Circa 1812 War of 1812 Era, American Broadside Ballad, "Paul Jones' Victory," a Thirteen Verse Poem Recounting Captain John Paul Jones's Celebrated Sea Victory Aboard the Bonhomme Richard Over Superior British Forces off the Coast of England, September 23, 1779, Very Good.
"Paul Jones's Victory" (cataloged by folklorist G. Malcolm Laws as Laws A4) is a narrative ballad commemorating Paul Jones's September 23, 1779 Naval Victory over HMS Serapis off Flamborough Head, while commanding the Bonhomme Richard. It circulated widely in both England and America, and includes the famous "I have not yet begun to fight" exchange in verse form. The Broadside ballad text is well printed in dark black and fully readable, ("Paul Jones's Victory" as commonly printed) is, per AAS specialists, stylistically and physically much closer to War of 1812-era battle ballads and is printed in black on c. 1812 wove period paper. This Broadside Ballad, measures about 10.5” x 8.25” with rough worn untrimmed outer margin edges, with the bottom right corner selvage lacking and some archival tape reinforcements on the left edge on the blank reverse.

This engagement pitted Jones's aging, converted merchant man ship against the newer British frigate Serapis in one of this Revolutionary War's most storied naval actions, an American victory that came at a staggering cost, this Bonhomme Richard sank two days after this battle, yet this sheer audacity of this win made it a tremendous propaganda triumph for this American cause. This ballad opens reading: "An American frigate, a frigate of fame, With guns mounted forty, the Richard by name... With a valiant commander, Paul Jones is the man," recounts this moment Jones refused to surrender despite his sinking ship, "Our gunner in a fright to Paul Jones he came, We make water quite fast, and our side's in a flame, Then brave Jones he said, in the height of his pride, If we can do no better boys, sink along side," and closes triumphantly, "To us they did strike, their colours pull'd down, The fame of Paul Jones will be heard with renown." There are few surviving examples.

Provenance: Collection of Ambassador J. William Middendorf II.
According to the American Antiquarian Society's Isaiah Thomas Broadside Ballads Project, which holds and has closely studied surviving exemplars of this exact title, the scholarship is more complicated than a simple "1780" date suggests: The earliest known American poem on Jones's victory is Philip Freneau's "On the Memorable Victory," published in the Philadelphia Freeman's Journal, August 8, 1781, being a different, more literary work.

The surviving Thomas-collection copy and a companion printing by Joseph White are nearly identical in layout, illustration, and paper stock to Captain Hull's Victory broadsides, and were "probably printed after August 1812." We sense the same is true for this example.