1826 John Read, James Gibson ALS, double signed letter regarding estate of Declaration of Independence Signer George Clymer

John Read, James Gibson ALS, double signed 1826 letter regarding estate of Declaration of Independence Signer George Clymer.  John Read and his law partner James Gibson were joint executors of the estate of George Clymer.  Most of their letters are not in the privately traded market but may be viewed in parts in the collections of several universities.

John Read (1769-1854), son of Declaration of Independence Signer George Read, graduated from the College of New Jersey in 1787 and studied law with his father.  John worked as a lawyer; as agent general of the United States under Jay’s Treaty (appointed by President John Adams in 1797); city solicitor of Philadelphia; and member of common and select councils. During the War of 1812, John was “active in the defense of the Delaware against British invasion”. He served as a senator for Pennsylvania from 1816 to 1817 and was appointed, by the Pennsylvania Legislature, as the state director of the Philadelphia Bank. Later, he became president of the Philadelphia Bank.