1 p. pen and ink on paper, with receipt of pay order docketed on the verso. 8vo (6 x 8-1/4 inches)
1776 · Stamford, Connecticut
by Williams, William
Stamford, Connecticut, 1776. 1 p. pen and ink on paper, with receipt of pay order docketed on the verso. 8vo (6 x 8-1/4 inches). Horizontal crease from prior folding, some wear and small tears at edges. 1 p. pen and ink on paper, with receipt of pay order docketed on the verso. 8vo (6 x 8-1/4 inches). A Signer Writes One Month Before the Declaration of Independence. William Williams (1731-1811), delegate for Connecticut to the continental Congress and a signer of the Declaration of Independence, writes on June 6, 1776, as clerk for the Governor of the Council of Safety to the Connecticut Committee of Pay Table requesting a payment of £154 to Thomas Morgan "in discharge of an order for that sum drawn by Cap. John Ely ... in settlement of his acct. and service to the Company under his command in Colony service" and a payment of £30 to Samuel Shelton, "which is in discharge of Cap. Elys order for him ..." Colonel John Ely (1737-1800) was a Connecticut surgeon and physician who invested nearly his entire wealth in the raising and outfitting of a regiment of regular troops. He was captured by the British in December of 1777, later refusing to be released in a prisoner exchange because his skills as a physician were desperately needed among his fellow captured soldiers.
(Inventory #: 310481)