The papers of John Delafield, great-grandfather of John Ross Delafield, consist of correspondence, documents, financial records, miscellaneous material, and printed matter, most of it reflecting his banking (United States Bank and Manhattan Company Bank) and insurance interests (Mutual Assurance Company and United Insurance Company). In addition to letters by associates, the correspondence contains fragments of two unbound letterbooks. The bulk of this section includes documents such as marine insurance policies, legal transactions, and certificates of registry, and financial records including ledgers, registers of insurance policies, memoranda books, business accounts, and private underwriters' papers. In addition, there are insurance records of merchant ships and the constitution and list of subscribers of the Tontine Coffee House.
This series is arranged into 3 subseries: Correspondence, Documents, and Financial and Business Records.
John Delafield, merchant and marine insurance underwriter, was born in 1748 in London where his father was a prosperous cheese merchant, and the family lived in comfortable circumstances. His sister Martha was the mother of Dr. Thomas Arnold of Rugby, thus making Delafield the great-uncle of the poet Matthew Arnold. After accumulating wealth and prosperity, he came to the United States in 1783, becoming one of the first Englishmen to emigrate to the new country after the Revolutionary War. He brought with him the first copy of the provisional peace treaty between Great Britain and the United States, and it was the first text of the treaty to reach Congress.
Delafield settled in New York where he served as a director of the New York branch of the United States Bank (1792) and was a charter member of the Manhattan Company Bank (1799). In 1794 he helped to found the Tontine Coffee House and purchased shares for his children. An original director of the Mutual Assurance Company of New York organized by Alexander Hamilton (1787), Delafield was also a founding member of the United Insurance Company (1796). One of the first marine underwriters in New York, he served as head of the private underwriters of the city. His personal fortune was greatly diminished when he had to cover losses sustained during the War of 1812 when American ships were attacked by both the British and French. His oldest son, John Delafield (1786-1853), helped to restore the family fortunes through his efforts in banking.
In 1784 Delafield married Ann Hallett (1766-1839) with whom he had twelve children including Joseph (1790-1875), Henry (1792-1875), and Susan (1805-1861). He built a country home, "Sunswick," on the east bank of the East River in 1791. Delafield was the American patriarch of generations well-known in New York in law, commerce, the army, medicine, and finance.
Contains letters to Delafield associates, with some letters by family members and copies of a few letters by Delafield members, as well as fragments of two unbound letterbooks (1806-1808, 1815-1816).
Arranged by genre of correspondence.
Includes fragile documents
Letters to Platt, Delafield and Fowler
Copy of letter by John Delafield in his hand or Joseph Delafield's hand possibly
This run of correspondence continues into Joseph Delafield's papers
Includes real estate correspondence; continues with JW in Joseph Delafield's papers
Contains certificates of registry, indentures, marine insurance policies, legal papers, documents relating to the sale of enslaved persons owned by Delafield, a bond of indemnity, a power of attorney, and an insurance certificate.
No arrangement scheme.
Summary of court case against Delafield.
Richard Yates to James Watson and William Howell; Hugh Pollock and Martha, his wife, to George Knox; George Knox and Catharine, his wife, to Edward Moore
Includes indentures regarding the sale of enslaved workers, primarily young children, owned by John Delafield. Two of the purchasers were free Black men.
One agreement, dated September 1, 1807, relates to the sale of Mary, aged nineteen, to George Puffer for a term of 10 years. Another indenture, dated November 25, 1807, relates to the sale of Jacob to Mary Hazard, a widow living in Jamaica, Long Island, for a term of 10 years. A third document, dated June 10, 1805, relates to the sale of Jacob, a six-year old boy, to Andrew Gautier, who agreed to free Jacob when he reached the age of 25 (July 1, 1824). The fourth agreement, dated May 14, 1798, documents the sale of Emilia, a three-year old girl, to Isaac Black, a free Black man; the agreement notes that Emilia will be freed when she reaches the age of 21. The last agreement, dated May 21, 1798, documents the sale of Jane, a girl of about two years of age, to William Cose, a free Black man, who agreed to free Jane when she reached 21 years of age.
Contain ledgers, registers of insurance policies, memoranda books, and other miscellaneous records such as business accounts, insurance papers, notes due, estate papers, receipts, and private underwriters' papers.
Arranged by genre of material.
Includes some account information for Francis Ingram and Matthew McConnell as well.
Some correspondence is included.
Items are in very poor condition and extreme care should be used when handling.
Consists of 5 logbooks for voyages, with information including the broker, the ship or vessel, the captain, place of departure and destination, cargo or freight, amount/sum of assured dollars, premium, the fate of the ship (arrived, captured, late), etc. Some are organized alphabetically by ship. A related account book is also included.
Some items are in poor condition; use extreme care when handling.
A page towards the back of the volume includes election results for the 1794 New York Senate election for the Southern District (vote count).
Documents the following information: "Risques Terminated," "Loss Paid and Premium Returned, and "Captures and Losses."