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.

Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826 to William H. Harrison re: seeking more land for the U.S. by subjugating Indians

Order a pdf of this item here.

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

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC07171 Author/Creator: Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826 Place Written: Washington, District of Columbia Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 1803/02/27 Pagination: 4 p. : Height: 24.5 cm, Width: 20.6 cm Order a Copy

"To promote this disposition to exchange lands,which they have to spare and we want . . . we shall push our trading houses, and be glad to see the good & influential individuals among them run in debt, because we observe that when these debts get beyond what the individuals can pay, they become willing to lop them off by a cession of lands . . . this way our settlement will gradually circumscribe & approach the Indians, & they will in time either incorporate with us as citizens of the US or remove beyond the Mississippi. The former is certainly the termination of their history . . . but in the whole course of this, it is essential to cultivate their love;" expected occupation of New Orleans by French. Jefferson has drawn a diagram of squares on page 1.

Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826
Harrison, William Henry, 1773-1841

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources