British troops invaded a nearly empty Capital city on August 24, 1814 during the War of 1812. Prior to the invasion clerks in the House of Representatives were frantically trying to find carts and oxen to evacuate the records of Congress safely out of the city. This letter, sent to the Clerk of the House on September 15, chronicles the actions of the two men left in the Clerk’s office who were in charge of removing as many records as possible. The clerks were only able to get one cart of manuscripts and papers out of the office before the Capitol went up in flames. Among the items lost were committee manuscripts from the 13th Congress, the secret journal of Congress, petitions submitted to Congress before 1799, and the private accounts and vouchers of the Clerk of the House. The Clerk forwarded this letter to the Speaker of the House on September 20 asking for a committee to be created to handle the investigation of the burning of the Capitol.

Letter to Patrick Magruder, Clerk of the House, 9/15/1814, HR 13A-D15.2, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives

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