Payment order for Phillips Payson on behalf of his son, 1777 July 1

Handwritten order to John Sale to pay scholarship funds to Phillips Payson for use by his son, signed by Charles Chauncey and Jonathan Williams.

I. Sermons, 1709-1724

This series contains seventeen handwritten sermons composed by Nicholas Sever and delivered in the Boston area between 1709 and 1722. Following the completion of his Master's degree at Harvard in 1704, Sever preached in towns around New England including Haverhill in 1709, Dover, New Hampshire (where he was ordained in 1711 and remained until 1715), and in Cambridge as part of his duties as a Harvard Tutor between 1716 and 1728. During these years, Sever also filled in for ministers in nearby parishes. Sever's sermons reflect these engagements, and he occasionally noted the dates and locations where the sermons were delivered in the margin of the first page of the sermon.

Meeting minutes maintained by the Secretary, Nov. 12, 1777

These minutes concern General William Heath's request for permission to house the soldiers of John Burgoyne – British prisoners of war – at Harvard. The Overseers voted to recommend that the Corporation allow the soldiers to occupy one or more College buildings, in spite of various hesitations. It has not been decisively determined whether or not the British troops were ultimately housed at Harvard. Some sources assert that no buildings were occupied, while others claim that Burgoyne and his soldiers lived in Apthorp House for a time.

Annotated almanac, 1777

Almanac containing interleaved pages and sporadic annotations on the calendar pages by John Winthrop. The calendar pages are typically annotated with one or two notes at the bottom recording household activities. The interleaved pages contain entries with almost daily notes of social engagements and travel during the year. One interleaved leaf contains short miscellaneous entries about local deaths including the death and funeral of Harvard Tutor John Wadsworth (July 12), Revolutionary war battles, an illness (May 27), a description of changing currency (June 27), Doctor Doddridge's epigram "Dum vivimus vivamus" beginning "'Live while you live,' the Epicure will say...", and a short list of legal activities such as citations and wills performed in Winthrop's capacity as a Judge of Probate.

Annotated almanac, 1777

Almanac with one folded interleaved page and minimal annotations of household activities on the calendar pages in the hands of John and Hannah Winthrop. The interleaved leaf contains notes of burials and baptisms for Cambridge in 1777 in John Winthrop's hand, and some notes of household activities in Hannah Winthrop's hand.