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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.

Franklin, Benjamin, 1706-1790 [Contracting Thomas Mumford of New London, Connecticut to acquire 50 tons of gunpowder for colonies]

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC06401 Author/Creator: Franklin, Benjamin, 1706-1790 Place Written: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Type: Manuscript document signed Date: 28 November 1775 Pagination: 2 p. : Height: 31.7 cm, Width: 19 cm Order a Copy

Signed by Benjamin Franklin, Josiah Bartlett, Francis Lewis, Samuel Ward and Thomas Willing, all as members of a Committee of Secrecy appointed by the "honble. the Continental Congress..." Also signed by Thomas Mumford. Lays out the terms for the procurement and transaction.

Franklin, Benjamin, 1706-1790
Bartlett, Josiah, 1729-1795
Lewis, Francis, 1713-1803
Willing, Thomas, 1731-1821
Ward, Samuel, 1725-1776
Mumford, Thomas, 1728-1799

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