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William Barr Nash Cozens Papers
William Barr Nash Cozens was a Philadelphia merchant accused of defrauding the United States government in a contract to supply tents during the Civil War. Convicted in 1864, he allegedly supplied tents that were of poorer quality than was promised. The collection contains a detailed history of Coze...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Collection: | William Barr Nash Cozens Papers |
| Collection Number: | 1772 |
| Format: | Manuscript |
| Language: | English |
| Subjects: |
| Physical Description: |
0.2 Linear feet 0.2 linear feet, 1 box, 1 flat file, 1 volume |
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| Summary: |
William Barr Nash Cozens was a Philadelphia merchant accused of defrauding the United States government in a contract to supply tents during the Civil War. Convicted in 1864, he allegedly supplied tents that were of poorer quality than was promised. The collection contains a detailed history of Cozens' court martial and subsequent appeals and writings, and offers insights into the Union's supply contracts and the lucrative business that it became.
The papers deal with Cozen's arrest in 1864, trial, conviction, and fight for vindication, and includes affidavits in support of Cozens' case. Correspondence from Cozens' lawyer Jeremiah Sullivan Black, a copy of an 1867 letter from President Andrew Johnson disapproving of the court's conviction, some of Cozens' account sheets, petitions from other merchants seeking his vindication, and a memorandum book from 1864-1871 complete the collection. |