Autographs
1783 Dated "Robert Morris" Signed Paris United States Revolutionary War French Debt 1900 Livres Fiscal Payment
ROBERT MORRIS (1734-1806). Signer of the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the United States Constitution, Patriot of the American Revolutionary War and known as the "Financier of the Revolution," United States Senator from Pennsylvania. One of only a few Patriots who Signed All Three Founding Documents!
March 24, 1783-Dated Revolutionary War Partly-Printed Document (in French) Signed, "Robt. Morris," at Philadelphia, (PA), measuring 4" x 9.5", Very Fine. A rare 30-Day Bill of Exchange, the Eighth Sight, ordering payment of the sum of 1900 Livres Tournois to Daniel Parker, on the account of the United States (Continental Congress) in Paris. Daniel Parker fled a failing business to France in 1784. He was an acquaintance of John Adams, and assisted Thomas Jefferson's ministerial efforts in Paris, France in 1787. This important fiscal form is printed in black on fine quality thin laid paper. There is some humidity tone at right edge and is somewhat irregular with ragged right and left margins. Morris' name is written in brown, measuring 2.75" long at the bottom right.
Robert Morris was a Philadelphia merchant and financial entrepreneur who procured significant amounts of money and supplies for General George Washington and his Continental Army troops. He was a member of the Continental Congress (1775-78) and a Signer of the Declaration of Independence. At the time he signed this document, he was superintendent of finance under the Articles of Confederation for the fledgling United States (1781-84). He was financially ruined by speculation in western lands; imprisoned for debt (1798), he died in Philadelphia in poverty and obscurity. Extremely Rare.
During the American Revolutionary War, Massachusetts merchant and speculator Daniel Parker was a partner of William Duer and John Holker in the firm Daniel Parker & Co.
Escaping the consequences of his failed speculations with company funds, Parker fled to Europe in 1784, where he cultivated the friendship of influential persons and continued to promote his business schemes. Carrying introductions from William Stephens Smith and John Adams, Parker made Thomas Jefferson's acquaintance in Paris in 1787. The two men remained in contact for the remainder of Thomas Jefferson's tenure in France, with Parker frequently carrying letters or undertaking errands for the American Minister, as well as providing advice on fiscal matters or seeking Thomas Jefferson's support for his financial ventures. Parker went bankrupt in 1791 and never returned to America.