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At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Balfour, Nisbet, 1743-1823 to John Saunders

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC00609 Author/Creator: Balfour, Nisbet, 1743-1823 Place Written: Charleston, South Carolina Type: Autograph letter signed Date: April 24, 1781 Pagination: 1 p. : address Height: 22.3 cm, Width: 18.6 cm Order a Copy

Written by Scottish officer Colonel Balfour as commandant of Charlestown, South Carolina to Captain Saunders, a Loyalist, as commandant of Georgetown, South Carolina. Written in numeric code. Cypher included in collateral file. Letter says: "You wil inform Colonel Watson that he is to remain at Georgetown as Greens Army is before Camden, that he wil join Lord Cornwalis on his march if he posibly can get to him and if not he will wait at Georgetown til further orders." Marked "No. 13" at address.

Balfour, Nisbet, 1743-1823
Cornwallis, Charles Cornwallis, Marquis, 1738-1805
Greene, Nathanael, 1742-1786
Saunders, John, fl. 1781

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