By R.W. Morrell

The principal event held to date to commemorate the 175th Anniversary of the publication of Rights of Man has been the exhibition organised jointly by the Nottingham Co-operative Society, Private Libraries Association and the Thomas Paine Society at the Co-operative Arts Centre, Nottingham. 

Opened by Mr. A.J. Statham, a member of the Council of the TPS, the exhibition stayed open to the public for a week. It was interesting to note that some 400 people visited the display including many sixth form schoolchildren and students from Nottingham University. 

The Society wants to hold a similar exhibition in London but so far efforts to find suitable accommodation have met with no success. 

Partial list of exhibits in the Nottingham exhibition. The following abbreviations indicate ownership: CB. (Collection of Christopher Brunel). RWM. (Collection of R.W. Morrell). PW. (Collection of P. Wyncoll).

1. Election Address of John Wilkes. 1769. RWM. 

2. Volume of Letters of John Wilkes. 1769. Ient anonymously. 

3. Print of the Storming of the Bastille. RWM. 

4. Print of Edmund Burke. RWM. 

5. Reflections on the Revolution in France. 3rd.Edn. Burke. 1790. RWM.

6. Rights of Man. Paine. 1st. Edn. sold to public. 1791. RWM.

7. Dialogue between One of Mr. Burke’s 320,000 Sound Ones and One of his 80,000 Incorrigible, Pure Jacobins. By One of the Herefordshire Yeomanry. 1797. RWM. 

8. Burke. Works. Vol.4. RWM. 

9. Print of Fleet Street. RWM. 

10. Print of the Angel Inn, Islington. CB. 

11. Protest Against Rights of Man. 1792. RVM. 

12. Answer to Rights of Man. I.Hunt. 1791. 

13. Rights of Man. Pocket Edition, 1837.

14. Magazine of the London Corresponding Society. Vol. 2. March, 1797. CB. 

15. Trial of Joseph Gerrald of the London Corresponding Society.1794. CB. 

16. Trial of Thomas Paine. 1792. PW. A 

17. Apology for the Bible. Watson. 1799. RWM. 

18. Print of Newgate Prison. RVM. 

19. Working Man’s Political Companion (Paine’s Political Works). 1841. RWM. 

20. True Briton. Full run No.1-27. 1819. Lent anonymously. 

21. Chronology of the War Between France and England. 1796. Lent anon. 

22..”Britain’s Constitution”, A Sermon.. 1792. RWM, 

23. Rights of Man. French Edn. Paris, 1791. CB. 

24. Plea for Religion. Simpson. Halifax,1851. RWM. 

25. View of Causes & Consequences of War with France.Erskine. 1797.RWM. 

26. Rights of Man. Carlile Edn. 1819. CB. 

27. Letter to Lord Ellenborough. Shelley. 1883. RWM. 

28. Legacy to Labourers. Cobbett. 1835. RWM. 

29. Life of Paine, Linton. 1842. RWM. 

30. Substance of a Speech by C.J.Fox on Reform of Parliament, 1797. RWM. 

31. Print of Fox. RWM. 

32. Political Cartoon against Paine. 1792. CB. 

33. Plan for Reform of Election of House of Commons. Philip Francis. 1817. RWM. 

34. Rights of Man. Chartist Edn. CB. 

35. Life of Paine. Rickman.1819. RWM. 

36. Catalogue of Yale. University. Paine Exhibition, 1961. RWM. 

37. Programme of the Ceremony of unveiling the Paine statue at Thetford, 1964. RWM. 

38. Monthly Letter, March 1965. Article on Paine. RWM. 

39. Observations on Mr. Paine’s Rights of Man. Boothby. CB. 

40. Article on Paine’s literary style by Prof.J.T.Boulton. Lent by Prof.Boulton. 

41. Burke, Paine and the Rights of Man. The Hague, 1963. RWM. 

42. Paine Bi-Centenary edition of The Freethinker, 1937. RWM. 

43. Facsimile of page of Lewes Town Book containing Paine’s signature. Donated by the Mayor of Lewes. 

44. Citizen Tom Paine. Fast. 1945. RWM. 

45. Life of Paine. Dos Passos. Rome,1950.. CB. 

46. Life of Paine, Woodward. 1946. RWM. 

47. Man of Reason, Life of Paine.Aldridge. 1960. RWM. TPS.Bulletin. 

48. Life of Paine. Conway. 1909. RWM.

49. Paperback Edn. of Reflections & Rights of Man. N.Y.,1961. RWM. 

50. Life of Paine. Qldys (Chalmer) 1791. RWM. 

51. Print of the Iron Bridge over the Wear. CB. 

52. Staffordshire frog mug showing Iron Bridge designed by Paine. RWM. 

53. Staffordshire plate showing the Iron Bridge, 

54. Print of Paine published by Sharp. RWM. CB. 

55. Paine’s Nightly Pest. Gillray cartoon. 1792. RWM. 

56. The Rights of Man or Tommy Paine the little American Taylor. Gillray cartoon. 1791. RWM. 

57. Watercolour painting of Paine by Herbert Cutner. 1920. RWM. 

Also on view at the exhibition were many token coins, however, we cannot list them at present.