Rare Ephemera US Navy Marblehead 1795
Posted by Richard Gabriel on Wed, Jul 21, 2010 @ 05:22 AM
Some of the more interesting and small one of a kind items that we often find on our hunting in New England are the rare ephemera for local New England history that we occasionally find. This little gem was purchased from the previous owners of the bookstore in Marblehead called "Much Ado" the bookstore is still there but with new owners and is named after the Shakespeare play. When we first bought this little piece of Marblehead history, we thought that perhaps it was about a boat 'race' and the owners of Much Ado, described it as such. However, after some research we found that the word 'Prize' had nothing whatsoever to do with a race but rather the capture of a foreign ship and the selling of its contents. The Prize was then divided up amongst the Captain, crew and the other commanders. Brigadier General John Glover was the commander of the entire Continental Navy and also the Army forces for Rhode Island during the Revolutionary War. He was a long time resident of Marblehead and much loved the town. He actually lived in a house in or near Vinnin Square that borders on three towns, Marblehead, Lynn and Swampscott. His house or the main 'farm' house was expanded and built upon through the years and was at one time a famous North Shore restaurant owned and operated by the now deceased, Anthony Athanas (1911-2005). It is now closed but was called the General Glover House. It had great food and the best pop-overs (a New England and English treat).
The Betsey was a fishing schooner captured under the command of at that time of Colonel (or Commander of the Continential Navy) John Glover, later to become Brigadier General (in the Army and the Navy) the Navy was based out of Marblehead, Massachusetts. The folks in Beverly argue that they are the home of the Navy but we all don't believe them. John Glover was in command of the early U.S. Navy. Colonel (or Commander) Glover, acting on behalf of General George Washington, chartered the schooner Two Brothers, renamed the Lee and placed at its command Captain David Waters who in 1777 captured the sloop on May 3 and sent her to Marblehead Massachusetts.
This item is a 'Net Prize' note to General Glover (known as the 'Greate General' in Marblehead) the amount of two pounds eight shillings dated may 7th, 1795. Prizes were often allocated to the commanding generals as part of their portion of the capture and sale of a foreign ship or its contents, which were sometimes removed and the ship set free or sunk. Although the war was over, there were during this time, much 'Prize' capturing of ships by the British, French and the Americans (this was during the great struggle between England and France following the Revolutionary War in which the United States under President George Washington tried to remain neutral). The Betsey was obviously involved in one of those seizures, brought the booty to Marblehead and the contents were auctioned off to the highest bidder and the proceeds distributed. In this case the Betsey had been so named on our note as was the Greate General. Brigadier General John Glover died in 1797.
Description: Single sheet 5-3/4 by 7 inches with tears and holes but oddly enough not affecting hand text. Author of the document is unknown and reverse has tape to hold the item together. A terrific piece of Americana Navy! Extremely rare and important item. It's up for auction now at our favorite spot, eBay! There is NO RESERVE on this important and one of a kind item. Just click on the picture or the word eBay to take you there!