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.

Knox, Henry, 1750-1806 to George Washington

Order a pdf of this item here.

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

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02437.03385 Author/Creator: Knox, Henry, 1750-1806 Place Written: New York, New York Type: Manuscript letter Date: December 21, 1786 Pagination: 2 p. : docket ; Height: 31.7 cm, Width: 20.1 cm Order a Copy

Writes, "The insurgents who were assembled at Worcester in Massachusetts have disbanded- The people at Boston seem to be glad at this event and say it was the effect of fear- But the fact is that the insurgents effected their object, which was to prevent the Court of Common Pleas from proceeding to business. It is probable that the seizing some of the insurgents at Middlesex occasioned a greater number of them to assemble at Worcester than otherwise would have assembled merely on Account of preventing the common Pleas." Adds that it appears that the government planned to bring the insurgents to action but was prevented by uncommonly deep snow. Declares, "The commotions of Massachusetts have wrought prodigious changes in the minds of men in that State respecting the Powers of Government every body says they must be strengthned, and that unless this shall be effected, there is no Security for liberty or Property." Hopes to see Washington along with Colonel [Jeremiah] Wadsworth in Philadelphia in a few days. Retained copy.

Knox, Henry, 1750-1806
Washington, George, 1732-1799
Wadsworth, Jeremiah, 1743-1804

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources