Description:

Revolutionary War
Portsmouth and Kittery, May 18 and June 4, 1776
Siege of Boston 1776 Receipt for Soldiers' Wages for Service in 1775 at the Start of the War
MDS
Manuscript Document Signed, 2pp front and verso, 7" x 11", Portsmouth and Kittery, May 18 and June 4, 1776, being a pay receipt for wages by Samuel Leighton to three soldiers in his company for their service in 1775. Docketed at verso. Flattened folds and creases. Unevenly cut left edge. Scattered stains. In very good condition.

On recto, with original spelling retained: "Portsmouth May 18, 1776 / This Day Received of Samuel Leighton four pounds Eight shillings and five pence Lawfull money [?] in full for an order I gave said Leighton on the Treashure of the Collony of the Masatusets Bay for my wages full to me as a Solider in his Company in the Service of the United Collonies in the year one Thousand Seven Hundred and Seventy Five as 1775 / Fredrick [his mark] Peverly / witness my Hand / John Whitelocke".

"Portsmouth May 18, 1776 / This Day Received of Samuel Leighton three pound Eighteen Shillings and Eleven pence Lawfull money in full for an order I gave Said Leighton on the Treashure of the Colony of the Masatusets Bay for my wages as a Solider in his Company in the service of the United Collonies in the year 1775 and allso Received in full for an order on Jonathan Noson and all other Demands as witness my hand / John Whitelocke".

"Kittery May 20 1776 / This Day Received from Samuel..."

On verso, with original spelling retained: "Kittery June 4, 1776 / This Day Received of Samuel Leighton four Shillings Lawfull money in full for the money [?] for my Cotoach Box by the Province Treashure and allso Received two Shillings in full for one Days work and all other Demands from the Beginning of the work. To this Day as witness my Hand / Simon Frost".

In the wake of the April 19, 1775 Battles of Lexington and Concord, Joseph Warren, chairman of the Massachusetts Committee of Safety, sent out an urgent call to arms. Among the first to respond was Samuel Leighton, a prosperous 35-year-old farmer from the region then known as Piscataqua, near Portsmouth, New Hampshire and Kittery, Maine. Leighton was commissioned as a captain and empowered to enlist a company of men "for the protection of American Liberty". He and his men joined the 30th Regiment commanded by Colonel James Scammon and promptly marched south to Cambridge. There, they joined a growing cadre of Minutemen and militiamen sent to assist beleaguered Boston. Six months later, they witnessed the end of the siege as the British sailed away, to regroup in Canada.

Biographies of Leighton frequently state that he fought at Bunker Hill, but the military record suggests that he and his men missed the June 17, 1775 battle due to a miscommunication; the 30th Regiment ended up on Cobble Hill at Lechmere's Point, instead of at the action on Breed's Hill. The regiment's absence led to a court martial of Colonel Scammon the next month, although he was acquitted on all charges.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: 7" x 11"
  • Medium: MDS

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