This collection contains 12 letters and 1 document about George Erving's financial affairs and Boston commerce in the early 19th century. Eight items pertain to Erving, including letters that he wrote to his nephew, Samuel Waldo, and incoming letters from merchants in Boston and England. In one letter to Waldo, Erving complained about his inability to receive compensation from the British government following the British evacuation of Boston in 1776 (February 19, 1796), and one document grants him power of attorney for his nephew. The remaining 5 items relate to life in Massachusetts in the early 19th century; writers commented on the tea trade (January 26, 1802), vacationing (August 23, 1816), and the death of Salmon Chase (August 12, 1806), among other subjects.
George Erving was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on December 23, 1738. After graduating from Harvard College in 1757, he operated a store that sold goods imported from Europe. Though he originally signed the Boston non-importation agreement, he later violated its provisions; by the time of the Revolution, he had become a Loyalist. General Thomas Gage temporarily established his headquarters in Erving's home in 1775 or 1776, and in March of 1776, Erving left Boston with the British Army. He settled in Halifax, Nova Scotia, before moving to Froyle, England, and London, England. Erving's later efforts to receive compensation for property lost in Boston were unsuccessful. Erving married his first wife, Lucy Winslow, in October 1768. Following her death in April 1770, he married Mary McIntosh, with whom he had one surviving son, George William Erving. George Erving died on January 17, 1806. George William Erving later moved to the United States and became a diplomat.
