James Hogun (1 results)

No Binding. Condition: Good. 1 page, small 4to, Letter signed "James Hogun B.G." from "High Lands Cove," December 16, 1779. Addressed on the verso, with "Public Service" frank, to Col. Henry Hollingsworth, Maryland supply officer in charge at the critical supply point at Head of Elk, Maryland. The North Carolina Brigade of which Hogun was the Commanding General had been detached from Washington's army and ordered to march to aid in the defense of Charleston. They undertook what Mark M. Boatner called "an arduous march of nearly three months through snow and extreme cold." There was difficulty arranging water transportation, as seen here; and land travel was more of a problem as some wagons had been retained by the main army. Poorly equipped, they were in Philadelphia in early December where Congress rushed them southward, concerned that the British were about to move against South Carolina. General Hogun was taken prisoner when Charleston fell in May of 1780, subsequently refused parole to stay with his men, and died while in captivity on 4 January 1781. Here, on his march and already in difficulty, he has called on Hollingsworth for assistance: "I am Unhappy to inform you that we are here with part of the fleet & am not yet Certain we can go any Farther. We have Drew Four Days Provisions and are Cooking it. Also are getting wood and Water on board in case the Ice should break up so as to get Down, should be Glad you would send of a man to me. as I may give you some Instructions Concerning Waggons should we not get Down." Hogun's little known record is one of devotion to the patriot cause; he had performed well in fighting in the north and this item shows the under-reported hero embarked on the hard winter assignment that would lead to his death. His autograph is excessively rare (the term applied to it in Charles Hamilton's American Autographs, where it is illustrated from the Charleston capitulation document); and he has only entry in the comprehensive survey of dealer catalogs, Cripe and Campbell: American Manuscripts 1763-1815, a letter to Washington; and only one mention in the online auction records, a routine document sold many years ago. He is arguably the most difficult autograph to find of all American general officers of the Revolution. Seal tear, normal other defects. Signed by Author(s).