Minutes of the Proceedings of the Board of Overseers of Harvard College, 1775-1776

This is a small, paper-bound "waste book" containing minutes taken by the Secretary pro tempore, Samuel Cooke, at meetings held on the following dates: July 31, 1775; August 8, 1775; August 22, 1775; September 5, 1775; October 3, 1775; October 23, 1775 (fragmentary); November 5, 1775; April 16, 1776; and April 23, 1776. Because these meetings took place during the American Revolutionary War, they were held in the "Council chamber at Watertown."

Sales at auction of property of the late Caleb Gannett Esq. of Cambridge, 1818

Eleven-page handwritten list of items sold from the estate of Caleb Gannett, dated May 29, 1818. Items are arranged by house location (such as "in the kitchen") and entries consist of the item name, the purchaser, and the price. The list includes a substantial section of "books in Office sold June 3, 1818." The verso of the last page includes the note: "Account of Sales at auction of the personal estate of C. Gannett- copied from auctioneer's book."

Meeting minutes maintained by the Secretary, May 7, 1776; June 4, 1776; and July 2, 1776

Because the Secretary was absent from the May 7, 1776 meeting, John Winthrop was chosen as Secretary pro hac vice (for that occasion only). Samuel Cooke, Secretary pro tempore, recorded the minutes for the June 4, 1776 meeting, and the minutes from the July 2, 1776 meeting are in an unknown hand.

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.

Meeting minutes maintained by the Secretary, April 17, 1792 and May 7, 1793

These minutes, recorded on the recto and verso of a single page, are incomplete excerpts.

Meeting minutes maintained by the Secretary, Oct. 6, 1801

The verso of these minutes contains a list of various gifts and bequests to Harvard, including what was presumably their current value.

Meeting minutes maintained by the Secretary, April 21, 1812; May 4, 1812; and June 3, 1812

These minutes pertain to discussions of the General Court's "act to repeal an act" (also called "the Act to alter and amend the Constitution of the Board of Overseers of Harvard College, and to regulate certain meetings of said Board") in February 1812, which repealed changes made in 1810 to the Constitution of the Board of Overseers. The Overseers present at these meetings doubted the act's legality and discussed ignoring and/or attempting to overturn the act.

[Letter from Caleb Gannett to Edward Wigglesworth], 1775 May 2

Handwritten letter from Caleb Gannett to Professor Edward Wigglesworth written in "Saybrook" on May 2, 1775. In the letter Gannett mentions that he "took the small-pox" and describes it briefly and requests Wigglesworth to investigate the state of his possessions left behind at the College. Gannett references the College being used as a barracks and discusses events in the Revolutionary War. The verso includes the note: "Letters from C. G. to Prof. Wigglesworth given me by Rev. Dr. Andrews Apr. 1841."

Binding papers, 1775-1928

The binding papers contain lists of volumes bound for the Harvard library in the form of lists and bills. The books are generally identified by title, volume size (octavo, quarto, folio, etc.), or both. The series includes two 18th century documents. The first document is a one-page January 22, 1775 bill to Harvard College from "Dr. And'r Barclay" for the binding and numbering of books. Books are identified by volume size. The second document is a one-page "List of books belonging to the Library which it is necessary should be new-bound" with an initial list signed by James Winthrop the Librarian on December 13, 1786, an additional list made on April 7, 1787, and subsequent notes made in May 1787. The books are indicated by title and size.