LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2007 October Rare Books & Manuscripts #675  / 

30144

Anthony Wayne Autograph Letter Signed

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:1,500.00 USD Estimated At:3,000.00 - 6,000.00 USD
Anthony Wayne Autograph Letter Signed
<B>Anthony Wayne Autograph Letter Signed</B></I> “<I>Anty Wayne</B></I>,” one page, 8” x 9.75”. Savannah, June 1, 1790, to Edward Rutledge.<B> </B></I>In full, <I>“I was honored with yours of the 21st April but purposely omitted answering it until I had an Opportunity of seeing & conversing with Major Pendleton & Major Forsyth - upon the subject - this delay I thought wou'd not be of any disadvantage as I had in a great manner anticipated your wishes by a letter to Mrs Greene of the 22nd Feby of which the inclosed is a Copy - I have now confirmed upon Oath the circumstances & facts therein mentioned before your brother who waits whilst I am writing & only permits me time to assure you that I am with sincere Esteem.”</B></I> Catharine “Caty” Littlefield and Nathaniel Greene were married from 1774 until his sudden death in 1786, leaving her a 32-year-old widow with five children. During the time he commanded the Southern Department of the Continental Army, General Greene, finding a shortage of the food, clothing, and equipment needed for his soldiers, purchased what was needed using his own money, anticipating reimbursement from the Continental Congress. He even signed promissory notes, giving his property as a guarantee of payment. But Congress didn't have funds to reimburse Greene, so he borrowed money from his friends to pay off some of his notes. After his death, Mrs. Greene was forced to borrow money from friends for living expenses. When Washington became President in 1789, he advised her to press Congress for reimbursement. Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton became her chief advisor and Secretary of War Henry Knox prepared the claim and suggested what documents she required to support her case. She returned to her home in Georgia, hired <B>Major Nathaniel Pendleton</B></I> as her lawyer, and began gathered affidavits, documents and eyewitness testimonies to her husband's expenditures. Among the evidence presented before Congress was a 1784 assignment from <B>Major Robert Forsyth</B></I> to Greene of debts due Hunter, Banks, & Co., a company that supplied the army with provisions. Forsyth had served under Greene and was a partner in Hunter, Banks. After the war, Wayne moved from Pennsylvania to Georgia and settled upon a tract of land granted him by the state for his military service, adjoining Greene's plantation. Edward Rutledge, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, was co-executor of General Greene's estate.<B> </B></I>Among the affidavits given her, and submitted to Congress, was one from General Anthony Wayne. In this letter to Rutledge from Savannah, Wayne notes he had sent a letter to Mrs. Greene and had <I>“confirmed upon Oath the circumstances & facts therein mentioned.”</B></I> Wayne tells Rutledge that his brother (Supreme Court Justice John Rutledge) was present while he signed the affidavit and wrote this letter. Justice Rutledge had been in neighboring South Carolina in May for the convening of the Circuit Court for the District of South Carolina. Later in 1790, “Mad Anthony” Wayne was elected to Congress. After being sworn in on March 4, 1791, he spoke with his new colleagues, garnering support for Mrs. Greene's petition. A bill was introduced in the House. But then evidence was presented that his election was rigged and on March 16, 1792, it was resolved unanimously, by a vote of 58-0, “That Anthony Wayne was not duly elected a Member of this House.” Without her greatest supporter in the House, Mrs. Greene feared the worst. The vote was close; on April 4, 1792, the House approved the bill, 29-26. Wayne was unemployed for less than four weeks. In the midst of Senate deliberations, on April 9, 1792, President Washington nominated Wayne as Major General to succeed Arthur St. Clair whose army was soundly defeated by the Miami Indians in battle on November 4, 1791. Only the Senate is required to consent to presidential nominations and on April 11th, it did. After the Senate passed Mrs. Greene's bill, it was sent to the President. The <I>Journal of the House of Representatives</B></I> reported that on April 27, 1792, “A message was received from the President of the United States, by Mr. Lear, his Secretary, notifying that the President did, this day, approve and sign an act which originated in this House, entitled 'An act to indemnify the estate of the late Major General Nathaniel Greene for a certain bond entered into by him, during the late war.'” Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton signed a government check payable to Catharine Greene for $23,500 and a promissory note for another $23,500 payable by Congress within three years. Light soiling. Fine condition.<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Flat Material, Small (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
Sign In to Bookmark Lot