Timothy Pickering Writes Receipt for Forage Rations for Lt. Col. Ebenezer Stevens, a Participant in the Boston Tea Party

Quartermaster General Timothy Pickering wrote this receipt, by which Ebenezer Stevens acknowledged receipt of $60 for forage rations for five months in 1783.

[REVOLUTIONARY WAR.] TIMOTHY PICKERING, Autograph Document Signed in Text, Receipt of Ebenezer Stevens, signed by Stevens, June 10, 1783. 1 p., 8" x 4.75". Minor loss on one edge; very good.

Complete Transcript
No. 318 June 10, 1783 Received of Timothy Pickering QMGeneral ⅌ David Wolfe Sixty dollars in full for forage Rations due me from the first of Febry last to the 30th June as ⅌ account having signed duplicates.
60 DollarsE Stevens Lt Colo Arty.

Timothy Pickering (1745-1829) was born in Massachusetts and graduated from Harvard College in 1763. He represented Salem in the Massachusetts General Court and served as a justice in the County Court of Common Pleas. After leading a regiment early in the Revolutionary War, Pickering accepted George Washington's request to become adjutant general of the Continental Army in 1777. In 1780, the Continental Congress elected Pickering Quartermaster General. After the war, he tried several business ventures without much success. In 1787, he was a member of the Pennsylvania convention that ratified the U.S. Constitution. In 1791, President Washington appointed Pickering as Postmaster General. In 1795, he was made Secretary of War for a brief time, and then Secretary of State from 1795 to 1800. After Pickering objected to plans to make peace with France, President Adams dismissed him in May 1800. A passionate Federalist, Pickering represented Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate from 1803 to 1811 and in the House of Representatives from 1813 to 1817. Charged with reading confidential documents in an open Senate session, Pickering was censured by the Senate in January 1811. Failing to win re-election, Pickering retired to his farm in Salem, Massachusetts.

Ebenezer Stevens (1751-1823) was born in Massachusetts and joined the Sons of Liberty. He participated in the Boston Tea Party in 1773 and joined Paddock's Artillery Company. He soon moved to Providence, Rhode Island, to work as a carpenter. After receiving news of the Battle of Lexington, Stevens volunteered for the Continental Army. He fought with a Rhode Island artillery company in the Battle of Bunker Hill under the command of Major General Nathanael Greene. In November 1776, Stevens was promoted to major in the Independent Battalion of Artillery. George Washington selected Stevens to raise battalions against Quebec and was present at the surrender of British General Burgoyne at Saratoga. He gained a promotion to lieutenant colonel in November 1778. He later served under the Marquis de Lafayette in the siege of Yorktown, Virginia. After the war, he was a merchant and New York City. In September 1814, he mobilized the New York militia as a major general to defend New York City against British attack.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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