Back in 2006, a rare, 184-year-old copy of the Declaration of Independence was discovered in a Nashville thrift shop, giving one lucky bargain hunter the find of a lifetime
As reported by WIS-TV and The Deseret News, Michael Sparks, a music equipment technician, had been rummaging through a bargain bin in Nashville’s Music City Thrift Store (something he enjoyed doing every week) when he spotted a yellowed, rolled-up document, which he purchased for $2.48.
The document in question? A very old copy of the Declaration of Independence.
So old in fact, in fact, that it prompted Sparks to do some research to discover its origins.
“I was thinking: ‘Good grief, could this be an original?’” Sparks told the Associated Press.
Sparks’ hunch was right. He had stumbled upon an authentic “Stone print” of the Declaration of Independence.
These were exact, official facsimiles of the original document, commissioned in 1820 by then-Secretary of State John Quincy Adams. These copies were meant for surviving signers, government leaders, and official institutions, while the fading parchment from 1776 could be preserved.
“Stone” refers to William J. Stone, who spent three years (1820–1823) meticulously etching an exact copperplate of the original document, copying every signature, word, and mark.
Only 200 of these stone prints were commissioned, and Sparks had just found one of them.
Historians knew the locations of only 35 of the 200 original copies. Sparks had not only found the 36th known surviving copy, but also one in remarkably good condition.
Sparks would take this relic to Raynors’ Historical Collectible Auctions, which gave it an initial bid of $125,000 before a final sale price of $477,650. About 100,000 times more than what Sparks had paid for it, and the highest price any of these Stone prints had ever gone for.
One man’s treasure was another man’s trash (according to his wife)
Just two days before Sparks fatefully bought the document, it had been hanging in the garage of Nashville resident Stan Caffy for a decade, who had bought it at a yard sale for $10. Upon the request from his wife to clear out the garage, Caffy begrudgingly donated the document.
“It just doesn’t pay to keep a clean house,” quipped Sparks, according to The Deseret News.
Still, Caffy said he was happy for Sparks, and was glad the document had gone to someone who appreciated its history.
Where the stone print is now
Bray-Conn, a Utah-based investment firm that bought Sparks’ document, allegedly planned to coordinate field trips with different local schools so children could learn firsthand about the Founding Fathers.
As for Sparks, his weekly bargain hunts never stopped.
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