Lot 218
Lee, Richard Henry (1732-1794), Virginia signer of the Declaration of Independence, farmer, politician, President of Continental Congress (1784-1785), U.S. Senator. Introduced resolution calling for independence of American Colonies. Brother of signer Francis Lightfoot Lee. Autograph Document Signed, one page, 7½ x 9½ no place, August 16, 1784, Lee gifts a young male slave to his son, Ludwell Lee, in full:
"Be it known to all whom it may concern that I Richard Henry Lee of Westmoreland County in the State of Virginia in consideration of the paternal love and affection that I bear to my son Ludwell Lee have given and by these presents do absolutely give to my said son Ludwell Lee and to his heirs and assigns forever a Negro boy slave named Scipio at this time about sixteen years of age. In testimony whereof I have hereunto put my hand and affixed my seal this 16th day of August 1784. Richard Henry Lee. Witness Mary Lee, Hannah Lee, Anne Lee."
The document is also witnessed and signed by two daughters, Mary and Hannah, and by his second wife Anne. Fine condition with tiny hole at junction of somewhat weak folds. Also included is a 1799 Autograph Letter Signed from William Ludwell Lee (1775-1803) to Charles Lee (1758-1815), brother of Light Horse Harry Lee and Washington’s Attorney General with contents of a financial nature, Fine. In a custom quarter-leather portfolio with historical background and an engraved portrait.
Estimate 2,000 - 3,000
It was Lee who introduced to the Continental Congress the bill that led directly to the Declaration of Independence.
Ironically, with respect to the document being offered here, in 1759, as a new member of Virginia’s House of Burgesses, Lee’s first bill proposed "to lay so heavy a duty on the importation of slaves as to put an end to that iniquitous and disgraceful traffic within the colony of Virginia…" and that Africans were "…equally entitled to liberty and freedom by the great law of nature." His words are considered the strongest anti-slavery statements made before the middle of the nineteenth century.
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| Realized $6,000 |
