Department of English

• Monday, February 9, 2026 - 5:15pm to 7:15pm

Class of 1978 Pavilion, sixth floor of Van Pelt-Dietrich Library

We are excited to welcome John Bidwell (Morgan Library & Museum) for a talk titled “Printed Declarations: Life, Liberty, Editions, Issues, and States.”

Dr. Bidwell writes:

The Declaration of Independence became a work of art during the nineteenth century. Copiously ornamented facsimile editions construed new meanings in the manuscript, an iconic text variously interpreted in engravings, lithographs, and letterpress broadsides — some touted as precious relics, others cheaply produced for mass distribution. Opportunistic publishers seized upon the most desirable selling points of the Declaration and kept an eye out for novelties with commercial potential. They relied on transfer lithography, stereotyping, and other duplicating technologies to appropriate imagery and replicate earlier editions. Market entry was not expensive, bestsellers were there for the taking, and popular demand increased steadily, reaching a peak during the Centennial. Bibliographical distinctions — editions, issues, and states — make it possible to identify the most influential publications and show how they became part of American popular culture.

John Bidwell is a curator emeritus at the Morgan Library & Museum. Previously he was Head Librarian of the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library at UCLA, Curator of Graphic Arts at the Princeton University Library, and Curator of the Cary Graphic Arts Collection at the Rochester Institute of Technology. While at the Morgan he curated exhibitions on Victorian bestsellers, Bible history, Beatrix Potter, Henri Matisse, and landscape design. He has written essays, articles, and monographs on the history of printing and paper in England, France, and America. His most recent publication is The Declaration in Script and Print: A Visual History of America’s Founding Document (University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2024).