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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.

Cobb, David (1748-1830) to Henry Knox

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02437.07035 Author/Creator: Cobb, David (1748-1830) Place Written: Gouldsboro, Maine Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 1 October 1797 Pagination: 3 p. : address : docket ; 23.2 x 18.8 cm. Order a Copy

Responds to Knox's letter of 16 September 1797 with an apology for his "abrupt deportation from Montpelier." States that he has met with disappointments while participating in running the nation, commenting that "the inattention of our friends to this Country & me is unpardonable." Comments on Alexander Hamilton's recently exposed affair with Maria Reynolds. Possibly in reference to the Quasi War with France, General Cobb expresses a cynical hope for peace in regard to European affairs, claiming that the Old World is "too numerous and vicious to exist as Governments." Also comments on problems stemming from "Democracy" in Philadelphia, the quality of the country in Maine for farming, and his activities as a land agent. Cobb represented Massachusetts in congress from 1793 to 1795 and in 1796 became a land agent and farmer in Gouldsboro, Maine.

Cobb, David, 1748-1830
Knox, Henry, 1750-1806
Hamilton, Alexander, 1757-1804

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