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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.

Thatcher, Samuel, 1776-1872 to Henry Knox

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02437.07783 Author/Creator: Thatcher, Samuel, 1776-1872 Place Written: Washington, District of Columbia Type: Autograph letter Date: January 26, 1803 Pagination: 2 p. : address ; Height: 25.3 cm, Width: 20.3 cm Order a Copy

Signature has been clipped. Writes, "I take the liberty to address you respecting the separation of Maine from Massachusetts." Declares that the Federalists in Washington, D.C. fear that this separation is dangerous to federalism and will bring forth disorder. Asks what the citizens have to gain from the separation, and believes they feel well governed by Massachusetts: "I think we are more safe under the government of Massachusetts than we should be by a legislature composed of men from every village in Maine." Asks Knox to use his influence to weigh in on the subject.

Thatcher, Samuel, 1776-1872
Knox, Henry, 1750-1806

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