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.

Corwin, Thomas, 1794-1865 to Origen Storrs Seymour

Order a pdf of this item here.

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02305.06 Author/Creator: Corwin, Thomas, 1794-1865 Place Written: Washington, District of Columbia Type: Manuscript letter signed Date: February 16, 1852 Pagination: 1 p. : Height: 25 cm, Width: 19.9 cm Order a Copy

Responds to Congressman Seymour's request for information on the Grant case. Replies, "no credit can be given on account of such alleged loss unless expressly authorized by Act of Congress. I am not aware of any case where this Department has undertaken to decide the complicated questions of vigilance, fidelity, and the possibility of fraud and connivance, which arise in most of such cases. The accounting officer only settle such accounts upon the proper vouchers. If these are not produced, it has always been held that relief could only be given by Act of Congress."

Corwin, Thomas, 1794-1865
Seymour, Origen Storrs, 1804-1881
Grant, Ulysses S. (Ulysses Simpson), 1822-1885

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources