Peak season notice: Shipping for this category may take 14–21 business days after cleared payment. Thanks for your patience.
LOT #47023 |
Starting Bid: $10,000
Declaration Signer William Ellery June 1776 Autograph Receipt Signed...
Click the image to load the highest resolution version.
Description
Nine Days Before Independence, Declaration of Independence Signer William Ellery Sends Ten Thousand Dollars to Nathanael Greene, Presumably to Fund the Continental Army
Declaration Signer William Ellery June 1776 Autograph Receipt
Signed ("William Ellery"). Cut slip on laid paper, 5 1/2
x 3 1/2 inches. Philadelphia; June 25, 1776.A remarkable Revolutionary War-date document, being a receipt accomplished in William Ellery's hand, in the third person, for delivery of ten thousand dollars to Nathanael Greene, dated just nine days before the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. At this moment, the Committee of Five was nearing the completion of its draft of the Declaration of Independence, while the Continental Army prepared for a major clash with the British in New York. The receipt reads, in full:
"Received of William Ellery Ten Thousand Continental Dollars, which I promise to deliver to Nathaniel [sic] Greene Esq. on my arrival at New York having signed another Receipt for said Sum of the same Tenor and Date / Accidents & Robberies excepted, he paying for the Carriage thereof a reasonable Commission." Signed at the conclusion by Robert Stevens Jr., who was tasked with carrying this receipt to Greene.
Ellery most commonly signed with an abbreviated version of his name; full "William Ellery" signatures are comparatively scarcer. We could not locate another example of a 1776 document-excepting, of course, the Declaration-signed by Ellery with his full first and last name.
On the date that Ellery penned this receipt, Greene was stationed with Washington's army in New York, overseeing the construction of defenses and urgent supply needs, including moving munitions and securing equipment for the Continental Army. Ellery, meanwhile a delegate to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, was participating in the government of the colonies, and was serving on the special committee for purchasing clothing for the army. On June 11, as a battle with England in New York became increasingly likely, the Congress approved that $10,000 (worth more than $400,000, today) be "drawn on the Treasurers...for the use of the Pensylvania batallions [sic]," among other drafts made to fund the Continental Army. This document thus bridges the geographic distance between Congress's legislative activity in Philadelphia and the immediate military needs of Greene's command in New York, in the final days before America formally declared independence.
A fascinating piece with a powerful association between one of the nation's Founding Fathers and one of its greatest generals.
Condition: Overall fine, lightly age-toned with expected folds; rough left edge where slip was removed. Minor ink offset where document was folded; a touch of blotting in the bottom lines, not affecting legibility. Ink retains excellent contrast.
References: Journals of the Continental Congress, p. 430.
Auction Info
2026 June 25 Liberty & Legacy: 250 Years of the American Spirit Americana & Political Signature® Auction #6332 (go to Auction Home page)
Proxy Bidding Ends
June
25th
Thursday
10:50 am CT
Auction Dates
June
25th
Thursday
Proxy Bidding Time Remaining
22 Days
13h 10m 47s
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 0
Lot Tracking Activity: 3
Page Views: 123
Buyer's Premium per Lot:
25% of the successful bid (minimum $49) per lot.
This lot is in: 1 -
Signature® Floor Session (Live Floor, Live Phone, Mail, Fax, Internet, and Heritage Live):
(Lots 47001-47094) - 11:00 AM Central Time, Thursday, June 25, 2026.
[Proxy bidding ends ten minutes prior to the session start time. Live Proxy bidding on Heritage Live now starts within 2 hours of when the auction opens for proxy bidding and continues through the live session.]
Exhibition Viewing Times, Title Page, Floor Session and License Information
Additional Location Info:
Heritage Auctions - Dallas
2801 W. Airport Freeway
Dallas, TX 75261
Shipping, Taxes, Terms and Bidding
Terms and Conditions | Bidding Guidelines and Bid Increments | Glossary of Terms
Important information concerning Sales Tax and Resale Certificates. Learn More
Terms and Conditions | Bidding Guidelines and Bid Increments | Glossary of Terms