Between 1600 and 1800, a remarkable group of men and women helped to found the thirteen colonies and, eventually, the United States.  While early settlers were often occupied with the daunting day-to-day business of survival, and later colonists--especially as the Revolution approached--tried to navigate the often dangerous political waters that could make daily life risky, several of these hearty, brave souls found time to write. Early works tended to be journals and narratives, but a few let their imaginations soar and wrote poetry and fictional narratives. The later 18th century saw a decided shift towards political and social concerns: Freedom from British Rule, the Constitution, Slavery, and Women’s Rights were frequently the topics of brilliant fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. 

         Michael Wigglesworth (1631-1705) The Day of Doom
	William Bradford (1590-1657) Of Plymouth Plantation
	Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
	Edward Taylor (1644?-1729):  Poetry
        Thomas Paine (1739-1809)  Common Sense;  Age of Reason
	Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) The Almanack; The Autobiography
	Olaudah Equiano (1745?-1797) The Life of Olaudah Equiano	
	Philip Freneau (1752-1832) Poetry

Recommended Reading

Suggested Reading

        John Smith (1580-1631) A Description of New England	John Cotton (1584-1652) God’s Promise to His Plantations	John Winthrop (1587-1649) A Model of Christian Charity	Roger Williams (1613-1683) The Bloudy Tenent	Michael Wigglesworth (1631-1705) The Day of Doom	William Bradford (1590-1657) Of Plymouth Plantation	Samuel Sewall (1652-1730) The Diary	Cotton Mather (1633-1728) Memorable Providences	Robert Beverley (1673-1722) The History of Virginia	Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God	Edward Taylor (1644?-1729):  Poetry	Jupiter Hammon (1711-1806) Address to Negroes of NYS	Thomas Jefferson (1734-1826) The Declaration of Independence	Thomas Paine (1739-1809)  Common Sense;  Age of Reason	Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) The Almanack; The Autobiography	Olaudah Equiano (1745?-1797) The Life of Olaudah Equiano		Philip Freneau (1752-1832) Poetry

William Bradford

William Bradford: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Bradford_(governor)
William Bradford: https://www.history.com/topics/colonial-america/william-bradford
William Bradford:  http://mayflowerhistory.com/bradford-william
Of Plimoth Plantation (background): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Of_Plymouth_Plantation
Of Plimoth Plantation (complete text): https://www.gutenberg.org/files/24950/24950-h/24950-h.htm

•	1630 	Bradford begins writing “Of Plimoth Plantation,” a detailed history of the founding of Plymouth Colony and the lives of the colonists from 1621 to 1647. Bradford writes his last notes in the volume in 1650.•	1657-ca. 1775 	Manuscript volume remains in Bradford’s family, who allow it to be used by historians and clergymen to document the history of the colony. Last known location is the library of the Old South Church, Boston; the volume is presumably removed by British soldiers during the American Revolution.•	1855 	Volume rediscovered in England, in the library of the Bishop of London.•	1897 	Volume is returned to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; State Library is given custody. Facsimile edition of entire volume is published.•	2012-2014 	Massachusetts State Library secures funding to conserve and digitize the manuscript and to make a digital version available to the public.•	2019 	State Library acquires new exhibition case with enhanced security features for display of Library holdings; will be used for short-term display of the Bradford manuscript to commemorate Plymouth's 400th Anniversary at a future date.

Michael Wigglesworth

Michael Wigglesworth: https://www.pbs.org/outofthepast/past/p1/wigg.html
Michael Wigglesworth: https://www.poemhunter.com/michael-wigglesworth/biography/
The Day of Doom: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Day_of_Doom
The Day of Doom (complete text): https://www.gutenberg.org/files/56053/56053-h/56053-h.htm

Edward Taylor: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/edward-taylor
Edward Taylor:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Taylor
Selected poems by Edward Taylor: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/edward-taylor#tab-poems
NYU Lecture about American Puritanism, including Taylor (video):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rReaWSIzmUs

Jonathan Edwards

Jonathan Edwards: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Edwards_(theologian)
Jonathan Edwards: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jonathan-Edwards
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God (background): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinners_in_the_Hands_of_an_Angry_God
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God (text): http://edwards.yale.edu/archive?path=aHR0cDovL2Vkd2FyZHMueWFsZS5lZHUvY2dpLWJpbi9uZXdwaGlsby9nZXRvYmplY3QucGw/Yy4yMTo0Ny53amVv
NYU lecture about Edwards and the Enlightenment (video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJwSBJCxaRo

Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin
Benjamin Franklin: https://www.biography.com/scholar/benjamin-franklin
The Almanack:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poor_Richard%27s_Almanack
The Autobiography: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/20203/20203-h/20203-h.htm
Walter Isaacson on Franklin (University of Pennsylvania [video]):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpNcBBi4gFo

Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Paine
Thomas Paine: https://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/thomas-paine
The Age of Reason: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Age_of_Reason
The American Crisis: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_American_Crisis
The Rights of Man: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rights_of_Man
Common Sense: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Sense

Olaudah Equiano

Olaudah Equiano: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olaudah_Equiano
Olaudah Equiano: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Olaudah-Equiano
Narrative (background):   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Interesting_Narrative_of_the_Life_of_Olaudah_Equiano
Narrative (text): https://www.gutenberg.org/files/15399/15399-h/15399-h.htm

Equiano's World (UK organization): http://equianosworld.org/index.php#home
The Equiano Society: https://equiano.uk/the-equiano-society/

Philip Freneau

Philip Freneau: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/philip-freneau
Philip Freneau:  https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/literature-and-arts/american-literature-biographies/philip-freneau
Selection of Poems: https://www.poemhunter.com/philip-freneau/poems/
The Influence of Freneau: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4171903?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents

FOUNDING WRITERS: The Gentlemen

Recommended Reading

Suggested Reading