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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.

Stewart, Charles, 1778-1869 to Isaac Mayo

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC04604.03 Author/Creator: Stewart, Charles, 1778-1869 Place Written: Valparaíso Bay, Chile Type: Autograph letter signed Date: January 12, 1823 Pagination: 2 p. : Height: 24.8 cm, Width: 19.5 cm Order a Copy

Written by Captain Charles Stewart to Lieutenant Isaac Mayo, both of the U.S.S. Franklin. Notes Mayo will receive dispatches 1 & 2 for the Secretary of the Navy and State Department. Says he and Lt. Henry should proceed with them to Panama and from there proceed to Washington D.C. as quickly as possible. Mentions the purser will provide necessary cash for expenses and he is asked to keep an account. Mayo signed a note at the bottom and verso of the letter saying he took passage to Panama but missed the English packet and had to remain "one month in the deadly place." Writes he took passage in an American schooner. Says they were chased by pirates, but eluded capture. Envelope for this item is numbered GLC04604.02.

Mayo, Isaac, fl. 1823-1832
Stewart, Charles, 1778-1869

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