Letter Books : 1786-1812.

            Richard Cartwright, Jr. was born in Albany, New York, the son of a well-to-do family who could provide him with an excellent education.  During the American Revolution he was secretary to John Butler, the Colonel of Butler's Rangers, which was based at Fort Niagara. He left the military in 1780 and entered a partnership with Robert Hamilton, and with the help of their principal suppliers, James McGill and Isaac Todd of Montreal, formed a partnership with John Askin of Detroit. Much of the business correspondence in the Cartwright material includes these gentlemen. In 1784 the partnership with Askin was terminated and Cartwright established a lucrative business in Cataraqui (renamed Kingston), supplying the British garrisons in Upper Canada.  His business interests were many and varied, and he became a successful entrepreneur.   In 1788 he was appointed a judge of the Court of Common Pleas, served on the Court of General Sessions of the Peace, and was a member of the Mecklenburg Land Board.   In 1792 he was named to the Legislative Council.              

            Reel 1 contains business correspondence, 23 August 1793 - 31 December 1796.
 Reel 2 includes typescript copies of business correspondence bound together as follows:
Volume III (part), business correspondence, 18 January 1786 - 2 March 1799;
Volume IV, correspondence, 18 March 1809 - 26 February 1812;
Volume V, business correspondence, 25 April 1799 - 24 August 1802.             

            An inventory description and table of contents are found at the beginning of Volume III and Volume IV.
 A nominal index is located at the beginning of Volume V.
 The inventory description, table of contents and microfilm shelf list are available in print.