Robert Morris letter signed ("Robt Morris") as Superintendent of Finance. One page of a bifolium, 7.5" x 9", "Office of Finance" [Philadelphia]; October 23, 1782. Addressed to "His Excellency the Governor of New Jersey" [William Livingston]. Docketed in Livingston's hand. Robert Morris transmits to Acts of Congress to Governor of New Jersey William Livingston. A manuscript circular transmitting two Acts of Congress. It reads, in full: "I do myself the Honor to transmit the Copies of two Acts of Congress of the sixteenth and eighteenth Instant. I hope these Acts will meet that early Attention which is due to their Importance." Boldly signed, "Robt Morris". Robert Morris (1734-1806), widely known as the "financier of the American Revolution," was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation and the Constitution. He served as the Superintendent of Finance from 1781 to 1784 and is considered, along with Alexander Hamilton, to be a founder of the United States financial system. It was Morris who recommended Hamilton for the post of Secretary of the Treasury after declining it himself. After the Revolutionary War, he became deeply entrenched in land speculation and formed a partnership with John Nicholson to create the North American Land Company. It proved a spectacular disaster for both men. Morris was imprisoned in debtors' prison for three years and was only released in 1801 after the passage of the Bankruptcy Act of 1800. Nicholson himself died there in 1800. The letter is accompanied by an engraved portrait of Morris by T. B. Welch. Condition: Four areas of archival tape repair to folds on pages two and three. Splitting starting at edges of integral fold. Light toning. Partially erased pencil notation to page four. HID03101062020 © 2022 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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