This collection is made up of 22 business letters and financial documents related to the Livingston family of Albany and New York City. Most of the material concerns the Livingstons' financial relationship with Samuel Storke of London, England.
The first 3 items are copies of contracts between Philip Livingston and Lendert Lewis for loans totaling over £350 (November 3, 1733). The remaining items consist of letters, accounts, invoices, and payment orders between Robert Livingston, Robert & Peter Livingston & Company, Samuel Storke, and Storke & Gainsborough. Robert and Peter Van Brugh Livingston shipped textiles such as cotton wool and beaver pelts, as well as other items, to Great Britain in the mid-1730s. Many of the goods were shipped onboard the Albany. In one of his letters to Samuel Storke, Robert Livingston discussed his unsuccessful attempts to sell clothing in New York (June 2, 1735). The payment orders are addressed to Storke & Gainsborough of London, England, and concern money that Robert Livingston owed to individuals, often for merchandise. The final letter pertains to the Gentleman's Monthly Magazine, which Robert Livingston wished to have sent to his father (December 1737).
Philip Livingston (1686-1749), a merchant from Albany, New York, and his wife, Catharine Van Brugh, had nine surviving children: Robert (1708-1790), Peter Van Brugh (1710-1793), John (1714-1788), Philip (1716-1778), Henry (1719-1772), William (1723-1790), Sarah (1725-1805), Alida (1728-1790), and Catherine (b. 1733).
Robert Livingston moved from Albany to New York City before 1734. He was involved in the shipping trade between North America and Great Britain; his English partners included Samuel Storke and Storke & Gainsborough of London. Robert and Peter Van Brugh Livingston formed Robert & Peter Livingston & Company, a merchant firm, in New York City around 1735.
