Hazens Regiment - John Nicholson Signed Certificate Paying Interest on Depreciation - Revolutionary War Period Pay Order

John Nicholson signs this early Receipt. Further research necessary on John Nicholson. Hazen's Regiment named after Colonel Moses Hazen.

John Nicholson, a Welsh-born American financier, government official, and real estate speculator, played a pivotal role in stabilizing early American infrastructure. Born in 1757, he immigrated to Philadelphia before the American Revolution and swiftly integrated into the state’s economic fabric. From 1782 to 1794, he served with distinction as the Comptroller General of Pennsylvania, a position that allowed him to manage state funds effectively and contribute to the Commonwealth’s financial stability during the challenging post-war era. Beyond his fiscal acumen, Nicholson was a prominent anti-Federalist pamphleteer and a dynamic publisher who used his public platform to passionately advocate for state sovereignty.

Despite his initial success, Nicholson’s career ultimately spiraled into one of the most remarkable financial collapses of the era. In the 1790s, he shifted his focus aggressively toward land speculation, co-founding substantial entities such as the Pennsylvania Population Company and the Asylum Land Company. Overextending himself, he acquired millions of acres across Pennsylvania, the western territories, and Washington, D.C. When the Panic of 1796–97 triggered a significant crash in the American real estate market, his ventures crumbled. Burdened with substantial private debts and vast sums owed to the state, he was incarcerated in a Philadelphia debtors’ prison. Tragically, he passed away on December 5, 1800, at the age of 43, leaving behind a staggering four-million-dollar deficit and a complex financial legacy.

On January 20, 1776, the Continental Congress authorized the formation of Hazen’s Regiment, officially designated as the 2nd Canadian Regiment. This unique and highly distinguished unit of the Continental Army was established during the American invasion of Canada. Colonel (later Brigadier General) Moses Hazen, a veteran of the French and Indian War who had settled in Quebec, took command of the regiment. Unlike standard regiments funded and supplied by individual states, Hazen’s Regiment was an “Extra Continental” regiment, directly answerable to Congress and earning the prestigious title “Congress’s Own.” Initially, the regiment’s ranks were filled by French- and British-Canadian volunteers and refugees who risked everything to support the Patriot cause. However, after the American retreat from Quebec, Congress allowed Hazen to recruit at-large across the American colonies. This decision transformed the regiment into a diverse, multilingual, and multiethnic microcosm of the broader revolutionary movement.

The regiment earned a reputation as one of the longest-serving and most effective fighting forces of the Revolutionary War, engaging in fierce battles across multiple theaters. Its troops displayed unwavering valor in crucial engagements, including the Battle of Staten Island, the Battle of Brandywine, and the Battle of Germantown during the 1777 Philadelphia campaign. Beyond major combat, the regiment performed essential logistical duties, such as guarding prisoners and constructing a military road in the Upper Connecticut River Valley. In 1781, after absorbing the remnants of the 1st Canadian Regiment, Hazen’s men marched south to participate in the decisive Siege of Yorktown, witnessing the ultimate British surrender. The regiment spent its final months monitoring British forces in New York until its formal disbandment on November 15, 1783, at West Point, solidifying its legacy in early American military history.

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