George Washington Papers

To George Washington from Balfour & Barraud, 25 December 1774

From Balfour & Barraud

Little England 25th Decemr 1774

Sir,

We have occasion for about a Thousand Barrs. flour & a few hundred Bars. of bread but it must be ready by the first day of March at farthest.

We have sent Mr Leonard Tarrant properly impowerd, any bargain he may make with you shall be binding on us & faithfully comply’d with.

one half to be paid at next april the other at June Courts.

We have signd an agreement the quantity & price to be filld up by Mr Tarrant—we have a Ship that will be soon in Your River to load. We are Sir Your obt Servts

Balfour & Barraud

please to send us by Mr Tarrant ½ doz. Bars. flour for our own use. B. B.1

LS, probably in the hand of James Balfour, DLC:GW.

James Balfour (d. 1775), of Little England in Elizabeth City County, and Daniel Barraud were partners in the mercantile firm of Balfour & Barraud of Norfolk.

1Leonard Tarrant visited Mount Vernon on 4 Jan. 1775 and got GW’s agreement “to deliver unto the said Balfour & Barraud at his Mill on Potomack one thousand Barrels of fine burr flour & [ ] Barrels of good well baked biscuit for a long Voyage for which Balfour & Barraud agrees to pay at the rate of Sixteen Shillings ⅌ hundred for the Flour & at the rate of [ ] ⅌ hundred for the bread, one half to be paid at April the other at October Court next” (DLC:GW). GW’s copy of the contract has this below the names of the contracting partners, Balfour & Barraud, and George Washington: “Note. It is agreed by Geo: Washington to lend his Boat, to assist in getting the Flour from the Mill door to the Ship at the Mouth of the Creek.” The total charges for the 1,000 barrels of superfine flour that GW supplied by this contract to Balfour & Barraud in the spring of 1775, along with the six barrels of flour “for our own use” and the barrels in which to ship the flour, came to £1,748.17 (Ledger B description begins General Ledger B, 1772–1793. Library of Congress, George Washington Papers, Series 5, Financial Papers. description ends , 136, Ledger C description begins General Ledger C, 1790–1799. Morristown National Historical Park, Morristown, N.J. description ends , 3). See also GW to Lund Washington, 20 Aug. 1775, n.4. Nothing was paid on the account before the war, and GW resumed his efforts to collect in 1785 (see GW to Thomas Newton, Jr., 3 Sept. 1785, and note 4 of that document).

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