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.

Monroe, James (1758-1831) to John Breckinridge

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02323 Author/Creator: Monroe, James (1758-1831) Place Written: Albemarle, Virginia Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 23 March 1798 Pagination: 2 p. : address : docket ; 23.2 x 18.7 cm. Order a Copy

Writes to Breckinridge, a former neighbor of Monroe in Albemarle County, Virginia who moved to Kentucky in 1793. Was a member of Kentucky House of Representatives when he received this letter. Monroe had recently returned from France, burdened with debts and writes that he wants to sell his Revolutionary War land bonus in Kentucky. Writes of problems with the sale. Says he is returning to practice of law in Richmond. He mentions early news of XYZ affair from Pinckney, Gerry and Marshall in Paris and rumors of Napoleon invading England.

Monroe, James, 1758-1831
Breckinridge, John C. (John Cabell), 1821-1875

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