1809 AUTOGRAPH DOCUMENT RECORDING the FINAL STATE TITLE for property in the MANOR OF SUNBURY PENNSYLVANIA, SIGNED as surveyor general by the important REVOLUTIONARY WAR SOLDIER ANDREW PORTER

(Tilghman, William). Porter, Andrew; Cochran, John; Boileau, Nathaniel.

Published by [Lancaster, PA], June 5, 1809., 1809

About this Item

[Lancaster, PA], June 5, 1809., 1809. Good. - A 12-1/4 inch high by 7-1/2 inch wide manuscript document. The document, addressed "To the Auditor General and State Treasurer" records the final official state title, or patent, for lot no. 24 in the "Manor of Sudbury" in Kingston Township, one of the seventeen townships. The land was originally granted to William Armstrong on October 29, 1768. The land eventually became part of the Luzerne County massive estate of James Tilghman, the father of Pennsylvania's Chief Justice of the Supreme Court William Tilghman. As the executor of his father's estate Tilghman was directly involved in the implementation of the Pennsylvania Compromise Act of 1799. The 1799 Act was designed to resolve the Pennamite-Yankee Wars which had begun in 1769 in the Wyoming Valley of northeastern Pennsylvania. The 1799 law provided a legal pathway to settle conflicting claims. It recognized the land titled of Connecticut settlers who occupied and farmed their land. The settlers had to pay a small certification fee to the state and the Pennsylvania claimants were forced to give up their claims. They were given financial compensation by the state. A special commission spent several years resurveying the land and issuing clear legal deeds to the settlers. The document is signed by Nathaniel Boileau as Secretary of the Commonwealth, John Cochran as Secretary of the Land Office and by Andrew Porter as Surveyor General of the Commonwealth. Folded horizontally with chipping to the top & bottom left corners and with a narrow chip to the middle of the left edge. A tear across the fold in the center of the document has been repaired with clear archival document tape from the verso. An early slip with a brief biography of Andrew Porter is glued at the bottom left to the verso. Andrew Porter (1743-1813) was born on September 24, 1743 on his father's farm in Pennsylvania. He was a student of mathematics and in 1767 became principal of a mathematical school in Philadelphia. In 1776 he was recruited by the first Commandant of the Marine Corps Major Samuel Nicholas. On June 25th he was commissioned Captain of Marines. Porter's company was sent by General George Washington to Trenton, New Jersey. In New Jersey his company fought at Assunpink and Princeton. In March 1777 he resigned his Marine commission and accepted a new commission as Captain of Artillery. As part of the Second Continental Artillery he fought in the 1777 battles of Brandywine and Germantown. During the brutal winter of 1778 he was at Valley Forge. That year he fought in the Battle of Monmouth. Porter was ordered by General Washington to supervise preparation of artillery for the Siege of Yorktown. In 1782 he was promoted to Lieut. Colonel, later becoming Lieut. Colonel Commandant. In 1785 Porter was one of a trio of three men selected to survey the north-south line separating Pennsylvania from present-day Ohio. In 1800 Porter was one of the commissioners who tried unsuccessfully to resolve the issue of land titles in the Wyoming Valley. On July 11 he succeeded Peter Muhlenberg as Major General of the State Militia. Governor Simon Snyder appointed Porter Surveyor General of the Commonwealth on May 10, 1809. He held that position until his death In November 1813. John Cochran (1761-1836) was a prominent surveyor and judge who played a vital role in mapping out the western frontier of Pennsylvania. He surveyed and laid out the Erie and Waterford Reservations. In 1803 he was appointed by Governor Thomas McKean an associate judge for Erie County. In 1809 he was appointed by Governor Simon Snyder to be Secretary of the Land Office, serving until 1818. Nathaniel Boileau (1763-1850) was a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1797 until 1809. He served as speaker in 1808. He served as the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania from 1808 to 1817 having been appointed to that position by Governor Simon Snyder. William Tilghman (1756-1827) was.

Seller Inventory # 101270

Bibliographic Details

• Title: 1809 AUTOGRAPH DOCUMENT RECORDING the FINAL STATE TITLE for property in the MANOR OF SUNBURY PENNSYLVANIA, SIGNED as surveyor general by the important REVOLUTIONARY WAR SOLDIER ANDREW PORTER
• Publisher: [Lancaster, PA], June 5, 1809.
• Publication Date: 1809
• Condition: Good
• Seller catalogs:
  • Americana