Amidst the Revolution, Jefferson refers a rank dispute to “Col. Wood to have settled by a board of officers”
Revolutionary War-dated autograph endorsement signed, “In Council, Aug. 12, 1780. Referred to Col. Wood to have settled by a board of officers.Th: Jefferson,” handwritten on the reverse of a letter written by Hugh McGavock from the Albemarle Barracks, August 5, 1780, regarding several other officers contending with him for rank, “…that new officers…appointed that never had a commission before should take command of all others of the same rank.” Professionally inlaid to a slightly larger sheet.
McGavock served as a recruiter and prison guard at the Albemarle barracks during the Revolution, and later enlisted in the Virginia State Line under Colonel Joseph Crockett. Owing to nepotism and disorderly paperwork, there were multiple instances in his military career where he encountered difficulties in obtaining the ranks and positions to which he was entitled. His own firsthand account of his wartime service can be found in the bounty-land records in the Library of Virginia.