: The New Hampshire State Bird

Our celebration of state birds continues with the Purple Finch, the official state bird of our northern neighbor, New Hampshire. In this print (Audubon plate 4), the more subdued female is shown with two males, both with vibrant red-purple plumage. Their color palette is fitting for display in February, with the Valentine's Day holiday! The Audubon Society writes that Purple Finches are common in the north and east, and will readily come to birdfeeders, so you might see one outside your window.

The Purple Finch became New Hampshire's state bird on April 25, 1957. Its proposal had the backing of the Audubon Society of New Hampshire, the New Hampshire Federation of Garden Clubs, and the State Federation of Women’s Clubs.

Visit the library from February 10 through March 10 to see the Purple Finch on display. And if you missed last month's display of Massachusetts' Black-capped chickadee, you can check it out here.

Elizabeth Roscio

Preservation Librarian  

Massachusetts State Bird on Display!

In honor of the country's 250th birthday, we'll be sharing the state birds of some of the thirteen original colonies in our Audubon case throughout the year. Of course, we're starting off with Massachusetts state bird, the Black-capped chickadee. At first pass, we couldn't find this bird in Birds of America, but that is because it is labeled as  "Black-capt Titmouse." The titmouse and chickadee are part of the Paridae family, and older language referred to both as titmouse, which explains why there are no chickadees found in Birds of America. Plate 353 shows the Black-capt Titmouse (bottom center, detail below) along with the Chestnut-backed Titmouse and the Chestnut-crowned Titmouse. They are shown with an impressive nest in the branches of the willow oak tree.

The Massachusetts Legislature designated the Black-capped chickadee as the state bird on March 21, 1941 (1941 Mass. Acts Ch. 121). These are hearty non-migratory birds, which means that they can withstand Massachusetts' harsh winters and can be spotted throughout the year (and in all corners of the Commonwealth). 

Read more about them on the Mass Audubon website, and visit us from January 13 through February 10 to spot one in the library!

Elizabeth Roscio

Preservation Librarian