Timothy Matlack's 15 minutes of fame
Hundreds gathered on the State House steps on July 4, 1776, to hear the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence. The speaker responsible for informing the crowd of American liberty was not Jefferson, Adams, or Franklin. Instead, a brewer-cum-revolutionary, Timothy Matlack, delivered those now-hallowed words to the Philadelphians present: "We hold these truths to be self-evident . . ."
Hundreds gathered on the State House steps on July 4, 1776, to hear the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence. The speaker responsible for informing the crowd of American liberty was not Jefferson, Adams, or Franklin. Instead, a brewer-cum-revolutionary, Timothy Matlack, delivered those now-hallowed words to the Philadelphians present: "We hold these truths to be self-evident . . ."
This is perhaps fitting, as Matlack was also responsible for engrossing the Declaration now housed at the National Archives in Washington. The words may be Jefferson's, but the handwriting is Matlack's.
Almost lost to history, Matlack has become a historical figure of resurgent interest. Born in Haddonfield to a Quaker merchant family, Matlack (1736-1829) moved to Philadelphia as a young man. He was, among other things, a gambler, brewer, cockfighter, convict, colonel, and lapsed Quaker.
Matlack was also a consummate penman in an era when legible handwriting was practical and lucrative, leading him to become the official scribe of the Continental Congress. As the engrosser responsible for creating formal documents with pen on parchment, Matlack also composed Washington's commission as commander in chief of the Continental Army.
In the pantheon of Founding Fathers, Matlack's name is conspicuously absent. This is more chance than fate. Unlike the work of Matlack's more famous contemporaries, very few of his manuscripts are preserved. This is also a dollop of historical irony, as Matlack's penmanship influenced a century of writing in the United States. Copperplate, the script perfected by such penmen as Platt R. Spencer and taught throughout the 1800s, is based on Matlack's handwriting.
Pen to Paper, a monthlong series of programs exploring the significance of handwriting in the past and its utility in the present, begins Wednesday with an exploration of Matlack's colorful life. A new document display featuring samples of his writing and others will coincide. Visit hsp.org for more information.