JOURNALS OF CONGRESS: Containing Their Proceedings from November 1, 1784, to November 4, 1785. VOLUME X.

PREVIOUSLY OWNED and SIGNED by Two Important Early American Congressmen, JESSE BURGESS THOMAS and COLONEL BENJAMIN STEPHENSON.

JESSE BURGESS THOMAS'S SIGNATURE is on the front free endpaper: "J. B. Thomas / Dec. 9th, 1828".

"Jesse Burgess Thomas, b.1777 d.1853, was an American lawyer, judge and politician who served as a delegate from the Indiana to the 10th Congress and later served as President of the Constitutional Convention which led to Illinois being admitted to the Union. He became one of Illinois' first two senators, and is best known as the author of the Missouri Compromise of 1820. He retired from the Senate in 1829." - Wikipedia.

COLONEL BENJAMIN STEPHESON'S SIGNATURE is at the top of page B1 (the first page of text).

"Benjamin Stephenson, b.1769 d.1822, was the congressional delegate for the Illinois Territory from 1814 until 1816, and a delegate to the Constitutional Convention that made it possible for Illinois to become a state. A colonel in the Illinois militia, Stephenson commanded a regiment during the War of 1812. In 1813 he was appointed adjutant general of Illinois, then in 1814 was elected for a two year term as delegate of the Illinois Territory in the United States Congress.Stephenson was also a representative to the convention that wrote the first constitution for the State of Illinois in 1818." - Wikipedia.

Published by FOLWELL'S PRESS "Under Authority of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives", Philadelphia, 1801. FIRST EDITION - LIMITED to only 400 COPIES.

From the Authorization Page (the page following the Title-Page): "RESOLVED by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America...four hundred Copies of the Journals of Congress are proposed to be published by RICHARD FOLWELL...Approved, March 2nd, 1799: // John Adams, President of the United States."

The Journals include many important resolutions, including: A resolution to ABOLISH SLAVERY IN WESTERN COUNTRY (i.e. Western Territories). Senators from seven Northern States voted Ay, Senators from Maryland voted mixed but there was a tie-breaker third vote so the state voted Ay, and Senators from four Southern States voted NO. So the 1784 resolution ABOLISHING SLAVERY in any Western States to be formed out of U.S. Western Territory was PASSED.

Hardcover Book, contemporary plain gray card covered boards with cloth covered spine, deckled page edges, 5.5x8.75 inches, 256 pages plus a 14 page Index at the rear. In a hand-made clamshell box, with cloth covered boards and a leather spine label titled in gilt.

Condition: The plain card covers have some soiling, scattered stains, and signs of handling and wear, but are still doing their job well. Internally, the pages are toned and there is some foxing throughout, the latter pages have light shorelining to their upper margin area (printing is always fully legible); there is an old (circa 1870) Lombard University library bookplate on the front pastedown (Lombard University was founded in 1853, changed its name to Lombard College circa 1890, and finally shuttered in 1930); the front and rear inner hinges are cracked but holding well, the front free-endpaper is browned and is separating from its gutter edge (just hanging on); there is edge wear including small closed edge tears and chips, folded corners, and a couple folded pages here and there; one page has a small whole; there are two signatures as noted above,

the number 178 written on the title page (copy 178?). A complete and original copy.

The professionally made clamshell box has a small coffee stain to its top edge, otherwise solid and lovely.

An important first edition copy - RARE with the ownership signatures of two early, important, Illinois congressmen / constitutional delegates.