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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.

Livingston, John R. (1755-1851) to Robert Livingston, Jr. re: plea for payment of debt

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03107.03398 Author/Creator: Livingston, John R. (1755-1851) Place Written: Boston, Massachusetts Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 1781/03/06 Pagination: 1p. + addr. 32.6 x 20.4 cm Order a Copy

John R. asks his cousin to pay him for some gun powder he purchased nearly 2 years ago. He apologizes for being forced into a dispute with someone he holds in such high regard, but explains that the difficulty of the times have made it absolutely necessary for him to settle this account immediately. Docketed on address leaf.

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