| has gloss | eng: The Morris Reserve was a 500,000 acre (2,000 km²) tract of land owned by Robert Morris in western New York in the late 18th Century. It was originally part of the 6,000,000 acre (24,000 km²) purchase in April 1788 of the pre-emptive right to all of Massachusetts' lands in western New York by Oliver Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham (the "Phelps and Gorham Purchase"). The sale of the pre-emptive right to Phelps and Gorham only gave them the right to obtain title when they had extinguished the Indian title to such lands. For this pre-emptive right, they were to pay Massachusetts $1,000,000, or 16 and 2/3 cents an acre (41.18 $/km²). In July 1788 Phelps and Gorham obtained Indian title to about 2,250,000 acres (9,105 km²) east of the Genesee River. They did not obtain Indian title to the lands west of the Genesee, except for the 185,000 acre (749 km²) Mill Yard Tract. They defaulted on the payment for the lands in 1790. The 3,750,000 acre (15,200 km²) portion of the Phelps and Gorham Purchase west of the Genesee then reverted back to Massachusetts on March 10, 1791. |
