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SERIES Identifier: Mss:766 1712-1854 H234

Series I. Thomas Hancock papers, 1664-1795 (bulk 1717-1765)

Scope and Contents

This series contains correspondence, account books, letter books, bills, invoices, receipts, and other records of Thomas Hancock (1703-1764), dated 1664-1795, related to bookselling, his general trade and shipping business, and his involvement in supplying provisions, ordnance, and vessels to the British government during the French and Indian Wars.

Hancock maintained correspondence and accounts with Christopher Kilby (1705-1771), the agent for Massachusetts in London, merchant and commissary Benjamin Gerrish (1717-1772) in Halifax, Nova Scotia, British merchant Francis Wilks, Boston merchants James & Jacob Otis and William Clark (1670-1742), shipmasters Simon Gross, Daniel Bragdon, and Henry Atkins, and William Tyler (1688-1758), a partner in shipping expeditions, as well as military officers and politicians. In the early 1750s, accounts include his father-in-law and partner in book sales and publishing, Daniel Henchman (1689-1761).

He exported goods like whale oil, whale bone, and cod fish, and imported commodities from Great Britain, the West Indies, and Europe like textiles, rum, hemp, gunpowder and weapons, and molasses. Hancock also smuggled goods into the colonies, either to avoid paying customs duties, or to circumvent British trade laws on merchandise like tea. There are letters to his shipmasters instructing them to take measures to avoid detection of certain cargo they brought into Boston. Merchants, shopkeepers, and self-employed workers who frequently bought dry goods, flax, paper, and other commodities in bulk from Hancock's store were Stephen & William Greenleaf, Hannah Deming, Alice Quick (approximately 1687-1761), Mary Belknap & Sisters. John & Richard Billings, Daniel Starr, Jonathan Warner, Mather & Tinker, and apothecary Silvester Gardiner. In partnership with fellow Boston merchant Charles Apthorp (1698-1758), Hancock brokered supplies for the British garrisons in Nova Scotia at Annapolis Royal, Louisbourg on Cape Breton Island, and Fort Cumberland in Chignecto, and there are letters and invoices regarding shipment of lumber for construction, livestock, and medicines, in addition to food, arms, and blankets. The two men also helped secure transport ships for the Royal Navy, among them the sloops Dolphin, Seaflower, Industry, and Ranger, and in the fall of 1755, began to arrange charters deporting Acadians.

There are also real estate and legal documents, including a bill of sale for Cambridge, an enslaved man. His papers additionally include bills for household and family items including food, medicines, and clothing, and wages for servants and other tradespeople. He frequently procured fowl, fish, eggs, and other animal products through Prince Holmes, a free African American who also sometimes worked for Hancock.

Two volumes previously attributed to John Hancock, JH-1, Waste book (accounts), 1755-1757, and JH-2, Journal (accounts), 1755-1757, contain records of Thomas Hancock and were moved to Series I from Series II.

Dates

  • Creation: 1664-1795 (bulk 1717-1765)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research. Materials stored onsite. Please contact specialcollectionsref@hbs.edu for more information.

Extent

44 linear feet (27 volumes, 34 boxes)

Physical Location

MANU

Creator

Repository Details

Part of the Baker Library Special Collections and Archives, Harvard Business School Repository

Baker Library Special Collections and Archives holds unique resources that focus on the evolution of business and industry, as well as the records of the Harvard Business School, documenting the institution's development over the last century. These rich and varied collections support research in a diverse range of fields such as business, economic, social and cultural history as well as the history of science and technology.

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