Gov. Moultrie Grants Plantation to Slaveholder, With Survey, an Amazing Survival

[REVOLUTIONARY WAR.] William Moultrie, Partially Printed Document Signed, Land Grant to Christopher Lewis, August 4, 1794, Charleston, South Carolina. 3 pp., 13" x 12.5" & 10" x 12.5". Two sheets attached by ribbon and folded over at bottom; small sheet with Moultrie's signature detached from grant but held together with ribbon; some small holes on folds; tape repairs to verso that have discolored paper; some staining; general toning.

Governor William Moultrie grants Christopher Lewis 779 acres in Pendleton County in the Ninety Six District on August 4, 1794. That same day, Moultrie signed other grants to Lewis totaling more than 42,000 acres throughout the South Carolina upcountry.

Excerpts
"Know Ye, That in pursuance of an act of the legislature, entitled, ‘An act for establishing the mode of granting the lands now vacant in this state, and for allowing a commutation to be received for some lands that have been granted,' passed the 19th day of February, 1791; We have granted, and by these presents do grant unto Christopher Lewis his heirs and assigns, a plantation or tract of land, containing Seven hundreds & Seventy nine Acres...and all and singular other the premises thereby granted unto the said Christopher Lewis his heirs and assigns, for ever and common socage. Given under the Great Seal of the State. Witness his Excellency William Moultrie, Esquire, Governor and Commander in Chief in and over the said state, at Charleston this fourth day of August Anno Domini, one thousand seven hundred and ninety four and of the Independence of the United States of America the nineteenth. [On folded flap:] Willm Moultrie"

"I do hereby Certify for Christopher Lewis a tract of Land containing Seven Hundred & seventy nine Acres Surveyd for John Baitt the 21st of September 1793, Situate in the District Ninety six in Pendleton County on Waters of fall Creek & Bruces Mill Creek of Saluda River.... Given under my hand this 26th of July 1794. / Peter Bremar pro Survr Genl"

Historical Background
Unlike the backcountry in many other states, the backcountry of South Carolina could provide a human barrier for the coastal elites and their property in land and slaves. Colonial elites in the Lowcountry along the coast encouraged the settlement of the interior backcountry by giving away land. However, much of the South Carolina backcountry was the main hunting, navigation, and trade routes of the Cherokee, and the area became one of the theatres of the French and Indian War in the early 1760s.

In 1784, the State of South Carolina agreed to grant land for $10 per hundred acres. On February 19, 1791, the South Carolina legislature passed "An act for establishing the mode of granting the lands now vacant in this state, and for allowing a commutation to be received for some lands that have been granted," which superseded the 1785 law and dropped the $10 fee. Prospective purchasers could acquire land simply by paying the fees required to register the deeds. The state surveyor general could also appoint deputies in the backcountry to assist in surveying the land. Land granting continued in the state until the Civil War, although at a slower pace as the amount of public land declined.

In 1793 and 1794, Christopher Lewis acquired more than 222,000 acres of land in the South Carolina backcountry. On July 1, 1793, he acquired more than 180,000 acres in the Orangeburg District. On August 4, 1794, he received grants for 13,500 acres in the Ninety-Six District (including this grant for 779 acres), 3,400 acres in the Cheraw District, 935 acres in the Camden District, and 25,000 acres in Greenville County.

William Moultrie (1730-1805) was born in Charleston, South Carolina, and was educated as a planter. He represented St. Helena Parish in the colonial assembly. In 1775, Moultrie received a commission as colonel of the 2nd South Carolina regiment of militia. In 1776, his defense of a fort on Sullivan's Island prevented the British from taking Charleston. In return, he received a promotion to brigadier general, and his regiment became part of the Continental Army. He was unable to prevent the British capture of Savannah in 1778, and in 1780, he was taken prisoner when British forces captured Charleston. Later exchanged, he served as a major general in 1782. From 1784 to 1785, he served as lieutenant governor of South Carolina, and the legislature twice elected him as governor, a position he held from 1785 to 1787 and from 1792 to 1794.

Christopher Lewis lived in Claremont County, South Carolina, in 1790, and owned four slaves. He may have been an agent of the North American Land Company, organized in February 1795 in Philadelphia by Robert Morris, John Nicholson, and James Greenleaf to sell and develop 6,000,000 frontier acres. The company's bankruptcy eventually led to the imprisonment of Morris and Nicholson for debt.

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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