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JOHN ADAMS DIX, 1815 Signed Document

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1815 Artillery Detachment At "Fort Constitution"

JOHN ADAMS DIX, Civil War General, U.S. Senator, Secretary of the Treasury, famous for his order to Treasury officials: "If any one attempts to haul down the American flag, shoot him on the spot."
November 11, 1815, Manuscript Document Signed, "John A. Dix - Lt. Adjt. Corps of Artillery," measuring 4" x 8", Choice Very Fine. Aside from rough edges and light folds, this piece is in excellent condition, without holes or tears. In this document, dated at "Fort Constitution," Lt. Dix writes:
"This is to certify the Capt. Moses Moody has landed at this post a detachment consisting of one Sergeant, five Privates, under the Command of Lt. Gen. M. Gardner, Corps of Artillery, and one Woman."
In 1791, the State of New Hampshire gave the United States the neck of land on which Fort William and Mary and a lighthouse were situated. The fort was repaired, renamed Fort Constitution and garrisoned with a company of United States artillery. Renovations, which included a wall twice as high as that of the colonial fort and new brick buildings, were completed in 1808. It is the ruins of this fort that are seen today. A very rare, early document from the long career of General John Adams Dix.

John Adams Dix (1798-1879), born New Hampshire, was a military and political figure during most of the 19th century. In December 1812, he was appointed cadet, and going to Baltimore aided his father, Major Timothy Dix of the 14th U.S. Infantry, and also studied at, St. Mary's College. He was made Ensign in 1813, and accompanied his regiment, taking part in the operations on the Canadian frontier. Subsequently he served in the 21st infantry at Fort Constitution, New Hampshire, where he became 2nd Lieutenant in March 1814, was adjutant to Colonel John De B. Walback, and in August was transferred to the 3d artillery. In 1819 he was appointed aide-de-camp to General Jacob Brown, then in command of the Northern military department, and stationed at Brownsville, where he studied law, and later, under the guidance of William West, was admitted to the bar. During 1845-1849 he served as United States Senator for New York. Early in 1861 he was appointed Secretary of the Treasury by outgoing president Buchanan. At the outbreak of the Civil War, he sent a telegram to the Treasury agents in New Orleans ordering that: "If any one attempts to haul down the American flag, shoot him on the spot." Although the telegram was intercepted by Confederates, and was never delivered to the Treasury agents, the text found its way to the press, and Dix became one of the first heroes of the North during the Civil War. The saying is found on many Civil War tokens minted during the war, although the wording is slightly modified. During the American Civil War, as a Major General in the Union Army, he commanded the Department of Virginia from June 1862 until July 1863, and the Department of the East from July 1863 until April 1865. He served as the Governor of New York in his 70's (one of the oldest governors of New York) from January 1873 to December 1874, but was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in November 1874.

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