By Christopher Marcisz
Photo above by Jenn Smith
Williamstown’s own unique celebration of the Fourth of July started back in 1987, when the Chapin Rare Books Library at Williams College teamed up with actors in town for the Williamstown Theatre Festival. The idea was to celebrate and remind people that Williamstown was one of a few places where you could find originals of each American founding document.
The first reader was Harry Groener, an actor in town for the little-known historical drama “Campion,” who read a selection from the Declaration of Independence for about 100 curious onlookers.
“It was very moving, I just wanted to burst into tears at times,” Groener told a reporter for the North Adams Transcript. “It hits right at the heart.”
After Groener’s declaration came English actor Richard Kneeland, who was in “The Crucible” that summer. In his plummiest accent, he read the lesser-known response from British authorities, a copy of which the library also has. In patronizing tones they urge the rebels to abandon “the unjust and precarious Cause in which they are engaged.”
To be sure, the event has changed and evolved through the years, but the purpose remains the same—to focus on the founding principles in their most immediate form.
“The program gives our audience a chance to consider texts that are new to them and ones they might not have encountered since high school,” said Chapin Librarian Anne Peale. “Even though I’ve been at Williams for almost a decade, I hear something new in the readings each year.”
The Chapin was founded in 1923 from the collection of alumnus Alfred Clark Chapin, a New York politician and collector who was the last mayor of independent Brooklyn. That formed the heart of the collection that continued to grow into its space on the second floor of Stetson Hall on campus.
In April 1983, the library’s then head Robert Volz pulled off a coup when he lined up funding from alumni and friends of the college to buy at auction an original copy of the Declaration of Independence for $412,500 (about $1.3 million in 2026 dollars).
It was a Dunlap Broadside, one of about 200 produced by Philadelphia printer John Dunlap on the night of July 4, 1776. Only about 26 are known to still exist. It completed a set that included a copy of the Articles of Confederation, the Bill of Rights, and a draft version of the Constitution once belonging to George Mason that included his detailed notes and objections written on the back.
In 1987, the library was looking for ways to highlight its holdings as part of the Constitution’s Bicentennial. For years the reading was held in the Chapin reading room itself, with performers orating from the upper level. Festival regulars who participated include actors Kate Burton, James Naughton, Roger Rees, Tom Tammi, and Jessica Hecht.
The Chapin hosts over 80 class sessions throughout the year, but the Fourth readings are a chance to meet an audience that might not realize what they’re in for.
“More visitors come to Special Collections on the Fourth than any other day of the year,” Peale said. “It’s an opportunity for us to share our collections with community members who might not ordinarily visit the library.”
Recent variations of the event have expanded to highlight the library’s other holdings, like Frederick Douglass’ speech “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” In 2023, they added Stockbridge-Munsee leader John Quinney’s 1854 speech pointing out the hypocrisy and violence of American expansion. This year will include a speech from 1876 by future president James Garfield, who attended Williams.
In 2023, after consulting with independent conservators, the documents were removed from permanent public view to reduce exposure to light, but are brought out for the midsummer celebration. The event also moved to nearby Chapin Hall, a space with better acoustics and room for larger groups.
And the Theatre Festival has also reimagined itself, moving to a biannual model. It will not host any fully-produced shows this summer, but audiences can expect “pop-up performances, exclusive events, readings, and more.” The Festival has confirmed it will continue to partner with Williams on the 4th of July readings.
Meanwhile, the Library will use its exhibition space to open a new gallery featuring objects from the Revolutionary era. “My job is to connect people with stuff,” Peale said. “The greatest joy I have is when I can help find a book or manuscript that shapes the course of someone’s research or changes the way they think about the world.”
