Joseph Milligan to Thomas Jefferson, 31 July 1815
From Joseph Milligan
Georgetown July 31st 1815
Dear Sir
on the 13th instant ⅌ steam boat I sent to the care of William Woodford Eqr innkeeper of Fredericksburg two Boxes which I have directed him to have forwarded to you by the mail cart without delay
they Contain Such books as I have had bound for you as ⅌ enclosed list of Binding I have also enclosed a list of the Laws of Virginia and the Journals of the Senate which I have to bind for you I do not believe that I shall be able to get the Volumes of the Journal of the Senate that are missing there is in one of the Boxes a copy of Dufiefs Dictionary and one paris in 1802 & 1814 also a Ream of paper Cut down to pattern as ⅌ order
I have not yet got Tracys manuscript but have had a letter from Genl Duane on the Subject he is to Send it to Mr R. C. Weightman of Washington who is to receive $60– from me and deliver it to me he only waits Some private hand to Send it by
The Library arrived in safety in Washington on Monday morning1 of next week after I left Monticello that is in Six days from the time it was put into the wagons it was safely Laid into the passages of the General post office or Congress hall about three weeks ago I Commenced unpacking it and accomplished it last monday I am happy to inform you that it has not received the Slightest injury by transportation the Room which has been appropriated for it is sufficeently large the Catalogue will be printed as soon as a Suitable paper can be procured to print it on it is the intention to print in Quarto on post paper
I have been very much indisposed through out the whole of the month of June So much So as not to be equil to any business which is the cause that your books were not sent back Sooner or your letters attend to with regularity but I have now so far recovered my health as to attend to my usual business indeed the exertion which it required to set up the library seems to have been of service to me as I2 gained Strength every day
Joseph Milligan
RC (DLC); endorsed by TJ as received 9 Aug. 1815 and so recorded in SJL.
one of the boxes sent by Milligan contained William Shepherd, Paris, in Eighteen Hundred And Two, and Eighteen Hundred And Fourteen (Philadelphia, 1815; , 7 [no. 323]). The first wagonloads of books from TJ’s library arrived in safety at Washington on Monday, 8 May 1815 (Washington Daily National Intelligencer, 9 May 1815). Milligan accomplished the unpacking on Monday, 24 July 1815.
1. Manuscript: “mornng.”
2. Milligan here canceled “seemed to.”
Index Entries
- A New Universal and Pronouncing Dictionary of the French and English Languages (N. G. Dufief) search
- A Treatise on Political Economy (Destutt de Tracy) search
- books; binding of for TJ search
- books; dictionaries search
- books; of state papers and public documents search
- books; on history search
- books; packing and shipping of search
- books; sent by J. Milligan search
- Catalogue of the Library of the United States (G. Watterston) search
- Destutt de Tracy, Antoine Louis Claude; A Treatise on Political Economy search
- Duane, William; and Destutt de Tracy’s works search
- Dufief, Nicolas Gouin; A New Universal and Pronouncing Dictionary of the French and English Languages search
- English language; dictionaries search
- French language; dictionaries search
- Jefferson, Thomas; Books & Library; catalogue of search
- Jefferson, Thomas; Books & Library; packing and shipping of search
- Jefferson, Thomas; Books & Library; receives works search
- Library of Congress; Catalogue of the Library of the United States. To Which is Annexed, A Copious Index, Alphabetically Arranged (G. Watterston) search
- Library of Congress; location of search
- Library of Congress; TJ’s catalogue of books sold to search
- Library of Congress; transportation of TJ’s books to Washington search
- Milligan, Joseph; and Destutt de Tracy’s Treatise on Political Economy search
- Milligan, Joseph; assists with packing and transportation of TJ’s library search
- Milligan, Joseph; health of search
- Milligan, Joseph; letters from search
- Milligan, Joseph; sends books to TJ search
- Milligan, Joseph; TJ orders paper from search
- paper; for printing search
- Paris, in Eighteen Hundred And Two, and Eighteen Hundred And Fourteen (W. Shepherd) search
- Shepherd, William; Paris, in Eighteen Hundred And Two, and Eighteen Hundred And Fourteen search
- stationery; letter paper search
- Virginia; laws of search
- Virginia; Senate search
- Watterston, George; Catalogue of the Library of the United States search
- Weightman, Roger Chew; conveys manuscript to J. Milligan search
- Woodford, William; forwards packages to TJ search