Our Collection

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.

Gorham, Nathaniel, 1738-1796 to Henry Knox

Order a pdf of this item here.

A high-resolution version of this object is available for registered users. LOG IN

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02437.03377 Author/Creator: Gorham, Nathaniel, 1738-1796 Place Written: Boston, Massachusetts Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 13 December 1786 Pagination: 2 p. : docket ; Height: 31.2 cm, Width: 19.7 cm Order a Copy

Writes that he had planned to write him a long letter but the Governor sent him on a consultation. Writes, "There is no militia in Hampshire or Worcester that have artilery [sic] - & they are expecting soon to be called & advise not to take any from the arsenal untill the moment it is wanted & then to take what may be necessary- in the mean time to write to Congress on the subject - various reasons might be given why the Government party should not touch the public the stores- & at any rate not untill the moment the business is to be put at issue - however I hope there will be no necessity - as there is every reason to suppose the Insurgents disapointed [sic] & disheartened they are however some of them yet at Rutland - and the Roads are in such a state owing to the great quantity of Snow - that is impossible to carry artilery [sic] or even Men from hence - I am not clear that Government has lost any thing by delay - as the great Body of the People are now convinced that the [mob] must be suppressed by arms." Asks Knox to give Gorham's own daughter advice if he sees her behaving improperly.

Signer of the U.S. Constitution.

Knox, Henry, 1750-1806
Gorham, Nathaniel, 1738-1796

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources