THE PENNSYLVANIA GAZETTE, Philadelphia, Jan. 11, 1775  

* Pre-American Revolutionary War tensions in the colonies 

This was the newspaper previously owned & printed by Benjamin Franklin, and printed during the dramatic period just before the outbreak of the Revolutionary War.
Inside has various news items including a brief item concerning General Gage being defensive until Parliament reacts to the temper of Boston residents. Another item notes that Ben Franklin was selected as President of the American Philisophical Society, and yet another report begins: "We are at present in a dreadful suspense concerning the fate of America. I could wish that the Americans would prepare for the worst..." with more.
Four pages, never-trimmed margins, this issue is in 2nd rate condition. Various wear at margins and folds, staining throughout, various archival mends at the spine and folds. But all is present; no portions missing.

Background: The items in this January 1775 issue capture the fragile, agonizing final weeks of the colonial peace, illustrating a society pivoting from political resistance toward an inevitable armed revolution. The ominous warning of "dreadful suspense" and the call for Americans to "prepare for the worst" reflect the widespread psychological shift occurring as citizens realized a peaceful reconciliation with the British Crown was failing. By highlighting General Thomas Gage's defensive posture in Boston, the paper documents the literal flashpoint of the coming war, where British troops and local militias were locked in an intense, localized cold war waiting for Parliament's next move. Simultaneously, the brief mention of Benjamin Franklin's election as President of the American Philosophical Society serves as a poignant reminder that even as the political and military landscape fractured, American intellectual identity and its foundational institutions—spearheaded by the colonies' most famous diplomat—were solidifying, preparing to sustain a new nation through the crucible of the Revolutionary War.