We Framed a Letter where a Signer of the Declaration of Independence was Paid for His Duty

Few documents intrigue me as much as this one I framed for collector, Matthew Hagans, of Kentucky.

Mr. Hagans comes across the most incredible documents and artifacts from famous people as Marilyn Monroe, John Wayne, Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant.  And, not just routine letters, but also unique items such as the last telegram reporting the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Just this weekend he picked up a contract for the famous movie, True Grit, with the contract signed by John Wayne.

But, this week, Mr. Hagans asked us to frame an unusual letter stating the compensation for Matthew Thornton, signed by Meshech Weare, President/Governor of New Hampshire. Thornton was a signer of the Declaration of Independence from New Hampshire and Weare was the President of New Hampshire given the duty.

Collecting any of the 56 signers (or all if you have the means) of the Declaration of Independence is an exciting and rewarding task to achieve.  This is because many signers are hard to find, or very expensive.

As mentioned above, Thornton was a signer from New Hampshire, but did you know he was only one of 8 signers born in Great Britain?

This particular document was signed on November 26, 1777, a little over a year of signing that incredible document. This accounts for payments of Thornton's service between January 6, 1776 to January 5, 1777.

Only one similar document appeared at auction for fellow signer Josiah Bartlett for his service in signing the Declaration of Independence.

Holding and framing such a unique letter and protecting it with proper framing techniques is an honor to pass this item to the next collector.

Understand we are temporary custodians for this treasures until the next collector comes along.