ARNOLD, BENEDICT. 1741-1801.

ARNOLD, BENEDICT. 1741-1801.
Autograph Document Signed ("B. Arnold"), being a bookseller's receipt for Dr. John Dickinson, 1 p, 8vo (220 x 180 mm), New Haven, CT, February 1767, inscribed on the verso in a different hand "Benj. Arnold — Bill & Recipt [sic]." Fold creases, browning to edges, some offsetting of ink.

RARE ARNOLD AUTOGRAPH, FROM HIS DAYS AS A BOOKSELLER. Having apprenticed at an apothecary shop belonging to his cousins, Arnold established his own business in New Haven — a pharmacy and book shop — in 1762. After taking on a partner and putting his sister Hannah in charge of the business, he spent much of the following years traveling to the West Indies aboard his own merchant ships. The passing of the Sugar Act and Stamp Act in the 1760's impacted his business, leading him to join the revolutionary cause, at least for a time. Dr. John Dickinson (1739-1811) was a prominent physician in Middletown, Connecticut. His purchases include books on anatomy, surgery, and geography.