Partly printed document completed in manuscript and signed by James Gettys. Signed by Peter Statsmith and witnessed by Abraham Mosser and Henry Hoke. Gettysburg, Adams County, Pennsylvania, 27 April 1811. 1 page, 15 3/4 x 13 1/2 in., matted and framed to 22 x 19 in. 

A scarce land grant indenture completed and signed by the founder of Gettysburg, James Gettys (1759-1815). Here, Peter Statsmith, of Gettysburg, paid $100 for Lot 251 "beginning on York Street." Notably, the form originally printed "Cumberland Township" but has been cancelled and "Gettysburgh" written above. 

James Gettys's father, Samuel, originally settled in the area in 1760 at the important crossroads of turnpikes running from Shippensburg to Baltimore and Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, in what was then western York County. In 1786, James purchased 116 acres from a public bankruptcy auction of his father's property. He divided the land into 220 lots, which were offered in an official lottery for area citizens to purchase one or more. Gettys continued to be deeply involved with the town and the formation of Adams County in 1800, donating land and the quit rents of 200 lots to ensure that Gettysburg (then Gettystown) was named the county seat. 

In 1781, he enlisted as a cornet in the Light Horsemen of York County, a volunteer company in the Light Horse Battalion of the Pennsylvania Militia. He continued to serve in various local militia groups, participating in suppressing the Whiskey Rebellion and later serving in the War of 1812, reaching the rank of vice brigadier general. 

A very scarce document from the earliest history of Gettysburg, which would become the site of the most significant battle of the Civil War. 

Note: This lot cannot be packaged and shipped in-house. Successful bidders winning items marked as being packaged and shipped by a third-party service are responsible for paying the third party directly. We are happy to offer complimentary drop-off service to local third-party packing/shipping companies in Columbus, Ohio.

[American Revolutionary War, American Revolution, Founding Fathers, Declaration of Independence, Colonial America, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, James Monroe] [Manuscripts, Documents, Letters, Ephemera, Signatures, Autographs] [Civil War, Union, Confederate] [Gettysburg, Little Round Top, Culp's Hill, Pickett's Charge] [War of 1812, James Madison, Battle of Lake Erie, Battle of Plattsburgh, Fort McHenry, Battle of New Orleans, Treaty of Ghent, Andrew Jackson]

Not examined out of frame.