Library of Congress to create digital archive of Alexander Hamilton’s documents

The popularity of Hamilton the musical is giving Hamilton the man a popularity boost as well. The Library of Congress is digitizing thousands of Hamilton documents.

Hamilton‘s popularity is “Non-Stop” and the Library of Congress is now providing Hamilfans and history buffs alike with the chance to be in “The Room Where it Happened.” Yes, I just made two Hamilton puns in a row–you’re all welcome.

Hamilton wrote like he was running out of time…now it’s all online

TheaterMania announced yesterday that the library would be making digital copies of 12,000 Hamilton documents available in its online archive. According to the Library of Congress website, these papers will include Hamilton’s correspondence with Angelica Schuyler, Marquis de Lafayette, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams. Prior to the release of this collection, if you were interested in reading the words of America’s first Secretary of the Treasury, you’d have to make a trek to Washington D.C. to visit the Library of Congress and view the documents on microfilm.

When I saw this news I thought of my dad, who, despite being a huge history buff, has never been a fan of musicals. He’s even less of a fan of sung through musicals but I’ve always thought he’d enjoy Hamilton. Then again, I think everyone would enjoy Hamilton–but I thought maybe this would be a good way to get people like my dad who love learning about American history but aren’t necessarily into the musical, onto the Hamilton bandwagon.

The thing that I think has made Hamilton so impactful is how tangible it is. You can watch the musical and then go back and read his words–or see places he walked and lived. You don’t have to rely solely on your imagination, which I think makes the experience of this musical more profound. I’ve already seen some of the more historically-based Hamilton memes, so I can only imagine what the Hamilton fanpages on my Instagram account are going to look like once these papers get released.

To be clear, this actually isn’t the first round of Hamilton documents to be released. Columbia University published a 27-volume collection, titled The Papers of Alexander Hamilton over the course of more than 25 years and some of Hamilton’s correspondence can also be found in the Library of Congress’ George Washington Papers collection. You can also search for miscellaneous Hamilton documents on the Library of Congress’ website.

The Library of Congress has divided the collection into eight groups:

• General Correspondence – This includes letters from Hamilton’s adolescence in St. Croix as well as his military service and time as a junior delegate at the Constitutional Convention.
• Speeches and Writings – Which will include copies and drafts of Hamilton’s speeches and essays including those he wrote on behalf of George Washington.
• Legal File – Documents from Hamilton’s days as a lawyer.
• Financial Papers – Various receipts from Hamilton’s financial transactions –this is said to be the smallest section of the archive.
• Family Documents – This will include letters between the Hamiltons,  his sons, the Schuyler family, and Hamilton’s descendants down to his grandson Phillip Hamilton–none of these letters are from Hamilton personally although a few are addressed to him.
• Miscellany 
• 1998 Addition – This section features more letters from Hamilton and a paper from a church register certifying his marriage to Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton.
• 2017 Addition – The most recent addition to the collection features letters gifted to the Library by Hamilton’s descendants and shows communication between Hamilton and his father-in-law Phillip Schuyler, and Elizabeth Schuyler. It also features a portion of Hamilton’s handwritten will.

I’m completely here for this and will be perusing the existing archives to get a head start. Yes, I’m a nerd. If you’re also interested in doing some initial research I recommend Hamilton’s “Best of Wives,” letter, which he wrote to Eliza Hamilton just before being killed in a duel by Aaron Burr.

Next: Someone made the Game of Thrones Hamilton mash-up we didn’t know we needed

It’s heartbreaking but so articulate. Happy reading!