Craig, Isaac (1741-1826) Letter Book, 1801-1811
Held by The Filson Historical Society
Creator: Isaac Craig, 1741-1826
Title: Letter book, 1801-1811
Rights: For information regarding literary and copyright interest for these papers, contact the Curator of Special Collections.
Size of Collection: 0.33 cubic feet
Locator Number: Mss. A/C886a
Scope and Content Note
Major Isaac Craig served as Deputy Quartermaster and Military Storekeeper while stationed at Fort Pitt, Pittsburgh, Pa. In 1792 he was directed to supervise the construction of Fort Lafayette (also known as Fayette) as a replacement for Fort Pitt which had fallen into disrepair. In 1801 he was appointed Army Paymaster at Fort Lafayette. The collection consists of a bound letter copybook containing approximately 300 letters written in Craig’s or unidentified clerks’ hands. Most of the letters in this collection concern duties related to his military appointments and describe the transfer of payments to army units in military posts on the western frontier, construction of artillery pieces, particularly gun carriages, and ships for navigating inland rivers as well as ocean-going vessels, and transportation of armaments and supplies to distant military posts. Several letters mention the arrival and departure of military and government officials, including Aaron Burr, James Wilkinson and Meriwether Lewis, and his repeated attempts to obtain payment for previous employment in the Quartermaster Department and personal debts owed him by various individuals. Craig also was co-owner of the first glass manufactory west of the Appalachians, located in Pittsburgh, and supervised the activities of tenant farmers on lands that he owned in western Pennsylvania. Several letters concern the day-to-day operation of his glassmaking and farming endeavors.
Biographical Note
Isaac Craig was born in 1741 near Hillsborough, Ireland, and immigrated to the United States as a young man in 1768. He settled in Philadelphia, Pa, eventually becoming a master carpenter. In 1775 he enlisted as a 1st Lt. in the Continental Marines, serving on the Andrew Doria in the West Indies. In 1776 his company was ordered to serve in the infantry and he participated in the crossing of the Delaware, capture of the Hessians at Trenton and the Battle of Princeton. In 1777 he was appointed Captain in the 4th Continental Artillery Regt., participating in the Battles of Brandywine and Germantown. He was stationed at Valley Forge during the winter of 1777-1778. In 1778, he was assigned to the military laboratory at Carlisle, Pa., to learn the art of preparing munitions. In 1780 he was ordered to Fort Pitt, Pittsburgh, Pa. He was to assist George Rogers Clark on his planned 1781 campaign against Detroit but that operation did not take place. He retired from active duty as a major in 1783. In 1784 Craig purchased land in Pittsburgh and started a mercantile business. In 1785 he married Amelia Neville, daughter of a Revolutionary War veteran, Gen. John Neville. They had 10 children. Craig was appointed a deputy Quartermaster General and military storekeeper in Pittsburgh in 1791, serving under Quartermaster General James O’Hara. That same year he supervised the dismantling of Fort Pitt and the construction of its replacement, Fort Lafayette. In 1794 he participated in suppressing the Whiskey Rebellion. Craig and O’Hara founded the first glassworks west of the Appalachians, Pittsburgh Glass Works, in 1797, producing window glass and bottles. In 1801, Craig was appointed paymaster at Fort Lafayette and collector of public revenues in western Pennsylvania. Craig purchased land in western Pennsylvania and employed several tenant farmers who worked the properties. Craig was elected and served as Chief Burgess of the Borough of Pittsburgh from 1802–1803. He died on May 14, 1826, on Montour’s Island, in the Ohio River near Pittsburgh. His original resting place is not known but his remains were reinterred in Pittsburgh’s historic Allegheny Cemetery on October 24, 1902.
Subject Headings
Adams, John, 1735-1826
Agriculture – Pennsylvania
Burr, Aaron, 1756-1836
College of New Jersey (Princeton, N.J.)
Dearborn, Henry, 1751-1829
Distilling Industries – United States
Farm tenancy – Pennsylvania
Fort Adams (Miss.)
Fort Lafayette (Pa.)
Fort Pitt (Pa.)
Fort Presque Isle (Pa.)
Fugitive Slaves – United States
Glass manufacture – Pennsylvania
Hamtramck, John Francis, 1756-1803
Hodgdon, Samuel, 1745-1824
Indians of North America
Indians of North America – Commerce
Indians of North America – Government relations – 1789-1869
Industries – Pennsylvania – 19th century
Iron-works – Pennsylvania
Irvine, William, 1741-1804
Jefferson, Thomas, 1743-1826
Land grants – United States
Land use – Pennsylvania
Lewis, Meriwether, 1774-1809
Little Turtle, 1747?-1812
Lottery Tickets – Pennsylvania
Louisiana Purchase
McKean, Thomas, 1734-1817
Mental Illness – Treatment – Pennsylvania
Military offences – United States
Morrison, James, 1755-1823
Moore, James Francis, 1751-1809
Natchez (Miss.) – History
Neville, Presley, 1755-1818
Neville, John, 1731-1803 – Estate
New Orleans (La.) – History
O’Hara, James, 1752-1819
Old Fort Niagara (N.Y.)
Ordnance – Manufacture
Patterson, Robert, 1743-1824
Pennsylvania – History – 19th century
Pennsylvania – Politics and government – 19th century
Pennsylvania Hospital (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Pickering, Timothy, 1845-1829
Pittsburgh (Pa.) – Description and travel
Pittsburgh (Pa.) – History – 19th century
Pittsburgh (Pa.) – History, Military – 19th century
Presidents – United States – Election – 1800
Princeton University
Republican Party (U.S.: 1792-1828)
Rush, Benjamin, 1746-1813
Shipbuilding – Pennsylvania
Simmons, William, ca. 1759-1825
Slaveholders – United States
Slavery – United States
Slaves – United States
Stricker, George, 1732-1810
Swan, Caleb, 1758- 1809
Tenant farmers – Pennsylvania
Tornadoes – Illinois
Union Iron Works
United States – Commerce
United States – Foreign relations – 1783-1815
United States – Politics and government – 1801-1809
United States. Army – Artillery
United States. Army – Military pay, allowances
United States. Army – Supplies and stores
United States. Army – Transportation
Wilkinson, James, 1757-1825
Women – Mental health – Pennsylvania