ISAAC & REYNA MOSES FAMILY; ISAAC MOSES & SONS. ISAAC MOSES INDENTURE SIGNED BY HIS HEIRS, 2 NOVEMBER 1818

Bifolium (16 1/2 x 10 3/8 in.; 418 x 264 mm). 4 pp., horizontal and vertical folds with repairs at creases, occasional foxing and soiling. Signed and sealed by Solomon Moses, Rachel Gratz, Aaron Levy, Richea Moses, David Moses, Joshua Moses, Sarah Rodriguez Brandon, Hayman Levy Moses, Rebecca Moses, Lavinia Moses, Isaac Lopez Brandon, Sarah Moses; witnessed by Charles W. Sandford and Isaac H. Levy.

An ensemble of signatures from one of the most prominent of Early American Jewish families. Isaac Moses (1742-1818), a prominent and wealthy merchant shipper and privateer who not only served in the Revolutionary army, but also provided the Revolutionary forces with money and materials. On October 22, 1766, he became a freeman in New York City. He was among those who established the Bank of New York. In 1775 Moses was president (parnas) of Congregation Shearith Israel in New York City, and was one of the chief organizers and the first president of Mikveh Israel in Philadelphia. He was also an active Mason and an important member of the New York City Chamber of Commerce. In 1770, he married Reyna Levy (1753-1824). He was interested in several privateers, two of which he owned with Robert Morris. Despite a bankruptcy in 1786, he was generally financially successful, establishing Isaac Moses & Sons, an international commercial house. (Rosenbloom; ANB; Stern)

The Indenture is between eldest son Moses Levy Moses (1773-1843) and his eight siblings (and two of their spouses) and discusses various properties in NY State (including Oswego Co.); in Manhattan: plots on Greenwich, Liberty, & Wall Streets, mentioning the Tontine Coffee House as a landmark, and a parcel between Greenwich Lane, Bank Street, Hammond Street, and Catharine Street. The Moses, Levy, Gratz, and allied families are all well represented in Isaac Moses & Reyna (Levy) Moses’s children and their spouses who sign on page 3, with direct connections to New York City, Philadelphia, London, and Barbados.