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Stuart Lutz Historic Documents, Inc.

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1915 Motorcycle Archive Demonstrates Effort Necessary To Transport Motorcycle Through Customs

(MOTORCYCLES) (MOTORCYCLES). This archive belonged to R.C. Sahlin, who in 1915 purchased a Canadian motorcycle and had it imported into the United States. The archive consists of three documents: A)Document. 4" x 8". November 15, 1915. Toronto. This document is a bank note for the Bank of Hamilton and its "Queen & Spadina Branch, Toronto". The bank note provides "On demand" the sum of $202.50 "To R.C. Sahlin Greenwich Conn U.S.A." This was most likely the money used by Sahlin to purchase the motorcycle and/or prepare for its passage to the United States. The note is stamped with the bank branch's official stamp and signed by "WJ Porter". The Bank of Hamilton was established in 1872. Like the other Canadian-chartered banks, it issued its own paper money, and this bank issued notes from 1872 to 1922. B)Document. 8" x 10". November 30, 1915. Niagara Falls, NY. This document is from "C.J. Tower Custom House Broker" and is a letter from "CJ Tower" to "RC Sahlin Greenwich Conn". The letter indicates that his firm has shipped "1 Crtd Motorcycle Car 94125 NYC valued at $203?having been shipped from Toronto Ont by WCJ Porter". The letter indicates that a customs declaration is required for imports worth more than $100, which must be responded to for the bond that Tower provided to pay for passage to be cancelled. According to his grandson's obituary, Clarence Jerome Tower founded this customs house brokerage firm in 1913. Just two years later, it was already the customs agent for ten different railroad lines. The company was sold to Fed Ex in 1990, which owned it as of 2014. C)Document. 1 pg. 5" x 8". N.d. Greenwich, Connecticut. This document is the American fright bill for the shipping of the motorcycle. The document indicates that it was shipped by the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad Company (the document is on paper from that company), that the motorcycle was cosigned by W.J. Porter, and that the total cost of this journey was $54.82. There is also a stamp for Greenwich, Connecticut, indicating that this was the destination for the motorcycle and Sahlin's hometown. All three documents are in good condition with some minor folds.
  • $150
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The 1968 Federal Budget Book Signed By LBJ As President

LYNDON B. JOHNSON LYNDON B. JOHNSON (1908-1973). Johnson served as the 36th President. Signed book. 475 pages. 1967. Washington. The 1968 budget signed "Lyndon B. Johnson" as President. Officially entitled The Budget of the United States Government For The Fiscal Year Ending June 30 1968 and published by the Government Printing Office, the budget is bound in three-quarter green leather with marbled-paper sides. President Johnson signs his name on page 38 at the end of "Part 1 The Budget Message of the President", and before the actual budget is presented. In this annual budget message, delivered on January 24, 1967, Johnson claims that "This budget for fiscal year 1968 reflects three basic considerations: In Vietnam, as throughout the world, we seek peace but will provide all the resources needed to combat aggression. In our urgent domestic programs we will continue to press ahead, at a controlled and reasoned pace. In our domestic economy we seek to achieve a 7th year of uninterrupted growth, adopting the fiscal measures needed to finance our expenditures responsibly, permit lower interest rates, and achieve a more balanced economy". Referring to "hard choices" made in constructing the budget, it, for example, calls for a $21.9 billion military funding bill to Congress that would have brought the cost of the war to $46.2 billion. When the Defense appropriations were finally approved on September 20th of that year, Congress reduced such spending by $1.6 billion. Given that Congress has not passed an annual budget by its mandated deadline since 1997, this document is a fascinating window into Federal finances at the twilight of the Johnson administration and a relic of a bygone congressional process. It is in excellent condition and a rare book signed by Johnson as the Commander In Chief.
  • $1,250
  • $1,250
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Littleton, New Hampshire Archive Highlights Bills And Receipts Of L.A. Russell

(NEW HAMPSHIRE ARCHIVE) (NEW HAMPSHIRE). This archive consists of the labor of L.A. Russell, Lucius A. Russell (1809-1864), a resident of Littleton, a small town in Northern New Hampshire. The archive consists of twenty-seven documents from the 1850s, the vast majority of which are either bills he has paid or receipts indicating payment for his labor. Therefore, this archive provides a window into the type of labor performed by a enterprising Northern man in the decade before the Civil War, and the typical costs and prices of his time. Some examples from this archive include: A)NS. 1 pg. 4" x 6". May 17, 1854. Waterford. "Recd of L.A. Russell two Dollars for crossing Littleton Bridge to years XX to Oct 10th 1853". It is then signed by "Robert Furby". This document reveals even the role of tolls as an added expense for businessmen like Russell. B)DS. 1 pg. 4" x 6". April 26, 1854. N.p. A document signed "L.A. Russell". This document is a bank note: "Three months from date, for value received, we jointly and severally promise to pay the PASSUMPSIC BANK Four Hundred Dollars". The note is then signed by three men, one of whom is Russell. Scribbled on top of the signatures in Russell's handwriting is "Paid", and on the opposite side in the same hand it is written "Bank Note $400 Paid", and the date given as July 24. The Passumpsic Bank still exists today as a community bank, 11 branches strong, though now as a savings bank. C)DS. 1 pg. 4" x 8". October 12, 1854. Littleton. A document signed "L.A. Russell". This document is a bill "For transportation from Wells River to Littleton" aboard the White Mountains Railroad. The bill is for a barrel weighing 313 pounds and costing $25, with an additional $61 for express service. The document is signed "R.H. Nelson" on behalf of the corporation in a separate hand. On the back, it is indicated in another hand, possibly Russell's, that this is a "Bill for Apples 1854". According to a local historian, the White Mountains Railroad Company was chartered in1848, to take advantage of the lucrative mountain tourist trade. It opened a connection along the Ammonoosuc River between Wells River and Littleton on August 1, 1853. D)DS. 1 pg. 5" x 8". December 12, 1854. Concord. A document signed by "L. Downing & Sons". It is a bill charging LA. Russell $140 for "Lo one pan. Wagon. 6 seats" dated to May 16, 1854. The document indicates that Downing & Sons "Recd Payment by note". In 1813, Lewis Downing opened a wheelwright shop in Concord, New Hampshire to make coaches and wagons. It was reconstituted as Downing & Sons by him and two of his children in 1847. By the 20th century, after a few iterations, the wheelwright shop had become Abbott-Downing Company, a truck and body company famous nationwide for its Concord coach. This iteration survived until 1925 and the name was bought by Wells Fargo in 1945. All the documents in this archive are in good condition, with some minor folds and stains.
  • $400
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Archive Of Signed Letters By Gaston Maspero, The Noted Nineteenth Century French Egyptologist: “These Images Give Us Valuable Information By Showing Us Precisely In What Condition The Monuments Of Upper And Middle Egypt Were Found Some Fifty Years Ago”

GASTON MASPERO GASTON MASPERO (1846-1916). Maspero was the leading French Egyptologist of his generation and known for popularizing the term "sea peoples." This archive consists of thirteen letters written by Gaston Maspero during the first decade of the twentieth century. From 1881-1914, Maspero was the director-general of excavations and of the antiquities of Egypt. He helped pioneer the French Institute for Oriental Archaeology in Cairo, which still exists today as a center for the study of archaeology, history, and languages of ancient Egyptian civilizations. Notable actions during his tenure included the discovery of the eroded Pyramid of Amenemhet I, the clearing of the Luxor Temple, and properly dating the Great Sphinx. Thus, this archive would be significant to any Egyptologist or student of the modern Middle East. Six of the letters are written in French and seven are written in Arabic. Most are hand-written, though a few are typed. Here is a sampling of the French letters: 1)TLS. 1pg. November 14, 1906. Cairo. A typed letter signed "G Maspero" addressed to The Counselor of the Ministry of Public Works: "Mr. Counselor, Following up on your communication of this 7 November No. 7629 A.K., I have the honor to inform you that, having taken note of the proposals formulated by the Executive Committee, I have determined that the third of the proposed schemes would be best suited to rebuilding the staff of our Department. Please accept, Mr. Counselor, the assurance of my profound respect. The Director General. G Maspero The Counselor of the Ministry of Public Works Cairo". The letter has a few file holes on the left side and markings from a rubber stamp. 2)TLS. 2pgs. March 19, 1907. Cairo. A typed letter signed "G Maspero" written on "Executive Office Of The Antiquities Department" stationery. Maspero wrote to the Counselor of the Ministry of Public Works: "Mr. Counselor, The Committee on Egyptology, at its session of the 13th of this month, authorized me to purchase from the widow Madame Beato a certain number of photographic plates that had been produced by the late Beato, the well-known photographer. These images give us valuable information by showing us precisely in what condition the monuments of Upper and Middle Egypt were found some fifty years ago, and they deserve to be preserved at the Museum where we have already begun an important collection of images of the same type. I therefore write to ask, Mr. Counselor, provided you have no objection to this acquisition, that you kindly direct the Ministry of Finance so that we may settle its price which, on the basis of 158 plates at 60 piastres each, and 150 plates at 40 piastres each, amounts to 154,800 Egyptian Pounds, to be paid from our extrabudgetary account (publications). Please accept, Mr. Counselor, the assurance of my profound respect. The Director General, G Maspero". The letter has punch holes in the left margin and markings from a rubber stamp. 3)LS. 1pg. June 5, 1900. Giza. A signature "G Maspero" approving a request; he signed as The Director General of the Antiquities Department. The French states: "Mr. Director General, I request that you kindly grant me three and a half months' leave to go abroad, beginning this 13 July. Please accept, Mr. Director General, the expression of my most faithful regards. G. Daressy." The letter has a vignette of the Egyptian government in the upper left, a few file holes in the left margin and a stain, perhaps from a previous attachment. All are in fine condition, with occasional minor folds and stains.
  • $2,500
  • $2,500
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Confederate Soldier Writes From Virginia Camp In March Of 1863

(CONFEDERATE SOLDIER LETTER) (CIVIL WAR - CONFEDERATE). ALS. 2 pg. 6" x 8". March 22, 1863. U.S. Ford. An autographed letter signed "S.B. Thomas" to "S.R. Hondren": "?No news up here everything is quiet at present, how long it will continue so I do not know. I will have to purchase a horse and as they are very high I may not be able to do so without assistance and would ask if you can spare the amount I may need. I will be able to replace it in a month or two?I do not want the money for a week or two yet and it is possible that I may be able to do without calling upon you?" This is a letter sent by S.B. Thomas of the 11th Virginia Cavalry. The 11th Virginia Cavalry was established earlier in 1863 through merging several other companies and would serve through the end of the war with the Army of Northern Virginia. While little is apparently noteworthy about the sender and recipient of this letter, it reveals a pretty typical experience for a Confederate cavalry soldier in the Virginia theater before the season for fighting starts. This letter was written just a little over a month before the Battle of Chancellorsville and reveals the monotony of cavalry life without military action from thew winter headquarters along the U.S. Ford of the Rappahannock. It also reveals the desperation the Confederate cavalry had for good horses. Unlike the Union, Confederate cavalrymen were responsible for their own horses, so when one was killed or became unusable, it placed a great logistical and economic burden on the soldiers. The Confederate government had to frequently grant long furloughs so soldiers could go home to acquire new horses. The letter is written in pencil and is in very good condition.
  • $250
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1759 Documents Provides List Of British Soldiers Shortly After Successful Capture Of Guadeloupe During Seven Years War

(GUADELOUPE) GUADELOUPE. The Caribbean island of Guadeloupe is a French overseas department. DS. 2 pg. 6" x 8". February 16, 1759. Guadeloupe. A document signed "Geo. Highton Lieu in the 68th Regiment of Foot". The document is signaling the "Return of the Men at Work of the 63: Regt Commanded by Colo Watson?". The front of the document provides a list of the soldiers involved in the work party. They are organized by their company. A bill for their work is listed on the front: three shillings for the one officer (most likely Watson), two shillings for the lieutenant, one shilling and six pence for one corporal, two shillings for one mason, and two pounds and one shilling cumulative for 41 privates. The back of the document indicates that Highton is ordering a paymaster, John Barnes Esq, to pay "the above bill by me". David Watson was a Scottish officer and military engineer in the British Army tasked with the colonelcy of the 63rd Regiment of Foot. This regiment took part in the successful invasion and seizure of French Guadeloupe in the West Indies in 1759. Guadeloupe was so economically important to the French that they willingly traded French Canada to the British in the Treaty of Paris in order to reacquire it. This document was written just weeks into the invasion, and so it is likely that some of the men listed on this document were among the nearly 800 British that died on the island that year. Known examples listed who were later KIA include Lieutenant-Colonel P. Debrisay, Major John Trollop, and Lieutenant George Highton himself, who died of disease. The document is in fine condition with some folds.
  • $400
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Confederate Soldier Requests Transfer To Maryland Line, A Failed Attempt To Create Maryland Confederate Army

JOHN WINDER (CONFEDERATE ARMY - MARYLAND). Document. 1 pg. 8" x 10". July 19, 1862. Richmond Va. A document signed "R.C. Copeland" and addressed "To Brig. Genl. Juo H. Winder": "I have the honour [sic] to state that I am a citizen of the District of Columbia, and desire a transfer from Company A 44" Va Regt Lt. XX XX, to Capt Montgomery Co Deas Light Artillery Maryland Line; Referring you to Genl Orders No. 8 (current series) Adjt & Inspt. Genls Office and to special orders 107". After the signature, a postscript certifies the above and is signed by "Robt H Taney N. XX". General John H. Winder was appointed provost marshal general of Richmond. Virginia in March of 1862, and therefore was tasked with handling law enforcement and deserters in Richmond. Perhaps Robert C. Copeland was in Richmond and charged with desertion, while his real aim, referenced in his letter and the attestation by Taney, was simply to transfer from a Virginia Confederate unit to the Maryland Line. Of the approximately 25,000 Marylanders who volunteered for the Confederacy despite their state staying in the Union, most fought in the Army of Northern Virginia, and it was not until June of 1863 that a "Maryland Line" in the Confederate Army was formally created. However, this letter shows that even a year earlier soldiers were aware of the Maryland Line. Over the course of the war, four artillery regiments, two cavalry regiments, and two infantry regiments were created as part of the Maryland Line and served in the Army of Northern Virginia and the Army of the Valley. Robert H. Taney is a relative of Chief Justice Roger Taney. This letter is a reminder of Maryland's extremely divided political loyalties during the Civil War. It is in excellent condition with a few creases.
  • $150
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The Duke Of Lauzun, In Newport And Awaiting A March To Yorktown, Promises A “Recounting Of The Battle Of 16th March”, The Battle Of Cape Henry Off Of Virginia

(DUC DE LAUZUN) ARMAND LOUIS DE GONTAUT, THE DUKE DE LAUZUN (1747-1793). Gontaut was a French soldier who fought in the American Revolution. He helped the French army at Yorktown, marching his troops from New England to Virginia. he was guillotined during the Reign of Terror. ALS. 1pg. 7" x 9". March 27, 1781. Newport [Rhode Island]. An autograph letter signed "Le Duc de Lauzun" in French to an unidentified correspondent: "Newport 27th March 1781 I ask your forgiveness, sir, for all the trouble and confusion caused you by my business affairs. I am writing in strong terms to M. Marchand and M. de Guéménée. I ask that my tableware be returned to Frantz; I beg you to sell it and to dispose of the money. If you find yourself in difficulties, either from paying the nine thousand francs, which I drew upon you in January, payable on sight within six months, or from any other causes, send to M. Pays to share this burden with you and assist you with the resources that can be found in the remainder of my little fortune. If, by the next post, which we await daily, I don't learn that all has been restored to order, I will send you a general proxy. I enclose here a life certificate and a recounting of the battle of 16th March. Be assured, sir, of my complete and sincere affection for you. The Duke de Lauzun". The combat of March 16th mentioned was the Battle of Cape Henry off the Virginia coast in which a British squadron met the French fleet; the result was a draw. Lauzun's biographer identifies M. Marchand as the duke's steward, and M. Pays as the keeper of his accounts. The letter has a vertical and horizontal fold and the usual light soiling.
  • $1,000
  • $1,000
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Early American Connecticut Document Sending Tax Collector To Prison For Not Paying Taxes: “Collector Of The State Taxes For Said Town?Has Neglected To Make Payment Of The Three Penny Tax”

JEDIDIAH HUNTINGTON JEDIDIAH HUNTINGTON (1743-1818). Huntington was an American general during the Revolution before serving as Treasurer for the State of Connecticut and a customs house collector for Rhode Island and Connecticut from 1789 until his death. DS. 2 pg. 7" x 12". February 16, 1789. Connecticut. A partly-printed document signed "Jed Huntington Treasurer" and directed "To the Sheriff of Litchfield". This official state document, partially handwritten and partially printed, asserts that "Mr. Elijah Woodward who was Constable of the town of Watertown in the County of Litchfield and Collector of the State Taxes for said Town?has neglected to make payment of the Three penny Tax?amounting to the Sum of Two hundred twenty two pounds fourteen shilling & six pence". As a result, that amount, plus a one shilling and six pence penalty, will be taken from Woodward's possessions or he must be imprisoned within the next sixty days. On the back of the document, in the hand of the Sheriff referenced above, is his response: "Then by virtue of the Execution and for want of Estate I Levied the same on the Body of the within named Elijah Woodward - and said the same in his hearing; and before I had opportunity to convey hm to Goal; I recd a Discharge from under the hands of the Selectmen of the Town of Watertown". This response confirms that Woodward was not imprisoned or fined, at least initially. Little record remains of Woodward; in his obituary from 1840, it only notes that his age, 92, fit within a pattern of longevity for his immediate family. Regardless, debtors' prison was a common way to deal with debt and financial mismanagement, deliberately or otherwise, in the early United States and Western Europe. The United States ostensibly eliminated the imprisonment of debtors under federal law in 1833, but individual states maintained the practice for decades longer. Therefore, this document is a fascinating reminder of a common early American legal practice. It is in fine condition, though the paper is thin.
  • $350
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Passport Signed By William Vans Murray, 18th Century United States Minister To The Netherlands Shortly After The Xyz Affair & At The Time Of The Convention Of 1800

(EARLY AMERICAN DIPLOMATIC PASSPORT) WILLIAM VANS MURRAY (1760-1803). Murray served in the Maryland House of Delegates from 1788 to 1790, and in the United States House of Representatives from 1791 to 1797. He was the United States Ambassador to the Netherlands from 1797 to 1801. DS. 1 pg. 10" x 15". August 8, 1800. Amsterdam. A partly-printed document signed "W.V. Murray" and "S. Sitgreaves". This French-language document is identified on the back as a "Passport from Mr. Murray" to Samuel Sitgreaves. The translation states: "William Vans Murray, Resident Minister of the United States of America to the Batavian Republic, requests all who may be requested that they willingly grant Samuel Sitgreaves, age 40 years, height 5 feet 10 inches (U.S. measure), hair and eyebrows brown, eyes dark, nose regular, mouth average, chin round, face round, a citizen of the United States of America traveling to Holland, free and secure passage without offering or permitting any hindrance, but on the contrary furnish him all manner of aid and assistance, just as I would anyone commended to me in similar circumstances. In testimony whereof I have issued him the present passport valid for three months, signed by my hand and sealed with my seal. Given at Paris this twenty-sixth July of the year eighteen hundred, and of the independence of the United States the twenty-fifth. Signature of the bearer S. Sitgreaves AMSTERDAM DOMESTIC CORRESPONDENCE W. V. Murray Endorsed at Amsterdam the 8th August 1800 The sixth year of Batavian liberty H. Muller". The passport has two dates: the day of issue, and the day Sitgreaves presented it in Amsterdam, two weeks later, for endorsement: the equivalent of a visa, or having one's passport stamped today. Sitgreaves was a Pennsylvania lawyer and former Congressman appointed United States commissioner to Great Britain under the Jay Treaty in 1798, and this pass, based on the Amsterdam stamp on the bottom, most likely granted him entrance into the Netherlands. Though he was Minister to the Netherlands, Murray was more preoccupied with his responsibilities in France in 1800. Murray had been appointed one of three ministers to France tasked with ending the Quasi War. In the wake of the French Revolution, the XYZ Affair, and French seizure of U.S. ships, Franco-American tensions brought both countries to the brink of war. With many of his Federalist allies like Alexander Hamilton pushing for war, President John Adams sent Murray, Oliver Ellsworth, and William Richardson Davie to re-establish peace. The resulting treaty, The Convention of 1800, also known as the Treaty of Mortefontaine, was signed on September 30, 1800, and confirmed the principle of 'free trade, free goods' between the two countries and ended the Quasi-War. It also laid the groundwork for the Louisiana Purchase just three years later. At peace with the U.S., and shortly thereafter with Great Britain, France sought to re-establish control over Saint-Dominique and newly ceded Spanish territories in the Americas. With the former venture an unmitigated disaster, Napoleon cut his losses and sold the Louisiana Purchase, ending France's Western empire and beginning America's. The document is in excellent condition and a rare find for a student of Franco-American relations or the Louisiana Purchase.
  • $600
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Shenandoah Valley Resident Writes To Confederate Colonel Kenton Harper Discussing Defense Of The Valley And Seeking Promotion For His Disabled Brother

ROBERT BURKE (CIVIL WAR IN VIRGINIA). ALS. 1 pg. 8" x 10". August 31, 1864. Richmond, Virginia. An autograph letter signed "RW Burke" to "Col Kenton Harper": "I learn from the authorities that there are at least forty thousand detached men in Virginia who will legitimately belong to the reserve force - and in addition to these there are many below the age who would be willing to unite with it provided it is properly officered. For this reason Gen Kemper has in his appointments endeavored to select at Colonels gentlemen who possess large sectional influence, as well as Tried military capacity - I do not flatter you when I say that your acceptance of the Colonelcy of the August regiment would give great satisfaction not only to your fellow citizens of the Valley but to your many friends here -. In the event you accept?my brother Capt Thomas J Burke can secure the Lieut Colonelcy, and he is perfectly willing to relieve you of the trouble of organizing the regiment - Hoping that this will receive your?consideration". This letter reveals how military matters during the Civil War often worked in tandem with self-serving advancement. By August of 1864, the Shenandoah Valley, the breadbasket of the Confederacy, was under mortal threat from Union General Philip Sheridan. Though the Confederate forces under General Jubal Early, under whom Kenton Harper served, had once been able to hold their own, by the end of the summer they were collapsing under Sheridan's constant and successful military actions and his total war tactics similar to Sheridan's concurrent March to the Sea. To increase Early's army, Robert W. Burke discusses an effort by General James Kemper, leader of the Virginia Reserves, to send a force to unite with Early's. Burke proposes that Harper lead such a force and that Burke's brother, Captain Thomas J. Burke be his second. Such a promotion would have been laughable given Captain Burke had been listed as "Wounded leg, permanently disabled" after the 1862 Battle of Gaines' Mill. In the end, nothing seems to have come from Burke's proposal as Harper led no such force, the Valley was lost for the Confederacy after October's Battle of Cedar Creek, and Thomas Burke left active duty that December. The letter is in excellent condition with some folds.
  • $150
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1762 Land Indenture Signed By Francis Hopkinson, Future Signer Of The Declaration Of Independence, And Elizabeth Graeme, Early American Female Poet And Intellectual

FRANCIS HOPKINSON FRANCIS HOPKINSON (1737-1791). Hopkinson was a signer of the Declaration of Independence as a delegate from New Jersey. He later designed Continental paper money and an early version of the United States flag. DS. 1 pg. 15" x 21". October 1, 1762. Pennsylvania. A partially printed document signed "Fra. Hopkinson" and "Eliza Graeme", among others. It is for an early land sale in Manheim, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania between Henry William Stiegel, Charles Stedman, Alexander Stedman, and Benjamin Mishy. Additional signatories include Ann Stedman, Charles Stedman, Elizabeth Stedman, Alexander Stedman, Elizabeth Stiegel, Henry William Stiegel, and Justice Adam Simon Kuhn. The area was first gifted to James Logan in 1734 by William Penn's heirs, then sold by Logan's granddaughter in 1762 to the three men named in this document: German glassmaker Henry William Stiegel (1729-1785), Scottish immigrant Alexander Stedman (1703-1794), and his brother Charles Stedman. The reverse contains a lengthy endorsement signed by Mishy and his wife Elizabeth, who can only sign with an "X" mark. The previous summer, these individuals escaped Philadelphia's spotted fever outbreak for a trip to Manheim, amongst other stops in Lancaster County. Being friends, the Stedmans and Stiegel surely saw Hopkinson and Grame as credible witnesses to the transfer. Graeme would later start America's first literary salon in 1767, to which Hopkinson and other Founding Fathers like Benjamin Rush would attend. One of her contemporaries called her "The Most Learned Woman in America." The document is in very good condition but does contain some folds and tears and is lightly toned.
  • $1,500
  • $1,500
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A Document For Revolutionary War Service Signed By Benjamin Harrison V, Signer Of The Declaration Of Independence And Father And Great-Grandfather To Presidents

BENJAMIN HARRISON BENJAMIN HARRISON V (1726-1791). Harrison served as the 5th Governor of Virginia between 1781-1784 and was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. DS. June 29, 1784. Council-Chamber. A partly-printed document signed "Benj Harrison": "I DO Certify, That Benjamin Smith XX of Edward Clark is entitled to the properties of land allowed a Sargeant of the Continental line, for three years service". In addition to Harrison's signature, "Tho Merriwether" signed the document. This document represents a land grant given to a veteran of the American Revolution. According to the Library of Virginia, the state offered bounty lands for Revolutionary War military service who had served at least three years continuously in the Continental or state forces. This land was in western Virginia, which is present-day Kentucky or Ohio. No bounty land was given by the state for militia service. After reviewing the claims and affidavits, the Governor's office reviewed the claims and had final say. Once a claim was approved, the Governor's Office issued a military certificate that authorized the Land Office to issue a warrant for a specific amount of land based on the veteran's military rank and length of service, from 100 acres for a soldier or sailor to 15,000 acres for a Major General. Thus, this certificate notes that Smith was a Sargeant. In total, the Governor's Office issued 9,926 certificates between 1782 and 1876, as veterans' heirs continued to make claims. These land certificates, rather than direct payment, were the most prominent reward granted to veterans of the American Revolution, and therefore this document is a key reminder of the practice. The document is cut into black cardstock and placed below an engraving Governor Harrison, whose distinguished political service before, during, and after the Revolution was overshadowed by the political success of his son and great-grandson. Both items are placed into a black and gold wooden frame, which is in fine condition.
  • $1,500
  • $1,500
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Contemporary Manuscript Copy Of The Quadruple Alliance Treaty Of 1718

(QUADRUPLE ALLIANCE TREATY OF 1718) (QUADRUPLE ALLIANCE TREATY OF 1718). AM. 71 pg. 7" x 14". August 2, 1718. London. A contemporary manuscript copy of the Quadruple Alliance Treaty of 1718. This copy is believed to be that of William Wake, Archbishop to Canterbury and one of the signatories to the original treaty. This document also includes the signature of "Georgius R". British King George I was one of several Western European royal leaders that was a party to this treaty, which launched war against Spain. In 1713, the Peace of Utrecht had ended the War of Spanish Succession upon the king of Spain, Philip V to retain the Spanish throne in exchange for renouncing the French throne and holdings in modern-day Italy to Hapsburg Austria. However, by 1717, the Spanish monarchy desired to expand and successfully seized Sardinia in October 1717, followed by an invasion of Sicily the next year. In response, Great Britain, France, the Dutch Republic, and Hapsburg Austria created the Quadruple Alliance, which this treaty codified. Written in Latin and signed in London, the Treaty of London was a mutual defense pact between these four powers with the goal of restoring the pre-1717 boundaries in Western Europe. Signatories included King George I of Great Britain, King Charles VI of the Holy Roman Empire, and King Louis XV of France. Over the next two years, a world war broke part between Spain and the Quadruple Alliance, which included a failed Irish invasion of Great Britain sponsored by Spain, a failed Spanish invasion of Brittany France, the French capture of Spanish Pensacola, and an Austrian attack on Spanish forces in Sicily, among other theaters of war. In the end, the conflict ended with the Treaty of The Hague on February 17, 1720, which resulted in Spain ceding all territory gained since 1717 in exchange for France returning Spanish territory it captured. This conflict is notable for the final alliance between Britain and France until the 19th century, for France subsequently allied with Spain in the Bourbon Compact. Spain would regain Sicily during the War of Polish Succession in 1735. This copy is written in Latin, folio on gilt edged paper, and sewn together in book form. It is in good condition, though the binding is aged.
  • $750