1804 Charles Ludlow Letter to Holland Land Company Financiers Willem and Jan Willink—Pennsylvania Land Transactions
An important early American financial manuscript connecting New York merchant Charles Ludlow with Amsterdam financiers Willem and Jan Willink, principals in the Dutch investment network behind the Holland Land Company.
Dated New York, May 17, 1804, the letter transmits a bill of exchange for 2,500 Dutch guilders, drawn upon the prominent Amsterdam banking house of Daniel Crommelin & Sons. The remittance was made at the request of John Barnes and concerned an account for “Pennsylvania transactions” and purchases.
The docket on the reverse identifies the recipients:
“Copy of a Letter to Messrs Wm. & John Willink, May 17th 1804.”
Willem Willink was one of the principal Dutch investors in the Holland Land Company, whose enormous American holdings encompassed extensive territories in western New York and northwestern Pennsylvania. He frequently conducted business with his brother Jan Willink. Their investments contributed substantially to the surveying, settlement and development of the early American frontier.
Charles Ludlow was a prominent New York merchant operating near Wall Street. His family had close commercial and personal connections with the Willinks: Ludlow’s daughter Cornelia Ann later married John Abraham Willink.
Written principally in French with English commercial terminology, the document reflects the international character of early American finance. Bills drawn in New York, Pennsylvania land accounts and Amsterdam banking houses all formed part of a transatlantic investment system that helped finance American expansion.
A desirable original artifact relating to the Dutch financing of American land development during the Jeffersonian era.
Date: May 17, 1804
Place: New York City
Writer: Charles Ludlow
Recipients: Willem and Jan Willink, Amsterdam
Subject: Bill for 2,500 guilders; John Barnes; Pennsylvania transactions and purchases
Format: Contemporary retained manuscript copy, signed “Chas. Ludlow”
Condition: Original mailing or filing folds, light toning and minor staining, with small edge tears and short separations along the upper margin. The writing remains clear and legible. Overall very good condition for a commercial manuscript more than 220 years old.
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An important early American financial manuscript connecting New York merchant Charles Ludlow with Amsterdam financiers Willem and Jan Willink, principals in the Dutch investment network behind the Holland Land Company.
Dated New York, May 17, 1804, the letter transmits a bill of exchange for 2,500 Dutch guilders, drawn upon the prominent Amsterdam banking house of Daniel Crommelin & Sons. The remittance was made at the request of John Barnes and concerned an account for “Pennsylvania transactions” and purchases.
The docket on the reverse identifies the recipients:
“Copy of a Letter to Messrs Wm. & John Willink, May 17th 1804.”
Willem Willink was one of the principal Dutch investors in the Holland Land Company, whose enormous American holdings encompassed extensive territories in western New York and northwestern Pennsylvania. He frequently conducted business with his brother Jan Willink. Their investments contributed substantially to the surveying, settlement and development of the early American frontier.
Charles Ludlow was a prominent New York merchant operating near Wall Street. His family had close commercial and personal connections with the Willinks: Ludlow’s daughter Cornelia Ann later married John Abraham Willink.
Written principally in French with English commercial terminology, the document reflects the international character of early American finance. Bills drawn in New York, Pennsylvania land accounts and Amsterdam banking houses all formed part of a transatlantic investment system that helped finance American expansion.
A desirable original artifact relating to the Dutch financing of American land development during the Jeffersonian era.
Date: May 17, 1804
Place: New York City
Writer: Charles Ludlow
Recipients: Willem and Jan Willink, Amsterdam
Subject: Bill for 2,500 guilders; John Barnes; Pennsylvania transactions and purchases
Format: Contemporary retained manuscript copy, signed “Chas. Ludlow”
Condition: Original mailing or filing folds, light toning and minor staining, with small edge tears and short separations along the upper margin. The writing remains clear and legible. Overall very good condition for a commercial manuscript more than 220 years old.
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