Lot Details
Lot 31
HANCOCK, JOHN Secretarial document signed.
Boston: March 27th, 1781. Document secretarially accomplished in manuscript, signed "John Hancock" as Governor on the verso of the first leaf, countersigned by John Avery, with the wafer seal of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts affixed to the head of the first leaf. Leaf size 14 1/2 x 8 7/8 inches (37 x 22.5 cm); a bifolium, the conjugate leaf blank but for docketting on the verso. Usual folds, two small separations at the intersection of the horizontal and vertical folds, minor toning, in all in excellent condition, Hancock's signature dark and strong.
This document appoints Oliver Prescott (1731-1804), the physician and miltia leader, as the judge of probate for Middlesex County. Prescott was a doctor for much of his life, having graduated from Harvard in 1753 and apprenticed as a physician with Dr. Ebenezer Robie of Sudbury. He was active as a brigadier general of the Middlesex County militia during the Revolutionary War, and was responsible for guarding the bridges during the Siege of Boston. He was one of the original fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and many other professional and learned societies besides. The oath attestation is signed on May 15 of that year by Samuel Phillips Savage and Henry Gardner.
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