[Boston Committee of Correspondence]
We the Subscribers, inhabitants of the town of [. . .] having taken
into our serious consideration the precarious state of the liberties of North-America [Solemn League and Covenant]
Artifact IDTL 2026.1.15
Object Type
Temporary Loan
Date
1774
Printer
Edes and Gill
(American, active 1755 - 1775)
Place MadeBoston, Massachusetts, United States of America
Medium
bifolium (unbound)
DimensionsOverall W 8 1/2 in x D 12 3/4 in (21.6 cm x 32.4 cm )
Physical DescriptionA single-sheet printed broadside containing an official political oath and economic boycott pledge. The typographic layout consists of a single, dense column of justified serif text set beneath a large woodcut drop-cap "W" in the opening phrase "WE the Subſcribers..." The text features a blank manuscript space within the first sentence designed for hand-writing a specific municipality name.The document is organized into numbered paragraphs outlining distinct terms of compliance ("1st,", "2ly,", "3ly,", and "Lastly"). The lower left-hand margin features a printed execution date line reading "June, 1774." with a blank space left open for inserting the day of signing.
Outraged by the Intolerable Acts and the revocation of the Massachusetts charter, Samuel Adams and the Boston Committee of Correspondence issued this radical non-importation pledge. Known as the "Solemn League and Covenant," the agreement required signers to boycott British goods after August 31, 1774, and isolate anyone who refused to comply. While local merchants fiercely resisted the measure, it laid the crucial groundwork for the unified economic boycotts enacted by the Continental Congress later that fall.
Outraged by the Intolerable Acts and the revocation of the Massachusetts charter, Samuel Adams and the Boston Committee of Correspondence issued this radical non-importation pledge. Known as the "Solemn League and Covenant," the agreement required signers to boycott British goods after August 31, 1774, and isolate anyone who refused to comply. While local merchants fiercely resisted the measure, it laid the crucial groundwork for the unified economic boycotts enacted by the Continental Congress later that fall.
Historical NoteThe Coercive Acts were a political turning point in the American Revolution. While past laws sought revenue or regulation, these aimed to shut down Massachusetts’ economy and place it under martial law. Because they directly undermined local self-rule and economic autonomy, Americans dubbed them the Intolerable Acts. And because they collectively punished all of Boston, all of Massachusetts, and, in the Quartering Act, all the colonies for the actions of a few, they incited Americans to unite in resistance. This printing was circulated by the Boston Committee of Correspondence, an underground communication network established by Samuel Adams, a Boston politician of singular importance in the revolutionary period. It proposed that towns in Massachusetts swear an oath to each other to boycott British goods.
Additional DetailsCredit Lineon loan courtesy of the David M. Rubenstein Americana Collection
National Archives Catalog CollectionJohn F. Kennedy Library Museum Collection (National Archives Identifier 1676934)
National Archives Catalog SeriesPolitical Memorabilia (National Archives Identifier 1677287)
Use Restriction StatusRestricted - FullyUse Restriction NoteThe use of this image and document information is fully restricted. Reproduction in any manner is not allowed.On view