Found 52 collections related to United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783

Collection of three letters signed collectively or individually by Richard Penn (approximately 1736-1811) and Arthur Lee (1740-1792) while representing American interests in England. In July 1775, Richard Penn was entrusted by the Second Continental Congress with the delivery of the "Olive Branch Petition" to King George III after contacting colonial agents there, including Arthur Lee. Two letters are addressed to "Hon[ora]ble Sir" (presumably John Hancock, President of Congress) and concern the delivery of the petition to the British government. An autograph letter (4 p.) signed by Arthur Lee at Middle Temple, London, 1775 August 28, describes the delay due to the absence from town of Lord Dartmouth (Secretary of State for the Colonies). Lee shares his views on foreign reaction to American affairs and condemns the character of Thomas Hutchinson and Andrew Oliver, Massachusetts loyalists. A letter (1 p.) signed by Penn and Lee dated London, 1775 September 2, reports on the delivery of the original petition to Lord Dartmouth the previous day. Dartmouth promised to deliver it to the King, but told them "as his Majesty did not receive it on the throne, no answer would be given." Also present is an undated autograph letter (1 p. with integral address leaf) signed by Richard Penn at London to a Mr. Chambers, in which he states "I had rather convince one Honest Man of the Justice of the American Cause than ten Thousand Macaronies," for which purpose he encloses a pamphlet less

This volume contains a contemporary copy of plans of maneuvers, with text and diagrams, of the Chevalier de la Neuville, Inspector General of the Northern Army in the United States during the American Revolutionary War. The first section of the volume contains arithmetic problems, and a blank roll of the 2nd battalion, Berkeley militia foot, commanded by Colonel Morrow, is inserted. Fly leaves have the names of Robert Gates and Thaddeus Kosciuszko written thereon less

Orderly book of the 2nd Connecticut Regiment of the Continental Army, dated July 2-September 25, 1779, kept at Danfords, New Windsor, "Moore's House," and elsewhere in Connecticut. Records general orders, courts martial, and other information. Signed on flyleaf by John Mix, 2nd Connecticut Regiment less

Samuel Blatchley Webb (1753-1807) was a general with the American army during the Revolution and a founder of the Society of the Cincinnati. His son, James Watson Webb (1802-1884) was a soldier, publisher and diplomat. For three decades he published the Morning Courier and New York Enquirer in New York City. In 1861 he sold his publishing interests to serve as U.S. minister to Brazil for eight years. Collection consists of correspondence and other papers of Samuel Blatchley Webb and his son, James Watson Webb. Bulk of Samuel Webb's papers is correspondence, 1777-1789, relating to financial matters, personal and family affairs, Shay's Rebellion, the Society of the Cincinnati, and the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. Other materials include legal and business papers, 1773-1791; biographical sketch of Webb; and miscellaneous items. Papers of James Watson Webb consist mainly of correspondence, 1840-1882, when he was minister to Brazil, from his subordinate, James Monroe. Other correspondence concerns Webb's career as publisher and diplomat. Also, newsclippings about Webb and printed biographical sketch. less

Theodoric Romeyn (1744-1804) and John B. Romeyn (1777-1825) were clergyman of the Dutch Reformed Church. John B. Romeyn later became a minister of the Presbyterian Church. Theodoric Romeyn letters (about 38 items) dating 1767-1805 from prominent persons including clergymen, officers of the Continental Army, politicians, and scholars concern church affairs, the British Army, Union College, Schenectady, N.Y., and other matters. Correspondents include William Paterson, Richard Varick, Philip Schuyler and others. John B. Romeyn letters (80 items) dating 1804-1825 from clergymen relate to the death of his father, church affairs, a visit to England, and personal matters. less

"Association unanimously agreed to, in the Provincial Congress of South Carolina on Saturday, the 3d. of June, 1775," to unite and support the colonies in their effort to secure their constitutional rights from Great Britain. Subscribed to by all members of the Congress then present, 202 signatures, certified by Henry Laurens, President less

Sir Guy Carleton (1724-1808) served as Governor of the Province of Quebec, Governor General of British North America, and commanded British troops in Quebec during the American War of Independence. He oversaw the evacuation of British forces, Loyalists, and freedmen from New York in 1783. The papers consist of two orders submitted in 1767 to paymasters at Montreal and Quebec for payment of troops; a letter to Sir William Johnson, Superintendent of Indian Affairs, discussing how to defeat French attempts to gain the loyalty of Indian tribes, and how to manage the concerns of Canadians; and several letters and documents, 1775 to 1790, relating to various official duties. Also present is an 1867 transcript from the Public Record Office entitled "State Papers, America and West Indies, Sir G. Carleton's Correspondence, No. 147." The original document dates from 1783 less

The collection consists of a small quantity of letters written by American Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene. Letters discuss preparations for the Battle of Long Island; the preservation of public stores and mobilization of troops under General Putnam; and the payment of officers. A later letter references his postwar agrarian pursuits in Georgia. Also present are fragments of letters and other writings; notes from an unknown source on Greene's campaigns; and an undated transcription of an illustrated narrative of the Battle of Eutaw Springs (1781) taken from Johnson's Life of General Greene less

Letters from the Marquis de Lafayette to various parties written between 1791 and 1834. Letters to Colonel Timothy Pickering and Maryland governor Thomas Sim Lee pertain to military matters; an 1834 letter to Joseph Hume expresses concern for Polish refugees displaced by Prussian authorities. Other letters relate to social engagements and personal affairs; recipients include Hugues-Bernard Maret, 1st Duc de Bassano, and Peter Stephen Du Ponceau. In English and French less

David McNeely Stauffer (1845-1913) was an American civil engineer, editor, artist, and collector. He worked for several railroads including the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad until 1876 when he went into private practice. He wrote scholarly articles and edited the Engineering News. In addition to collecting autographs and illustrations, he designed book plates and did pen and ink drawings. Collection consists of Stauffer's personal papers and his autograph and seal collection. Personal papers contain correspondence, 1865-1910; financial papers; notes; sketches and illustrations; manuscript; and transcripts of historical correspondence. Autograph collection of historical and literary figures of the 18th and 19th centuries includes artists, clergy, educators, inventors, engineers, lawyers, authors, doctors, scientists, and officers of the American Revolution and other political figures. less

Caesar Rodney (1720-1784), statesman, was a colonial legislator in Delaware and representative to the Stamp Act Congress and to the Continental Congress. He served as a major-general in the Delaware militia, signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776, and was president of Delaware from 1778 to 1781. Collection consists of letters from Rodney to his brother Thomas and to Henry Laurens, and letters to Rodney from various political figures. Also, letters to his nephew Caesar Augustus Rodney, who served as U.S. Attorney-General from 1807 to 1811, was U.S. Senator from Delaware, and was appointed the first U.S. Minister to the Argentine Republic. less

George Clinton (1739-1812) was a soldier in the American Revolution; the first governor of New York State, 1777-1795 and 1801-1804; and Vice-President of the U.S. under Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, 1805-1812. Collection consists of correspondence, accounts, military commissions, legal documents, copies of Clinton's papers, genealogical notes, autographs, financial papers, and printed matter. Correspondence, 1776-1812, concerns Revolutionary War, gubernatorial, Vice-Presidential, and personal matters and includes some letters of other members of Clinton's family. Accounts, 1777-1791, are for personal and family expenses; military commissions, 1779-1803, are signed by Clinton as Governor of New York; with land grant, 1790, and other family legal documents, 1813, 1819. Copies of Clinton papers located in other repositories include manuscript copies of letters and speeches, 1787-1788. Also, genealogical notes, autographs, signed bank checks, clippings, and other printed matter; volume of Clinton's proclamations issued as Governor, 1777-1781; and part of the Great Seal of the State of New York. less

American loyalists. Letters dated 1783 February 11-1787 December 5, written from Chelsea, England, to Samuel Thorne, New York City, relating to family affairs, political and financial conditions due to American Revolution, complaints of Americans in Nova Scotia, and other matters. less

George Bancroft (1800-1891) was an American historian, diplomat and public official who wrote the ten-volume History of the United States. Bancroft's positions included Collector of the Port of Boston, Secretary of the Navy under Polk, Minister to Great Britain from 1846 to 1849, and Minister to Germany from 1867 to 1874. In addition to History of the United States, Bancroft wrote other historical studies and biographies. Collection consists of transcripts (and some originals) of letters, dispatches, statistical data, journals, minutes of proceedings, and other papers culled from American, British and European sources by George Bancroft in the course of research for his historical works. Bulk of the collection reflects the economic, political, military, and diplomatic relations between Great Britain and its North American colonies during the 17th and 18th centuries, particularly the period leading up to the American Revolution of 1775-1783, the war itself, and the immediate aftermath of the war culminating in the writing and adoption of the U.S. Constitution. There are materials on the presidencies of George Washington and James K. Polk, and the 1872 dispute between Great Britain and U.S. over the water boundary between the U.S. and British Columbia. Also, records dealing with relations in the 18th century between the U.S. and continental European countries, and various European countries with each other (especially Prussia, Austria, France, Spain, and Great Britain). less

Horatio Gates (1728-1806) was a general in the American Revolutionary War. He commanded the American forces at the Battle of Saratoga in 1777 and in 1780 was placed in chief command of the army in the South. During the French and Indian War, he served as an officer in the British army. Collection consists of correspondence and orderly books of General Gates. Correspondence, 1787-1804, primarily from family and friends, concerns personal and financial matters but also relates to American politics. Letter book, 1780-1781, contains letters written by Gates during his command in the South during the Revolution. Also, orderly books, 1760-1783; issued by Gates while commanding the Southern Army. less

Jedediah Huntington was an American general in the Continental Army during the American revolution. The collection consists largely of letters written to Huntington during his tenure as collector of customs at New London, Connecticut from Gabriel Duval, Albert Gallatin, Richard Rush, John Steele, Oliver Wolcott, and other officials of the Comptroller's Office of the U.S. Treasury Department less

This collection contains sixty-three letters to Captain John Bowie of South Carolina, commandant at Fort Independence and elsewhere, from General Andrew Williamson of Georgia and other individuals. The letters were written between 1776 and 1780 and concern military matters. They are mounted in an old volume of Senate documents and selections were printed in the Bulletin of the New York Public Library, vol. 4, pages 83-92 and 116-127 less

Timothy Pickering (1745-1829) was a Massachusetts statesman who served variously as colonel in the Continental Army, United States Secretary of War, and United States Secretary of State. The Timothy Pickering papers consist mainly of letters written by Pickering in the 1780s and 1790s in a professional capacity, with Samuel Hodgdon and Jedidiah Huntington being his most frequent correspondents. Earlier papers document the conditions and movements of the Army, 1780-1781, and include bills for services and supplies signed by Pickering as Quartermaster General. Letters relative to his duties as Secretary of War discuss the acquisition of provisions and munitions. Letters and documents created during his tenure as Secretary of State include "an estimate of the expence of negociating a treaty with the French Republic," 1799, and "Principles which should govern in choosing a president of the United States." Later material relates to personal and family matters, including an 1827 letter to Virgil Maxcy asking for advice in the growing of hops. Also present are autographs, seals, and receipts. less

Jonathan Trumbull, Jr. (1740-1809) was Governor of Connecticut from 1797 until his death in 1809. He was the son of Jonathan Trumbull (1710-1785), Governor of Connecticut from 1769 to 1786. During the American Revolution, Trumbull was a Paymaster of the Continental Army, comptroller of the Treasury, and aide-de-camp to General George Washington. He served in the U.S. Congress as a representative and senator for Connecticut, 1789-1796. The collection consists of letters sent to military officers and others, mainly in his capacities of paymaster and governor; several signed certificates for Connecticut civil appointments and military commissions; and a document signed by Trumbull and other presidential electors, 1800, appointing a courier to deliver their votes to Washington, D.C. Recipients include Ebenezer Huntington (1754-1834) and Jeremiah Wadsworth (1743-1804) of Connecticut, both military officers and politicians. Early letters and receipts concern Army and government accounts, 1776-1780; a 1790 letter to Huntington from Philadelphia discusses the politics of moving the U.S. capitol to Washington. Letters written during his governorship pertain to state militia, personal property and family matters. less

Jonathan Trumbull, Sr. (1710-1785) was governor of the Colony and State of Connecticut (1769-1786). Letters date predominantly from the Revolutionary War period and pertain to military orders, supplies, troop movements, location of the British fleet, Council of Safety meetings and other matters; many are addressed to Major General Jabez Huntington. In addition there are orders for sheriffs, several signed military commissions, a Council of Safety resolution to build frigates, autograph clippings, and a promissory note. less

Benjamin Lincoln (1733-1810) served as a major general in the Continental Army, as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, and was appointed customs collector for the Port of Boston in 1789. The papers consist predominantly of letters sent by Lincoln pertaining to military matters, including a letter dated September 4, 1779, to General Lachlan McIntosh announcing the landing of Comte d'Estaing with twenty-five ships of the line and describing preparations for what would become the Siege of Savannah. Also present are legal documents, including powers of attorney and loan certificates; a bill of sale for the sloop "Polly," and customs documents generated by Lincoln during his term as Collector of the Port of Boston. less