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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.

Jefferson, Thomas (1743-1826) Notes on the State of Virginia (George Washington's copy)

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC04389 Author/Creator: Jefferson, Thomas (1743-1826) Place Written: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Type: Signature Date: 12 November 1794 Pagination: 336 p., 1 folded leaf, 1 folded leaf of plates ; 21.2 x 13.4 cm. Order a Copy

Signed by Washington on the title page. The book is the second American edition of Notes on the State of Virginia, published by Mathew Carey in Philadelphia, with original worn sheep binding. Jefferson's book not only covered geography of Virginia, but also government, Indians and slavery. Washington's papers show he purchased this on 5 January 1795. There are no notes inside the book. This edition lacks the Fry-Jefferson map sometimes found in the first American edition (and usually found in the first edition published in London).

Signer of the U.S. Constitution.

Washington, George, 1732-1799
Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826

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