Guide to the Papers of William Paterson 1745-1883 MG 42

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Descriptive Summary
Biographical Note
Scope and Content Note
Arrangement
Restrictions
Access Points
Related Material
Administrative Information

Container List

Correspondence

Financial and Legal Documents

Guide to the Papers of William Paterson
1745-1883
MG 42
The New Jersey Historical Society
52 Park Place
Newark, New Jersey 07102
Contact: NJHS Library
(973) 596-8500 x249
library@jerseyhistory.org
https://www.jerseyhistory.org
© 2004 All rights reserved.
The New Jersey Historical Society, Publisher
Inventory prepared by Althea E. Bernheim as part of the “Farm to City” project funded by a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.

Finding aid encoded by Danielle Kovacs. October 2003. Production of the EAD 2002 version of this finding aid was made possible by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Finding aid written in English.


Descriptive Summary

Creator: William Paterson
Title: William Paterson Papers
Dates: 1745-1883
Abstract: These papers document the personal, legal, and business dealings of William Paterson (1745-1806) and span the years of 1745-1883.
Quantity: 0.10 linear feet (15 items)
Collection Number: MG 42

Biographical Note

Born in Ireland in 1745, William Paterson’s parents brought him to America a few years later. There he grew up in Princeton and attended the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University). He was admitted to the New Jersey Bar in 1769 and went into private practice in Raritan, New Jersey.

He later served as secretary to New Jersey’s Provincial Congress before being named Attorney General in 1776, a position to which he served until 1783. Between 1780 and 1781 he served as a member of the Continental Congress. He was elected to the U.S. Senate from 1789-1790 and then became Governor of New Jersey until 1793. In 1793 he was appointed Justice of the United States Supreme Court until his death in 1806.

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Scope and Content Note

These papers document the personal, legal, and business dealings of William Paterson (1745-1806) and span the years of 1745-1883. They consist mainly of documents authored by William Paterson primarily during the period in which he served as Attorney General and U.S. Senator. None of these records reflects Paterson’s time spent as a U.S. Supreme Court Justice. The bulk of materials contain letters and legal documents.

Correspondence and court documents include the following individuals: John Beach, Theodore
Elmer, Frederick Frelinghuysen, Jesse Hand, Rev. Jacob R. Hardenburgh, John Logan, James Mott, John Neilson, Abraham Ogden, Cornelia Paterson (both wife and daughter), France Paterson, Edward Price, Jonathan Stiles, Cornelius Wyckoff, Elizabeth Wyckoff, Jacob Wyckoff, John Wyckoff, Lena Wyckoff, Maria Wyckoff, Peter Wyckoff, and Simon Wyckoff.

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Arrangement

This collection is arranged by type of material and then chronologically within each folder.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

There are no access restrictions on this collection.

Photocopying of materials is limited and no materials may be photocopied without permission from library staff.

Use Restrictions

Researchers wishing to publish, reproduce, or reprint materials from this collection must obtain permission.

The New Jersey Historical Society complies with the copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code), which governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions and protects unpublished materials as well as published materials.

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Access Points

The entries below represent persons, organizations, topics, forms, and occupations documented in this collection.
Subject Names:
Beach, John.
Elmer, Theodore.
Frelinghuysen, Frederick, 1753-1804.
Hand, Jesse.
Hardenburgh, Jacob R., Rev.
Logan, John.
Mott, James, 1739-1823.
Neilson, John, 1745-1833.
Ogden, Abraham, 1743-1798.
Paterson, Cornelia, 1755-1783.
Paterson, Cornelia, 1780-1844.
Paterson, Frances, 1782-1783.
Paterson, William, 1745-1806.
Paterson family.
Price, Edward.
Stiles, Jonathan.
Wyckoff, Cornelius.
Wyckoff, Elizabeth.
Wyckoff, Jacob.
Wyckoff, John.
Wyckoff, Lena.
Wyckoff, Maria.
Wyckoff, Peter, 1741-1803.
Wyckoff, Simon.
Subject Organizations:
Common Council of New Brunswick.
United States. Supreme Court.
Subject Topics:
Practice of law–New Jersey–New Brunswick.
Subject Places:
New Jersey–History–Revolution, 1775-1783.
New Jersey–Politics and Government–1775-1865.
New Jersey–Politics and Government–To 1775.
United States–Politics and Government–1783-1809.
Document Types:
Account books–New Jersey.
Briefs (legal documents)–New Jersey.
Subject Occupations
Governors–New Jersey.
Judges–United States.
Lawyers–New Jersey–New Brunswick.
Legislators–United States.

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Related Material

This is a selective list of related collections at the New Jersey Historical Society.

Manuscript Group 18, Parker Family Papers

         Includes documents and correspondence of Paterson’s Land, 1738-1792.

Manuscript Group 23, William Nelson Collection

         Includes correspondence and other items of William Paterson, July 1779.

Manuscript Group 45, Andrew Bell Papers

         Includes receipts documenting the Paterson family.

Manuscript Group 46, New Jersey Legislature Minute Book

         Includes minutes of the Committee of Safety and Provincial Congress, 1776, kept by William Paterson, 1745-1806.

Manuscript Group 542, William Paterson

Docket kept by Paterson between the April court term, 1785, and the September term, 1788, as a private lawyer in New Brunswick.

Manuscript Group 718, William Paterson (1817-1899) Papers

The papers of the grandson of William Paterson: includes an incomplete manuscript biography of his grandfather and transcriptions of letters written by William Paterson, 1745-1806, including letters to Aaron Burr, 1756-1836.
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Administrative Information

Custodial History

The source of this collection is unknown.

Preferred Citation

This collection should be cited as: Manuscript Group 42, William Paterson Papers, The New Jersey Historical Society.

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Container List

Correspondence

Box Folder Title Date
1 1 Outgoing letter: William Paterson, et al to Provincial Congress 1776 Jan 25
1 2 Outgoing letter: William Paterson to Morris 1784 Feb 28
1 3 Outgoing letter: William Paterson to Morris 1784 Mar 8
Box Folder Title Date
DOS 1 Outgoing letter: William Paterson to Abraham Ogden 1784
1 4 Incoming letter: Common Council of New Brunswick to William Paterson 1790 Nov 1
1 5 Outgoing letter: William Paterson to Livingston 1790 Dec 21
1 6 Outgoing letter: William Paterson to James Mott 1792 July 24
1 7 Outgoing letter: Account of guilty plea written by William Paterson 1779 July

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Financial and Legal Documents

Box Folder Title Date
1 8 Legal Documents: Opinion (Brief) written by William Paterson 1782 May
Box Folder Title Date
DOS 2 Legal Documents: Opinion (Brief) on the will of Peter Wychoff written by William Paterson 1785 Feb 9
1 9 Legal Documents: Opinions (Briefs) written by William Paterson 1789 Mar 16
1 10 Receipt certifying Frederick Frelinghuysen’s attendance at a convention. Signed by Theodore Elmer and William Paterson 1776 Aug 21
1 11 Receipt certifying Jacob R. Hardenburgh’s attendance at a convention. Signed by Elmer, Theodore Elmer and William Paterson 1776 Aug 21
1 12 Record book with expenditures from 1777-1779 [in French] and birth, death, and marriage records of the Paterson family 1777-1833

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