Lot 209
Morris, Robert (1734-1806) Signer of the Declaration of Independence. Exceedingly rare Document Signed ("Robt Morris") as chairman of the Secret Committee, Philadelphia, October 31, 1776, 1 pg, 4½ x 8 in. Written "To the honble. / Council of Safety / Pennsylvania," in full: "The Ship Mary & Elizabeth Capt Young in the Continental Service is going down the River and will want a pilot. You will please to order one for Said vessel. and oblige Gentlemen Your very hbl Svrt…." Moderate to heavy toning; one closed tear in blank upper right corner; archivally backed for preservation. Morris' signature is bold. Although Morris' signature can usually be found on financial documents or post-Revolutionary War documents regarding land speculation, a document signed in 1776 as chairman of the Secret Committee is extremely rare!
The Secret Committee was created by resolution of the Second Continental Congress on September 18, 1775. Morris was its chairman and its members included Benjamin Franklin, Robert Livingston, John Dickinson, Thomas Willing, Thomas McKean, John Langdon, and Samuel Ward. It was given wide powers and large sums of money to obtain military supplies in secret, and was charged with distributing the supplies and selling gunpowder to privateers chartered by the Continental Congress. The Committee also administered the secret contracts for arms and gunpowder previously negotiated without the formal sanction of Congress. The Secret Committee often worked in cooperation with the Committee of Secret Correspondence, employing agents overseas to gather intelligence about Tory secret ammunition stores and arranging to seize them. It also arranged missions to plunder British supplies in the southern colonies. Military stores were purchased through intermediaries to conceal the fact that the Continental Congress was the true purchaser. The Secret Committee also used foreign flags to protect its vessels from British ships. Since the Committee's transactions were secret, many of its records were destroyed to assure confidentiality. It is rare to find one extant.
Estimated Value $5,000 - 6,000.
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| Realized $7,130 |
