When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Partial document on vellum, measures approximately 5” x 10”. Partial ship’s papers signed by President James Madison and Secretary of State Robert Smith and dated June 5, 1810. There is a paper seal, but there is no recognizable part of the US Seal on it. Has a vertical fold mark. The signatures of President James Madison and Secretary of State Robert Smith are dark and legible. Independently authenticated and encapsulated by PSA/DNA. Postage is the exact amount calculated by based upon weight and distance. I do not make a profit on shipping. You are buying the material pictured.
Although the ship’s name does not appear on this portion of the document, it is identifiable as the “Jacob” by the information on the reverse which shows an acknowledgment from the Port of New Bedford on December 5, 1811, certifying that Jacob Almy is at present the Master of the within named vessel. There is a further certification on December 30, 1812 that John Wood is the Master in lieu of Jacob Almy. Other records on line indicate that this was a ship named “Jacob” owned by John Howland and John Howland, Jr., with a tonnage of 284 57/95 tons, a length of 94 feet and built in Rochester, Massachusetts. The ship was originally registered for merchant transit rather than whaling. This meant that Almy was tasked with moving valuable bulk freight such as lumber, cotton and rice. Sailing a merchant ship was incredibly dangerous for American captains due to the British Orders in Council and Napoleon’s Berlin and Milan Decrees. Both Britain and France routinely seized neutral American merchant ships.
The signatures of Madison and Roberts are an interesting association. Robert Smith as Secretary of State had a severely dysfunctional, distrustful and hostile working relationship with President Madison that led to Smith feeling no loyalty to Madison and eventually led to his firing.
