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BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
- Contemporary Writings
- Many of the most important documents for this period are
in the following brief collections:
- W. Macdonald, "Select Charters and Other Documents,"
1906
- H. W. Preston, "Documents Illustrative of American
History," 5th ed., 1900
- H. Niles, "Principles and Acts of the Revolution in
America," 1822
- J. Almon, "Collection of Papers Relative to the
Dispute between Great Britain and America," 1777 (commonly cited as "Prior
Documents")
- The spirit of the times is best seen in the contemporary
newspapers, many extracts from which are printed in F. Moore, "Diary of the
American Revolution from the Newspapers and Original Documents," 1863
- Of the numberless controversial pamphlets, the following
are noteworthy:
- J. Otis, "Rights of the British Colonies Asserted and
Proved," 1764
- D. Dulaney, "Considerations on the Propriety of
Imposing Taxes on the British Colonies" 1765
- J. Dickinson, "Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania
to the Inhabitants of the British Colonies, "1768 (also in "Writings of John
Dickinson," 3 vols. 1895)
- W. Knox, "The Controversy between Great Britain and
her Colonies Reviewed," 1769 (excellent pro-British reply to Dickinson)
- S. Jenyns, "The Objections to the Taxation of Our
American Colonies ...Briefly Considered," 1765
- J. Wilson, "Considerations on the Nature and Extent
of the Legislative Authority of the British Parliament," 1774 (also in "The
Works of James Wilson," 2 vols. 1896)
- S. Seabury, "Free Thoughts on the Proceedings of the
Continental Congress," 1774
- T. Paine, "Common Sense," 1776 (also in "Writings of
Thomas Paine," 4 vols. 1894-96)
These pamphlets are not available to most readers, but
all of them, together with many others, have been admirably described and
summarized in M. C. Tyler, "The Literary History of the American Revolution," 2
vols. 1897.
- he letters and public papers of the leaders of the
Revolution have been mostly printed, among which some of the most valuable and
interesting collections are:
- T C. F. Adams, "The Works of John Adams," 10 vols.
1856 (vol. II)
- J. Adams, "Familiar Letters of John Adams and his
Wife Abigail Adams," 1875
- W. C. Ford, "The Warren-Adams Letters," 1917 (vol.
I)
- A. H. Smyth, "The Writing's of Benjamin Franklin," 10
vols; 1905-1907 (vols. IV-VI)
- P. L. Ford, "The Writings of John Dickinson," 3 vols.
1895
- H. A. Cushing, "The Writings of Samuel Adams," 4
vols. 1904-1908
- P. O. Hutchinson, "Diary and Letters of Thomas
Hutchinson," 2 vols. 1884
- The following works give the history of the time as it
appeared to various contemporaries:
- W. Gordon, "History of the Rise, Progress, and
Establishment of American Independence," 4 vols. 1788 (parts of the work taken
bodily from the "Annual Register")
- D. Ramsey, "History of the Revolution of South
Carolina," 2 vols. 1785
- A. Graydon, "Memoirs of His Own Times," 1846
- T. Hutchinson, "History of Massachusetts Bay," 3
vols. 1795-1828 (based on documents collected by the author, some of which were
destroyed in the Stamp Act riots)
- Mercy Warren, "History of the American Revolution," 3
vols. 1805 (author was a sister of James Otis)
- VP. Moultrie, "Memoirs of the American Revolution so
far as it Related to North and South Carolina," 2 vols. 1802
- J. Drayton, "Memoirs of the American Revolution," 2
vols. 1821
- T. Jones, "History of New York in the Revolutionary
War," 2 vols. 1879 (by a prominent New York Loyalist)
- "The Annual Register," 1765-1776 (an English annual
giving summaries of political events supposed to have been prepared by Edmund
Burke)
- H. Walpole, "Memoirs of the Reign of George the
Third," 4 vols. 1894
- Secondary Works:
- The best single volume on the Revolution is W. E. H.
Lecky, "The American Revolution," 1912
- Other good accounts:
- E. Charming, "History of the United States," vol.
III, 1912
- G. Howard, "Preliminaries of the American
Revolution," 1905
- S. G. Fisher, "Struggle for American Independence," 2
vols. 1908 (controverts many traditional ideas. Interesting book by a man who
has been bored by the laudation of the heroic and patriotic side of the
Revolution)
- Of the more detailed histories, the best are:
- G. Bancroft, "History of the United States," 10 vols.
1834-1874 (vols. V-VIII deal with the period 1765-1776. Strongly prejudiced but
accurate as to facts; based on documents collected in European archives, some
of which are not easily obtainable elsewhere. Revised ed., 6 vols. 1885, omits
notes and references, and therefore not so valuable as the original
edition).
- G. O. Trevelyan, "The American Revolution," 6 vols.
1899 1914 (brilliantly written by an Englishman of Liberal sympathies. On the
whole the work on the Revolution best worth reading).
- Studies of the beginnings of the Revolution in particular
colonies:
- C. H. Lincoln, "Revolutionary Movement in
Pennsylvania," 1901
- H. J. Eckenrode, "The Revolution in Virginia,"
1916
- C. L. Becker, "History of political Parties in New
York,1760-1776," 1909
- The best account of the British policy leading up to the
Grenville measures is G. L: Beer, "British Colonial Policy, 1754-1765",
1907.
- The interesting and important subject of the Loyalists is
sketched in C. H. Van Tyne, "The Loyalists of the American Revolution,"
1902.
- Interesting biographies well worth reading:
- W. W. Henry, "Patrick Henry: Life, Correspondence,
and Speeches," 3 vols. 1891
- J. K. Hosmer, "Life of Thomas Hutchinson," 1896
- J. K. Hosmer, "Samuel Adams," 1893
- M. Chamberlin, "John Adams," 1884
- C. J. Stille, "The Life and Times of John Dickinson,"
1891
- D. D. Wallace, "Life of Henry Laurens," 1915
- P. L. Ford, "The Many-Sided Franklin," 1899
- J. Parton, "Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin," 2
vols. 1867
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