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.

Jackson, Henry (1747-1809) to Henry Knox

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02437.04841 Author/Creator: Jackson, Henry (1747-1809) Place Written: Boston, Massachusetts Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 30 January 1791 Pagination: 3 p. ; 22.6 x 18.8 cm. Order a Copy

Writes that Governor John Hancock "deliver'd a lengthy speech to both houses, it was a very good one, and well received, the question has frequently been asked, who wrote it." Mentions when Samuel Sewall took his seat in the Massachusetts legislature he was rejected from all quarters of the House "because he was a district Judge of the United States." A debate took place and Sewall's supporters included William Eustis and James Bowdoin, but they were in the minority. Writes, "many good Federalists are sorry that Judge Sewall made a question of this business." Talks about the favorable response to Knox's idea for a canal.

Jackson, Henry, 1747-1809
Knox, Henry, 1750-1806
Sewall, Samuel, 1757-1814
Hancock, John, 1737-1797

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