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LOT #42037 |
Starting Bid: $20,000
George Washington Autograph Letter Signed...
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Description
Just Days After the British Evacuation of New York, General George Washington Attends to the Final duties of His Command as He Prepares to Relinquish Power
George Washington Autograph Letter Signed ("Go:
Washington"). One page on a single leaf, 7 3/8 x 9 3/8 inches;
Philadelphia; December 13, 1783.Washington writes to Samuel Hodgdon, Commissary General of Military Stores, just ten days before he formally resigned his commission as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army. Washington writes, in full:
"Sir,
The Trunk, & two boxes or Cases which you brought from New York for me, with a few other Articles which I shall send to you to morrow, I would have go on by Land as my Papers, & other valuable things are contained in them.
The Boxes & other parcels which were sent from Rocky hill by Colo. Morgan, may go by Water to Alexandria; for which place a Vessel (Colo. Biddle informs me) is just on the point of Sailing, & will probably be the last for that River, Potomack, this Season - let me entreat therefore that the opportunity may not be lost in sending them by her.
Inclosed is 40 Dollars - 5 more than you Acct. -
I am Sir Yr. Most Obed. Servt.,
Go: Washington."
Although the Battle of Yorktown ended major combat operations on October 19, 1781, Congress did not formally proclaim the cessation of hostilities until April 15, 1783, and the Continental Army was furloughed on May 26. Through the summer, both sides worked to draft a treaty formalizing the end of the war, and on September 3, the Treaty of Paris was signed. Even so, British troops occupied New York, and Washington maintained a military presence as a safeguard. The British finally evacuated New York on November 25, but a final detachment remained at Governors Island until December 3. The following day Washington bade farewell to his officers at Fraunces Tavern in New York City. The war was then truly over for Washington, and he turned his attention to the disposition of the last vestiges of military duty, including the shipment of his papers back to Mount Vernon, as he directs in this letter.
Ten days after the date of this letter (December 23, 1783), Washington resigned his commission as Commander-in-Chief in Annapolis. On that day, he addressed the Continental Congress with these words: "Having now finished the work assigned to me, I retire from the great theater of action, and bidding an affectionate farewell to the august body, under whose orders I have so long acted, I here offer my commission and take my leave of all the employments of public life."
This letter represents one of his last acts as a military general before returning to the peaceful acreage of his beloved Mount Vernon, where he resumed a private life for more than three years until he was called upon by his new country to preside over the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia to form a new federal government.
Condition: Overall fine. Flattened folds and toning, with a few minor spots of soiling. A few small separations or chips, most reinforced with archival tape on the verso. A few scattered pinholes along the upper margin. Two small areas of staining along the right fold margins. A choice one-page example.
References: "From George Washington to Samuel Hodgdon, 13 December 1783"; "From George Washington to the President of Congress, 23 December 1783." Founders Online, National Archives.
Auction Info
2026 June 19 The John H. Freund Americana Collection Signature® Auction #6331 (go to Auction Home page)
Proxy Bidding Ends
June
19th
Friday
10:50 am CT
Auction Dates
June
19th
Friday
Proxy Bidding Time Remaining
26 Days
18h 15m 39s
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Signature® Floor Session (Live Floor, Live Phone, Mail, Fax, Internet, and Heritage Live):
(Lots 42001-42298) - 11:00 AM Central Time, Friday, June 19, 2026.
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