Library

Primary Document Library: The Democratic-Republican Era

By The editors of the Democratic Republican PartyPublished How we check facts

The short answer

These are the documents to read first if you want to understand the Democratic-Republican Party from its own era: the bank debate, the party's newspapers, the Alien and Sedition Acts and the resolutions against them, the 1800 and 1824 electoral records, Jefferson's first inaugural, and the treaties, laws, and messages of the party's years in power. Each entry links directly to the institution that publishes or holds it.

Historical setting

A secondary history tells you what happened. A primary document lets you check. The entries below are organized in the same order as this site's chapters, so you can read a chapter and then open the documents behind it.

Each entry gives the title, author or issuing body, date, where the document is held or published, a direct link, and one sentence on why it is worth your time. "Held by" means the source states that institution holds the original. "Text published by" means the link is a transcription and we have not confirmed where the original is kept. Where this page or our chapters quote a document, the wording was checked at the linked source.

Documents

Before the party: the 1780s and early 1790s

  1. The Constitution of the United States (Constitutional Convention, 1787). Text published by the National Archives. Transcription. Why read it: Article I, Section 2 and Article II, Section 1 contain the apportionment and elector rules, including the three-fifths clause, that shaped every election in this history archives.gov.
  2. Draft Report on the Constitutionality of a National Bank (Alexander Hamilton, February 23, 1791). Held by the Library of Congress. Exhibit page. Why read it: it is the founding statement of the implied-powers argument that divided Hamilton and Jefferson loc.gov.
  3. Constitution of New Jersey (Provincial Congress of New Jersey, July 2, 1776). Text published by the Avalon Project, Yale Law School. Text. Why read it: Section IV's voting clause says "inhabitants," not men, which is the starting point for New Jersey's unusual voting history to 1807 avalon.law.yale.edu.
  4. Constitution of Pennsylvania (Pennsylvania convention, September 28, 1776). Text published by the Avalon Project. Text. Why read it: Section 6 shows a taxpaying, rather than property-owning, test for voting avalon.law.yale.edu.

Formation

  1. Diary of John Adams, entry for November 11, 1791 (John Adams). Published by the Massachusetts Historical Society, Adams Papers Digital Edition. Entry and editorial note. Why read it: the vice president records receiving the new National Gazette, and the editors' note dates its first issue and explains Freneau's State Department post masshist.org.
  2. "A Candid State of Parties," National Gazette (James Madison, September 22, 1792). Held by the Library of Congress. Exhibit page. Why read it: Madison's own description of the parties, which the Library credits with naming the Republican opposition loc.gov.
  3. Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, July 7, 1793 (Thomas Jefferson). Held by the Library of Congress, Manuscript Division. Exhibit page. Why read it: a private letter in which the Secretary of State urges Madison to answer Hamilton in print, showing how the opposition coordinated loc.gov.
  4. Sixth Annual Message (George Washington, November 19, 1794). Text published by the Avalon Project. Text. Why read it: Washington's condemnation of "self-created societies" is the administration's direct response to the Democratic-Republican Societies avalon.law.yale.edu.
  5. Farewell Address (George Washington, 1796). Text published by the Avalon Project. Text. Why read it: the most famous warning against party spirit, delivered when two parties were already contesting the presidency avalon.law.yale.edu.

The crisis of 1798 to 1801

  1. The Alien and Sedition Acts (Fifth Congress, June 18 to July 14, 1798). Held by the National Archives, Record Group 11. Milestone document. Why read it: the statutes themselves, including the Sedition Act's penalties, truth defense, and expiration date archives.gov.
  2. Draft of the Kentucky Resolutions (Thomas Jefferson, November 16, 1798). Held by the Library of Congress, Manuscript Division. Exhibit page. Why read it: Jefferson's own draft, which the Library notes asserted a state right to nullify federal laws loc.gov.
  3. Virginia Resolution (General Assembly of Virginia, December 24, 1798). Text published by the Avalon Project. Text. Why read it: Madison's anonymous answer to the Alien and Sedition Acts, declaring that the states were "in duty bound, to interpose" against unauthorized federal power avalon.law.yale.educonstitutioncenter.org.
  4. Kentucky Resolution of 1799 (Kentucky General Assembly, December 3, 1799). Text published by the Avalon Project. Text. Why read it: Kentucky's second statement, rejecting the claim that the federal government is the exclusive judge of its own powers avalon.law.yale.edu.
  5. Electoral College results, 1800, and the official tally of February 11, 1801 (National Archives). Held by the National Archives (tally: National Archives Identifier 2668821). Results and archival post on the tally. Why read it: the 73 to 73 tie and the House result of 10 states to 4 are recorded here archives.govblogs.archives.gov.
  6. First Inaugural Address (Thomas Jefferson, March 4, 1801). Text published by the Avalon Project. Text. Why read it: the winner's account of what the election meant, including the line "We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists" avalon.law.yale.edu.
  7. The Twelfth Amendment, with ratification record (Eighth Congress, proposed December 12, 1803). Published in the House Manual by GovInfo. Text and note. Why read it: the constitutional fix for the 1800 tie, with each state's ratification date govinfo.gov.

Governing

  1. Louisiana Purchase Treaty (United States and France, April 30, 1803). Held by the National Archives, Record Group 11. Milestone document. Why read it: the treaty and its two financial conventions show exactly what was bought and how it was paid for archives.gov.
  2. Thomas Jefferson to William Henry Harrison, February 27, 1803, extract (Thomas Jefferson). Press copy held by the Library of Congress; extract published by the Thomas Jefferson Foundation. Extract. Why read it: an early, private statement of a federal plan to obtain Native land through trade debt tjrs.monticello.org.
  3. Treaty of Ghent (United States and Great Britain, December 24, 1814). Held by the National Archives, Record Group 11. Milestone document. Why read it: the peace that ended the War of 1812 on prewar terms, negotiated by Adams, Clay, and Gallatin among others archives.gov.
  4. McCulloch v. Maryland (Supreme Court, March 6, 1819). Held by the National Archives, Record Group 267. Milestone document. Why read it: the Court's answer, three decades later, to the bank question Hamilton and Jefferson argued in 1791 archives.gov.
  5. Missouri Compromise (Congress, approved March 6, 1820). Held by the National Archives. Milestone document. Why read it: the sectional bargain over slavery in the Louisiana Territory, which held until the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 archives.gov.
  6. Monroe Doctrine: annual message to Congress (James Monroe, December 2, 1823). Held by the National Archives, Record Group 46. Milestone document. Why read it: the last major foreign policy statement of the Democratic-Republican presidents archives.gov.

Breakup and afterward

  1. Electoral College results, 1824 (National Archives). Results. Why read it: the four-way split and the House vote of 13, 7, and 4 states, in an official record archives.gov.
  2. Veto Message Regarding the Bank of the United States (Andrew Jackson, July 10, 1832). Text published by the Avalon Project. Text. Why read it: the Jacksonian answer to the bank question, written by the leader of the Jacksonian coalition that emerged from the divided Republicans avalon.law.yale.edu.
  3. Indian Removal Act and related documents (Congress; signed by Andrew Jackson on May 28, 1830). Library of Congress research guide. Guide. Why read it: the law under which the federal government pursued removal of Native nations west of the Mississippi, including the forced removal of the Cherokee in 1838 and 1839 guides.loc.gov.

The dolphin and the animals

The full evidence reviews behind the party's mark and the two parties' animals, kept in full:

Evidence

Every link above was opened on October 28, 2026, and the title, date, and holding information in each entry come from the linked page. Where the linked page is an exhibit or guide rather than the document itself, the entry says so. The dates given are the dates on the documents, not the dates they became public; Jefferson's and Madison's roles in the 1798 resolutions, for example, were kept secret for years loc.gov.

What the evidence does not show

This is a starting library, not a complete one. Founders Online (founders.archives.gov), the National Archives' online edition of founders' papers, publishes many of the period's letters. Its pages could not be retrieved for verification when this list was compiled, so its documents are not yet linked here; they will be added after each link is checked.

The list does not include the voices of the people the party's rules excluded. Petitions, speeches, and writings by free Black Americans, enslaved people, women voters in New Jersey, and Native nations are essential to this history and will be added as each record is located and verified at its holding institution.

Inclusion is not endorsement. Several of these documents argue for policies, such as removal and the protection of slavery, that caused great harm. They are listed because they are evidence.

Sources

  1. National Archives, "The Constitution of the United States: A Transcription." archives.gov (locator: Art. I, Sec. 2; Art. II, Sec. 1). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  2. Library of Congress, "Formation of Political Parties," Creating the United States exhibition. loc.gov (locator: item list). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  3. Constitution of New Jersey, 1776, Avalon Project. avalon.law.yale.edu (locator: Section IV). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  4. Constitution of Pennsylvania, 1776, Avalon Project. avalon.law.yale.edu (locator: Sect. 6). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  5. Massachusetts Historical Society, Diary of John Adams, volume 3, November 11, 1791. masshist.org (locator: entry and note 1). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  6. Library of Congress, "Establishing a Federal Republic," Thomas Jefferson exhibition. loc.gov (locator: items 116 and 135, exhibit text). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  7. George Washington, Sixth Annual Message, November 19, 1794, Avalon Project. avalon.law.yale.edu (locator: title line; insurrection passage). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  8. George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796, Avalon Project. avalon.law.yale.edu (locator: title line). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  9. National Archives, "Alien and Sedition Acts (1798)." archives.gov (locator: citation and transcripts). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  10. Virginia Resolution, December 24, 1798, Avalon Project. avalon.law.yale.edu (locator: date line). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  11. National Constitution Center, "The Virginia Resolutions (1798)." constitutioncenter.org (locator: introduction). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  12. Kentucky Resolution, December 3, 1799, Avalon Project. avalon.law.yale.edu (locator: first resolution and date line). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  13. National Archives, Electoral College results, 1800. archives.gov (locator: results table and notes). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  14. Jessie Kratz, "The Election of 1800," Pieces of History, National Archives, November 7, 2016. blogs.archives.gov (locator: image credits). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  15. Thomas Jefferson, First Inaugural Address, March 4, 1801, Avalon Project. avalon.law.yale.edu (locator: paragraph 2). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  16. House Manual, 104th Congress, Amendment XII, GovInfo. govinfo.gov (locator: ratification note). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  17. National Archives, "Louisiana Purchase Treaty (1803)." archives.gov (locator: summary and citation). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  18. Thomas Jefferson Foundation, "Extract from Thomas Jefferson to William Henry Harrison, 27 Feb. 1803." tjrs.monticello.org (locator: extract and source note). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  19. National Archives, "Treaty of Ghent (1814)." archives.gov (locator: summary and citation). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  20. National Archives, "McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)." archives.gov (locator: citation). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  21. National Archives, "Missouri Compromise (1820)." archives.gov (locator: summary and citation). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  22. National Archives, "Monroe Doctrine (1823)." archives.gov (locator: citation). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  23. National Archives, Electoral College results, 1824. archives.gov (locator: results table and notes). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  24. Andrew Jackson, Veto Message, July 10, 1832, Avalon Project. avalon.law.yale.edu (locator: title and date). Accessed 2026-10-28.
  25. Library of Congress, "Indian Removal Act: Primary Documents in American History." guides.loc.gov (locator: introduction). Accessed 2026-10-28.

Last checked against its sources on October 28, 2026. Report a correction.