Sold – Washington Signs a Discharge For a Soldier Who Was With Him at Valley Forge

The 2nd Connecticut Regiment was loosely organized in 1775, when it was raised by Col. Joseph Spencer after the battles at Lexington and Concord.  In 1776, under Samuel Willys, it saw action in White Plains and Long Island, and the next year at Whitemarsh.  In 1777, the regiment was formalized under Col. Charles Webb.  It saw action in the New York Campaign, and starting in 1777 at the Battle of Brandywine, the Battle of Germantown and the Battle of Monmouth.  It was with Washington at the Winter Encampment of Valley Forge, and it continued to serve with him right through the Yorktown Campaign. It was present at Cornwallis’ surrender.

Corporal Thomas Hall joined the 2nd Connecticut in 1777 under Col. Webb and was furloughed in June 1783, meaning he had been with the regiment for 6 years and had participated in many of the great incidents of the war. We obtained this document recently from his direct descendant, and has never before been offered for sale.

Document Signed, Head-Quarters, June 9, 1783, being his discharge. It states: “By His Excellency George Washington, Esq; General and Commander in Chief of the Forces of the United States of America.  These are to Certify that the Bearer hereof Thomas Hall Corporal, in the 2nd Connecticut Regiment, having faithfully served the United States from June 1777 to 10 June 1783 being inlisted for the War only, is hereby Discharged from the American Army.” It is also endorsed by Washington’s aide, Jonathan Trumbull, and includes a statement that Hall has been honored with the Badge of Merit for his six years of “faithful service.”

The Badge of Military Merit is considered the first military award of the United States Armed Forces.  It is also signed by George Curtiss, the adjutant and by Col. Herman Swift, who commanded the regiment and was also with Washington during the Winter at Valley Forge. 

The story is that Washington signed these discharges himself (unlike Lincoln who used a form with a printed signature) because he wanted each soldier of the Continental Army to know that he was personally grateful for his service. Many of the discharged soldiers carried these precious discharges around with them, and those that reach the market are generally in awful condition. This is a particularly nice one.