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Title Correspondence between David Cobb and others, regarding projects on Bingham's lands
Archival Reference Ms. N-1000
Sub-collection David Cobb Papers  
Author Cobb, David  Wingate, Joseph  Cobb, Thomas  
Date 16-26 Mar 1800
Document Type Correspondence; Business and financial document
Contents Includes:
Letter from Joseph Patten (Columbia, Me.) to Cobb and Richards about logging on Plantation No. 23 in the Maine lands under their supervision, 16 Mar. 1800
Letter from David Cobb (Gouldsboro, Me.) to William Bingham reporting on road building, surveying, house building, sawmill construction, and other projects on Bingham's Maine lands, 19 Mar. 1800
Account of Thomas Cobb with his father David Cobb for Aug. 1798-Mar. 1800, 21 Mar. 1800
Letter from Joseph Wingate (Hallowell, Me.) to David Cobb about the recruitment of settlers for the Maine lands under Cobb's supervision, 24 Mar. 1800
Letter from David Cobb (Gouldsboro, Me.) to Daniel Cony about plans for developing the Kennebec Tract, 25 Mar. 1800
Letter from David Cobb (Gouldsboro, Me.) to Samuel S. Wilde about business and personal matters and the account of Daniel Cony, 25 Mar. 1800
Letter from David Cobb (Gouldsboro, Me.) to William Bingham about the management of Bingham's Maine lands, the appointment of Daniel Cony, and the land of Mme. Bacler de Leval in Trenton, 26 Mar. 1800
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 Forestry and Logging  Surveying  Construction and Building  Settlers and Settlement  Agriculture  Towns and Cities  
Places Columbia; Maine; Gouldsboro; Hallowell; Massachusetts
People Cobb, David (1748-1830)  Bingham, William (1752-1804)  Cobb, Thomas (1772-1849)  
Themes Land & Property; Business, Trade & Commerce
Library Massachusetts Historical Society  
Copyright Massachusetts Historical Society