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Scope and Content Note
The papers of John Thomas Haight are a small collection of incoming correspondence and other miscellaneous papers covering the years 1791 to 1930, and genealogical material of a later date. Those papers prior to 1836 and after 1853 consist mostly of family correspondence. Those falling in the intervening period deal with two main topics: land speculation and development by eastern interests, and territorial and state politics.
John T. Haight came from Monkton, Vermont, to Oak Creek in southern Milwaukee County in 1837. The previous year he had spent as a surveyor on the Military Road between Chicago and Green Bay. Soon after his arrival in Wisconsin he began to speculate in farm land and city lots. Most of the purchases that Haight made were for such eastern men as Caleb Cushing and his brothers, Governor John Davis of Massachusetts, and Martin O. Walker of Troy, New York, and later of Chicago. Along with the management of the lands of such men as these Haight also invested his own money in lands. These papers are indicative of the methods of operation of both the investors and the agents in Western land speculation. Besides the relative correspondence there are also numerous tax receipts, deeds, mortgages and other such miscellaneous material.
During the same period that Haight was acting as a land agent he was also interested in local politics. Beginning in 1841, with his appointment as a Notary Public, Haight was a perennial office seeker. After 1841 he held at various times the offices of Justice of the Peace, Deputy Surveyor, Postmaster, and in 1847 he was a member of the Assembly from Koshkonong, Jefferson County where he had moved in 1842. The political correspondence of this period is from some of the foremost personages of the day including James Duane Doty and Moses McClure Strong. These men discussed with Haight the current issues and also asked his advice on various matters of a political nature from time to time.
The following people are the more prominent persons whose letters occur in the course of Haight's land business or his political endeavors. The correspondence is all arranged chronologically within the collection.
Name
|
Date
|
Baker, C. M. |
1844 May 24 |
Barstow, William A. |
1851 Jan. 24 |
|
1851 May 16 |
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1851 Aug. 13 |
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1851 Sept. 16 |
|
1851 Oct. 3 |
Catlin, John |
1841 Dec. 1 |
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1842 Oct. 23 |
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1844 Feb. 28 |
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1845 April 9 |
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1845 April |
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1845 July 15 |
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1849 Dec. 20 |
|
1850 April 13 |
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1851 Aug. 18 |
|
1851 Aug. 29 |
Clapp, M. R. Clapp |
1849 Oct. 21 |
Clark, S. |
1850 Aug. 9 |
Crocker, Hans |
1847 Oct, 8 |
Cramer, Eliphalet |
1844 Oct, 1 |
|
1844 Dec. 17 |
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1845 May 13 |
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1846 March 19 |
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1847 Jan. |
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1848 Nov, 13 |
Cushing, Caleb |
1836 June 9 |
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1839 Oct. 9. |
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1840 April 2. |
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1840 May 22 |
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1840 Aug. 29 |
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1840 Nov. 27 |
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1840 Dec. 10 |
|
1845 Oct. 10 |
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1847 May 21 |
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1847 Oct. 7 |
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1847 Nov. 20 |
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1848 March 2 |
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1848 July 4 |
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1849 May 22 |
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1849 June 18 |
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1849 June 28 |
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1849 July 22 |
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1849 Oct. 13 |
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1849 Dec. 5 |
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1849 Dec. 17 |
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1850 Jan. 18 |
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1850 April 1 |
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1851 Dec. 22 |
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1852 Oct. 16 |
Cushing, John |
1844 April 20 |
Darling, M. C. |
1848 July 27 |
Davis, John |
1836 June |
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1841 March 23 |
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1843 Sept. 10 |
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1843 Dec. 21 |
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1844 March 21 |
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1844 July 16 |
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1845 May 16 |
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1845 Aug. 15 |
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1845 Oct. 11 |
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1847 Feb 14 |
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1847 March 28 |
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1847 April 27 |
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1847 July 17 |
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1848 Aug. 14 |
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1848 Nov. 30 |
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1849 July 11 |
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1849 July 18 |
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1849 Oct. 17 |
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1849 Nov. |
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1849 Nov. 17 |
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1850 April |
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1850 Feb. 10 |
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1850 Nov. 29 |
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1850 Dec. 14 |
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1850 Dec. 29 |
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1851 July 16 |
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1851 Sept. 16 |
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1851 Sept. 23 |
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1851 Oct. 6 |
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1851 Oct. 9 |
Delaplaine, George P. |
1852 Oct. 20 |
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1852 Dec. 8 |
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1852 Dec. 13 |
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1846 June 28 |
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1866 March 9 |
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1866 July 19 |
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1866 Oct. 25 |
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1866 Nov. 5 |
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1866 Nov. 15 |
Dennis, William M. |
1848 Aug. 24 |
Doty, James Duane |
1836 Aug. 17 |
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1848 Aug. 20 |
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1848 Sept. 29 |
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1849 Sept. 7 |
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1849 Sept. 24 |
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1850 April 19 |
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1850 May 18 |
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1850 July 24 |
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1850 Nov. 20 |
Durkee, Charles |
1850 Feb. 23 |
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1850 May 23 |
Earll, Warner |
1848 Dec. 2 |
Edgerton, B. H. |
1844 May 6 |
1845 April 19 |
Elderkin, Edward |
1847 June 23 |
Gardner, Palmer |
1847 Dec. 29 |
Holmes, John E. |
1846 July 10 |
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1846 July 27 |
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1848 Dec14 |
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1848 July 18 |
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1849 April 10 |
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1851 July 9 |
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1852 Jan, 12 |
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1852 July 28 |
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1852 Aug. 13 |
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1852 Dec. 3 |
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1867 Feb. 9 |
Hathaway, Joshua |
1850 April 4 |
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1850 July 25 |
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1850 July |
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1853 Feb 5 |
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1853 Feb. 14 |
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1853 Feb. 28 |
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1853 March 18 |
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1853 April 7 |
Hubbell, Levi |
1848 Aug. 19 |
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1850 April 26 |
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1850 May 6 |
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1850 May 9 |
Hyer, George |
1843 Aug. 3 |
Jones, George M. |
1847 April 22 |
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1847 May 15 |
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1847 Aug. 22 |
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1847 Aug. 31 |
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1847 Sept. 24 |
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1847 Oct. 5 |
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1847 Dec. 25 |
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1848 Jan 25 |
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1848 April 5 |
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1848 April 27 |
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1848 May 11 |
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1848 June 1 |
Marshall, William K. |
1848 June 5 |
Martin, Leonard |
1848 April 9 |
Martin, Morgan L. |
1845 Dec. 14 |
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1846 April 23 |
Mills, Simeon |
1849 Aug. 19 |
Mitchell, Alexander |
1844 Jan 21 |
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1848 May 12 |
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1848 Dec. 12 |
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1850 July 10 |
Noggle, David |
1848 June 2 |
Pixley, J. W. |
1849, Jan, 24 |
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1850 Jan 22 |
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1850 April 1 |
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1850 May 8 |
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1850 June 9 |
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1850 July 24 |
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1851 May 5 |
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1851 July 31 |
Prentiss, William A. |
1843 July 20 |
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1843 July 24 |
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1845 Sept. 13 |
Prentiss, Theodore |
1846 March 25 |
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1847 Jan. 30 |
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1847 June 26 |
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1848 Aug. 6 |
Rockwell, Leland |
1847 March 4 |
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1848 Nov. 25 |
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1849 March 10 |
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1849 April 3 |
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1850 July 17 |
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1852 April 13 |
Smith, A. Hyatt |
1848 Sept. 13 |
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1850 May 15 |
Strong, Moses M. |
1843 Jan, 6 |
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1844 Jan. 14 |
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1844 May 13 |
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1844 Oct. 27 |
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1845 Oct. 6 |
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1846 Feb. 13 |
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1846 April 8 |
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1850 Jan. 11 |
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1850 June 5 |
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1850 July 16 |
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1850 July 22 |
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1850 July 24 |
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1850 Nov. 4 |
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1850 Dec. 20 |
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1851 June 2 |
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1851 Aug. 26 |
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1851 Sept. 19 |
Upham, D. A. J. |
1846 Jan. 7 |
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1848 Oct. 17 |
Walker, Martin O. |
1838 Oct. 19 |
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1839 March 15 |
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1839 April 15 |
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1839 Sept. 6 |
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1839 Sept. 30 |
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1839 Nov. 26 |
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1839[?] |
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1840 March 21 |
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1840 April 5 |
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1840 May 3 |
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1840 Oct. 16 |
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1840 Nov. 10 |
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1840 Dec. 10 |
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1841 Jan. 30 |
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1841 March 6 |
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1841 April 2 |
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1841 May 12 |
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1841 Nov. 18 |
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1841 Nov. 24 |
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1841 Dec. 4 |
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1842 Jan. 8 |
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1842 May 1 |
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1842 Aug. 5 |
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1842 Nov. 7 |
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1842 Dec. 22 |
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1843 March 18 |
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1843 March 26 |
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1843 March 27 |
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1843 March 28 |
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1843 July 22 |
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1843 Sept. 14 |
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1843 Nov. 4 |
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1843 Dec. 23 |
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1844 Jan 26 |
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1844 Feb. 13 |
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1844 June 30 |
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1844 July 15 |
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1844 Aug. 22 |
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1844 Aug 27 |
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1845 Jan, 25 |
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1845 Feb. 10 |
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1845 April 12 |
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1845 July 16 |
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1845 Sept. 2 |
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1845 Oct. 11 |
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1846 Jan. 26 |
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1846 Feb. 22 |
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1846 March 29 |
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1846 June 14 |
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1846 Sept. 3 |
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1846 Sept. 20 |
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1847 Jan. 18 |
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1847 March 22 |
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1847 April 20 |
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1847 June 3 |
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1848 May 15 |
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1848 Aug. 24 |
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1848 Sept. 29 |
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1849 Jan. 21 |
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1849 Feb. 3 |
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1849 March 2 |
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1849 March 12 |
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1849 May 4 |
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1849 Aug. 6 |
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1849 Aug. 18 |
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1849 Sept. 9 |
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1849 Oct. 12 |
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1849 Dec. 10 |
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1850 Jan 6 |
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1850 Jan. 16 |
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1850 May 30 |
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1850 June 23 |
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1850 July 15 |
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1850 Aug. 27 |
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1850 Dec. 7 |
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1852 Feb. 25 |
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1852 Sept. 29 |
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1853 Feb. 28 |
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1853 April 4 |
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1853 April 7 |
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1854 March 12 |
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1854 Sept. 25 |
Wells, Horatio N. |
1845 Aug. 27 |
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1848 Oct. 12 |
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1850, July 10 |
Wells, Daniel, Jr. |
1846, Dec. 4 |
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1846, Dec. 4 |
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1851, May 22 |
Webster, Daniel |
1850 Jan. 5 (copy) |
Whiton, Edward V. |
1846 April 30 |
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