Unlocking History number (UH#)
UH0227
Original
Phillis Wheatley to Obour Tanner, Boston, USA, 6 May 1774
Model and research notes
MIT Libraries, Unlocking History Research Group archive, MC0760, Box 28.
Letterlocking Unique Video number(s) (LUV #s) & Instructional video(s) URL
LUV227 https://youtu.be/JeMgvbhdK6Y
Instructional video info transcription
Forthcoming
Letterlocking Category number (LC #)
LC06L
Letterlocking Format number (LF #)
4RW
Security score
Low
Assessment of Confidence in assigning LC#
Attested
Substrate
Paper
Dimensions
Opened (in mm): H: 230 mm x W: 185 mm
Letterpacket (in mm): H: 85 mm x W: 107 mm
Manifestation
Opened
Distinctive letterlocking style(s)
Independent folding – Roll fold
Tuck-and-seal
Locking mechanism
Tuck
Security enhancements
roll fold
Letterlocking category formula (shorthand)
LC6
Fold + Tuck + Adhere
(F + T + A)
Letterlocking manipulation sequence (shorthand)
Fold + fold + fold + fold + fold + fold tuck + adhere
Locking instructions
Forthcoming
Images
MHS Collections Online: Letter from Phillis Wheatley to Obour Tanner, 6 May 1774
Foldable(s)
Forthcoming
Step-by-steps
Forthcoming
Substrate map
Forthcoming
Virtual unfolding results
NA
Manipulations
Writing: NA, Margin folds
Postal: written notation on address panel: delivered by Mr Pemberton
Opening: NA, Tears, Seal tears
Filing (Storage, Display): Stored flat and loose
Repair: Mends, Linings, Silking overall
Damage
Tears
Ink Corrosion
Features
Dirt on panels/ in crease
Radiating wrinkles
Wrinkles
Article(s)
NA
Book
Jana Dambrogio and Daniel Starza Smith with the Unlocking History Research Group. Letterlocking: The Hidden History of the Letter. Cambridge and London: MIT Press, 2025.
Transcription
MHS Collections Online: Letter from Phillis Wheatley to Obour Tanner, 6 May 1774
Further resources
Jeffers, Honor.e Fannone. The Age of Phillis. Wesleyan Poetry Series. Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 2020.
Citation for the letter(s)
UH0227
Original
Phillis Wheatley to Obour Tanner (May 6, 1774), Massachusetts Historical Society, Miscellaneous Bound Manuscripts.
Model
MIT Libraries, Unlocking History Research Group archive, MC0760, Box 28.
Video
LUV227
Jana Dambrogio, Sheree Watson, MD, Walter O. Evans, MD, Linda J. Evans,and the Unlocking History Research Group. “Miss Phillis Wheatley’s rolled, tuck, and seal letter to Miss Obour Tanner, England (6 May 1774).” Filmed: March 6, 2023. Duration: 2:36. Posted: 3 November 2023. URL: https://youtu.be/JeMgvbhdK6Y. Accessed March 4, 2025.
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