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VERY FINE. A RARE REVOLUTIONARY WAR LETTER SIGNED BY GEORGE WASHINGTON AT WEST POINT IN 1779, DISCUSSING SENSITIVE INFORMATION RELATING TO MOVEMENT OF THE BRITISH FLEET. A WONDERFUL HISTORICAL ITEM.
George Washington considered West Point to be a strategically important location, from which the British could potentially control the Hudson River and split the colonies. In 1778 the Americans began building permanent fortifications. In June 1779, two smaller forts twelve miles away were overtaken by the British but were quickly recaptured.
The same day this letter was written, Washington wrote another to Congress (source: George Washington Papers, Series 3, Varick Transcripts, 1775-1785, Subseries 3A, Continental Congress, 1775-1783, Letterbook 5: Nov. 2, 1779 - Feb. 27, 1781). In that letter, Washington discusses Count D'Estaing and his hopes that operations to the south would have proceeded at a faster pace, allowing D'Estaing's fleet and forces to land to contribute to a possibly decisive victory. Washington also writes that it is getting too late in the season for a decisive victory, and he asks Congress to decide whether the cooperation should be abandoned. It is clear the letter to Congress was prompted by the information received on the 11th, to which the letter offered here was Washington's reply. (Image)
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VERY FINE APPEARANCE. A RARE GEORGE WASHINGTON FREE FRANK AS COMMANDING GENERAL OF THE CONTINENTAL ARMY, SENT FROM WINTER ENCAMPMENT IN NEW JERSEY IN EARLY 1777.
Following the victories at the Battles of Trenton in December 1776 and Princeton in January 1777, Washington led his troops to nearby Morristown. The forces remained there for the duration of winter, from January until May 1777.
Captain and later Major Tallmadge is known for his service as an officer in the Continental Army during the War. He acted as leader of the Culper Ring, a celebrated network of spies in British-occupied New York, dramatized in the television series "Turn." He also led a successful raid across Long Island that culminated in the Battle of Fort St. George. Following the war, Tallmadge was elected to the United States House of Representatives as a member of the Federalist Party (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Tallmadge). (Image)
FRESH AND VERY FINE JOHN ADAMS FREE FRANK, MAILED FIVE YEARS AFTER THE END OF HIS PRESIDENCY.
The Act of March 2, 1799, granted ex-Presidents free franking privileges. President Washington used this privilege for only a little more than nine months, until his death on December 14, 1799. When John Adams sent this letter, he was the only living ex-President.
Illustrated in Chronicle No. 264 (p. 324) (Image)
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VERY FINE AND CHOICE JOHN ADAMS FREE FRANK.
The recipient, Jeremy Belknap, was an American clergyman and historian, known for his History of New Hampshire, which was published in three volumes between 1784 and 1792. This work is regarded as the first modern history written by an American, and embodied a new rigor in research, annotation, and reporting (source: Wikipedia). Belknap died in 1798, so this free frank could have been sent while Adams was President (or Vice President) (Image)
FINE COVER WITH A BOLD THOMAS JEFFERSON FREE FRANK.
Jefferson died on July 4, 1826, the same day that fellow founding father, long-time friend and one-time political enemy, John Adams died, and 50 years to the day after the celebrated "signing" of the Declaration of Independence (Image)
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