[BURR, AARON]. NICHOLSON, John (? - 1800). Land Speculator. Partly printed document signed ("Jn Nicholson"), countersigned by James Morris, n.p., 29 March 1794. 1 page, oblong folio, minor splits at fold, a two inch piece of left edge missing. AARON BURR: LAND SPECULATOR. In the first decade after independence, much of the land owned by the U.S. was still unsettled and untamed, providing vast opportunities for land speculators. John Nicholson, in partnership with Robert Morris, successfully speculated in land in the Federal City and established the Asylum Company, which owned one million acres along the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania. In 1794, working apart from Robert Morris, Nicholson established the Pennsylvania Population Company which controlled another one million acres in the Keystone State. Here, Nicholson assigns a share of stock to the New York Senator Aaron Burr: "That Aaron Burr is entitled to one Share of Stock in the said Company, Numbered Eighteen hundred and Eighty One, Transferable in the presence of the Treasurer by the said Aaron Burr or his Attorney." Burr, whose rapid political success culminated in the Vice Presidency of the United States under Jefferson, was also known for assorted intrigues. His interest in land speculation was at the foundation of several of these controversies. While serving as Attorney General in New York he was suspected of participation in a questionable deal involving state lands. As a member of the New York Assembly, he sponsored a bill to aid the Holland Land Company, in which he had financial interest.