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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.

Hamilton, Alexander, 1757-1804 to William Seton

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC04785 Author/Creator: Hamilton, Alexander, 1757-1804 Place Written: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 16 August 1791 Pagination: 3 p. : docket ; Height: 22.9 cm, Width: 19.4 cm Order a Copy

A confidential letter instructing the Cashier of the Bank of New York, Seton to spend up to $150,000 on the open market to buy outstanding debt-securities, in hopes that it will shore up confidence in the credit of the United States. At the time of this letter Hamilton was Secretary of the Treasury. Because of the limitations of Seton's funds, this action was only moderately successful.

Hamilton, Alexander, 1757-1804
Seton, William, 1746-1798

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