[Queen Ann's War] Notables Signed Early RI And Providence Plantations Document For Sale

TheColony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the originalThirteen Colonies, established on the east coast of America. It was founded by Roger Williams and was anEnglish colony from 1636 until 1707 when it became a colony of Great Britainuntil the American Revolutionary War in 1776. At that time, it became the Stateof Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.

The document offered herewas executed just five years after Rhode Island and Providence Plantations becamea British colony. It is a very early power of attorney and containing thesignatures of two notables, EDWARD THURSTON, “her majesty’s Justice of thePeace,” and JOHN HAMMETT, likely the first clerk of the Assembly. It’s rare to see documents around this period,the same time frame when Queen Anne’s War (1702-1713) was nearing an end. Thurston was involved in the defenses ofRhode Island and Providence Plantations. Hammett was chosen clerk by theGeneral Assembly when it met to organize and admit freemen.

One-page 7 ½ x 11 legaldocument in which Jeremiah Wilcox of “the town of Newport in the Colony ofRhode Island and Providence Plantations...ordain, make and in my stead andplace...Captain Edward Groove of Newport Mariner commander of the Sprague...tobe my true sufficient and lawful attorney...the seventeenth day of September OneThousand Seven Hundred and Twelve...In the eleventh year of Her Majesties ReignAnn Queen of Great Britain...”

EDWARD THURSTON, justiceof the peace, signed the document attesting that Wilcox came before him “as avoluntary act.” Thurston was chosen commissaryto provide all military stores for the colony, an important position for the defenseof the colony. Two vessels for war purposes were purchased by the colony andseveral transports were provided to carry troops to Boston.

JOHN HAMMETT was the firstclerk chosen by the General Assembly as it was putting together an organizationand admitting freemen. His salary was fixed at six shillings a day.

Queen Anne’s War was thesecond in a series of French and Indian Wars involving the empires of GreatBritain, France and Spain. The wars were fought seeking control of the NorthAmerican continent. The Treaty of Utrecht ended the war in 1713, following apreliminary peace in 1712. Some termswere ambiguous in the treaty, and the concerns of various indigenouscommunities were not included, setting the stage for future conflicts.

Many persecuted groups settledin the colony, notably Quakers and Jews. The Rhode Island colony wasprogressive, passing laws abolishing witchcraft trials, imprisonment for debtand most capital punishment. However,the Rhode Island General Assembly legalized African and Native American slaverythroughout the colony in 1703. The slave trade fueled the growth of Providenceand Newport into major ports.

Rhode Island was the firstof the Thirteen Colonies to take up arms against Great Britain in the GaspeeAffair, when an armed group attacked and burned a British Navy ship in June1772, more than a year before the infamous Boston Tea Party.

Toning and some scatteredstaining. A few small holes in the center fold, affecting very little. Most ofthe red wax seal present. A couple of fold breaks reinforced on the verso. A great example of early British and AmericanColonial history. [Some research included]

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