2004-09
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 8/31/2004
Manuscript Document Signed, “Oliv. Ellsworth”, 1p. oblong octavo, May 15, 1775, addressed to John Lawrence, it reads “Pay to Capt. Walterman Cleft five hundred & twenty pounds lawful money as he is Paymaster of the 6th Company in the 6th Regiment now raising for Defense of this Colony - & Charge the same to …the Colony of Connecticut…” Signed by Ellsworth as well as Thomas Seymour, and William Pithin. Endorsed on verso by Waterman Clift, as “Recd. of Treasurer Lawrence…” Fine. ELLSWORTH, Oliver (1745-1807) Supreme Court chief justice; A lawyer prominent in Connecticut politics, he served in the Continental Congress (1777--83) and was a major figure at the Constitutional Convention in 1787, contributing to the Connecticut Compromise, under which the Senate represents states and the House represents population. As one of Connecticut's first two senators (1789--96), he played a major role in proposing the Bill of Rights and other fundamentals of the American government, such as the rules by which the Senate operates and the regulations behind the nation's judicial structure. President Washington appointed him chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1796--1800); while serving, he went to Paris to negotiate a treaty that averted a war with France (1799).
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