1786/08/28

Cushing, Thomas, 1725-1788

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Elbridge Gerry

The Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts urges Gerry, as one of the men selected to represent their state at the upcoming Annapolis Convention, to make arrangements to attend. Discusses confusion and problems in confirming that the state will have representatives in Annapolis. Gerry's drafted response dated 28 August 1786 explains that "it is not in [his] power to proceed on the Business of the Convention." His explanation refers to a meeting mentioned in GLC02450.03.

GLC02450.06

1794/05/19

Gansevoort, Leonard, 1751-1810

Autograph letter signed

Title: to John Porteous

Letter of introduction and request for assistance for two traveling men.

GLC02450.07

1794/07/03

Higginson, Stephen, 1743-1828

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Mr. LeRoy and Mr. Bayard

Discusses a shipping business venture. Comments on French naval activities in the West Indies, including their recapturing of Guadeloupe from the British. Mentions a possible response from Sir John Jervis. Speculates that the French might not only recover the islands taken by Jervis but capture him as well. Expects a positive outcome from John Jay's upcoming negotiations in London, part of which were aimed at obtaining indemnities for shippers, securing the right to trade in the British West Indies, and ensuring peace. That meeting produced Jay's Treaty.

GLC02450.08

1787/01/22

Jones, Walter, 1745-1815

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Robert Carter

Dr. Jones informs Carter that his friend, Mrs. Taylor, has died. Attending her death has prevented him from preparing medicine for their chronic patients.

GLC02450.09

1789/09/08

Livingston, Robert L., 1746-1813

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Ives

Seeks payment of a fifty pound debt or proof that it has already been paid. The recipient was possibly James Ives of Great Barrington, Massachusetts.

GLC02450.10

1795/02/19

Lowell, John, 1743-1802

Autograph letter signed

Title: to John Pickering

Informs by quoting from a letter he recently received that Pickering has been nominated, and will be appointed, District Judge for New Hampshire. Offers to maintain a communication "on the Business of our Offices as well as an other occasions."

GLC02450.11

1819/01/30

Martin, Luther, 1748-1826

Autograph letter signed

Title: to the governor and members of the council of the state of Maryland

Martin, Maryland's attorney general, accepts the appointment to argue the state's claim against the Second Bank of the United States in the landmark case of McCulloch v. Maryland.

GLC02450.12

1815-1860

Moore, Alfred, 1755-1810

Autograph note signed

Title: to unknown

Requests that Mr. Capley be paid the market price for 4,100 shingles.

GLC02450.13

May 11, 1781

Nash, Abner, 1716-1786

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Nathanael Greene

The Governor of North Carolina relays military intelligence and discusses military preparations. Mentions that Lord Cornwallis reached Halifax. Expresses his fear that the Marquis de Lafayette "is in some danger as the Enemy force when joined will undoubtedly be supr. to his." He inquires about General Greene's successes in South Carolina.

GLC02450.14

1778/08/19

Parsons, Theophilus, 1750-1813

Manuscript document signed

Title: [Marriage Certificate of Dr. David Norwood and Elizabeth Tarbell]

Also signed by Stephen Needham, who notes that the marriage was recorded in the Danvers town records. Parsons, a Justice of the Peace for Essex County, Massachusetts, solemnized the union.

GLC02450.15

10 June 1785

Ronald, William, fl. 1785

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Patrick Henry

Seeks instructions from the governor of Virginia on how to attend to the upcoming sale of public lands. Comments on the financial matters pertaining to the sale and requests money for surveying and marking boundaries. Also wishes to be informed of the commands given by the governor to "the Commissioners appointed to the canal business." Discusses a plan orchestrated by Colonel Carrington to have a Mr. Andrews from Williamsburg "lay off" some valuable lots. Inquires about plans for payments. A clipping from another letter also discussing the land sale accompanies this letter. Clipping…

GLC02450.16

1781/08/01

Ross, David, 1755-1800

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Thomas Nelson, Jr.

Asks the Governor of Virginia for a copy of the appointment of a Mr. Pench as agent in France and the instructions given to him. Also seeks directions from the governor's board on how to act on a tobacco contract held by Mr. Pench.

GLC02450.17

December 21, 1788

Smith, Meriwether, 1730-1790

Manuscript document signed

Title: to the Freeholders of the County of Westmoreland

Announces Meriwether Smith's desire to become a representative in Congress for the district containing Essex County, Virginia, through the upcoming election, the first under the recently ratified Constitution. Cites his public service during the Revolutionary War and his desire to improve the Constitution.

GLC02450.18

1808/08/17

Sullivan, James, 1744-1808

Manuscript document signed

Title: [Denial of a permit to ship flour to Yarmouth, Massachusetts]

Also signed by the Select Men of Yarmouth, Massachusetts: Elkanah Crowell, John Eldridge, and Benjamin Matthews. Responds to the Select Men's request dated 10 August 1808 that Governor Sullivan issue a permit to David Killey for the schooner Betsy, mastered by Thomas Hall, so that flour (for consumption) could be shipped to Yarmouth from Baltimore or Alexandria. Sullivan shows respect for the Select Men's authority and acknowledges the legitimacy of their request, but claims to have no authority to issue such a permit. Sullivan's response appears on the verso of the request. The…

GLC02450.19

1807/12/22

Tucker, Henry St. George, 1780-1848

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Peter R. Beverley

Mentions that he has not received a letter from a Mr. Clarke. Discusses business matters pertaining to the estate of a deceased person. One bust engraving of Tucker included.

GLC02450.20

18 November 1836

Houston, Sam, 1793-1863

Document signed

Title: [Appointment of William H. Wharton as minister to the U.S.]

Signed by Sam Houston. Countersigned by Austin as Secretary of State, with Samuel A. Roberts presentation on back to Mrs. Hugh White, regarding provenance. Red wax seal on bottom left corner.

GLC02452.01

May 1914

Header Record

Title: American literary figures: 36 letters, quotes and documents [decimalized .01-.37]

Hopkinson was a congressman, jurist and author of the lyrics to "Hail Columbia!"

GLC02453

March 1864

Halleck, Fitz-Greene, 1790-1867

Autograph manuscript signed

Title: Lines on the death of a young officer of the United States Navy, fallen in battle for his country

Sentimental poem lamenting the death of a soldier in battle. 12 lines written in one stanza. Poem ends: "He lived as Mother's wish their Sons to live, / He died as fathers wish their Sons to die." Halleck was a poet from Guildford, Connecticut. He wrote, with Joseph Rodman Drake, "The Croaker Papers," a series of satirical and humorous verses. "Fanny," his longest poem, was a satire on the literature, fashions, and politics of the time. It was published anonymously in December, 1819. Halleck was also the private secretary to John Jacob Astor.

GLC02453.01

1862/12/29

O'Hara, Theodore, fl. 1862

Autograph letter signed

Title: re: as AAG of CSA army, a request to see brigade commanders [circular]

O'Hara was author of several poems, including "Bivouac of the Dead"

GLC02453.02

January 5, 1785

Washington, George, 1732-1799

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Henry Knox

Washington complains of applications, letters of compliment, and enquiries which occupy his time and deprive him of exercise. He plans to hire someone to deal with the drudgery of this troublesome correspondence. Assures Knox that his letters are valued, as Washington enjoys corresponding with those he loves. Discusses the extended navigation of United States rivers, hoping that the legislatures will agree. Proposes to employ adventurers to first navigate the rivers, and later to impose tolls as river traffic increases, noting that the enterprise will not begin at the expense of the public.…

GLC02437.09406

18 June 1785

Washington, George, 1732-1799

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Henry Knox

Congratulates Knox on his appointment (on March 8, 1785) to the post of Secretary at War. Encloses a certificate of service for Major Sergeant (not included). Hopes to receive limestone for use in construction. Discusses the Virginia Assembly's appropriation of shares intended for him (Washington) in navigation of the Potomac and James Rivers. Referring to Knox's new position as Secretary at War, mentions the Western Territory, Great Britain, and military posts near Detroit. Suggests Fort Pitt or Fort McIntosh as posts of deposits from which other forts may draw supplies. Discusses…

GLC02437.09407

December 11, 1785

Washington, George, 1732-1799

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Henry Knox

Discusses trade between Indians and the British stationed on the American side of the territorial line (in the Northwest Territory). Reports criticism of the Society of the Cincinnati, including a pamphlet, Considerations sur l'ordre de Cincinnatus, by Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, comte de Mirabeau. Refers to limestone previously discussed with Knox in relation to Washington's construction projects. Sends his best wishes to Knox, his wife Lucy, and their family.

GLC02437.09408

26 December 1786

Washington, George, 1732-1799

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Henry Knox

Lamenting Shays' Rebellion, writes "I feel, my dear Genl. Knox, infinitely more than I can express to you, for the disorders which have arisen in these States. Good God! who besides a tory could have foreseen, or a Briton predicted them!" Alludes to "combustibles in every State, which a spark might set fire to." Notes that Virginia is (at the moment) calm, but worries over disputes regarding navigation of the Mississippi. Discusses an amendment to the existing Constitution regarding paper emissions and military certificates. Expresses sadness regarding the recent death of General…

GLC02437.09409

February 3, 1787

Washington, George, 1732-1799

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Henry Knox

Refers to the constitutional rights of Massachusetts. Also discusses insurgents in that state (Shays' Rebellion was losing momentum). Relates in confidence that he does not want to go to the Constitutional Convention (to be held in Philadelphia) but that convention organizers have included him and implored him not to make a final decision regarding whether or not he will attend. Admits that "powers are wanting" in government, but takes a pessimistic view, wondering how such powers shall be derived. Comments that Knox's opinion, to build a central national government, is energetic and…

GLC02437.09410

February 25, 1787

Washington, George, 1732-1799

Autograph letter signed

Title: to Henry Knox

Thanks Knox for several letters, which put his mind at ease regarding General Benjamin Lincoln's military operations (Lincoln led the Massachusetts state militia in Shays' Rebellion) and the dignity of Government. Congratulates Knox on the recent suppression of Shays' Rebellion. Comments that Shays is "either a weak man - the dupe of some characters who are yet behind the curtain - or has been deceived by his followers." Reports the adjournment of the Assembly of Maryland regarding issuance of a paper emission. Wishes to see the country happy and at peace while "gliding down the stream of…

GLC02437.09411