1756 Massachusetts Bay Colony Act for Two Armed Vessels to Guard the Coast. Printed broadside/leaf from the Acts and Laws passed by the Great and General Court of the Province of the Massachusetts-Bay in New-England, held at Boston beginning May 26, 1756. Chapter X: “An Act for providing and maintaining two armed Vessels to Guard the Coast, and for supplying the Treasury with Seven Thousand Pounds for that End.” Boston, N.E., 1756. Folio sheet.
An important French and Indian War–era legislative printing authorizing the outfitting of two armed provincial vessels to protect the Massachusetts coast and defend trade and fisheries during the ongoing war with France. The act raises £7,000 for the purpose and imposes duties on shipping and certain imported goods, reflecting the colony’s direct wartime mobilization under King George II. The heading bears the royal arms and the regnal year, firmly situating the document within the imperial framework while illustrating the growing administrative and military responsibilities assumed by the colony itself.
A strong example of mid-18th century Boston printing, with wide margins and clear impression. Light age toning and expected handling wear; housed in a later protective wrapper titled “ACTS for Two armed Vessels to Guard the Coast… Boston N.E. 1756.” A desirable piece of pre-Revolutionary Massachusetts legislation linking maritime defense, taxation, and colonial governance at the outset of the Seven Years’ War.
With One of a Kind Collectibles LOA.