As part of a special event to mark the 250th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, an exhibition of historic documents was held at the Grand Masonic Lodge in Boston. Many of these were provided by Seth Kaller, the leading dealer in historic American documents. Seth took me through some of the highlights and I recorded my conversation with him.  

We started with a rare printing of the Declaration of Independence. In addition to the historical background on the printing, Seth had an interesting perspective on the relevance of the Declaration to today and how to think about it as we look ahead to the Semiquincentennial in 2026 and beyond.

More information on this document is at Seth's site. I'll also post my discussion with Seth about the other two documents, and when I do, I'll add links here.

We offer several different historic versions of the Declaration through The History List Store:

• John Dunlap's broadside, printed by hand
• The broadside from Boston's Ede's and Gill, printed by hand
• Katherine Goddard's broadside, which includes the names of all of the signers
• An archival reproduction of the Binns engraving (1819)

My thanks to Seth for taking me through the exhibit and doing so in a way that I could share what he said with you.

— Lee Wright | Founder | The History List | History Camp | The Pursuit of History

I'm proud to announce that our new Boston Tea Party 250th anniversary print will be the first in a series of limited edition prints marking key points in the formation of our country 250 years ago. 

Each will be an original design. They will be silk screened, signed, and numbered. 

Looking ahead, on April 19, 2025 I’ll be at North Bridge and on July 4, 2026 I’ll be in Philadelphia.  (I haven’t decided on the event we will mark next year.)

And they will be made in America—print, frame, backing, and glazing.

We anticipate using the same or very similar frames, too, so for those who get the series, they will look very sharp displayed together.

This year's print is limited to 73. Thank you for your support—and thanks to the individuals who have already placed their orders.  

You can learn more about the print here.

— Lee Wright | Founder

In 2016 I designed a t-shirt for some history friends and it was a hit. Over time, I added more designs and more types of products based on what I liked and was proud to offer. Nearly everything you see in The History List Store is our original design. In the case of prints, they are either new designs or high-quality reproductions of historic prints.  And nearly everything is made in America.

At about the same time I started The History List Store I started buying one-of-a-kind pieces for my home that I found in markets and auctions.  (Some of those pieces are pictured below.) 

Traveling throughout New England I was amazed at the breadth and depth of high quality pieces. Having lived in the mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and Southwest, I knew that what was available here in New England was unmatched, and I thought others would be interested, too.  

In mid-2023 I selected a few items to offer to a small number of our customers. Each was in a special mailing to our best customers. Pieces sold in minutes or at most a couple of hours.

What you see on the Rare Finds page are some of the items we’ve offered. 

These are announced every Thursday at 9 pm Eastern in our Rare Finds alerts, which go out via e-mail. Items range typically from $200 - $2,000, though a few items may be substantially more.  And while we send our Insiders mailing by time zone, our Rare Finds alerts go out to everyone across the country at the same time so everyone has the same chance to purchase the items. 

If these kinds of things are of interest to you, I hope you'll sign up.

I look forward to hearing from you in the weeks and months ahead.

— Lee Wright | Founder

American Heritage Finely Grated Dark Baking Chocolate is available online individually and in exclusive gift sets: American Heritage Chocolates

PREP TIME: 20 min
TOTAL TIME: 35 min
NUMBER OF SERVINGS: 2 servings

INGREDIENTS

4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, plus additional softened butter for ramekins
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus additional for ramekins
¾ cup AMERICAN HERITAGE Chocolate Finely Grated Baking Chocolate  
Buy online individually and in exclusive gift sets at American Heritage Chocolates
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon coarse salt
Confectioners’ sugar, for serving

PREPARATION

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees with a rimmed baking sheet on the middle rack. Butter two 4-oz ramekins and dust lightly with flour; set aside.

Melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water, stirring frequently. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, whisk the sugar, egg, vanilla, and salt until light and foamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the flour, followed by the chocolate mixture. 

Pour the batter into the prepared ramekins.

Transfer the ramekins to the oven and place them on the sheet pan.  Bake until puffed and the edges are just set, 12 to 14 minutes. 

Cool for 1 minute, then invert onto plates. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve immediately.

American Heritage Finely Grated Dark Baking Chocolate is available online individually and in exclusive gift sets: American Heritage Chocolates
. . .

Recipe courtesy of American Heritage Chocolate

Author J. L. Bell and I spent a day going to sites in and around Boston that played a critical role in the siege of Boston and use Henry Pelham's 1775 - 1776 map of the Siege of Boston to show their strategic importance, starting with Boston neck.

Today the landscape in nearly all cases is vastly different, so it's nearly impossible to understand the importance of those areas without an understanding of the geography at the time of the siege.

The map John is holding is reduced in size from the original aquatint map. This aquatint version, which has never before been available, is now offered from The History List Store as a an archival print in two sizes, including the original 41 size, as well as a commercial print in two sizes, one a small poster and the other a card.

John is the author of The Road to Concord: How Four Stolen Cannon Ignited the Revolutionary War and of the daily Boston 1775. Signed copies of John's book are available from The History List Store The entire archive of John's many years of Boston 1775 posts are available online.

— Lee Wright | Founder | The History List | History Camp | The Pursuit of History