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Rare manuscript deed signed by six chiefs of the Mohawk nation, one page, 12.5 x 15.75, December 12, 1738, selling some 216 square miles of land in east-central New York to King George II. The deed, in part: “We, Esras, Jacob, Long Sett, Symon, Cornelius, and Esras Jr., Native Indians of the Mohawk Castle, in the province of New York, send greeting. Know ye, that for and in consideration of the sum of one hundred eighty pounds, current lawful money of New York…have bargained, sold released, and for ever quit claim unto our said most gracious sovereign Lord King George the Second, his heirs and successors all our rights, title, interest, claim, property, possession, and demand, of in and to, a certain tract of land on the north side of the Mohawk River.”
The payment was to be delivered to the tribe by Johannis Wendell and John Lindsey, acting on behalf of the British crown. The land is situated northwest of Albany, and its parameters are carefully given: “a certain tract of land on the north side of the Mohawk River, beginning at the back of a tract of land formerly granted unto Hendrick Hauser, running northwardly, about eighteen miles, then eastwardly, about twelve miles, then southwardly, about eighteen miles, towards or to the back of the lands granted to Ebinezer Wilson, then westwardly about twelve miles to the place it began.” The land is further identified as running along both sides of the “Osagondago Road,” and the deal includes “all manner of woods, underwoods, trees, mines, minerals, quarries, fences, improvements, herediments, and appurtenances.”
The deed is signed at the conclusion in ink by the six Mohawk leaders mentioned: Cornelius's name stands alone, while the other sign with their totemic marks. Each chief has a red wax seal affixed beside his name, and the document is further signed by three witnesses. It appears that the validity of this deed may have been challenged just a few years after it was executed, for on the reverse there is a manuscript attestation, dated September 30, 1741, stating that Jacob Glen, a justice of the peace for the county of Albany, has sworn on a Bible that the Indians have been paid the full amount, according to the contract as written. In fine condition, with scattered trivial paper loss.
A rare and historically revealing document, this deed offers firsthand insight into the mechanisms of British colonial land acquisition from the Mohawk Nation during a formative period in North American history. Executed just a generation before the Mohawks formally allied with the British during the French and Indian War, it reflects the evolving political and economic relationships between Indigenous leaders and the Crown. Such agreements—often framed in European legal terms but negotiated across cultural boundaries—played a critical role in shaping both territorial control and alliances in the contested landscape of colonial New York.
The Western Americana auction of Jochen Zeitz.
