On May 31, 1859  Big Ben rings out over the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, London, for the first time.

at the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library in downtown Dallas was rediscovered in 1968 during the closing of a Philadelphia book store, where it languished in storage for more than 100 years.   By SCOTT FARWELL SCOTT FARWELL The Dallas Morning NewsStaff Writer sfarwell@dallasnews.com Published: 02 July 2011 11:59 PM In a dimly lit room at the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library — floating in a glass case controlled for temperature, humidity and light — sits a national treasure, a first-edition copy of  Full Article

There was a very fortunate financial analyst, Donald Scheer,  living in Philadelphia in 1989, who lucked onto a purchase of a painting at an Adamstown, PA flea market. It cost him a whopping $4.00 at the time. His interest was more in the frame than the painting, so he took the two apart. Lo and behold, hiding away inside, was a piece of paper. It was not just any ordinary piece of paper at that, but a copy of the Declaration of Independence. Upon having it appraised, he learned that it was in fact an original copy of the Declaration of Independence that was printed by John Dunlap. He decided to sell the copy…

 Information is from the National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D. C.   Where is the signed original of the Declaration of Independence? There is only one and it is in the National Archives building in Washington, D. C. Measurements: 24 ½ inches wide and 29 ¾ high.  On December 13, 1952, the Declaration, along with the Constitution and Bill of Rights were formally delivered into the custody of Archivist of the United States Wayne Grover and enshrined at a ceremony on December 15, 1952, attended by President Harry S. Truman. For more information about the document’s travels see Travels of the Declaration of Independence – A Time Line. Do other copies of…

January 1, 1863 A Transcription By the President of the United States of America: A Proclamation.   Whereas, on the twenty-second day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, a proclamation was issued by the President of the United States, containing, among other things, the following, to wit:   “That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free; and the…