George Washington Papers

To George Washington from John Hancock, 20 May 1777

From John Hancock

Philada May 20th 1777.

Sir,

This will be delivered to you by Mrs Graydon of this City, a very worthy Lady, whose Anxiety to see her Son Captain Graydon, now a Prisoner with the Enemy, is so great, that Congress have been induced to consent to her having an Interview with him. I am therefore to request your Attention to the enclosed Resolve on the Subject, and that you will give Directions for having it carried into Execution in such Manner as you may think will be most proper.1 I have the Honour to be, with the greatest Esteem & Respect, Sir your most obed. hble Servt

John Hancock Presidt

LS, DLC:GW; LB, DNA:PCC, item 12A. The letter book includes two minor changes.

1. Congress passed this resolution on 19 May (see JCC description begins Worthington Chauncey Ford et al., eds. Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774-1789. 34 vols. Washington, D.C., 1904–37. description ends , 7:367). For Rachel Marks Graydon’s effort to obtain the release of her son, Capt. Alexander Graydon, who had been captured at Fort Washington on 16 Nov. 1776, see Hancock to GW, 21 Nov. 1776, and note 4, and Graydon, Memoirs description begins Alexander Graydon. Memoirs of His Own Time. With Reminiscences of the Men and Events of the Revolution. Edited by John Stockton Littell. Philadelphia, 1846. description ends , 260–70. Captain Graydon was paroled on 7 July 1777, and he was exchanged on 15 April 1778.

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    Washington Papers
    Title
    To George Washington from John Hancock, 20 May 1777
    Author
    Hancock, John
    Recipient
    Washington, George
    Date
    20 May 1777

    Reference

    Cite as
    “To George Washington from John Hancock, 20 May 1777,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/03-09-02-0477. [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 9, 28 March 1777 – 10 June 1777, ed. Philander D. Chase. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1999, p. 485.]

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