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Title Correspondence between David Cobb and others, regarding lumbering operations and Bingham's Maine lands
Archival Reference Ms. N-1000
Sub-collection David Cobb Papers  
Author Cobb, David  Bingham, William  Ross, Donald  Knox, Henry (1750-1806)  
Date 2-29 Dec 1796
Document Type Correspondence; Land transaction document
Contents Includes:
Letter from David Cobb (Gouldsboro, Me.) to Eli Forbes requesting that he forward copies of deeds to various tracts of Maine land, 2 Dec. 1796
Letter from David Cobb (Gouldsboro, Me.) to Donald Ross about the superintendence of lumber brought down the Union River, 2 Dec. 1796
Letter from Henry Knox ( Montpelier) to David Cobb, 4 Dec. 1796
Letter from Donald Ross (Union River, Me.) to David Cobb about the supervision of lumbering operations on the Union River, 6 Dec. 1796
Letter from David Cobb (Gouldsboro, Me.) to William Bingham about the lumbering of Bingham's Maine lands and the sale of Bingham's Maine land to Alexander Baring, 8 Dec. 1796
Extract of [William Bingham's] deed to No. 7, [Castine, Me.], 10 Dec. 1796. Attested by Eli Forbes.
Letter from David Cobb (Gouldsboro, Me.) to Donald Ross about lumbering operations, 17 Dec. 1796
Letter from Donald Ross (Union River, Me.) to David Cobb about lumbering operations, 29 Dec. 1796
Sub-collection Information This collection consists of the papers of David Cobb primarily documenting his position as land agent for William Bingham in Maine, including papers related to the settlement of Maine, logging and the lumber trade, roads, and other subjects. Also included are papers related to his service during the American Revolution and his career as a politician and judge.

David Cobb was a Revolutionary War soldier and aide-de-camp to General George Washington, speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives and president of the Senate, physician, judge, member of Congress, lieutenant governor of Massachusetts, and a founder of the Society of the Cincinnati and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

The collection contains letters to Charles W. Hare, Bingham's Philadelphia agent, and Alexander Baring, the future Lord Ashburton and representative of London's House of Baring. Also included are legal actions, financial accounts, maps, and inventories related to land development, fishing, lumbering, census reports, lotteries, the laying out of streets, and the construction of wharves, warehouses, and sawmills in Gouldsboro, Maine, which Cobb tried to develop as a major commercial port.

The collection also contains eight fragmentary diaries kept by Cobb, 1781-1818; a manuscript notebook with sketches; lists of British ships of the line; instructions for naval officers; letters to various members of the Cobb family; and letters from William Eustis, Henry Knox, Timothy Pickering, and Israel Thorndike concerning foreign relations, state politics, and miscellaneous financial matters related to the firm of Cobb and Richards, in which Cobb was partner.
Region American East  
Subjects Land Transaction and Property  Law and Order  Forestry and Logging  Settlers and Settlement  River  Travel and Transportation  Towns and Cities  
Places Gouldsboro; Maine; Union River
People Cobb, David (1748-1830)  Bingham, William (1752-1804)  Baring, Alexander (1774-1848)  Knox, Henry (1750-1806)  
Themes Business, Trade & Commerce; Land & Property
Library Massachusetts Historical Society  
Copyright Massachusetts Historical Society