c. 1775 Revolutionary War Era, Handcrafted Tooled Leather Money Wallet Ornately showing the owner’s name "WILSON" Attributed to Lieutenant Samuel Wilson of Killingly, Connecticut, Second Lieutenant, 4th Company, 1st Connecticut Regiment, Very Fine.
This rare identified leather wallet measures about 6.75 x 4 inches. It is tooled with the name WILSON in large decorative period script on both its exterior faces and is flanked by three dots with additional Scrollwork and a Heart Motifs below the name. The interior has a rectangular tooled frame design with crossed diagonal lines and a trio of dots at each corner, having two internal leather covered pockets with space behind each for additional items. This Wallet has been attributed to Lieutenant Samuel Wilson of Killingly, Connecticut. It was featured in an October 10, 2006 William H. Guthman (1924-2005) auction as lot #739 ($2,925.00 paid at auction), according to the paper documentation accompanying this lot.

Lieutenant Samuel Wilson's documented military service places him at the very outset of the Revolutionary War. He marched with Killingly militia in response to the Lexington Alarm of April 19, 1775, a call to arms that spread throughout Connecticut within days of the fighting at Lexington and Concord. He was subsequently was Commissioned Second Lieutenant in the 1st Connecticut Regiment, one of six regiments Connecticut raised in the immediate aftermath of Lexington, organized at Norwich, Ct. under Major General David Wooster. That unit was formally adopted into the main Continental Army on June 14, 1775. Wilson served in the regiment's 4th company under Captain Aaron Foot. General Israel Putnam, who would go on to become one of the Revolutionary War best-known Generals, served among that regiment's senior officers. Two of the regiment's companies were detached July 1775 to join the Siege of Boston. Wilson's company was assigned to the Northern Department, marching to New York and remaining in service into September, before continuing on to the Lake Champlain and Lake George theater of war, and participated in the fall of St. John's, the first Continental victory of the Revolutionary War during the opening campaign of the invasion of Canada. The regiment was disbanded in Canada between December 1775 and April 1776, marking the likely end of Wilson's documented Continental Army service.

The wallet carries a short handwritten letter of provenance to the William H. Guthman Collection, sold at Northeast Auctions in October 2006, and a typed descriptive card of Samuel Wilson’s military service. Accompanied by an engraved silver metal plaque for display. (4 items)
William H. Guthman (1924-2005). A renowned scholar, author, and dealer specializing in early historical and military Americana, including Revolutionary War artifacts, 18th-century engraved powder horns, and militia uniforms. He operated Guthman Americana out of Westport, Connecticut. He was widely recognized as an expert appraiser on PBS's Antiques Roadshow during its early seasons. He passed away from lung cancer on December 28, 2005.