Marking the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a display in the Guildhall Heritage Gallery celebrates the political, cultural and diplomatic links that have connected the United States and the City of London over more than two centuries. Through rare documents and symbolic objects, it highlights moments of shared history during times of change, conflict and collaboration.
The parish register for All Hallows by the Tower records the marriage of John Quincy Adams and Louisa Johnson on 26 July 1797. Adams served as the sixth president of the United States of America between 1825 and 1829. He undertook diplomatic missions and was visiting London for the signing of a treaty when he met Louisa, the daughter of Joshua Johnson of Maryland. Members of the Adams and Johnson families acted as witnesses to the marriage ceremony and their signatures can be seen on the register …
For almost two hundred years Louisa was the only non-American First Lady until the inauguration of President Trump on 20 January 2017. You can read more about her later in the blog.
Peal and Company produced bespoke footwear between 1791 and 1965. Originally established in Stepney Green, their success allowed them to relocate to addresses in the West End. An early stage in the company’s process was drawing an outline of the customer’s foot (or both feet) in one of the company’s ‘Feet Books’ with measurements and irregularities noted. This information was then used to make a pair of lasts, which replicate the foot of the client. Peal and Company’s reach was international and one of the many American clients was Dean Martin, with the page from the Feet Book showing the outline of his right foot and his address in Beverley Hills …
This silk bookmark commemorates the assassination on 14 April 1865 of Abraham Lincoln, President from 1861 …
From the mid seventeenth century, labour shortages in the American colonies meant that many (mainly young) people who sought to emigrate but lacked the means to pay their fares bound themselves to serve for a specific number of years, without pay, in return for their passage. This practice, known as indentured servitude, brought many thousands of men, women and children to America. While some entered this agreement willingly, many others were misled or forcibly coerced. As the main English port to the Atlantic, London was a principal embarking point.
An 18th century trans-Atlantic sailing vessel (image © Royal Museums Greenwich) …
After working the length of the agreement, some chose to return to England; however many did not or could not. Opportunities within the colonies were available, especially for the earliest emigrants. The agreements shown here are for Robert Starling from Norwich and William Miles from Worcestershire, who were bound to serve the merchant John Dykes of London in Virginia …
The records do not provide details of their work in America or how their stories continued and the experience of indentured servants and the conditions they faced would have varied widely. Indentured service happened alongside other forms of unfree labour and large-scale forced population movements, including the transportation of convicts (many of whom served as indentured labourers) and, increasingly, the transatlantic trade in enslaved people. The economy on both sides of the Atlantic, the fortunes of a multitude of individuals and institutions and the fate of others were entwined in these practices.
Convicts on their way to America (image © Family Tree.com) …
Also on display is the order of service for the memorial service on 1 December 1963 at St Paul’s Cathedral following the assassination of President John F Kennedy in 22 November 1963 …
‘Letters from the American colonies’ …
By the 1770s the relationship between Britain and her American colonies had deteriorated, particularly over the question of import taxes. The City of London Corporation was very opposed to British government policy on this issue, partly for commercial reasons (merchants feared losing valuable trade if American ports were closed) and a belief that the policy was going against the English libertarian tradition.
John Wilkes, London politician and Lord Mayor between 1774 and 1775, famously championed the American cause. In April 1775 a remonstrance, or protest, was published declaring “… abhorrence of the measures, which have been pursu’d, & are now pursuing, to the Oppression of our Fellow Subjects in America”. King george III replied: “It is with utmost astonishment that I find any of my Subjects capable of encouraging the rebellious disposition which unhappily exists in some of my Colonies in North America”.
Wilkes by William Hogarth …
A letter from New York.
The General Committee of Association of the City and County of New York was elected in April 1775. At first the Committee was loyal to the British Crown (while opposing the laws of the British Parliament). It knew of the views of the City of London Corporation and the Lord Mayor, and on 5 May 1775 wrote to the City …
It expressed a wish “… on our part for an indissoluble union with the Parent State, studious to promote Glory and Happiness of the Empire…“
The Committee went on to say it was “impressed with a just sense of the Necessity of a Controlling authority to regulate and harmonize the discordant commercial interests of its various parts, we cheerfully submit to a Regulation of Commerce by the Legislature of the Parent State, excluding in its nature every idea of taxation”. The Committee appealed to the City of London to do all it could to “…restore union, mutual confidence and peace to the whole Empire”.
A letter from Philadelphia
In September 1775 another letter was sent to the City of London, this time from the Congress in Philadelphia. This letter thanks London “for the virtuous and unsolicited resentment you have shewn to the violated rights of a free people”. It also said “North America … wishes most ardently for a lasting connection with Great Britain on terms of just & equal liberty”.
Congress wished to keep relations with the City of London on a positive and friendly basis, anticipating a time when trading links could flourish. The letter was signed by its President, John Hancock …
In 1776 Hancock presided over the debate on the Declaration of Independence and was its first signatory.
The City of London continued to express its strong disapproval of government policy throughout the period of the war. In 1781, another remonstrance was issued to the King, stating “… our abhorrence of the Continuation of this unnatural and unfortunate war”. When peace came in 1783 the City congratulated George III on paying “final attention” to their petitions.
The Honorary Freedom is the highest honour the City of London Corporation can bestow and awards are recorded in the ‘Roll of Fame’. When the City wishes to honour an individual, a special resolution is passed by the Court of Common Council. Once passed the recipient is formally admitted to the Freedom by the Chamberlain of London at a ceremony at Guildhall. Recipients who are not subjects of Britain or the Commonwealth and are therefore not able to take the freeman’s oath or declaration of allegiance to the British monarch are not technically admitted to the freedom but instead appear in the Roll of Fame as having been voted the honour. Military and naval recipients were usually given a sword to accompany the grant.
On display is the Roll of Fame …
It is open at the entry for General of the Army Dwight Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force. The honour was given as a mark of appreciation for his part in the defeat of German Forces during the Second World War. The Honorary Freedom was voted on 24 May 1945, and the entry notes that Eisenhower was unable to make the declaration but attended Guildhall on 12 June to receive the honour.
He went on to serve as president of the United States of America from 1953 to 1961.
If you get the chance to visit All Hallows by the Tower there are connections to William Penn as well as John Quincy Adams. Items to look out for include the marriage register mentioned above.
William Penn junior was baptised in the church and this memorial to commemorate the event was erected in 1911. It was damaged in the wartime bombing …
William’s father, Admiral Sir William Penn, was Commissioner of the nearby Navy Office and his son’s baptism took place on 23 October 1644. The Baptismal Register recording the occasion …
Penn’s entry is number 23 on the right hand page.
More about John Quincy Adams’s very talented wife …
The relevant entry in the 1797 Marriage Register …
As our King Charles III declared on his recent visit there: ‘God Bless the United States, and God Bless the United Kingdom’.
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