The Copyright Act...
Item # 712366This item is currently up for auction on eBay (item #110588487331). You’re welcome to bid there, or email us at info@rarenewspapers.com if you’d prefer to buy directly at the web-price. If it remains unsold, we’ll be in touch.
June 05, 1790
GAZETTE OF THE UNITED STATES, New York, June 5, 1790
* Copyright Act of 1790
* 1st federal copyright law
* President George Washington
A very significant issue for anyone in the publishing field, as page two has virtually an entire column taken up with the printing of: "An Act for the Encouragement of Learning, by securing the Copies of Maps, Charts and Books to the Authors & Proprietors of such Copies, during the times therein mentioned." which was the copyright act, signed in type: George Washington as President, as well as by Thomas Jefferson and John Adams.
This very Act was in the Columbian Centinel issue of July 17, over 5 weeks later. To my knowledge, this newspaper was the very first to publish the Copyright Act.
Page 2 also has another letter signed in type: G. Washington, being his reply to the letter sent by the delegates of the state societies of the Cincinnati congratulating him on being elected President. Many reports from Congress including: "...a bill for establishing the permanent seat of the federal government was read a second time..." and also mention that "...The bill for giving effect to the laws of the United States in respect to the state of Rhode Island...was read the third time and passed...". Rhode Island had just recently become the last of the 13 original colonies to ratify the Constitution.
Four pages, some minor foxing, nice condition.
Background: The first U.S. Copyright Act, signed into law in 1790, during George Washington’s presidency, established the foundation of federal copyright protection in America under the title “An Act for the Encouragement of Learning.” It granted authors exclusive rights to their works, specifically maps, charts, and books, for an initial term of 14 years, with the option to renew for another 14 years if the author was still living, reflecting the early American belief that intellectual labor deserved limited legal protection to promote learning and innovation. Registration was managed by the Clerk of the U.S. District Court in the author’s district, and only U.S. citizens or residents could secure these rights, leaving foreign works unprotected. The act represented a careful balance between incentivizing creators and ensuring public access to knowledge, establishing principles that would evolve over centuries into the comprehensive copyright system the United States employs today.
Considered by many as the most significant newspaper of the 18th century, as the Gazette was the mouthpiece of all matters political. Most pronouncements from Congress & the President were printed first in this newspaper.
* Copyright Act of 1790
* 1st federal copyright law
* President George Washington
A very significant issue for anyone in the publishing field, as page two has virtually an entire column taken up with the printing of: "An Act for the Encouragement of Learning, by securing the Copies of Maps, Charts and Books to the Authors & Proprietors of such Copies, during the times therein mentioned." which was the copyright act, signed in type: George Washington as President, as well as by Thomas Jefferson and John Adams.
This very Act was in the Columbian Centinel issue of July 17, over 5 weeks later. To my knowledge, this newspaper was the very first to publish the Copyright Act.
Page 2 also has another letter signed in type: G. Washington, being his reply to the letter sent by the delegates of the state societies of the Cincinnati congratulating him on being elected President. Many reports from Congress including: "...a bill for establishing the permanent seat of the federal government was read a second time..." and also mention that "...The bill for giving effect to the laws of the United States in respect to the state of Rhode Island...was read the third time and passed...". Rhode Island had just recently become the last of the 13 original colonies to ratify the Constitution.
Four pages, some minor foxing, nice condition.
Background: The first U.S. Copyright Act, signed into law in 1790, during George Washington’s presidency, established the foundation of federal copyright protection in America under the title “An Act for the Encouragement of Learning.” It granted authors exclusive rights to their works, specifically maps, charts, and books, for an initial term of 14 years, with the option to renew for another 14 years if the author was still living, reflecting the early American belief that intellectual labor deserved limited legal protection to promote learning and innovation. Registration was managed by the Clerk of the U.S. District Court in the author’s district, and only U.S. citizens or residents could secure these rights, leaving foreign works unprotected. The act represented a careful balance between incentivizing creators and ensuring public access to knowledge, establishing principles that would evolve over centuries into the comprehensive copyright system the United States employs today.
Considered by many as the most significant newspaper of the 18th century, as the Gazette was the mouthpiece of all matters political. Most pronouncements from Congress & the President were printed first in this newspaper.
Item from last month's catalog - #365 - released for April, 2026
Category: The 1600's and 1700's
