Correspondence

Shortly after the ad in the Richmond Mercury appeared, the Committee for Reunion with England began receiving letters at the newspaper’s post office box. Unfortunately, after 50 years we have lost the correspondence, but my memory is that they ran the gamut from people who understood the satirical joke to those who were offended by our iconoclastic humor. We did transcribe some of the letters and publish them in the first issue of our newsletter, The Tory Torch, which began publication in August 1975. Here are some of the letters we received:

By July, it became clear that the Richmond Mercury would be going out of business (it ceased publication in August), so the Committee for Reunion with England began renting a post office box (P.O. Box 824, Richmond, VA 23207) so we could continue receiving mail.

Two months later though, the joke seemed to have run its course, until we received some unexpected help from the alumni magazine of John’s alma mater, the University of Pennsylvania (founded by rebel leader Benjamin Franklin).

Next: Penn Gazette – Part 1