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Lot 257
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Declaration Signer Francis Hopkinson Signs Debt Certificate That Passes to American Agent in Martinique
Declaration Signer Francis Hopkinson Signs Debt Certificate That Passes to American Agent in Martinique
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Francis Hopkinson
[Philadelphia, PA], March 25, 1779
Declaration Signer Francis Hopkinson Signs Debt Certificate That Passes to American Agent in Martinique
Partially printed DS

FRANCIS HOPKINSON, Partially Printed Document Signed, Check to John Stevens, March 25, 1779, United States of America. 1 p., 8.5" x 3.75". Irregular edges; printed in red and black ink; very good.

As Treasurer of Loans, Francis Hopkinson signed this debt certificate for $24 or 120 ? (livres tournois) for Philadelphia merchant John Stevens. Based on the endorsements on the verso, Stevens signed over the certificate to a third party, who transferred it to the credit of William Bingham in Saint-Pierre, Martinique. Bingham then transferred it to the credit of a merchant house in Bordeaux, France.

Bingham played a pivotal role in the success of the American cause of independence. The Committee of Secret Correspondence (late Committee for Foreign Affairs) of the Second Continental Congress sent Bingham back to the French Colony of Martinique, where he had been the British consul a few years earlier. There, he secured military supplies from the French, encouraged privateering against British shipping, passed along intelligence to both the Committee of Secret Correspondence and to American Silas Deane in France, and cultivated a strong relationship with the French.

Complete Transcript
Excha for 24 Dollars, at five Livres Tournois ? dollar Numb. 706
United States of America, 25th Day of March 1779
AT Thirty Days Sight of this Third Bill, First, Second and Fourth not paid, pay to John Stevens or Order, Twenty-four Dollars, in One Hundred and Twenty Livres Tournois, for Interest due on Money borrowed by the United States.
F. Hopkinson / Treasr of Loans.
To the Commissioner or Commissioners of the United States of America, at Paris.
Countersigned, Thos Smith,
Commissioner of the Continental Loan-Office in the State of Pennsylvania.

[Verso:]
John Stevens
Pay Contents to Wm Bingham Esqr or Order of St Pierre Marqu
John B[?]
Payez à l'ordre de M. David [Equia?] & [Equia?] frères il bordeaux [? ? ? ?] st. pierre d' Martinique 13 Juin 1779
Wm Bingham

Francis Hopkinson (1737-1791) was born in Philadelphia and graduated from the College of Philadelphia (now University of Pennsylvania) in 1757 with a bachelor's degree and in 1760 with a master's degree. In 1759, he became the first American composer of a secular song. He practiced law in Philadelphia from 1761 to 1766. After spending more than a year in England unsuccessfully seeking the office of Commissioner of Customs for North America, Hopkinson returned to Philadelphia, became a merchant, and served as Collector of Customs at New Castle, Delaware. From 1774 to 1776, he served as a member of the New Jersey Provincial Council and represented New Jersey in 1776 in the Second Continental Congress, where he signed the Declaration of Independence. He served in a variety of offices during the Revolutionary War, including member of the Navy Board (1776-1777), Treasurer of the Continental Loan Office (1778-1781), and Judge of the Admiralty Court of Pennsylvania (1779-1789). As an artist, Hopkinson created designs for Continental paper money, the first United States coin, and two early versions of the American flag, one for the United States and another for the U.S. Navy (both originally with six-pointed stars). He also contributed to the design of the Great Seal of the United States. In addition, he was a member of the Pennsylvania Convention that ratified the U.S. Constitution. In 1789, President George Washington appointed Hopkinson as judge of the new United States District Court for the District of Pennsylvania, a position Hopkinson held until his death nearly twenty months later.

John Stevens (1716-1792) was born in colonial New Jersey. He owned merchant vessels with his brother Richard Stevens and commanded them on voyages to Madeira and the West Indies. He settled in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, in the late 1740s and became a large landowner. In 1748, he married Elizabeth Alexander, and they had two children. He was a member of the colonial assembly in 1751 and served as paymaster of the 1st New Jersey regiment under Colonel Philip Schuyler from 1756 to 1760. From 1762 to 1770, he served as a member of the King's Council for New Jersey. He became a vocal patriot and opposed the Stamp Act and other British impositions. Under New Jersey's first Constitution, Stevens served as Vice-President of Council from 1776 to 1782 and also represented Hunterdon County in the legislature. He was the president of the convention that ratified the United States Constitution for New Jersey in December 1787. He died at Hoboken in May 1792.

William Bingham (1752-1804) was born in Philadelphia and graduated from the College of Philadelphia (University of Pennsylvania) in 1768. After his father died in 1769, he began an apprenticeship with Philadelphia merchant Thomas Wharton. He then joined the firm of Willing, Morris, and Company, formed by Thomas Willing and Robert Morris as one of the most successful trading firms in America. From 1770 to 1773, he served as British consul to the French colony of Martinique in the West Indies. In 1776, the Continental Congress sent Bingham back to Martinique, where he secured supplies and munitions for the Continental Army from the port of Saint-Pierre. While in Martinique, Bingham amassed great personal wealth through trade and privateering activities. In 1779, he returned to Philadelphia and married Anne Willing (1764-1801), with whom he had at least three children. In 1781, he was the key founder and director of the Bank of North America, the country's first bank. For most of the 1780s, they lived in England, where he speculated in lands in New York and Maine. He returned to Philadelphia around 1790, when he was elected speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. From 1795 to 1801, he represented Pennsylvania in the U.S. Senate. When Philadelphia was the nation's temporary capital, the Binghams hosted the "Federalist court," the nation's political and social elites. He was at the time reputedly the wealthiest man in America. After his wife's death, he moved to England with his son and died at Bath, England.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: 8.5" x 3.75"
  • Medium: Partially printed DS

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