1776 Certificate Regarding the Ship Alfred. Manuscript document unsigned, 3 x 7½ in. Philadelphia, Aug. 13, 1776. Certifying that John Ouldam "Enter'd on board the Ship Alfred as Ship's Barber and I understood him to be a Servant to Mr. Wm. Hardy of Philadelphia." On April 6, 1776, the 30-gun Alfred was part of an American fleet returning from a raid on Nassau when it encountered the British sloop H.M.S. Glasgow off Block Island, Rhode Island and was badly damaged, along with several other American ships--a poor showing for the fledgling American Navy. A rare document regarding one of the first ships in the American Navy.
Estimated Value $1,200 - 1,500.
U.S. Revolutionary War
