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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.

Dana, Samuel, 1767-1835 to Joseph B. Varnum

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03845.07 Author/Creator: Dana, Samuel, 1767-1835 Place Written: s.l. Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 1 December 1808 Pagination: 2 p. : address : docket ; Height: 22.6 cm, Width: 18.2 cm Order a Copy

Massachusetts Congressman Samuel Dana introduces William Whittemore to Varnum, Speaker of the House of Representatives. Informs Varnum that Whittemore will be travelling to Washington, D.C. in order to preserve the patent for "the exclusive use of his machines."

Dana, Samuel, 1767-1835
Varnum, Joseph B. (Joseph Bradley), 1751-1821
Whittemore, William, ?-1842

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