Members of the general public give little, if any, thought as to how it is that a parcel arrives on their doorstep or how they can go to a nearby store and purchase a product manufactured in a distant country. The readers of Parcel Counsel know well that there are many “moving parts” involving transportation and logistics that allow this to happen. They also know that there is usually one or more bills of lading issued along the way from origin to destination.

Accompanying this column is an image of an ocean bill of lading dated July 16, 1765 for a shipment from London to Philadelphia. If one looks closely, you can see the cargo is listed as “3 cases 7 packs of stamps for Pennsylvania”, another package for Maryland, and another package for New Jersey. On the surface this would seem to be a rather mundane shipment, so the reader may wonder why I say that these three parcels changed the world.

By way of background, the date of 1765 is very significant. That is the year that Britian passed the Stamp Act of 1765 which imposed a direct tax on the British colonies in America. It required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamp paper from London which included an embossed revenue stamp. Printed materials included legal documents, magazines, newspapers, and many other types of paper used throughout the colonies. The Act specifically included a tax on playing cards and dice. The tax had to be paid in British currency, not in colonial paper money. (Wikipedia, Stamp Act 1765)

This Act and the requirement to use these stamps on all of the items listed generated great hostility in the colonies. Amongst other things, it gave rise to the phrase “no taxation without representation”.

It also led to the Continental Congress of 1765, known as the “Stamp Act Congress”, held in New York City, a critical prequel to the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. This vigorous and hostile response led to the repeal of the Act, however, events had been set in motion.

However, the new stamps did not just magically appear in the colonies --- they were physically transported there by a ship. Thus it is that I believe that these three “ordinary” parcel shipments changed the world.

Finally, I would like to thank Roger Brody for his gracious permission to use this wonderful image.

Brent Wm. Primus, J.D., is the CEO of Primus Law Office, P.A., the Senior Editor of transportlawtexts, inc., and Director of Virtual Education for the Transportation and Logistics Council, Inc.

Previous columns, including those of Andrew M. Danas, may be found in the “Content Library” on the PARCEL website.