Notes
This letter was written by Patrick Henry while Governor of Virginia, March 11, 1786. Governor Henry writes to George Washington as a friend and introduces three land speculators interested in purchasing land on the Ohio River next to that of Washington. Henry was particularly interested in encouraging white European settlement of the back country along the Ohio to help control the Indian threat and to promote law and order.
In the letter, two men—"Mr Savary & Mr Gallatin"—are mentioned. Albert Gallatin of Geneva and and Jean Savary de Valcoulon of Lyon, France, had met in 1783 and became partners in a land speculation scheme in which they claimed 120,000 acres near Washington’s land on the Ohio River. Savary had purchased warrants for the land and allowed Gallatin a quarter share of the purchase.
Henry had approved of the scheme and provided Gallatin with a letter of introduction by 1785. The latter soon established a store and farm on the Monongahela River in Fayette County, PA. In order to stimulate land sales and create a demand for their land, Gallatin and Savary proposed giving 100 families 200 acres each. However, financial difficulties and Savary’s business failures eventually caused the partnership to end in 1789. Gallatin, who later bought out Savary’s shares, faced further hardship when he sold the land to a debt-ridden Robert Morris. See Henry M. Dater, “Albert Gallatin—Land Speculator,” Mississippi Valley Historical Review. 50 vols. 1914–64., 26 (June 1939), 21-38.
The "New-York Journal", or the "Weekly Register" for May 4, 1786 printed a report about both the land purchase on the Ohio and rumored Indian depredations in the area: “GALLATIN ... became acquainted with a Mr. Savary de Valcoulan, who had purchased several thousand acres of uncultivated land, joining the river Ohio, and who made him a partner in this purchase, on condition, that Mr. Gallatin should take upon himself the expertise of having these lands surveyed. It is not known whether the design of clearing this land was viewed with an evil eye by the Indians of that district; but in July 1785, it was announced ... that seven persons had been surprised by a small party of Indians, between the great and the little Kanhawa, which empty into the Ohio ... that five of the seven had been killed and scalped, and that among the five were Mr. Gallatin.” The report about Gallatin’s death was erroneous.
Abraham Alfonse Albert Gallatin (1761–1849) came to the United States in 1780. He served in the Pennsylvania legislature from 1790–92 and briefly in the U.S. Senate from December 1793 to February 1794. Gallatin represented Pennsylvania in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1795 to 1801. Treasury Secretary in the Jefferson and Madison administrations, Gallatin subsequently held diplomatic positions abroad before becoming president of the National Bank of New York.
Jean Savary de Valcoulon (d. c.1816) came to the United States in 1783 to recover from the state of Virginia debts claimed by a Frenchman. After his partnership with Gallatin dissolved, Savary remained in the United States and engaged in land negotiations with George Washington.
Washington wrote in his diary for March 18, 1786: “On my return [from a ride to the Mount Vernon farms] before dinner found a Mr. Charton (a french Gentleman) here introduced by a letter from Governr. Henry.” Washington was referring to this letter. Henry Charton left Mount Vernon “after dinner” on March 19. During his visit, Charton evidently discussed the possibility of purchasing Washington’s lands on the Ohio and Kanawha rivers. Apparently, no agreement was reached.
The letter is written in Henry's hand and bears his signature. The sender's name and date on the front of the letter is in a hand different from Patrick Henry. Bruce Gimelson, a rare documents dealer and appraiser, attributed this writing to George Washington, but further research is needed to prove this. It is just as likely that Patrick Henry's secretary wrote out the name and date.
In the top left corner of the front of the letter is written:
"From His Excelly Gov Henry
11th. March 1786"
This was determined to be in the hand of George Washington when compared to other Washington letters.
According to the National Archives, this letter was sold by the Mercury Stamp Company on June 5, 1970 as part of the Theodore Sheldon Collection (item 3079). This letter was later purchased by Betty Casey from Bruce Gimelson, a rare documents dealer in Garrison, New York. She donated this letter to the PHMF on March 4, 2004.