Oliver Dyer and Epinetus Webster of Philadelphia published this text of the Declaration written out using phonography, or shorthand. This specific shorthand method, invented by Englishman Isaac Pitman in the 1830s to transcribe speech in real time, used standardized swoops, dots, and loops based on phonetics. With practice, proficient users of phonography like Dyer and Webster could reach speeds above 200 words per minute. By the 1840s, instructors at secretarial colleges taught the system, court recorders used it, and newspaper reporters adopted it. Because only a highly specialized audience could read this version of the Declaration—illegible to most viewers—an August 1848 advertisement in the Philadelphia Inquirer and National Gazette promoted the print (sold for 25 cents) by stating that the shorthand Declaration would “form an ornament for the parlor of any Phonographer.”
Use the "view all images" link for a high-resolution version of this image.