The Copyright Act of 1790 was the first
federal
Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to:
Politics
General
*Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies
*Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...
copyright act to be instituted in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, though most of the
states had passed various legislation securing copyrights in the years immediately following the
Revolutionary War. The stated object of the act was the "encouragement of learning," and it achieved this by securing authors the "sole right and liberty of printing, reprinting, publishing and vending" the copies of their "maps, charts, and books" for a term of 14 years, with the right to renew for one additional 14-year term should the copyright holder still be alive.
Early developments
The 1710 British
Statute of Anne did not apply to the American colonies. The colonies' economy was largely
agrarian, hence copyright law was not a priority, resulting in only three private copyright acts being passed in America prior to 1783.
[ Two of the acts were limited to seven years, the other was limited to a term of five years.][ In 1783 a committee of the ]Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...
concluded "that nothing is more properly a man's own an the fruit of his study, and that the protection and security of literary property would greatly tends to encourage genius and to promote useful discoveries." But under the Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was an agreement among the 13 Colonies of the United States of America that served as its first frame of government. It was approved after much debate (between July 1776 and November 1777) by ...
, the Continental Congress had no authority to issue copyright;[ instead it passed a resolution encouraging the States to "secure to the authors or publishers of any new book not hitherto printed... the copy right of such books for a certain time not less than fourteen years from the first publication; and to secure to the said authors, if they shall survive the term first mentioned,... the copy right of such books for another term of time no less than fourteen years".] Three states had already enacted copyright statutes in 1783 prior to the Continental Congress resolution,[ and in the subsequent three years all of the remaining states except ]Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
passed a copyright statute. Seven of the States followed the Statute of Anne and the Continental Congress' resolution by providing two fourteen-year terms. The five remaining States granted copyright for single terms of fourteen, twenty and twenty-one years, with no right of renewal.
At the Constitutional Convention 1787 both James Madison
James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for hi ...
of Virginia and Charles C. Pinckney of South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
submitted proposals that would allow Congress the power to grant copyright for a limited time. These proposals are the origin of the Copyright Clause
The Copyright Clause (also known as the Intellectual Property Clause, Copyright and Patent Clause, or the Progress Clause) describes an enumerated power listed in the United States Constitution ( Article I, Section 8, Clause 8).
The clause, w ...
in the United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...
, which allows the granting of copyright and patent
A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...
s for a limited time to serve a utilitarian
In ethical philosophy, utilitarianism is a family of normative ethical theories that prescribe actions that maximize happiness and well-being for all affected individuals.
Although different varieties of utilitarianism admit different charac ...
function, namely "to promote the progress of science and useful arts".
Legislative history
During the first session of the 1st United States Congress
The 1st United States Congress, comprising the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, met from March 4, 1789, to March 4, 1791, during the first two years of George Washington's presidency, first at Federal Hall in ...
in 1789, the House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
considered enacting a copyright law. The historian Davit Ramsay petitioned Congress seeking to restrict the publication of his ''History of the American Revolution'' on April 15. Congressmen Thomas Tudor Tucker
Thomas Tudor Tucker (June 25, 1745May 2, 1828) was a Bermuda-born American physician and politician representing Charleston, South Carolina. He was elected from South Carolina in both the Continental Congress and the U.S. House. He later was ...
, Alexander White, and Benjamin Huntington
Benjamin Huntington (April 19, 1736 – October 16, 1800) was an eighteenth-century American lawyer, jurist and politician from Connecticut and served as a delegate to the Second Continental Congress and as a member of the U.S. House of Re ...
examined his claims and a copyright committee consisting of Huntington, Lambert Cadwalader
Lambert Cadwalader (December 1742 – September 13, 1823) was an American merchant and leader in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. He fought in the Revolutionary War, then represented New Jersey in the Continental Congress and the U.S. Congres ...
, and Benjamin Contee
Benjamin Contee (1755 – November 30, 1815) was an American Episcopal priest and statesman from Maryland. He was an officer in the American Revolutionary War, a delegate to the Confederation Congress, and member of the first United States ...
began drafting the legislation on April 20. Jedidiah Morse
Jedidiah Morse (August 23, 1761June 9, 1826) was a geographer whose textbooks became a staple for students in the United States. He was the father of the telegraphy pioneer and painter Samuel Morse, and his textbooks earned him the sobriquet of "f ...
, Nicholas Pike
Nicholas Pike is an Emmy Award winning English film and television music composer.
He was born in Water Orton, Warwickshire, England, and is known for featuring unique sounds and instrumentation. He started his music career at the age of 7 at t ...
, and Hannah Adams
Hannah Adams (October 2, 1755December 15, 1831) was an American author of books on comparative religion and early United States history. She was born in Medfield, Massachusetts and died in Brookline. Adams was the first woman in the U.S. who worke ...
each also petitioned Congress with their interests in restricting the printing of texts. Their bill moved to the Committee of the Whole House
A committee of the whole is a meeting of a legislative or deliberative assembly using procedural rules that are based on those of a committee, except that in this case the committee includes all members of the assembly. As with other (standing) c ...
in June, but the matter was postponed in anticipation of the first recess, to be taken up again when the House reconvened.
Both houses of Congress pursued a copyright law more pointedly during 1790's second session. They responded to President
President most commonly refers to:
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President may also refer to:
Automobiles
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George Washington
George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...
's 1790 State of the Union Address, in which he urged Congress to pass legislation designed for "the promotion of Science and Literature" so as to better educate the public. This led to the Patent Act of 1790 The Patent Act of 1790 () was the first patent statute passed by the federal government of the United States. It was enacted on April 10, 1790, about one year after the constitution was ratified and a new government was organized. The law was concis ...
and, shortly thereafter, the Copyright Act of 1790.
House of Representatives
The scope of what works would be covered by the law's exclusivity was contended in the House. When he reintroduced the matter, Aedanus Burke
Aedanus Burke (June 16, 1743March 30, 1802) was a soldier, judge, and United States Representative from South Carolina. He was a slaveholder.
Life
Born in Tiaquin, County Galway in the Kingdom of Ireland, he attended the theological Colleg ...
wanted to establish a first law about copyright regarding "literary property," but Alexander White called for the expansion of copyright beyond writings on the behalf of Jedidiah Morse
Jedidiah Morse (August 23, 1761June 9, 1826) was a geographer whose textbooks became a staple for students in the United States. He was the father of the telegraphy pioneer and painter Samuel Morse, and his textbooks earned him the sobriquet of "f ...
, who believed unauthorized copying of his ''American Geography'' would hurt his business.
The need to re-raise the copyright issue, among other items left unresolved at the end of the first session, required the House to clarify some order of business
An agenda is a list of meeting activities in the order in which they are to be taken up, beginning with the call to order and ending with adjournment. It usually includes one or more specific items of business to be acted upon. It may, but is not r ...
problems over whether or not they could reopen unfinished business from a previous session. That settled, the House established a drafting committee for the law on February 1, chaired by Abraham Baldwin
Abraham Baldwin (November 22, 1754March 4, 1807) was an American minister, Patriot, politician, and Founding Father who signed the United States Constitution. Born and raised in Connecticut, he was a 1772 graduate of Yale College. After the ...
.
Eventually, the House passed a copyright bill and passed it to the Senate.
Senate
The Senate also deliberated on Copyright after the President's speech. On May 14, the Senate passed an amended version of the bill sent to them by the House. The House accepted their amendment on May 18 and the bill passed to the President.
The Act
The bill was signed into law on May 31, 1790 by George Washington and published in its entirety throughout the country shortly after. The Act granted copyright for a term of "fourteen years from the time of recording the title thereof", with a right of renewal for another fourteen years if the author survived to the end of the first term. It restricted book
A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...
s, map
A map is a symbolic depiction emphasizing relationships between elements of some space, such as objects, regions, or themes.
Many maps are static, fixed to paper or some other durable medium, while others are dynamic or interactive. Although ...
s, and chart
A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent tabu ...
s.[ Although ]musical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece or work of music, either vocal or instrumental, the structure of a musical piece or to the process of creating or writing a new piece of music. People who create new compositions are called ...
s were not mentioned in the text of the act, and would not be expressly covered by copyright until the Copyright Act of 1831, they were routinely registered under the 1790 Act as "books". The Act also did not mention painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...
s or drawing
Drawing is a form of visual art in which an artist uses instruments to mark paper or other two-dimensional surface. Drawing instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, various kinds of paints, inked brushes, colored pencils, crayons, ...
s, which were not covered until the enactment of the Copyright Act of 1870
The Copyright Act of 1870, also called the Patent Act of 1870 and the Trade Mark Act of 1870, was a revision to United States intellectual property law, covering copyrights and patents. Eight sections of the bill, sometimes called the Trade Mar ...
.
Provisions
The Act was copied almost verbatim from the 1709 British Statute of Anne. The first sentences of the two laws are almost identical. Both require registration in order for a work to receive copyright protection; similarly, both require that copies of the work be deposited in officially designated repositories such as the Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...
in the United States, and the Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
and Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
universities
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
in the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. The Statute of Anne and the Copyright Act of 1790 both provided for an initial term of 14 years, renewable once by living authors for an additional 14 years, for works not yet published. The Statute of Anne differed from the 1790 Act, however, in providing a 21-year term of restriction, with no option for renewal, for works already published at the time the law went into effect (1710). The 1790 Act only offered a 14-year term for previously published works.
Geographic reach
The Copyright Act of 1790 applied exclusively to citizens of the United States;[ works created outside the United States or by people who were not U.S. citizens were not copyrightable in the U.S. until the ]International Copyright Act of 1891
The International Copyright Act of 1891 (, March 3, 1891) is the first U.S. congressional act that extended limited protection to foreign copyright holders from select nations.
Formally known as the "International Copyright Act of 1891", but more ...
.[ Consequently, various foreign authors, such as ]Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
, complained about not receiving royalty payment
A royalty payment is a payment made by one party to another that owns a particular asset, for the right to ongoing use of that asset. Royalties are typically agreed upon as a percentage of gross or net revenues derived from the use of an asset o ...
s for copies of their work sold in the U.S.
Federal law
At the time, works only received protection under federal statutory copyright if the statutory formalities, such as a proper copyright notice, were satisfied. If this was not the case, the work immediately entered into the public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work
A creative work is a manifestation of creative effort including fine artwork (sculpture, paintings, drawing, sketching, performance art), dance, writing (literature), filmmaking, ...
. In 1834 the Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
ruled in ''Wheaton v. Peters
''Wheaton v. Peters'', 33 U.S. (8 Pet.) 591 (1834), was the first United States Supreme Court ruling on copyright. The case upheld the power of Congress to make a grant of copyright protection subject to conditions and rejected the doctrine of a ...
'', a case similar to the British ''Donaldson v Beckett
''Donaldson v Becket'' (1774) 2 Brown's Parl. Cases (2d ed.) 129, 1 Eng. Rep. 837; 4 Burr. 2408, 98 Eng. Rep. 257; 17 Cobbett's Parl. Hist. 953 is the ruling by the British House of Lords that held that copyright in published works was not perpe ...
'' of 1774, that although the author of an unpublished work had a common law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...
right to control the first publication of that work, the author did not have a common law right to control reproduction following the first publication of the work.
Amendments
The Act was first amended on April 29, 1802, extending copyright restriction to etchings and, for the first time, requiring notice
Notice is the legal concept describing a requirement that a party be aware of legal process affecting their rights, obligations or duties. There are several types of notice: public notice (or legal notice), actual notice, constructive notice Se ...
of copyright registration on copies of the works. The Act did not specify a consequence of failing to include that notice; however, the federal case ''Ewer v. Coxe'' established that the failure to include notice invalidated a copyright.[
The Act was also amended on February 15, 1819 to expand the jurisdiction of circuit courts (analogous to today's district courts) to allow them to hear cases on patents and copyrights.]
See also
*History of copyright law
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
*Copyright law of the United States
The copyright law of the United States grants monopoly protection for "original works of authorship". With the stated purpose to promote art and culture, copyright law assigns a set of exclusive rights to authors: to make and sell copies of thei ...
References
External links
Full Text of the 1790 Act
Image of 1790 Act
{{USCopyrightActs
1790 in American law
United States federal copyright legislation
1790 in the United States
Acts of the 1st United States Congress
History of copyright law