THOMAS'S MASSACHUSETTS SPY OR WORCESTER GAZETTE, July 10, 1799  

* President John Adams famous letter
* 4th of July - American Independence  

Page 3 has a printing of one of the more historic letters ever written concerning America's independence, being the letter signed in type by: John Adams, dated "Philadelphia, July 5, 1776".
It begins: "Yesterday the greatest question was decided, which was ever debated in America; and greater perhaps, never was, or will be, decided among men. A resolution was passed, without one dissenting colony, 'THAT THESE UNITED COLONIES ARE, AND OF RIGHT OUGHT TO BE FREE AND INDEPENDENT STATES.' The day is passed. The Fourth Day of July, 1776, will be a memorable epocha in the history of America. I am apt to believe it will be celebrated by succeeding generations..." and more.  A very prophetic statement!
The back page has a very nice recruitment ad for the military headed: "ATTENTION ! " "To all who properly estimate the Independence of America, love its Constitution, and are willing to defend its Government & Laws, in the station of Soldiers, an opportunity now presents." following which are the enticements for joining the military. Also two "Once Cent Reward" ads for runaways.
Four pages, nice condition.

Background: This 1799 printing in Thomas's Massachusetts Spy captures a pivotal moment where early American media actively reshaped national memory, transforming John Adams’s private correspondence into a foundational public myth. While Adams originally wrote his wife Abigail on July 3, 1776, declaring that the vote for independence on the Second of July would be the historic "epocha" celebrated by future generations, the post-Revolutionary public had instead rallied around July 4th—the date the text of the Declaration was formally adopted. By altering Adams's original dates to "July 5th" and "the Fourth Day of July," Isaiah Thomas’s newspaper aligned the Founding Father's famous prophecy with established public tradition, demonstrating how early American printers retroactively edited history to foster a unified national identity. The publication's significance lies not just in its preservation of Adams's remarkably accurate vision of future celebrations, but in its material proof of how the press curated the narrative of the nation's birth, cementing July 4th as the definitive, sacred anniversary of American independence.