By Paul McElwee
CROWDS gathered at Gray’s Printers on Strabane’s Main Street on Thursday, June 18, for the unveiling of an official blue plaque commemorating Strabane native and printer of the US Declaration of Independence, John Dunlap.
Unveiled by the Ulster History Circle, the plaque honours a man who is credited with helping to change the course of world history.
Born in Strabane in 1746, Dunlap was sent to Philadelphia at the age of ten to work with his uncle William in the family printing business. After taking over the business, the 29-year-old became the official printer to the provisional 13-state Continental Congress, which had rebelled against British rule.
On the night of July 4, 1776, Dunlap printed the first copies of the Declaration of Independence after it had been ratified earlier that day.
The printing and distribution of the document is regarded as one of the defining moments in US history.
As war raged across the colonies, Dunlap was drawn into the conflict, serving as part of George Washington’s personal bodyguard and as an officer in the First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry.
Following the war, Dunlap established The Pennsylvania Packet, the first newspaper of major significance in the fledgling United States of America.
Married to Liverpool-born Elizabeth, the couple had eight children. Dunlap died on November 27th 1812; five months after the US declared war on Great Britain in the War of 1812 which saw the infamous burning of the White House. He was buried with military honours in Christ Church graveyard in Philadelphia.
Paul Roelle of the US Consulate in Belfast commended the Ulster History Circle, the Ulster-Scots Agency and the National Trust, saying, “As printer of the Declaration of Independence, John Dunlap played a central role in bringing our nation’s founding document to the American public.
“His legacy reflects the profound influence of people from places like Strabane in the trajectory of the United States.”
Ulster History Circle chairman Chris Spurr added, “John Dunlap arrived in Philadelphia as a boy, with no inkling that there in July 1776 he would print a document which would change the history of the world. 250 years later, the Ulster History Circle is delighted to commemorate the Strabane-born printer of the American Declaration of Independence with a blue plaque at the last-remaining historic printshop in his hometown.”