From Shipyards to State Papers: Building NDAR’s New Digital Exhibits

At Naval Documents of the American Revolution (NDAR), our editorial team and student researchers are expanding how we share the maritime history of the War of American Independence. Rather than viewing early American naval history strictly through isolated sea battles or high-level command decisions, our upcoming suite of digital exhibits brings into focus the human experiences, administrative pressures, and global logistics that defined the war at sea. By pairing newly transcribed manuscripts and archival cataloging with interactive media, these digital projects illuminate the intersection of maritime strategy, labor, diplomacy, and culture.

Upcoming Digital Exhibits

Several major exhibit initiatives are under active development, drawing on primary source collections across the Atlantic:

Building a Frigate in Norwich: Constructing the Confederacy

Tracing the 1777–1778 construction of the 36-gun Continental Navy frigate Confederacy on the Thames River in Connecticut, this exhibit reconstructs the tangible realities of early American warship building. Through local labor tallies, timber procurement receipts, and shipyard accounts, it highlights the immense financial, logistical, and material strains involved in launching a major warship from a rural New England river town.

Songs of the Tar and Privateer: Naval Ballads and Music

Focusing on popular broadside ballads, maritime poetry, and sea shanties, this project explores the vibrant soundscape of 18th-century mariners. It details how song served as a vital instrument for naval recruitment, political propaganda, and crew morale aboard American, British, and French vessels, offering a window into the cultural identity of the common sailor.

The Armada of 1779: High-Seas Crisis in the Channel

This exhibit probes the massive combined Franco-Spanish naval operation in the English Channel during the summer of 1779. By examining fleet intelligence, joint operational plans, and widespread supply breakdowns, it reveals how close the Bourbon powers came to launching a full-scale invasion of southern England—and why the campaign ultimately faltered under the weight of disease and logistical friction.

Captivity in British Waters: Privateers, Prisons, and Edinburgh Castle

Broadening our focus on American privateering and naval incarceration, this exhibit documents the harrowing experiences of captured American seamen held in British home waters. From Plymouth’s Mill Prison and Gosport’s Forton Prison to the cold, vaulted stone casemates of Scotland’s Edinburgh Castle, the exhibit details high-seas captures, internal prison networks, daring escapes, and the complex diplomatic negotiations surrounding prisoner exchanges.

Riot and Reputation in Boston: The Death of Saint-Sauveur

Reconstructing the violent anti-French civil disturbance that erupted on the streets of Boston in September 1778, this feature investigates the fatal wounding of French officer Chevalier de Saint-Sauveur following the arrival of Admiral d'Estaing's fleet. It explores how local authorities and military leaders scrambled to suppress public unrest and preserve the fragile, newly minted Franco-American alliance.

Clash off the Capes: Cape Henry and the Chesapeake

This two-part strategic exhibit examines the critical naval contests that decided the war in Virginia. It traces Captain Le Saige de La Villèsbrunne’s fierce engagement at the Battle of Cape Henry in March 1781 before turning to the decisive Battle of the Chesapeake in September 1781, where Admiral de Grasse successfully fended off the Royal Navy, sealing Lord Cornwallis’s fate at Yorktown.

Archival Discoveries in the Stacks

Behind every exhibit lies essential archival processing and transcription work. Our student researchers are actively cataloging several foundational manuscript collections, including the personal and operational papers of key French commanders such as the Baron de Vioménil and the Marquis de Chastellux. Simultaneously, they are digitizing and indexing documents from the United Kingdom National Archives State Papers (SP 42), uncovering critical British correspondence regarding naval administration, domestic security, and intelligence gathering.

These ongoing cataloging initiatives ensure that NDAR’s digital exhibits remain firmly anchored in original, primary-source scholarship—bringing forgotten voices and crucial records out of the archives and directly to researchers, educators, and the public.