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.

Knox, Henry (1750-1806) to William Griffin

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02437.06189 Author/Creator: Knox, Henry (1750-1806) Place Written: Sears Island, Massachusetts Type: Autograph letter Date: 30 August 1794 Pagination: 3 p. : docket ; 32 x 19.8 cm. Order a Copy

Working draft to GLC02437.06190. Discusses the terms on his newly purchased island (Brigadiers Island, now Sears Island, Maine). Notes all the inhabitants, except for a gentleman named Benjamin Carver, have agreed to leave the island within a year's time. Requests Griffin to insure that the inhabitants do not cut more than a acre of wood. Also requests Griffin to care for the land once the inhabitants leave. Asks Griffin to purchase sheep and put it on his account. Notes Griffin will be reasonably compensated. Written from Brigadiers Island, present day Sears Island. Letter is unsigned but appears to be in Knox's handwriting.

Knox, Henry, 1750-1806
Griffin, William, fl. 1794

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