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Special Collections Research Center
William & Mary Special Collections Research CenterEarl Gregg Swem Library
400 Landrum Dr
Williamsburg, Virginia
Business Number: 757-221-3090
spcoll@wm.edu
URL: https://libraries.wm.edu/libraries-spaces/special-collections
SCRC Staff
Administrative Information
Conditions Governing Use
Before reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.
Conditions Governing Access
The course work material in this collection contains grade reports which were restricted until May 2014. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility.
Preferred Citation
Page Family Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Sotheby's Auction
Acquisition Method:
Purchase, Mss. Acc. 1993.40, 1 item.
Purchase, Mss. Acc. 1994.37 (Mss94 P14), 7 items.
Purchase, Mss. Acc. 1999.10, 1 item.
Purchase, Mss. Acc. 2000.21, 1 item
Purchase, Mss. Acc. 2001.06B, 1 item
Processing Information
Processing Information: Processed by Ellen Strong in 1995 and 2003.
Finding Aid Revision History: Anne Johnson in 2009 and updated in 2011.
Other Note: A PDF document of this inventory is available for Mss. 94 P14 and 1999.10.
Biographical / Historical
John Page (April 17, 1744 - October 11, 1808) was a figure in early United States history. He served in the U.S. Congress and as Governor of Virginia.
Page was born and lived at Rosewell Plantation in Gloucester County. His great grandfather was Colonel John Page (1628-1692), an English merchant from Middlesex who emigrated to Virginia with his wife Alice Lucken Page and settled in Middle Plantation. He was the brother of Mann Page III.
John Page was graduated from the College of William and Mary in 1763, where he was a friend and the closest college classmate of Thomas Jefferson, having exchanged a great deal of correspondence. He then served under George Washington in an expedition during the French and Indian War. He was a delegate to the state constitutional convention in 1776. He also served during the American Revolutionary War as an officer in the Virginia state militia, raising a regiment from Gloucester County and supplementing it with personal funds. During that war, he attained the rank of colonel.
Page was also involved in politics. He became the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia and served 1776-1779. He was then a member of the Virginia House of Delegates 1781-1783 and 1785-1788. Page was elected to the First United States Congress and reelected to the Second and Third, and to the Fourth as a Republican. Overall, he was Congressman from March 4, 1789 to March 3, 1797.
After his terms in Congress, he was again a member of the Virginia House of Delegates in 1797, 1798, 1800, and 1801. He became the Governor of Virginia in 1802 and served to 1805. After being governor, he was appointed United States commissioner of loans for Virginia and held office until his death in Richmond, Virginia on October 11, 1808.
He was interred in St. John's Churchyard in Richmond.
Scope and Contents
Correspondence (11 letters) of members of the John Page (1744-1808) family of "Rosewell," Gloucester County, Va. regarding local, national, and international politics, the American Revolution, family news (Lowther and Page families), the semaphore, and fashion. Correspondents include Mann Page, Jr., Margaret (Lowther) Page, John Page, St. George Tucker, Stevens Thomson Mason, David Meade Randolph, Henry Tazewell, Philip (Filippo) Mazzei and George Weedon. Subjects also include John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Burgoyne, Viscount Howe, George and Martha Washington, Alexander Hamilton and Edmund Pendleton.
Related Material
See also; Mss. Sm Coll Page: John Page Letter to James Madison; Msv Me4: John Page Memorandum book, 1762-1797, 39.2 V81go Virginia Governor's Papers, Mss. 1996.56 Kentucky-Virginia Boundary Settlement Collection and the John Page Poem "What Muse Can Dictate", all at Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
- Adams, John, 1735-1826
- Fashion -- History
- Gloucester County (Va.)--History
- Hamilton, Alexander, Jr., 1816-1889
- Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826
- Page family
- United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783
- Washington, George, 1732-1799
- Washington, Martha, 1731-1802
Significant Persons Associated With the Collection
- Adams, John, 1735-1826
- Hamilton, Alexander, Jr., 1816-1889
- Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826
- Mason, Stevens Thomson, 1760-1803
- Mazzei, Filippo, 1730-1816
- Page, Mann, 1749-1781
- Tucker, St. George, 1752-1827
- Washington, George, 1732-1799
- Washington, Martha, 1731-1802
Container List
Seven letters related to Page family members, which came down through the Page family. Includes letter by St. George Tucker, 18 Dec. 1794 (telegraph), two letters by Margaret Lowther Page, 16 Feb. 1793 & 22 Jan. 1795 and Mann Page 9 June 1777.
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 19 Item: 1
Item 1: Mann Page, Jr, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to his brother John Page, Williamsburg, Virginia1777 June 9Scope and Contents
Letter, Mann Page, Jr, Philadelphia, to his brother John Page, Williamsburg, VA, June 9, 1777. Agrees with his (JP) remarks that removal from public office [Congress] is no disgrace provided no reflections were thrown on the character of the person removed. More detail on the other items can be found in the the PDF Inventory.
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 1 Item: 2
Item 2: Margaret Page to John Page1793 February 16
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 1 Item: 3
Item 3: St. George Tucker to John Page1794 December 18
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 1 Item: 4
Item 4: Margaret Page to sister1795 January 22
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 1 Item: 5
Item 5: Steven Mason to [John Page?]1801 March 7
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 1 Item: 6
Item 6: John Page to Mr. Stuart1803 October 26
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 1 Item: 7
Item 7: David Meade Randolph1822 October 1
Four letter (additions to Mss94 P14) written by John Page.
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 2 Item: 8
Item 8 (Acc. 1993.40): John Page to Henry Tazewell1798 June 11Scope and Contents
(Addition, Mss. Acc. 1993.40): Concerns Republicanism versus Federalism; Alexander Hamilton's ambitions; and whether or not Page would run again for Congress.
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 2 Item: 9
Item 9 (Acc. 1999.10): John Page to General George Weedon, Williamsburg, Virginia1777 November 7Scope and Contents
(Addition, Mss. Acc. 1999.10) ALS of John Page to General George Weedon, Williamsburg, 7 Nov. 1777 regarding military matters of the Revolution including forts on the Delaware; Cornwallis assaulting Fort Mifflin; mention of Howe, Burgoyne; Pearce's letter was foolish; queries Rowland's rifle scheme; "fine figure" Burgoyne and his troops will "cut in England".
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 2 Item: 10
Item 10 (Acc. 2000.21): John Page, Richmond, Virginia to "Dear Sir"1804 May 24Scope and Contents
(Addition, Mss. Acc. 2000.21) Letter, 24 May 1804, of John Page, Richmond, Va. to "Dear Sir". Explains why he never repaid a debt of one hundred dollars plus interest to recipient's father who has since died; sends payment of one hundred and forty four dollars. 1 p. ALS.
- Mixed Materials Manuscripts Oversize Box 10 Oversize_Folder: 2 Item: 11
Item 11 (Acc. 2001.06B): John Page, New York, N.Y., to Philip Mazzei, Paris, France1789 April 8Scope and Contents
(Addition, Mss. Acc. 2001.06B) Letter, 8 April 1789, of John Page, New York City, to Philip Mazzei, Paris, France. Expresses renewed friendship with Mazzei; laments the loss of his wife two years before; thanks God for his children who resemble their mother; remarks on Mazzei's "Recherches sur Etats Unis" even though he dissapproved of the new government; congratulates Mazzei on his new appointment and asks him to give his love to Mr. Jefferson. 1 p. ALS. Note: Endorsement on verso shows Jefferson forwarded Page's letter to Mazzei. See Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, 18 June 1789, in Julian P. Boyd, ed. "The Papers of Thomas Jefferson" XV, 195.