The George W. Patterson collection is comprised of 7 letters related to New York textiles and to New York and United States politics in the 1840s and 1870s. Patterson's letter to cloth manufacturer Simon Newton Dexter of Whitestown, New York, concerns wool that Patterson and others shipped to Dexter; Patterson added a postscript about the destruction of the steamer Erie (August 9-10, 1841). The remaining 6 items are letters that Patterson received on October 13, 1843; on November 20, 1847; and from January 9, 1878-July 11, 1878. Correspondents such as Thurlow Weed and Charles G. Maples discussed political issues including appointments, the actions of Rutherford B. Hayes and Samuel J. Tilden, and the Republican Party; Weed also briefly commented on Belgium and France (October 13, 1843). J. A. Upton, one of Patterson's constituents during his time in the United States House of Representatives, offered his opinions on the currency question, the Silver Bill, and greenbacks (April 26, 1878). William Henry Seward, Jr., requested advice about a potential land deal in his letter of July 11, 1878.
George Washington Patterson was born in Londonderry, New Hampshire, on November 11, 1799, the son of Thomas Patterson and Elizabeth Wallace. After graduating from the Pinkerton Academy, he moved to New York in 1818, where he manufactured fanning mills. He later settled in Leicester, New York, where he continued to make mills and other agricultural implements. On February 24, 1825, he married Hannah Whiting Dickey (1800-1886); they had two children, George Washington (1826-1904) and Hannah Whiting (1835-1894). In 1841, Patterson took charge of the Chautauqua County land office in Westfield, New York, where he lived until his death on October 15, 1879. Patterson held several political offices throughout his life, serving as a member of the New York State Assembly (1832-1833, 1835-1840), a delegate to the New York Constitutional Convention (1846), New York lieutenant governor (1848-1850), a delegate to the Republican National Convention (1856, 1860), and a United States representative (1877-1879), among other local appointments.