TheNo. 16! Issued Occasionally for The Clements Ubrary Associates

Prepared in the Interests

of Book Collecting at the

University of Michigan

1May 1948

NATIONAL SOCIETY OF AUTOGRAPHCOLLECTORS

First A nnual Me eting

May 17-18, 1948

THE C LEMENTS L IBRARYAnn Arbor

':program

:lIos o.w , :ItAY 17Morning

Registration at the Michigan UnionExhibit, Clements Library-"American

History"Noon

Luncheon. 12: 15 P.M., Michigan UnionAddress of Welcome for the Univer­

sity by President Alexander G.Ruthven

Address of Welcome for the Clem­ents Library by Dr Randolph G.Adams

Response for NSAC by PresidentJoseph E. Fields

Afternoon

Informal visits to University ExhibitsGeneral Library-"Theatrical and

Litera ry Autographs"Law Library-"Signers of the Consti­

tu tion of the United Sta tes"

Michigan Historical Collections(Rackham Building) - "Mich­igan Hi story"

Transportation Library (East Engi­neering Building) -"Tran sporta­tion in the United States"

EveningBanquet, 6:30 P.M., Michigan Union

Address-Colton Storm, "The Careand Feed ing of a Manuscript Col­lection"

Address-Dr Victor H. Paltsits, "TheRole of the Collector"

Discussion

TUESDAY, MAY .8

l\1orning. 9:00 to 12:00 A.M.

Joint Loan Exhibit by NSAC members,Clements Library

N oon

Luncheon, 12: 15 P.M., Michigan UnionBusiness Meeting

Afterno on

Tea and Reception for NSAC and TheClements Library Associates, 3:00 to6:00 P.M., Clements Library

CATALOGUE OF AN EXHIBITION IN HONOR OF THENATIONAL SOCIETY OF AUTOGRAPH COLLECTORS

BARCELONA, AUGUST 22, 1493FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. Document, signed.

Twelve pages, 11% by 8 inches; vellum.Miscellaneous Manuscripts

* .. Our docum en t signed by Ferdinand and Isabella ("Yo el.. R ey" and "F0 1{J R eyna") is a confirmation and extension

of the entail founded by Fra ncisco de Mourroy del Almaraz yBelvis y Deleytosa.

DETROIT, MAY I, 1763 TO JUNE 6, 1765JEHU HAY. Autograph Manuscript Diary. 212 pages,

various sizes, mostly 8y:! by 5Y:! inches; old halfrussia Hay Diary

* ~ Jehu Hay, a lieutenant in the 60th (Royal American).. Regiment, arrived in Detroit on August 23. 1762. He was in

the town during the long siege imposed by Pontiac in 1763- Thed iary is the source of importan t in formation abou t the siege.

BOSTON, APRIL 18, 1775THOMAS GAGE. Autograph Draft. To Lieutenant

Colonel Francis Smith . Three pages, 12]4 by 7%inches. Gage Papers

.. to T h is retained draft, in the hand of the commander-in -chief... of the British forces in North America, contains orders to

Colonel Smith to "seize and destroy all the Artillery and Am­munition Provisions Tents & all other Military Stores you canfind" at Concord.

BOSTON, APRIL 26, 1775

JOHN PITCAIRN. Letter, signed. To Thomas Gage.Three pages, 9Y:! by 7% inches. Gage Papers

... • Major John Pitcairn led the Marines in the Battle of Lex­.. ington. This is h is official report to General Gage about the

engagement on the nineteenth.

BOSTON, APRIL 26, 1775WILLIAM SUTHERLAND. Report, signed. Four

pages, '4% by 9]4 inches . Clinton Papers'II: ... Lieutenant William Sutherl and's detailed repor t of the• engagements at Lexington and Concord on April 19 exists

in two copies in the Clements Library. The exhibited copy isfrom the Sir Henry Clinton Papers; our other copy is found inthe Gage Papers, addressed to Major Kemble. The two copiesdiffer in mi nor details. The report or memorandum from theGage Papers was printed in 19~7 as Lat e News of the Excursionand Ravages of the King's Troops . . • Cambridge: Printed • ••for the Club of Odd Volumes, 1927.

BOSTON, APRIL OR MAY, 1775RACHEL REVERE. Autograph Letter, signed. To

Paul Revere. One page, 7 by 7% inches.. Gage Papers

'" .. Paul Revere did not receive this lett er (nor the "hundred• &: twenty-five pound" enclosed) for it was intercepted by the

British. Indeed , the bearer, Dr Benjamin Church, probably took.it di rectly to General Gage.

BOSTON, JULY 19, 1775SIR WILLIAM HOWE AND OTHERS. Letter,

signed by Sir William Howe, Sir Henry Clinton,and John Burgoyne. To Thomas Gage. One page,8% by 7% inche s. Gage Papers

..... By this letter , three of the principal British officers in• America (two of them succeeded Gage as commanders-in­

chief) dem anded equipage money. They probably needed thefive hundred pounds; the RevQ\utiona:t'j War had begun.

PHILADELPHIA, JULY 4, 1776CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. Manuscript copy of

"A Declaration By the R epresentatives of the Un itedStates of America, In General Congress Assembled."Eight pages, 12% by 7% inches . Germain Papers

... This. con temporary copy of the Declaration of Independence• was found among the papers of Lord George Germain. In

1776, Germain was Secre tary of State for America. He was th usthe British cabinet officer to whom the Ame rican Congressannounced its intentions. It was through this copy, in the handsof Germain, th at George III learned hi s colonies wanted theirfreedom.

NEW YORK, AUGUST, 1777SIR HENRY CLINTON. Autograph Draft, signed

with initials. To John Burgoyne. One page, 8% by7V. inches. Clinton Papers

• • The cop y exhibited (with the mask) was retained by Sir• Henry (or his own files. On the surface, the letter seems

innocuous, but when the mask is applied to the page, the re omaining text is highly important. It reveals th e weakness of theBritish position and Sir Henry's feelings on the SUbject.

SARATOGA, OCTOBER 20, 1777JOHN BURGOYNE. Autograph Letter, signed. To

Sir Henry Clinton. Four pages, 12% by 7% inches.Clinton Papers

• ... "Gentleman Johnny" announces in th is letter that he has... surrendered hi s army to the Rebels at Saratoga. Creasy

nominated Saratoga as one of th e "fifteen decisive battles't--butthat was in 1852•

1777 OR 1778NATHANAEL GREENE AND OTHERS. Letter,

signed by Nathanael Greene, Samuel Holden Par­sons, Henry Knox , Jonathan Glover, John Stark,Jedediah Huntington, and John Paterson . ToWilliam Greene. Seven pages, '3 by 8 inches .

Clinton Papers

• • The seven "General Officers of the New England Lines"... signed this plea to Governor William Greene in an attempt

to alleviate. the "distressing condition of their Officers in theArmy ." It seems to have been intercepted by the British.

WEST PO INT, JULY 15, 1780BENEDICT ARNOLD. Autograph Letter, signed; in

code. To John Andre. One page, 9Ys by 7Y:! inches .Clinton Papers

.. .... A recounting of Benedict Arnold's treachery here is un­.. necessary. The story has been told too well by Carl Van

Doren. The letter exhibited is the famous one in which Arnoldoffers to surrender ' Vest Point for twenty thousand pounds andsome o ther perquisites.

TAPAAN, SEPTEMBER 29,1780

JOHN ANDRE. Autograph Letter, signed. To SirHenry Clinton. Four pages, 9 by 7% inches.

Clinton Papers

• .. John Andre's . letter of fare well to Sir Henry Clinton was• written a . shor t "time. before Andre was.hanged. It is one of

the most frequently quoted letters of the Revolutionary War.

.---~---~-------------------------", ~~-

WASHINGTON, JANUARY 31, 1809THOMAS JEFFERSON. Address, signed. To "My

Children Chiefs of the Ottoways, Chippeways,Pouteuiatamies, Wiandots and Shawanese." Threepages, 9% by 7% inches. Cass Papers

>II< ... Jefferson's mesage is in answer to a complaint by the Wyan-• dote Indians that certain provisions of the Treaty of Green­

ville (which were not recorded in the signed treaty but whichappeared in their wampum) had not been carried out by theUnited States. Apparently, our government was- in the wrongfor Jefferson acknowledged it, In the present message. Jeffersonagrees to conclude a supplementary treaty and to pay the Wyan­dotes a thousand dollars for their' trouble.

RICHMOND, DECEMBER 30, 1827JOHN MARSHALL. Autograph Letter, signed. To

Joseph Story. Sixteen pages, 12% by 7% inches.Marshall Manuscript

• .. Although' it is in the form of a letter, this manuscript is an• autobiography written by Marshall at Story's request. The

recipient used the information in three articles about Marshall.but Albert J. Beveridge, not knowing that this manuscript exists.questioned several particulars in the Story accounts.

GHENT, DECEMBER 24, 1814THE TREATY OF GHENT. Autograph Manuscript

in hand of Henry Clay of "Treaty of peace andamity between His Britannic Majesty and TheUnited States;' signed by James, Lord Gambier;Henry Goulburn; William Adams; John QuincyAdams; James A. Bayard; Henry Clay; JonathanRussell; and Albert Gallatin; with seals. Fourteenpages, 12% by 7% inches. Goulburn Papers

• • The Treaty of Ghent conduded the War of 1812. Our copy,• from the Goulburn Papers. is , in the hand of Henry Clay.

The text of the treaty states that the document was signed- andsealed in triplicate.

ST. MARY'S, OHIO, SEPTEMBER 17, 1818TREATY OF ST. MARY'S. Manuscript of "Articles

of a treaty made ana concluded at St. Mary's in theState of Ohio . . ." signed by Lewis Cass, DuncanMcArthur, Cat-te-we-ka-sa, Do-on-quod, Me-tesh-e­ne-wa, and others. Two pages, 26 by '9 inches;vellum Cass Papers

... Thirty-eight Indian chiefs of the Shawnees, wyandotes,.. Senecas. and Ottawas-made their marks on this copy of the

treaty. It is also signed by the two American commissioners andeighteen governors; Indian agents. secretaries, and interpreters.The treaty was supplementary to one made with the same tribesa year earlier.

• • President Washin~on delivered this address to a group of• visiting Indian chiefs in Philadelphia. It is his advice about

how the Ind ians ought to conduct themselves in oonfonnity withthe Treaty of Greenville.

DETROIT, DECEMBER, 1796PATRICK McNIFF. Autograph Manuscript Map,

signed. "A Plan of the settlements at Detroit andits vicinity from River Rouge upwards to Point auGinglet on Lake St. Clair . . ." Six sheets, each 18%by 14% inches; originally attached to form a con­tinnons strip, bnt now separated. Map Division

"" • McNiff's map. which lis ts all the property holders on the• American side of the Detroit River, was made at the request

of Anthony Wayne. It was not ready by the time Wayne leftDetroit and was sent on to him at Presqn'Ife, but it arrivedafter Wayne's untimely death. The map was then sent on amongWayne's military gear to James McHenry, the Secretary of War.It remained in the McHenry Papers until they were dispersedat auction a few years ago. The map is accompanied by McNiff'scovering letter to Wayne.

PARIS, 1784DAVID HARTLEY. Autograph Manuscript Sketch

Map of the United States east of the MississippiRiver. One page, 7 by 914 inches. Hartley Papers

• • David Hartley was the British commissioner charged .with• winding up the Treaty of Paris. Thomas Jefferson was one

of the three American commissioners. The information regard­ing plans for dividing up the Old Northwest Territory couldhave come from no other commissioner than Jefferson. As faras we can determine, this- is the first appearance on a map ofJefferson's proposal for new states west of the Alleghanies.

YORKTOWN, OCTOBER 20, 1781CHARLES CORNWALLIS, FIRST MARQUESS

AND SECOND EARL CORNWALLIS. Letter,signed. To Sir Henry Clinton. Fourteen pages, 12by 7% inches. Clinton Papers

• • The packet of mail. to which this was the covering letter.• was intended to inform Sir Henry Clinton that Lord Corn­

wallis had been obliged to surrender to the American and Frencharmies. at Yorktown. Lord Cornwallis' letter is, in effect, anapology for a great disaster. Accompanying the letter are copiesof the correspondence between Cornwallis and washington whichculminated in the Articles _of Capitulation signed by GeorgeWashington for the Americans, Ie Comte de Rochambeau andle Comte de Barras for the French, and Lord Cornwallis andThomas Symonds for the British.

PASSY, JUNE 17, 1784BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. Document, signed. One

page, 15% by 9% inches. Harmar Papers• • Josiah Harmar was selected by Congress to carry the ratified• Treaty of Peace to Franklin at Paris. This is the passport

issued by Franklin to Harmar. It was printed at Franklin'sprivate Passy press .

NEW WINDSOR, MAY 29, 1781GEORGE WASHINGTON. Antograph Letter, signed.

To DOClOr Baker. One page, "% by 814 inches . · .Clinton Papers

• '" Washington's letter to his dentist requesting "a pair of.. Pincers to fasten the wires of my teeth" was intercepted by

the British. Clinton sent out several copies to fr iends. Perhapshe thought it was a letter in code.

PHILADELPHIA, NOVEMBER 9; 1796GEORGE WASHINGTON. Address, signed . To

"Chiefs and Warriors, Representatives of the Wian­dots, Delawares, Shawanoes, Ottawas, Chippewas,Putawatamies, Miamis, Eel River, Weeas, Pianke­shaws and Kaskaskias." Three pages, 12% by 7%inches. Cass Papers

NEW WINDSOR, MAY 31, 1781GEORGE WASHINGTON. Autograph Letter, signed.

To the Marqnis de Lafayette. Three pages, 12% by7% inches. Clinton Papers

• • The result of the "weathersfield Conference" between the• American and French commanders is reported by washing­

ton in this letter. The conference was called to plan the cam­paign for 1781 and in the letter Washington describes the plansfor a final attack on New York. The letter was intercepted bythe British (or allowed to fall into British hands) . It may havebeen a decisive factor in Sir Henry Clinton's reluctance to leaveNew York and attempt the rescue of Lord Cornwallis at York­town.

NEW WINDSOR, MAY, 1781MARTHA WASHINGTON. Autograph Note in the

third person. To her housekeeper at Mount Vernon.One page, 4% by 8% inches. Clinton Papers

• ,., Obviously. Martha Washington's heart lay in Mount*' Vernon. This letter was intercepted by the British. probably

at the same time they captured George Washington's letter toDr Baker.

20. American imprints before 1820.

2 1. American literature, 18th to mid-rgth centuries.2 2 . American music, t Sth to mid- 19th centuries.23. Ea rly and rare sta te histories.24. The Amer ican Indian, i fith to mid-rqth centuries.25. Slavery and anti-Slavery in America, 18th cen tury

through the Civil W ar.26. War of 1812. mil itary and commercial aspects.27. R are Michiganiana.28. The Middl e W est, incl udi ng the "O ld Nor th-

west," 1784 to mid-rqth cen tur y.29· Civil War rarities.30. Confederate imprints. 1861-1865.31. American sports, 18th to mid-rqth cen tur ies.32. American peri odicals, 18th to mid-rqth centur ies.33. American newspapers, 18th to mid-19th centuries.34. Individuals conce rning whom the Library has

noteworthy collections of printed books:a . Benjamin Franklin . including a collection of

ed itions of the Autobiography. .b. Caron de Beaumarcha is, c. George Washington.d. J ohn Wilkes. e. "j unius." L Thomas Paine.g. T homas J efferson. including collections of

ed i tions of h is N otes on th e State of Virginiaand his M anual.

h. Abraham Lincoln. i . T heodore Roosevelt.j. W. H. Hudson (George M. Adams Collect ions) .k. R. B. Cunninghame Graham (George M.

Adams Collection).35. Individuals concern ing whom the L ibrary has

noteworthy collection s of manuscripts:a. Thomas Gage. b. Sir Henry Clinton.c. Earl of Shelburne. d. Lord George Germain .e. Nathanael Green e. f. Josiah H armar.g. Melville, i st and and Viscounts.h. George Brinley. i . J ames G. Birney.j . Lucius Lyon . k. Theodore D. W eld.

I. Russell A. Alger.36. Historiography: coll ections of manuscri pts and

letters of American h istori ans and b ook collectors.37. Maps. pnblished in 15th to mi d-1 9th cen tu r ies.38. Cartography : monographs and crit ical studies on

ea rly mapping of Ameri ca.39. Bibliograph y of Ameri cana. This section is espe­

cially rich, combining the collections of W . ElliottWoodward, William L. Clements, H enry Vignaud,notes on Lincolnian a of Daniel E. Newh all, bookand book auction catalogues of Arthur Swann, andothers.

SOME FIELDS OF SPECIALIZATION. .

IN THE CLEMENTS LIBRARY

------------------~

"Librarians no longer torture themselves with thoughts of an imaginaryand impossible 'completeness' which no library ever has attained orever will." (The Librarian of Congress in 1939)

1. Pre-Columbi an discoveries of America.2. Christopher Columbus.3. Americus Vespuccius.4. New Wo rld Spanish conq uero rs and chroniclers.5. French discoverers, voyageurs and missionaries,

including collections of editions of the "j esuitRelations," H ennep in and La Homa n.

6. Dutch traders and set tlers in the 17th century.7. Engli sh explorers, colonizers and military and

naval persons, . 6th through the 18th century.8. Collecti ons of early voyages to America, including

collections of ed it ions of DeBry, Hakluyt, andH ulsius,

9. Mathem atical an d astronomical works of theperiod of the discoveries.

10. Collection of critical monographs on the fore­going form ed by Henry Vignaud.

11. Promotion al li terature for colonization of EasternNorth America.

12. Ch roniclers of colonization of North America.' 3. R eligious works rela ting to America, especially

a . Congregationa lism, 17th and 18th cen turi es.b. jesu its in North America, 17th century. and

later Ca tholic Ameri cana.Co Ameri can sermons of ' 7th and 18th centuries.d. Church of England, including Angli can Epis-

copate controversy.e. Early American Bibles and liturgical hooks.I. Quakeri ana, 17th and 18th cen turi es.g. Editions of T he Book of M ormon.

14. Matheriana (sec bibliographies by T. J. Holmes).15. Economic history of British-America in 17th and

18th centuries.16. Anglo-French r ivalry for N orth America: com­

merciaI and strategic conflicts culminating ina. " King William's W ar," 168!r1797.b. " Queen Anne's War," 1701-1713.Co " King George's War," 1744-1748.d . "French and Indian War," 1754-1763'

17. American R evolutiona. Prelimi naries from Stamp Act to 1775.b. The War years.c. The T rea ty of Pea ce. 1782-1785'd . Memoirs of participants printed before 1875.e. Bri ti sh Arm y Lists, 1755-1 869.

18. Confederation and Constitution, 1783-1789. in­cluding the Bell collection of The Federalist.

19- Colonial laws and government documeu zs before1800.