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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.

Unknown "Instructions for Mayor Abraham Schuyler"

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03107.02150 Author/Creator: Unknown Place Written: Albany, New York Type: Manuscript Date: 1722/09/08 Pagination: 6p. + docket 33.3 x 21.6 cm Order a Copy

Abraham Schuyler is ordered to settle in the Seneca's country for 12 months in an effort to trade with the Far Nations, and invite them to Albany to trade with the English settlers. Schuyler is directed to tell the Far Nations that the English offer their goods at a significantly cheaper price, and he is to make sure that the 5 Nations do not hinder their passage. While in the Seneca's country, he is also supposed to purchase the nearest part of land around Lake Erie, build a trading house, and maintain correspondence with the Commissioner for Indians Affairs at Albany. Marked as a copy on the docket.

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