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This collection contains papers relating to the Duane family and families related to the Duane family. The majority of the collection concerns the papers of James Duane, a prominent New York lawyer, patriot, and land developer. There are also a substantial number of papers relating to Duane's son, James Chatham Duane, a lawyer of Duanesburg and Schenectady, and of his son-in-law George William Featherstonhaugh. The collection also includes a substantial number of papers, largely correspondence, relating to other Duane family members, predominantly William North Duane Jr., great-great-grandson of James Duane, his mother Anne Dalliba Duane, and others. ; James Duane (1733-1797) also known as James the Jurist, was the son of Irishman Anthony Duane, who came to New York as an officer in the British Navy in 1698. After his father's death (ca. 1734), Duane became the ward of Robert Livingston. Duane fell in love with and married Livingston's daughter Mary in 1759. He took the bar and made a number of profitable real estate investments and was a prominent lawyer by the time of the American Revolution. He was a member of the Revolutionary Committee of New York, the Continental Congress, and was one of the signers of the Articles of Confederation. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention, served as mayor of the city of New York from 1794-1789, and as a U.S. District judge from 1789-1794. James Chatham Duane (1770-1842), son of James Duane, was a lawyer in Schenectady, New York. He married Marianne Bowers, daughter of Henry Bowers of New York City. Duane spent his life working on the development of the Duane estate at Duanesburg, both political changes, industrial unrest, financial panics, and anti-rent riots combined to decrease his holdings drastically.

Text in English and French on opposite pages. ; Marginal notes. ; Added t.p. in French: Statut provincial du Bas-Canada. ; Electronic reproduction. ; Mode of access: Internet. ; 44

Text in English and French, on opposite pages. ; Signed: J. Sewell, His Majesty's Attorney General of and for the province of Lower-Canada. ; Added t.p. in French: Extrait des parties les plus essentielles d'un acte du Parlement provincial du Bas-Canada. ; Electronic reproduction. ; Mode of access: Internet. ; 44

Text in French and English on opposite pages. ; Signed: J. Sewell, His Majesty's Attorney General of and for the Province of Lower-Canada. ; Added t.p. in French: Extrait des parties les plus essentielles d'un acte du Parlement provincial du Bas-Canada. ; Electronic reproduction. ; Mode of access: Internet. ; 44

Text in English and French, on opposite pages. ; Signed: J. Sewell, His Majesty's attorney general of and for the province of Lower-Canada. ; Added t.p. in French: Extrait des points les plus essentiels d'un acte de Parlement provincial du Bas-Canada. ; Electronic reproduction. ; Mode of access: Internet. ; 44

Text in English and French on opposite pages. ; Added t.p. in French: Loix du Bas-Canada, sous la constitution érigée le 26 décembre Anno Domini 1791, en consequence d'un acte du Parlement. ; Electronic reproduction. ; Mode of access: Internet. ; 44

Composed in the twelfth century by the leading Muslim jurist Burhan al-Din al-Marghinani (1135–97), the original Arabic al-Hidāyah remains a central text of Islamic personal law. This English translation, from a Persian version of the work, was prepared by the orientalist Charles Hamilton (c.1752–92) for the East India Company in 1791. Although since superseded, it remains a fascinating document in the history of colonial jurisprudence. The legal system was central to the entrenchment of British rule in India, providing the framework for active control of civil administration and the courts. Translations of Islamic texts were intended to remove the language barrier for colonial officials, and blurred British and native law for the first time. Hamilton's text is one such, and its dedication to Warren Hastings and lengthy preliminary section outline its purpose and composition. Volume 1 contains sections on zakat (alms), marriage, fosterage, divorce, slavery, and vows

This work by the anti-slavery campaigner Granville Sharp (1735–1813) brings together legal and historical documents, as well as the author's own legal arguments, demonstrating that slavery was illegal and therefore could not be upheld in England. Furthering his own intellectual development while working for a linen draper, Sharp later became a government clerk and pursued a writing career. His awakening to the horrors of the slave trade resulted from a chance encounter with an injured slave seeking help from his physician brother. Carrying out the necessary legal research, Sharp published this book in 1769 to demonstrate that slavery has no basis in English law. In 1772, the landmark case of James Somerset was brought before Lord Mansfield, who upheld Sharp's contention: as a result, it was henceforth understood that any slave reaching the shores of England became free. Sharp's memoirs of his life are also reissued in this series

The full title of this legal document is [Acknowledgement and approval of the probate of the will of William Hedges, deceased, of East Hampton Township, N.Y., made by Suffolk County N.Y.Surrogate [Justice] Maltby Gelston on January 14, 1771, by the New York Colony Prerogative Court on behalf of "the Right Honorable John Earl of Dunmore, Captain General and Governor in Chief in and over the Province of New York and the Territories depending thereon in America, Chancellor and Vice Admiral of the same" recorded in New York City by Surrogate (Justice) Goldsbrow Banyar, May 23, 1771.