The United States Supreme Court on Monday declined to reconsider a lower court’s ruling that ordered the return of a stolen letter written by Alexander Hamilton to the Massachusetts Archives, ending an almost four-year legal battle, officials said.
The letter, which Hamilton wrote to the Marquis de Lafayette in 1780, was believed to have been stolen by a former employee of the state archives during World War II, according to a statement from the office of Secretary of State William M. Galvin.
A US magistrate judge ruled that the letter was a public document and the Commonwealth was the rightful owner after it was submitted for sale in 2018 to a Virginia auction house, which contacted the FBI after realizing the missive was stolen property, according to the statement.
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The family that tried to sell the letter said a relative had bought it legally in 1945, and they appealed the judge’s decision to the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals, which affirmed the earlier ruling in October, before taking the case to the nation’s highest court, Galvin’s office said.
“I appreciate the Supreme Court’s decision to put an end to this lengthy legal process,” Galvin said in the statement. “This important piece of Revolutionary War history belongs to the people of Massachusetts, where it is now guaranteed to remain for all to see.”
The letter is now in the collection of the Massachusetts Archives and is expected to be on display at the adjacent Commonwealth Museum for special events, such as the museum’s Fourth of July celebration, the statement said.
Madison Mercado can be reached at madison.mercado@globe.com.