Signed 1775 Naval Document for a “Freind [sic.] to American Liberty”

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WASHINGTON, GEORGE. (1732-1799). Commander-in-chief of America’s Continental Army and first president of the United States. Manuscript DS. (“G. Washington”). 1p. 4to. Cambridge, November 18, 1775. To “all officers & others commanding or belonging to the armed Vessels fitted out at the Continental expence [sic.].” Written and countersigned by Washington’s secretary and the first person known to have used the term “United States of America,” STEPHEN MOYLAN (1737-1811, “Stephen Moylan. P[ro]T[empore]S[ecretary]”).

“To all officers & others commanding or belonging to the armed Vessels fitted out at the Continental expence[sic.].

Let pass without interruption, from the Port of Newbury to Philadelphia, the Schooner Freinds [sic] Adventure, Whereof is Master John Fulford being a freind [sic.] to American Liberty.

Cambridge, 18^th November 1775

Go. Washington

By His Excellencys Command

Stephen Moylan

P.T.S.”

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A veteran of the French and Indian War, Washington assumed command of the Continental Army on July 3, 1775, about two weeks after the army’s formation and Boston’s Battle of Bunker Hill, the first major battle of the American Revolution. General Washington established his headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts in July 1775 from which he oversaw the Siege of Boston and signed our letter.

In retaliation for the infamous Boston Tea Party, Great Britain passed the Boston Port Act of 1774, which effectively shut down Boston Harbor to commercial shipping and led to the formation of the Continental Congress. Shipping and commerce were redirected to other New England ports, including Newburyport, located north of Boston. During Boston’s year-long siege, Newburyport also served as the Continental Army’s supply depot while the British retained control of Boston Harbor. Washington’s troops successfully prevented the British Army from moving on land while working to cut off their access to the sea and supplies. Although the fledgling nation did not possess a navy, some colonial merchants were experienced in naval warfare through their participation in British naval expeditions during the French and Indian War. On October 13, 1775 (five weeks before Washington signed our document), the Continental Congress formally authorized the establishment of the Continental Navy.

The terms of engagement were codified by the Continental Congress’ resolution of November 25, 1775 (a week after our document’s date), “authorizing the capture and confiscation of all British armed vessels, transports, and supply ships, and directing the issuing of commissions to captains of cruisers and privateers.” In fact, the legislation employed the same language as our document, stipulating:

“That when any vessel or vessels shall be fitted out at the expense of any private person or persons, then the captures made shall be to the use of the owner or owners of the said vessel or vessels; that where the vessels employed in the capture shall be fitted out at the expence [sic.] of any of the United Colonies, then one-third of the prize taken shall be to the use of the captors, and the remaining two-thirds to the use of the said colony, and where the vessels so employed shall be fitted out at the continental charge, then one-third shall go to the captors, and the remaining two- thirds to the use of the United Colonies; provided nevertheless, that if the capture be a vessel of war, then the captors shall be intitled to one-half of the value, and the remainder shall go to the colony or continent as the case may be, the necessary charges of condemnation of all prizes, being deducted before any distribution [is] made.”

In November, the Continental Navy captured the British brigantine Nancy, filled with arms and supplies, near Boston Harbor. By 1776, the Royal Navy numbered nearly 300 vessels, dwarfing the 27 warships held by the United States. However, the new Continental Navy was augmented by state navies as well as an estimated 2,000 American privateers whose ships mounted ongoing attacks on British vessels. Pressure from land and naval forces finally forced the British to quit Boston on March 17, 1776. “By the end of 1777, American ships had taken more than 500 British vessels, and by the end of the war, had seized around 1,500. More than 12,000 British sailors were also taken as prisoners of war,” (“American Revolution: 1775-1783,” Naval History and Heritage Command, history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/wars-conflicts-and-operations/american-revolution.html).

Our letter requests safe passage from Newburyport to Philadelphia for John Fulford (1737-1781) and his schooner Friends Adventure. A Massachusetts merchant involved in trade with the Caribbean, Fulford was appointed a major and put in charge of the garrison in the port city of Annapolis, Maryland, where he commanded an artillery company to build fortifications.

Written in the hand of Stephen Moylan, the son of a successful Irish shipper who had sent him to be educated in Europe before departing for Philadelphia to set up his own shipping firm. Moylan joined the Continental Army as Muster-Master General and used his shipping experience to help outfit the Continental Navy’s first ships. Washington’s secretary John Reed left his position on October 30, and Moylan took over as Washington’s secretary from November 1775 to May 1776. Barely six weeks after writing our letter, on January 2, 1776, Moylan wrote from Cambridge to his predecessor, John Reed, describing the new nation as the “United States of America,” the earliest documented use of the nation’s name. “A mostly unknown figure for whom no portrait exists, Moylan remained close to George Washington [and] was appointed Commissioner of Loans in Philadelphia in 1793, and is the namesake of Moylan, an unincorporated community in southeast Pennsylvania. But, for us now, he, like the vast majority of veterans, has remained unheralded and forgotten in the centuries-long efforts to secure and maintain American freedom,” (“Who Coined the Phrase ‘United States of America’? You May Never Guess,” New York Historical Society blog From the Stacks, Touba, nyhistory.org/blogs/coined-phrase-united-states-america-may-never-guess).

Written on a folded sheet of laid paper with clearly defined chain lines; creased, with slight paper loss on a few intersecting folds, not affecting the text. In very good condition. Exceedingly rare with such an early reference to the United States Navy. Unpublished.

Signed 1775 Naval Document for a “Freind [sic.] to American Liberty”