Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application File B. L. Wt. 925-100, Elias Haven, Mass.
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Service Number
Mass. Haven, Elias BLWt 925-100
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- 925 -
The heirs of Elias haven
private - 
2nd Regt Mass. line
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Samuel Blagge Esq. his Power of Substitution to Lemuel Sawer Esq. - in a Revolutionary Claim on the part of the Heirs of Elias Haven. -
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fe18.196
Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Suffolk County

Thomas Dawes, Esqr
Judge of Probate of wills of said County.
Hereby Certifies, That David Thayer, Susan H. Thayer and Elizabeth Haven are the legal heirs at Law of
- Elias Haven -
late a Soldier in the Army of the Revolution now deceased

Given under my hand and seal of Office at Boston in the County of Suffolk aforesaid this seventeenth day of June in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty
Thomas Dawes Judge of Probate
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Know all men by their present, that we Susan Thayer, wife of David Thayer and Elizabeth Haven Jr., children and legal [illegible] at Law of Elias Haven deceased late a Soldier in the Army of the United States during the Revolutionary War, have constituted [illegible] and made and in my own [illegible] and place [illegible] and by thier presence do constitute [illegible] and make and in our stead and [illegible] [illegible] Samuel Blagge of Boston to be our [illegible] [illegible] lawful [illegible] for us and in our names and stand to us and secure from the Secretary of War of the United States or any other pension as he is duly authorized to [illegible] and [illegible] the same a [illegible] for the quantity of land due to us as aforesaid and to sign a receipt on acquittance thereof and our said Attorney a [illegible] fully authorized and [illegible] to constitute our [illegible] attorney under him for the special [illegible] above on [illegible[-[illegible] whereof we have a hereinto [illegible] our hands and Seal, this tenth day of June in the year our lord Eighteen Hundred and Twenty.
David Thayer
Susan H Thayer
Elizabeth Haven

Signed sealed and [illegible] in presence of
Benjn Maxwell [illegible]
William Pierce

Franklin {illegible] June the 10 1820, personally appeared David Thayer, Susan Thayer & Elizabeth Haven and acknowledged the above Power of Attorney by their [illegible] [illegible] their free and [illegible]
Before me Benjn Maxwell, Justice of the Peace
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Know all made by these Presents, that I Samuel Blagge of Boston, in the County of Suffolk & Commonwealth of Massachusetts, made and constituted of the Heirs of Elias Haven, deceased [illegible] a Private in the Army of the Revolution, to receive of the Government of the United States, allowance from the Military Bounty [illegible] due to the {illegible] Heirs, we the Power to Substitute (?), do hereby transfer and [illegible], in the Hon. Lemuel Sawyer, member of Congress for the State of North Carolina, now at Washington, D.C., all the Power and Authority which is as we [illegible] and do authorize & empower him to do [illegible] [illegible] [illegible] [illegible] which powers, or might lawfully do, are [illegible] to be done in virtue of the aforesaid letter of attorney.
[illegible] my Hand and Seal ,this 16 August, 1820. S. Blagge
Signed Sealed and delivered in Presence of
[illegible] Blagge
W. Stevenson
[illegible] [illegible] August 16, 1820-Personally appeared Samuel Blagge and acknowledged the preceding Power of Substitution by him [illegible] to be his [illegible] [illegible].
before me: William Stevenson, ,Justice of the Peace
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Samuel Blagge, Esq.
Aug 8, 20
[illegible]
#925
[illegible]
Recorded Vol 4, folio 190
in margin, [illegible line-cut off]
Nat. Cutting
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War Department-Section of Bounty Land

Samuel Blagge, Esq.
Boston. Mass

August 8, 1820

Dear Sir, 
On the 3 current, I received your communication of the [illegible] and note your observations relative to the delivery of a Military Land Warrant due to the Heirs of the late Elias Haven for Service during the War of the Revolution.
After reading so much of your letter as relates to that subject, I [illegible] your signature in the blank space which you indicated was left this for the purpose of inscribing a receipt for the Warrant in question.  On a moments reflection (?)
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I am sure it will readily occur to you that if any receipt I could write above your signature, would be competent, to the purpose of the public Record, the Established Regulation of Government in this respect, must be acknowledged to be founded in folly and must be deemed nugatory by those whose duty it is to see that official [illegible] is duly executed.  If a receipt of the description you propose was thought admissible, why not write it yourself.  Only leaving blank spaces for the number and date of the Warrant & in these times of mail robberies, this procedure would have been much safer than asking your signature on a piece of blank paper, which might have
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been used much to your disadvantage. If such a precedent as you seem to desire were once admitted our archives at this office might be soon inundated with flying scraps of Paper from all parts of the U. S. bearing the names of John -a- Nokes or Tom-a- Stiles or perhaps only their marks; but the real signature (real signature is underlined) of an original claimant (original Claimant is underlined)or of his authorized agent (agent is underlined)-would varily exhibit conclusive Evidence that the Executive officer of the United States and faithful guardians of the Public domain.  
    The satisfaction of Individuals and the safety of the Public Interest (public Interest is underlined) caused the adoption of the (illegible) rule- not to deliver the (illegible) Title of a Valuable Real Estate to any one but the proprietor of it or to his legal Attorney _ whose 
pretensions and
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and Credentials should be duly scrutinized a the Seat of Government and who should Subscribe a receipt upon the Record itself, (Receipt upon the Record itself is underlined) as an indubitable proof to After Ages that the Grant was duly made in presence of that Civic Officer whose duty it was to administer Equity (Equity is underlined) to the private Claimants and at the same time to take Special precaution that the Interest of the Community (Interest of the community is underlined) should suffer no injury.
After this ample explanation of the principles in which the regulation in question is founded I presume you will not deem it mere (illegible) on my part that a Rule so rational is rigidly adhere to in this office.
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an original claimant (original claimant is underlined) to whom a warrant is due, it is permitted then to obtain it during the Session of congress (during the Session of congress is underlined) without incurring the Expense and taking the trouble of executing a personal Power of Attorney; provided he is known to a Member of that honorable comp'y who will on behalf of one of his private Fellow Citizens take the trouble to conform to the rules in such case made and provided. (the rules in such case made and provided is underlined) In such a case, the original Claimant (original claimant is underlined) is only required to address a Letter of Order (Letter of Order is underlined) to the Secretary of War directing that the Warrant be delivered to the Hon ..... Senator or Representative in congress: (Senator or Representative in Congress is underlined) and the Courtesy (Courtesy is underlined0 sanctioned by long practise at the War Dept. attending the Warrant to be delivered to him on  (illegible)
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by subscribing a Receipt for it upon the Record_
The admission of such an Informal Credential (an informal credential is underlined) as that above cited, is grounded on a Double motive: First, a desire to facilitate the delivery of this gratuity to an old Soldier 
free of expense (free of expense is underlined)
Secondly, on a presumption that so dignified a character as an immediate Representative of the Sovereign People, (representative of the sovereign people is underlined) would not lend even the appearance of  his authority to sanction a spurious or surreptitious claim nor charge any Commission for transacting Such Business on behalf of a veteran who had deserved well of his Country (deserved well of his Country is underlined) but the same facility is not allowed (not allowed is underlined) through the intervention of a member of Congress
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during the Recess:- nor is it allowed at an time (at any time is underlined) to any private agent 
(private agent is underlined) or attorney (attorney is underlined) of the original Claimant (claimant is underlined) or by Himself: (by Himself is underlined) nor is it allowed at any time to any private agent or Attorney (nor is it allowed at any time to any private agent or attorney is crossed out) to (illegible) such agent be the Holder ( Holder is underlined) of the Claim by purchase, or only the temporary representative (temporary representative is underlined) of the soldier, (the soldier is underlined) he cannot be permitted to receive a warrant
 by delegating his authority to a member of Congress by a Letter of Order (Letter of Order is underlined) but must either attend personally at the War dept. to Sign the receipt or must substitute some other person in legal form (in legal form is underlined) for that purpose.   Persons employed in the offices of the Dept are prohibited from acting as an agent or attorney in any Claim against the 
(illegible)
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I have not timeto reply to the concluding paragraph of your letter now before me.
      The Postscript shall meet due attention.
            I remain very respectfully,
                 Dear Sir,
                Your  Obliged & Obt Servtl
                       Nat. Cutting

[written sidewise are the words:]

Samuel Blagge Esq
Aug 8,10
(illegible)
#925
(illegible)
recorded lot 4
folio 190
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Elias Haven
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This may certify that the name of Elias Haven is in the Regimental Book, of the 2'd Mass 'tt Reg't in the 3'd Company, and he enlisted for the War Jan'y 2'd 1780- And I also find by said Book, that he served in the War Eight years a& one Month, and was discharged, when the (illegible) of war Solders wore, with the two strips, or bage of mirret on their left arm. _
                                   Adams Bailey late
                                  a Capt in said Reg't.
U. S. Marine Hospital}
Charlestown, Mass'tt}
June 27, 1820
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   Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Suffolf Ss.  Boston June 28 1820   
Personally appeared before me Samuel Blagge Notary Public by legal authority appointed aforesaid County in BOSton aforesaid Adam Bailey late a Captain in the 2nd Massachusetts Regiment and made Oath to the truth of the annexed  Certificate by him (illegible)

In Testimony whereof I have hereto Set my hand & affixed my Seal of Office this day & year above written.
                 J. Blagge
                   Notary Public
[the image of an oblong octagonal shaped seal appears at the bottom left ]
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THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES Form VAM-51 12-5-41
BOUNTY LAND WARRANT RECORD CARD*
Division of Veterans' Administration Archives
NAME Haven, John GRADE Private LINE Massachusetts
WARRANT NUMBER 4329 ACREAGE 100 Dec. 13, 1796
to -not shown-
The information concerning the issuance of warrants carded on this form is found in volumes 2 to 4 of "Land Warrants Issued Prior to 1800" which are
registers of bounty land warrants issued to non-commissioned officers and privates under congressional resolutions of September 16, 1776, and subsequent
dates. Other records relative to the applications for warrants appear to have been destroyed in the War Department fire of November 9, 1800. Information concerning warrants surrendered to the Federal Government is to be found in General Land Office records in The National Archives.