Thomas Penn, Son of William and Proprietor of Pennsylvania, Cites the Great Government Changes in the Immediate Aftermath of the Stamp Act Repeal

He works to reward renowned Indian agent William Johnson with the King’s permission to occupy land given Johnson by the Mohawk Tribe in 1760

William Johnson emigrated to America from Ireland in the 1740s to help oversee his uncle’s business affairs but soon started his own trading business, allowing him frequent contact with the native populations. In particular, he would trade with the Six Nations, among them Mohawks, among whom he found his second wife.

In 1744, King George’s War spread to the colonies. This was the American phase of the War of the Austrian Succession, and was the third and inconclusive struggle between France and Great Britain for mastery of the North American continent. There were continual disagreements over the boundaries of Acadia (Nova Scotia) and northern New England as well as the Ohio Valley. The war was characterized by bloody border raids by both sides with the aid of their Indian allies.

Because of his relations with the native tribes, particularly the Mohawk, Johnson was appointed New York’s agent to the Iroquois, and was put into the newly created position of “Colonel of the Warriors of the Six Nations,” enlisting and equipping colonists and natives for the campaign against the French. He was successful and adopted native tactics, paying bounties for the taking of scalps.

During this time, George Clinton was the colonial Governor of New York and an ally of Johnson.

Johnson would go on to serve as Indian agent during the French and Indian war as well and was even commissioned a Major General to lead an expedition against the French, in spite of having no military experience. His skill was critical in calming tensions.

After the French and Indian War, Johnson hoped to concentrate on expanding and improving his land holdings. In December 1760, the Mohawk of Canajoharie gave Johnson a tract of about 100,000 acres, However, Johnson did not learn of this until 1764. And the King and Lords of Trade held up Johnson’s possession of it, in spite of his having spent over a thousand pounds to the natives.

In the interim was fought Pontiac’s War (also known as Pontiac’s Conspiracy or Pontiac’s Rebellion), launched in 1763 by a loose confederation of Native Americans dissatisfied with British rule in the Great Lakes region following the French and Indian War. Here too Johnson played a key role in the negotiation of peace. Peace was reached on July 25, 1766 and Johnson was central and present.

The Stamp Act was passed on March 22, 1765, leading to an uproar in the colonies over an issue that was to be a major cause of the Revolution: taxation without representation. Enacted in November 1765, the controversial act forced colonists to buy a British stamp for every official document they obtained. This law was repealed in March of 1766. In July, Lord Shelburne was appointed as Southern Secretary for the colonies, a position which he held for two years. He set out to create a more conciliatory position toward the colonies and to devolve Indian relations to the control of the colonies. Needless to say he did not last long. During this time, he worked with Johnson and Benjamin Franklin to consider settlement plans in the Illinois Country.

Thomas Penn was the proprietor of Pennsylvania, though his nephew, John Penn, ran it after Thomas’s removal to London, where he worked alongside the Lords of the trade. In this capacity, he sought to secure the land of Britain’s indian agent, acquired from the Mohawk tribes.

Letter signed, Thomas Penn, London, November 8, 1766, to William Johnson in New York. “Dear Sir, I was on Friday at the Board of Trade, where the Lords desirous to finish your affairs about the land but could not do it for want of the draft of it. I saw your son afterwards who has from you an extract of the Indian Deed, with a rough sketch of the land upon it, which I m afraid to venture upon, lest it should do you an Injury; As I found the Lords ready to grant any quantity to one hundred thousand acres, if your purchase was for so much, pray send it me as soon as possible. I as much wish to finish it, as you can to have it done, and I wrote to you in August to send a copy of the bounds in order to the grant.

“There never were so many changes in administration, on which account we should not wonder at business being postponed, but every one being sensible to your merit; and Mylord Shelburne told me with a great deal of pleasure that he had appointed some friend of yours Clerk of the Court Albany. I cannot add more than that. I am with a most sincere regard, Your most faithful humble servant, Tho. Penn.”