The Sol Feinstone Collection of the American Revolution : 1604/05 - 1893; predominant 1745 - 1852.

            The David Library of the American Revolution is a privately endowed foundation which was established in 1959 by Sol Feinstone (1888-1980), a businessman, philanthropist and collector of Americana. The period from 1750 until 1880 encompasses the time frame within which acquisitions have been made, with the main focus being the time of the American Revolution.             

            The Sol Feinstone Collection contains historically significant documents, predominantly between the mid-eighteenth and nineteenth centuries covering the period from the French and Indian War through to the American national period, with a strong focus on the American Revolution and providing insight into the political and social climate of the day.  Significant amounts of the content is attributed to the following:  Dr. Samuel Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, Marquis de Lafayette, Robert Morris, Thomas Paine, Timothy Pickering, Jonathan Trumbull, George Washington, and Anna Winslow.  Some subjects of interest include: military - accounts, battles; army and navy - American and British; agriculture; politics; diplomacy; religion; family; women; etc.

Arrangement is by item number which corresponds to the arrangement in the accompanying Guide to the Sol Feinstone Collection.

For information specifically pertaining to religion, covering the period from the 1750s to 1790s, see the attached "Religion in the Sol Feinstone Collection" finding aid. Topics of interest in this guide include: admonishments, army (military), church denominations:  Church of England (Anglicans), Roman Catholics, Congregational, Episcopal, and Presbyterian; chaplains and clergy; church and state relations; fasting; finances; funerals; land deeds; morality; mortality; poetry, politics, religious tolerance, salvation, sermons, slavery, Quakers, and war (French and Indian War out of Virginia also included).  Places from which the authors had written include primarily:  New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland, and Vermont.

The authors of the documents referenced in the Religion finding aid are:  Rev. Samuel Auchmuty, John Adams, Rev. Joshep Bean, Anthony Benzet, Timothy Taylor, John Burke, Rev. William Clark, David Daniels, unidentified congregational clergyman, Society of Friends, Peter Du Ponceau, Rev. Joseph Eckley, Andrew Elliot, Rev. Peter Fontaine, Thomas Hale, Henry Hill, David Humphreys, Jedediah Huntington, Thomas Jefferson, Huson Langstroth, Solomon Leonard, Rev. David Love, Rev. James Maury, Thomas Paine, Israel Pemberton, Israel Shreve, Cornell Stevenson, Thomas Storm, Antoine-Charles Du Houx Baron De Viomenil, George Washington, Anna Winslow, Marriot Arbuthnot, Henry Babcock, Rev. Enoch Hale, Isaac Moses, Rev. Calvin Whiting, and Rufus King.            

            Researchers should use the Guide to the Sol Feinstone Collection of the David Library of the American Revolution, by David J. Fowler (HIL-MICGDL E208 .G84 1994) to explore subjects of interest. This guidebook provides:  item number, creator, location (written), date, recipient, and abstract of every document within the collection. A subject index is included.
 A brief Microfilm Shelf List, which gives the reel numbers and their corresponding document numbers, is available with the Loyalist Collection Finding Aids (red binders) and linked below as an Electronic Finding Aid record.