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Correspondence and documents related to Vaux's support of the colonists in the Revolutionary War, his business interests, and his efforts to relocate to Canada.

The Charles Grant, vicomte de Vaux papers are composed of 8 unbound letters and 2 volumes containing correspondence, notes, and other writings. A total of 32 items that had been laid into the front of the volumes have been removed to their own folders.

The Unbound Correspondence series contains letters spanning May 8, 1778, to April 26, 1779, and primarily concerns Vaux's activities during the American Revolution, including his attempt to send aid to the colonies on the ship Comtesse de Brionne (May 8, 1778). A letter from June 1778 pertains to permission obtained from congress to arm a ship. Several other letters deal with Vaux's naval pursuits and contain news of the trans-Atlantic shipping business.

The Bound Volumes and Removed Items series contains two bound volumes of manuscripts, as well as the loose documents originally laid into the volumes, now arranged chronologically into folders. Materials in the series span approximately 1756-1805, though much of the material is undated.

Volume 1 contains correspondence, drafts, and documents, primarily dating from the period during which Vaux resided in Great Britain to escape the French Revolution. The items relate mainly to Vaux's attempts to organize a military regiment and to his efforts to settle in Canada. One undated document, entitled "State of the case of Charles Grant Viscount de Vaux in Great Britain," documents Vaux's life and history, and relates to his ancestry, birth, exile from France, attempts to build a military career in Britain, and literary works ([n.d.]; Folder 2). Vaux and his supporters' attempts to secure a military post or some other means for him to settle in Canada are a constant theme throughout. Also of interest are several letters that contain information on Vaux's son, Romain Grant, who remained in France when Vaux fled and was arrested attempting to travel to London without a passport (pp. 17-21).

Volume 2 primarily contains essays related to travel and notes on regions outside of France, such as Mauritius and the Americas. Included is a journal titled "Journal du voyage de Louis-Charles Grant de Vaux . . . lorsqu'il revenoit de l'isle Maurice en France en 1758" (Travel Journal of Louis-Charles Grant de Vaux. . .when returning from the island Mauritius in France in 1758). The journal begins on page 73 of the volume. Also included is the essay "Amerique ou Nouveau Monde," which contains an account of the history of the Americas from its discovery by Columbus in 1492, with descriptions of different regions such as Virginia, California, Nantucket, and the West Indies (begins on p. 25). The loose items include letters and notes related to the American Revolution and Canadian settlement. Of particular interest is "Memoire au congrés ameriquain," a draft of a letter to the American Congress describing vessels Vaux lost off the coast of America during the Revolution, and asking for some land in Ohio and Connecticut as recompense for his losses (1782).

The volume contains the orderly book of Captain Hector MacLean of the 84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants), as well as a journal of his postwar life in Douglas, Nova Scotia.

The Hector MacLean journal and orderly book is a small volume that contains 155 pages of writing. The first and last sections of the volume contain copied orders, beginning July 17, 1781, and covering the final months of the Revolutionary War, particularly the events leading up to the Battle of Eutaw Springs on September 8, 1781, and its aftermath through September 16, 1781. MacLean later used the volume's middle section as a diary, documenting pioneer life in Douglas, Nova Scotia, from 1785-1787.

MacLean first recorded orders at Orangeburg, South Carolina; they state that "Each Corps will send to the Genl Hospl tomorrow morng by day light three men with one Tomyhawk to receive their orders from the Steward there" (July 17, 1781). Illness is the topic of several additional entries, which note the number of sick soldiers and how their absence affected strength reports. On September 9, 1781, the day after an extremely bloody British victory at Eutaw Springs, MacLean documented, and likely read aloud, a statement from Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Stewart to the men who had fought under him. In it, Stewart expressed deep gratitude for their "gallant conduct," singled out several officers for praise, and segued into a prohibition on burning tents and wigwams. A few additional entries concern passes, the foraging of horses, and the preparation of returns. The final orders in the book, recorded September 16, 1781 and issued by Charles Cornwallis, provide restrictions on the use of carts by officers. The book also contains returns for MacLean's company, including the number of men fit for duty, sick in camp, and sick in the hospital, for July, August, and September of 1781. Also included are the names of some British casualties at Eutaw Springs.

Approximately 100 pages in the volume are devoted to MacLean's postwar experiences in Douglas, Nova Scotia, between December 24, 1785, and March 26, 1787. His brief, near-daily diary entries center on the planting and harvesting of crops, the activities of his farmhands, hunting, road-blazing, and his visits to friends. In late June and early July 1786, he described a boating expedition though Tennycape, Noel, and Selma, Nova Scotia, the highlight of which seemed to be "visit[ing] the sweet Girls at Mr Putnams" (July 2, 1786). He also mentioned the raising of a mill (August 23, 1786) "airing" a wet wheat stack (September 22, 1786), constructing a wood shed (November 22, 1786) and barn (January 22, 1786), and other tasks of an early Canadian pioneer. The diary closes with a description of a failed, multiday hunt, in which his party and their dogs chased a moose for many miles, only to lose it to other hunters who caught the fatigued animal (March 21-23, 1787).

The John Simcoe papers are a miscellaneous collection of letters and documents pertaining to Loyalist Colonel Simcoe's career as an officer during the American Revolution and as Governor of Upper Canada (1792-1796).

The John Simcoe papers are a miscellaneous collection of letters and documents pertaining to Colonel Simcoe's military career in the British Army during the American Revolution and his post-war life. The collection contains letters between Col. Simcoe and a variety of correspondents. Most prominent are 23 letters from General Sir Henry Clinton, dated 1782-1792; letters and documents related to the Queen's Rangers, including military orders and returns, dated 1774-1799; nine letters from Col. Henry Caldwell regarding a monument to General James Wolfe, dated 1802-1804; and letters between Simcoe and George Hammond, the first British minister to the United States. Several unofficial documents relate to Simcoe's advancement and the disposal of his Canadian estates. Other miscellaneous letters and documents include one by Margaret Graves, in which she defends the conduct of her husband, Admiral Samuel Graves, in Boston before the outbreak of the Revolutionary War.

The collection contains one "Memorandum Book," which is made up of copies of letters and military orders written for Simcoe by his Secretary, Major Edward Baker Littlehales, dated 1792-1793. Maps from the Simcoe papers have been transferred to the Map Division, including several attributed to John's wife, Elizabeth Simcoe. An unsigned commonplace book and a selection of literary drafts (including one for Simcoe's publishedRemarks on the travels of the Marquis de Chastellux in North America, 1787) and fragments of other works complete the Simcoe papers

The John Peterkin journal includes letters written by Peterkin, a Scottish immigrant to Virginia and Georgia in 1817-1819, to family and friends in Scotland and Pennsylvania, as well as writings by William Russell, a later owner of the journal. Peterkin wrote about his thoughts on slavery, the displacement of Native Americans, and democracy.

The John Peterkin journal contains approximately 200 pages of entries, including letters written by Peterkin to family and friends in Scotland and Pennsylvania, lists, copies of letters, and writings by William Russell, a later owner of the journal, which are scattered throughout.

The majority of the journal resembles a letterbook and contains correspondence that Peterkin wrote to his family and his sweetheart, Harriet, between 1817 and 1819. In his letters, he described his journey from Scotland, including smuggling a companion onboard the ship (August 14, 1817); his first impressions of the United States; his negative feelings toward slavery and the displacement of Native Americans; and his ideas about democracy and the War of 1812.

On July 5, 1818, he wrote a letter to Harriet describing a visit to Powhatan, Virginia, and for several pages discussed the story of Pocahontas and the treatment of the Powhatan by settlers, which he found reprehensible. He also opined that whites "have no right to this country." In an additional letter of the same date, written to James Ross in Scotland, Peterkin described the brutality of slavery, particularly in the Deep South. He further explored this topic in his last letter in the book, dated August 4, 1819, in which he called Georgia "semibarborous" and stated, "I read in the declaration of the independence of this Country that all men are born free and equal, but I cannot look out door or window that I do not see the directest lie given to the assertion… it certainly appears to any reflecting mind a strange view of contradiction, and were it not that it involves consequences of so tragick a nature, it would be truly laughable." Peterkin also discussed signs of western expansion (July 5, 1818), the aftermath of the War of 1812 (March 27, 1818), and compared his experiences in Virginia and Georgia (March 25, 1819).

The journal also includes writings during the 1830s by a later owner, William Russell, of Augusta, Georgia, who wrote poems, lists, and a few letters in the volume. Several of his poems concern the beauty of nature and his longing to return to Scotland, and his writings describe his travels in New York City (January 24, 1838) and Philadelphia (January 25, 1838). His entries are scattered throughout the volume, but the two hands are easily distinguishable.

The anonymous author of this volume (approximately 382 pages) recorded poetry, historical notes, and journal entries throughout much of his adult life. The material concerns topics such as military history, learning foreign languages, proverbs, and travel.

The anonymous author of this volume (approximately 382 pages) recorded poetry, historical notes, and journal entries throughout much of his adult life. The material concerns topics such as military history, learning foreign languages, proverbs, and travel.

• Boccaccio, Decameron (pp. 26-28a, 32-34a)
• Byron, "Fare thee well! And if for ever..." (p. 9)
• Catullus, "Vivamus mea Lesbia, atque amemus" (p. 68)
• Cicero (p. 55)
• William Cowper, "The Task" (pp. 23, 118a)
• Homer, Iliad (p. 117)
• John Milton, "Tractate on Education" (p. 5)
• Ossian (p. 85)
• Shakespeare, Macbeth (122), Timon of Athens (124a)
• Edward Young, "Night Thoughts" (p. 109)

Some examples from the volume indicate the nature of its contents. It contains notes about learning the Italian language; a timeline of the author's life between 1780 and 1825; and a list of hotels where the author stayed while traveling in Holland, France, Switzerland, Germany, and Italy between July 1, 1816, and August 5, 1820. This list includes the cost of room and board at each hotel or lodging, with comments on the quality of the accommodations. An essay on the Battle of Copenhagen is accompanied by a poem written by a soldier who participated in the battle. Some poetry and other entries are religious in nature, and the author copied several Bible verses. Two essays written in October 1850 and October 1851 share the author's "anticipations" for the coming years, as well as his reflections on past years (pp. 61-62a).

Pagination within the volume is inconsistent, and some of its contents are organized alphabetically by subject, with a partial index appearing on pages 142-150.