May 27, 2020 Founders & Patriots
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 5/27/2020
British Board of Trade to Governor William Lyttleton of South Carolina, letter signed, dated "Whitehall [London] Novr. 9th 1757", folio, 9 pages of text on three bifolium sheets, with one fragment of the original pink ribbon binding on left margin of first page. An extremely important and highly detailed letter of instructions from the Commissioners of the Board of Trade, namely signatories "Dunk Halifax" [George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax (6 October 1716 – 8 June 1771), President of the Board from 1748-1761 and known as "the father of the colonies" for his success in extending American commerce], Soame Jenyns [(1704-1787) English writer, MP, and Commissioner of the Board of Trade, 1755-1780], and William Sloper [(1709-1789, MP and Commissioner of the Board, 1756-1759]. The Commissioners acknowledge receipt of Lyttleton's 7 letters with enclosures from December 25, 1756 to July 12, 1757 and inform him that the "Measures which you have taken to put the Affairs of the Indians upon a proper foot, to reconcile those differences with them which former misconduct had created, to give them proper and effective support, and to counteract the measures of the French...cannot fail of having His Majesty's Approbation." They discuss Lyttleton's dealings with the provincial assembly with regard to Indian policy at great length, and then move on to discuss the "measures you have taken for putting the Province into a proper posture of defence, in consequence of the Inteligence [sic] you have received of the designs of the Enemy...[and the colony's "weak and defenceless State." They advise him that they have fulfilled his "request for an Engineer or two sent...for directing the Works proposed to be carried on for the defence of the Province" and wish him to push forward a "speedy Settlement of the Boundary Line between North & South Carolina." CONDITION: very clean and bright. JLK
From an important Charleston, South Carolina collection.