Before the era of mass media, if you wanted the public to know something, you had two ways to get the word out. The first was the newspaper. But sometimes what you had to say was so important, it had to stand alone. That was the purpose of the broadside.
From the sixteenth through nineteenth centuries, the biggest news went forth on large sheets of paper, printed on a single side so they could be plastered to the walls of taverns, inns, any place people gathered.
When Sam Houston was named commander-in-chief of the Texas Army, he knew the cause was doomed without more volunteers. He set his eye on 5000. He also knew it was hopeless to expect men to risk their lives for the cause if they didn't know what the cause was.
That's what this broadside was for.
Sam Houston laid out the reasons Texians were fighting, Baker and Bordens set his words in type at San Felipe de Austin, and word went out.
(Baker and Bordens, by the way, were the same men who would print the Texas Declaration of Independence the following March. The Borden brothers went on to have distinguished careers. They laid out the City of Houston. John became the first commissioner of the General Land Office. Gail became the milkman to the world.)
The original is incredibly rare. I locate fifteen copies in libraries worldwide, and I have a feeling some of those are incorrectly cataloged facsimiles.
None has been sold at auction that I can locate. Ever. It's safe to say if one came to market, it would be valued at least in the mid six figures.
The original measures about 10 by 15 inches. We wanted to go bigger. Much bigger. We settled on 18 by 24 inches, which is a standard frame size.
The thing I'm happiest about is what didn't happen. When you increase the size of a document, it tends to get fuzzy at the edges. It took a lot of work to make it happen, but the letters here are as crisp as on the original.
Have a look.
Physical Details
- 18 by 24 inches
- Fits in a standard sized frame
- Limited Edition of just 254 copies
- Each one is hand-numbered
- On heavyweight fine-art paper
This is a high quality fine-art print.
The heavyweight fine-art paper is acid free with an elegant ever so lightly textured finish. This surface allows the inks to 'bite', reproducing the shading and tonality of the original map vividly, beautifully, and exactly.
The inks are guaranteed color-fast for 80 years, which means you won't need to lay out the extra money for UV glass. You can hang your map in direct sun and it will be just as bright when they are passed on to the next generation it is the day it ships.
It's an instant heirloom. Get yours before they're gone...and get one to give to a friend. He'll owe you!
