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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC01450.457.01 |
| From Archive Folder | Letters from Francis Johnston to lieutenant colonel Persifor Frazer |
| Title | Francis Johnston to Persifor Frazer about a bad night's sleep due to the Tory David Matthews |
| Date | ca. 22 June - August 1776 |
| Author | Johnston, Francis (1749-1815) |
| Recipient | Frazer, Persifor |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Says he should have waited for Frazer in the morning, but was indisposed. Did not sleep well last night because David Matthews "a Capital Tory (no less than the present Lord Mayor of N York" was quite loud next door. He was accompanying Matthews as a prisoner to meet General Washington. Asks Frazer for a "duplicate of the general abstract for my use," and says he will meet him at Mr. Airey's. David Matthews was the Tory Mayor of New York from 1776 to 1783. He was implicated in a plot to murder or kidnap George Washington, and arrested by the Colonial Army on 22 June 1776. He quickly escaped, however, and when the British retook New York in August 1776, he returned to his post as mayor. This document must have been written sometime between his capture June and his return to office in August. |
| Subjects | Military History Revolutionary War Prisoner Prisoner of War President Revolutionary War Assassination Loyalist |
| People | Johnston, Francis (1749-1815) Frazer, Persifor (1736-1792) Matthews, David (fl. 1776-1783) |
| Theme | The American Revolution |
| Sub-collection | The Gilder Lehrman Collection, 1493-1859 |
| Additional Information | Ten letters written by Johnston to Frazer, and one set of Johnston's orders for his company. Most of the letters are written by Johnston while he is away from the regiment in ill health, informing Frazer of various duties that he and the company must perform. Francis Johnston was a colonel in the Fifth Pennsylvania. Persifor Frazer was a lieutenant colonel in the Fifth Pennsylvania. A prisoner of the British from11 September 1777 until his escape 17 March, 1778. Later rose to the rank of Brigadier General of the Pennsylvania Militia. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Settlement, Commerce, Revolution and Reform: 1493-1859 |