I've now seen a couple of newspaper articles talking about fireworks as part of the graduation exercises at VMI (which took place on the fourth of July) and I realize that I don't know really anything about the context here. So I need a good article on pre-Civil War fireworks and how they're related to sentiments of patriotism. How's that for constitutional culture?!
Sure, there is a great literature on fourth of July orations and on how landscape art relates to feelings of nationalism. I know all about public rituals at the dedication of antebellum cemeteries. And one of these days I'm going to go back to cemetery constitutionalism. But certainly there must be a literature on pre-war fireworks and the Constitution, too ... such as fireworks and the constitutional significance of monument dedication speeches (and maybe building dedication speeches as well)? Maybe Len Travers' Celebrating the Fourth: Independence Day and the Rites of Nationalism in the Early Republic is what I need. I'll know in the morning when the library opens.
But in the absence of that article, the best description of pre-war fireworks I can find now comes from -- I love this -- the pamphlet with Senator Robert Winthrop's speech on the laying of the cornerstone of the Washington Monument:
[The fireworks]reflected great credit on the skill of those who had prepared them, and displayed this beautiful art in great perfection. Among the varied and splendid tableaux of stars, diamonds, burning and revolving circles, pyramids, &c, exhibited on this occasion to an immense multitude, spread, in picturesque groups, over the plain, was a device representing the proposed monument, which was forty feet high, and displaying in letters of fire the name of " WASHINGTON.'' This terminated the exhibition of these admirably prepared fireworks.
So we have the joining of a dedication speech -- on July Fourth no less -- with fireworks. More evidence of the ways culture worked together to stir up patriotic sentiment. Oh, yeah, one more thing: I'm interested in Winthrop because he gives a speech at the dedication of the Boston Public Library, too. And one of these days I'm going to talk about constitutionalism and pre-Civil War library dedication addresses.
Take a look at John Adams's letter to Abigail on July 3, 1776, available here: http://www.masshist.org/digitaladams/aea/cfm/doc.cfm?id=L17760703jasecond
Adams wrote:
"The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more."
Posted by: Jason Mazzone | July 26, 2011 at 06:58 PM
Love that, Jason. Thanks.
Posted by: Alfred Brophy | July 28, 2011 at 11:22 AM