Abraham LincolnBiblio.com
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18633619207/02/1863. <blockquote><p>This document has been in a private collection for a generation</p><p> </p><p>Kentucky Unionists were important to Lincoln a Kentucky native as he famously said ""I hope to have God on my side but I must have Kentucky.â€</p><p> </p><p>The Congressman Henry Grider apparently needed to see Thomas to discuss the Act its impact on Kentucky and the details of how the recruitment would be handled</p></blockquote><p>Kentuckian Henry Grider was a Whig who served in Congress from 1843-1847 and then as a Unionist from March 4 1861 until 1865. For the Thirty-ninth Congress 1865–1867 Grider shifted to the Democratic Party but retained his commitment to the Union serving from March 4 1865 until his death in office on September 7 1866. Grider represented a Kentucky pro-slavery but Union-loyal constituency and he retained that point of view throughout the Civil War. Kentucky Unionists like Grider were particularly important to Abraham Lincoln a Kentucky native who had famously said ""I hope to have God on my side but I must have Kentucky.†Lincoln is known to have consulted with Grider about Kentucky affairs and relied on his support and that of the Kentucky delegation to Congress.</p><p>On February 7 1863 Congress passed an Act providing that “the Governor of the State of Kentucky by the consent and under the direction of the President of the United States shall have power to raise and organize into regiments a volunteer force not exceeding twenty thousand rank and file to be raised within the State of Kentucky to serve for the term of twelve months to be employed within the limits of Kentucky in repelling invasion suppressing insurrection and guarding and protecting the public property: Provided That at any time it may be necessary in the discretion of the President of the United States these troops may be employed out of the limits of Kentucky against the enemies of the United States.â€</p><p>Thus the Governor of Kentucky would raise a force of 20000 volunteers to serve in Kentucky but President Lincoln had the authority to order them used outside the state. This Act was received with mixed reviews in Kentucky and on the very day it was enacted Grider’s son Benjamin C. Grider a slave-holding Unionist resigned from the Union Army. From the timing of his resignation one can surmise that he disapproved of the Act. He had commanded the 9th Kentucky Volunteers.</p><p>Lorenzo Thomas was the Adjutant General of the U.S. Army at that time and his job was to maximize operational effectiveness of the army by manning recruiting for and sustaining military operations.</p><p><strong>Autograph note signed</strong> Washington February 7 1863 the day of the Act to Lorenzo Thomas expediting Grider’s ability to see Thomas. <em>“Adjutant General Please see and hear Hon. Mr. Grider. A. Lincoln.â€</em> It seems clear that Grider needed to see Thomas to discuss the Act its impact on Kentucky and the details of how the recruitment would be handled and managed. Not in Basler. A separation running vertically archivally mended.</p><p>This is a very scarce communication involving Lincoln aiding a Kentucky Unionist.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-25018 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204144051/Folder-site-11-1600x1327.jpg"" alt=""historical memorabilia dealer"" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
1863172650Washington DC: 10 March 1863. Signed four months before the Battle of Gettysburg A military appointment signed by Abraham Lincoln at the height of the American Civil War. Such documents were instruments of authority and means of identification as soldiers crossed through military lines and took command. The document appoints James Gillette to the position of "Commissary of Subsistence of Volunteers with the rank of Captain". James Gillette 1838-81 enlisted as a private and rose quickly through the ranks. He served as Commissary of Subsistence for the 2nd Division XII Corps under General John W. Geary. For his meritorious service he was breveted lieutenant colonel U.S. Volunteers and for gallantry at the battle of Chancellorsville he was breveted major in the regular Army. A week earlier on 3 March Lincoln signed the Conscription Act mandating the impressment of able-bodied young men into the service of the Union Army. A clause allowing for exemption by paying a fee provoked national fury leading to riots in New York. Engraved military appointment 415 x 340 mm on vellum with the sections accomplished in manuscript attractive cartouche of the American eagle at the head and large trophy of arms at the foot engraved by J. V. N. and O. H. Throop blue wafer seal at left War Department docketing notations at upper left. Mounted and framed with UV conservation glazing framed size 64 x 53 cm. Originally folded into sixths leaving light creases as usual. Slightly discoloured at extremities ink a little faded but still clear. In very good condition. hardcover
1862190938Washington DC: 28 July 1862. Taxing the new state of Oregon to fund the Civil War Lincoln appoints Lawrence White Coe collector of federal taxes for the State of Oregon. In August 1861 Congress passed a new direct tax to fund the Civil War. Oregon's share was $35000 seven eighths of the state's annual revenue Bancroft p. 640. The measure marked both a substantial expansion of federal taxation and a wartime extension of presidential patronage through the appointment of tax officers. Oregon had become a state in 1859. Coe 1831-1897 resident in Wasco County had opened steam navigation on the upper Columbia River with the stern-wheeler Colonel Wright which was contracted to carry army supplies to Fort Walla Walla. His father Nathaniel Coe had been appointed by President Fillmore as the first postal agent in the Northwest. Printed document with manuscript additions 281 x 434 mm embossed seal of the US Treasury. Presented in a wooden frame with conservation acrylic glazing 555 x 425 cm. Minor chipping at extremities tape residue on verso from former framing minor soiling and light spotting. In very good condition. Hubert Howe Bancroft History of Oregon Vol. II 1888. unknown
18433570010/1843. <blockquote><p>Miles who was also a prominent Whig politico and part of Lincoln’s political circle used Lincoln’s legal services a number of times</p></blockquote><p>Abraham Lincoln and Stephen T. Logan formed a prominent Illinois law partnership called Logan & Lincoln from 1841 to 1844 during which Logan an experienced attorney mentored Lincoln and introduced him to complex areas of the law. During his partnership with Logan Lincoln also increased his caseload before the Illinois Supreme Court and handled appeals from all areas of the state. Logan and Lincoln handled many cases together not merely at their Springfield office but around the state. This ls because Lincoln had a circuit law practice that involved riding the Eighth Judicial Circuit in Illinois covering 14-15 counties including Menard County on horseback or buggy. Logan remained in Springfield while Lincoln traveled the Circuit. As a general practitioner Lincoln handled diverse cases including property disputes debts torts. slander and criminal law. The Logan & Lincoln partnership ended amicably in 1844 after which Lincoln partnered with William H. Herndon who was a clerk in the Logan & Lincoln law office and whose father had been a Lincoln friend for many years.</p><p>George U. Miles was Herndon’s father-in-law. He came to Illinois in 1816 at age 20 settling first in St. Clair County and then in White County where he married Jane McCoy on November 18 1821. They had three children. Miles removed to Logan County and then in 1836 he went to Sangamon County where he lived on a farm six miles north of Springfield. In 1839 he moved to Petersburg in Menard County where he served as public administrator from 1845 to 1849. Miles was a Whig and a Menard County delegate to conventions that chose Whig candidates. Miles and Lincoln knew each other as neighbors and fellow Whigs and also because of Miles’ family relationship to Lincoln’s friend and partner Herndon. In early 1843 Lincoln sought a nomination for Congress and hoped for Miles’ political support.</p><p>Miles used Lincoln as an attorney a number of times both before and after Herndon became Lincoln’s partner. In late 1843 Miles retained Logan & Lincoln and sued John Webb and Thomas Rogers to collect a $368.60 debt on a promissory note.</p><p><strong>Autograph document signed</strong> all in Lincoln’s hand Menard County Illinois October-November 1843 being a petition in the county court in which Miles asks for judgment for a debt. <em>“George U. Miles plaintiff states that he holds a note on the defendants John Webb and Thomas Rogers in substance as followeth: ‘$368.60. One day after date we or either of us promise to pay George U. Miles or order three hundred and sixty eight dollars and sixty cents with twelve percent interest from date for value received. Our hands & seals: John Webb and Thomas Rogers Petersburg Ill. April 20th 1843.’ Yet the same debt remains unpaid wherefore he prays judgment for his debt and damages for the detention of the same together with his costs. Logan & Lincoln.â€</em></p><p>Lincoln won the case. The defendants were found to have defaulted and the court awarded Miles $392.67 counting costs. The case was decided November 1 1843. It is listed at lawofficeofabrahamlincoln.org.</p><p>After Lincoln’s assassination Miles acted as one of Herndon's key investigators. Miles famously interviewed individuals including Ann Rutledge’s aunt to gather information about Lincoln's early life and relationships serving as a vital source for Herndon's research. Herndon would write a famous biography of Lincoln in the 1880s.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-25018 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204144051/Folder-site-11-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
18643560801/08/1864. <blockquote><p>This appointment is listed in War Department General Orders no. 256</p></blockquote><p>According to the National Museum of Civil War Medicine and other sources Lt. Adam Miller of the 2nd Mass. Vols. aged twenty-three years was badly wounded August 9 1862 at the Battle of Cedar Mountain by an elongated musket ball which entered below the right eye socket and traversing the nasal cavity emerged through the left eye socket destroying the globe of the left eye and lacerating the left lower eyelid. He was made a prisoner and taken to a hospital at Charlottesville Va. where his wound ultimately formed a scar with great deformity. After being exchanged he entered the New York Eye Infirmary and on April 10 1863 a plastic surgical operation was performed by Dr. Henry B. Sands for the restoration of the eyelid. The operation was eminently successful and on April 22 1863 the parts were sufficiently healed to permit the insertion of an artificial eye. He thus survived a catastrophic facial wound and underwent pioneering plastic surgery.</p><p>Due to his injuries which made him unfit for active field duty but still capable of light service he was transferred to the Veteran Reserve Corps in August 1863 with his commission dating back to June 27 1863. The Veteran Reserve Corps was a military organization of the Union Army created for partially disabled or otherwise infirm soldiers who could still perform simple duties such as guarding prisoners or patrolling cities. This appointment is listed in War Department General Orders no. 256.</p><p><strong>Document signed</strong> with engravings of an eagle flags and weapons Washington August 1 1864 naming Adam Miller a lieutenant in the Veteran Reserve Corps effective June 27 1863.</p><p>An extraordinary Lincoln appointment of a soldier who made medical history in the Civil War.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-25018 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204144051/Folder-site-11-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
18611571129/03/1861. <p>James E. Harrison though born in Virginia served the Union cause during the Civil War. He received his first appointment as a Second Lieutenant to the 2d U. S. Cavalry in June 1856 and was stationed in Texas and various forts in the West until December 1858 when he was assigned to scouting Indians. He returned East and with the Civil War imminent he was promoted to First Lieutenant 2d U.S. Cavalry in March 1861 and then to Captain 5th U.S. Cavalry in May of that year. Harrison was engaged in the Peninsular campaign and commanded a regiment in the Army of the Potomac from September 1862 to June 1863. During that time he served at the battles of Antietem Chancellorsville and Brandy Station among many others. He was Breveted Major U.S. Army for gallant and meritorious services at the battle of Hanover Court House and Brevet Lieutenant Colonel U.S. Army for gallant and meritorious services at the battle of Antietam. In July of 1864 Harrison was assigned to be Inspector-General of Cavalry in the Department of Arkansas and was later appointed as Special Inspector of Cavalry in West Mississippi.</p><p><strong>Document signed</strong> as President Washington March 29 1861 effective retroactively to February 27 1861 an ornate vignetted commission with an eagle cannons and flags appointing Harrison to the rank of “First Lieutenant in the Second Regiment of Cavalry.†The document is countersigned by Secretary of War Simon Cameron.</p> unknown
1864132067April 21 1864. American naval commission signed by Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States and Gideon Welles as Secretary of the Navy. Folio partially engraved on vellum the document is dated April 21 1864 and promotes Charles W. Tracy to the rank of Lieutenant. In near fine condition. Matted and framed with a portrait of Lincoln and engraved plate. The Commission measures 19 inches by 16 inches. The entire piece measures 34 inches by 29.5 inches. Abraham Lincoln served as the 16th President of the United States from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War the country's greatest moral cultural constitutional and political crisis and in doing so preserved the Union of the United States of America abolished slavery and strengthened the federal government. Lincoln ran for President in 1860 sweeping the North in victory. The South was outraged by Lincoln's election and in response secessionists implemented plans to leave the Union before he took office in March 1861. War began in April 1861 when secessionist forces attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina just over a month after Lincoln's inauguration and after years of deadly military conflict officially ended on April 9 1865 when Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at the Battle of Appomattox Court House. On April 14 1865 just days after the war's end at Appomattox Lincoln was attending a play at Ford's Theatre with his wife Mary when he was assassinated by Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth. Lincoln is remembered as the martyr hero of the United States and is consistently ranked as one of the greatest presidents in American history. hardcover
18771465621877-1880. Unique 19th-century autograph album containing the signatures of six American presidents fifteen senators several cabinet members and governors including Abraham Lincoln Ulysses S. Grant James Buchanan and Franklin Pierce. Narrow quarto bound in one quarter period dark brown cloth over stiff marbled wrappers the autograph album is a repurposed 19th-century caucus record dating from ca. 1870. The caucus book is alphabetically tab-indexed and filled out in ink voters are tracked by their name with caucus results appearing in the back. Although this is labeled “Ward 5†in the first page the term "Ward" was flexible in its usage. This could have been for a Ward election precinct caucus legislative congressional or state convention caucus. The autographs are mounted over the caucus records in their respective alphabetical tab. Also mounted at front are 6 printed pieces of 19th-century ephemera. The autograph album was assembled between 1877 and 1880 and can be dated by a contemporary pencil note that John Sherman had transitioned from the Senate to be Secretary of the Treasury. From the collection of a Mr. Boyd a 19th-century Ward politician in the upper Midwest Minnesota or Wisconsin. The Presidential autographs are primarily clipped from Presidential appointments and include: Abraham Lincoln James Buchanan Ulysses S. Grant Andrew Johnson Franklin Pierce and Rutherford B. Hayes. In very good condition. A very rare and unique collection. hardcover
18623341204/03/1862. <p>As 1862 opened the war was not going well for the Union. In the east Bull Run had been a disaster and led to the shake-up of command with no results yet to show for it. In the west the loss at Wilson’s Creek gave the Confederates the upper hand. The Federal armies in the west then turned their attention to implementation of the Anaconda Plan – to cut the Confederacy in half by securing the Mississippi River from St. Louis all the way to the Gulf of Mexico and clearing a maritime invasion route into the heart of the Confederacy by taking the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers which lay just to the east of the Mississippi. If successful these maneuvers would cut Texas Arkansas and Louisiana off from the main body of the South hold Kentucky and Missouri firmly in the Union and make it difficult for Tennessee to cooperate with her sister Confederate states. The first moves would be to take and hold commanding locations north on the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers and command of the operation was given to Brig. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant an obscure and largely unproven officer.</p><p>On February 6 1862 Fort Henry commanding the Tennessee River was captured by Grant’s forces. It had a poor defensive position and was reduced mainly by the bombardment of gunboats on the river. Nonetheless its fall opened the Tennessee River to Union gunboats and shipping past the Alabama border and provided a real victory for Union arms. Grant next focused his attention on Fort Donelson eleven miles away on the more strategically important Cumberland River. This fort had a much stronger physical position and the Confederates had placed some 20000 men and a number of senior commanders on site to engage in its defense. They were not about to concede the fort and they were ready and waiting for Grant. Grant arrived at Fort Donelson late on February 12 and on the 13th established his headquarters near the left side of the front of the line. That day was spent in battle preparation with a few small probing attacks being carried out against the Confederate defenses.</p><p>Grant's headquarters was at Cairo Ill where the head of Ordnance was Stephen Lyford. Grant arrived at Fort Donelson late on February 12 and on the 13th established his headquarters near the left side of the front of the line. That day was spent in battle preparation with a few small probing attacks being carried out against the Confederate defenses.</p><p>The battle was severe with nearly 1000 soldiers on both sides killed and about 3000 wounded. When Simon Buckner the Confederate commander asked for surrender terms Grant famously replied “No terms except unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted“ adding “I propose to move immediately upon your works.†Buckner surrendered his command of about 15000 men; this was the first of three Confederate armies that Grant captured during the war.</p><p>The capture of Fort Donelson gave the North control of the Cumberland River which provided the road that opened the Deep South to Union invasion. It boosted morale in the North which now saw that the war could result in great victories and not just defeats. It gave President Lincoln the fighting general he was looking for and it made Grant’s career in the process; he was soon promoted to major general of volunteers.</p><p>Stephen C. Lyford had a long and distinguished career. He served from May to August 1861 in the defenses of Washington D. C. and in the Manassas Campaign participating in the Battle of Bull Run July 21 1861. He was Aide-de_Camp to Brig. General McDowell in the defenses of Washington D. C. August to October 1861 and Asst. Ordnance Officer at St. Louis Arsenal Mo. November 2 1861 to February 1 1862; in command of the Cairo Ordnance Depot Ill. February to May 1862 being detached to the Cumberland River and was present at the Surrender of Ft. Donelson. He was part of Gen. Halleck's Mississippi Campaign May to July 1862 being engaged in the Siege of Corinth May 1862 and was Chief of Ordnance for Department of the Tennessee July 11 1862 to September 6 1863 and fought in the Battle of Corinth. He would go on to teach at West Point and also serve as aide-de-camp for Gen. Halleck and as representative of the US to Japan to bring back information and technology relevant for American ordnance.</p><p><strong>Document signed</strong> with engravings of flags and weapons Washington March 4 1862 Naming Lyford a <em>“Second Lieutenant in the Ordnance Department.""</em></p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-25018 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204144051/Folder-site-11-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
18613521508/08/1861. <blockquote><p>""It is said that the young man named within was in the Great Bethel affair. His mother calls on me to ask a Lieutenancy for him""</p><p> </p><p>We have never before a document on the market referencing Bethel by name or referring to the battle as great</p><p> </p><p>Part of a private collection assembled at Sesslers more than a half century ago</p></blockquote><p>The Civil War formally began with the bombardment of Fort Sumter on April 12–13 1861 but the first sustained clash between organized armies on land was the Battle of Big Bethel also called the Battle of Bethel Church fought on June 10 1861 near Hampton Virginia.</p><p>Virginia's decision to secede from the Union had been ratified by popular vote on May 23 and Confederate colonel later major general John B. Magruder was sent down to the peninsula to deter any advance on the state capital Richmond by Union troops based at the well-defended post of Fort Monroe.</p><p>Confederate forces under Magruder defeated a probing Union attack led by John Adams Dix and field commander Theodore Winthrop who was killed in the assault. The Union objective was to push back Confederate outposts guarding the Yorktown Road but poor coordination and a nighttime friendly-fire incident ruined surprise. When Union troops advanced at dawn they were repulsed by well-positioned Southern artillery and infantry around Big Bethel Church. The battle ended in a Confederate victory providing an early morale boost to the South while exposing the inexperience and disorganization of Union forces in the war’s opening weeks. It confirmed that the conflict would not be short or bloodless.</p><p>Abraham Lincoln was distressed by the Union defeat at Big Bethel. The battle underscored for him the Union's lack of military preparedness and the challenges in finding capable commanders reinforcing his determination to avoid future losses.</p><p>During his presidency Lincoln would regularly meet with members of the public who would wait to see him in the foyer of his office in the White House. This included soldiers and their family members.</p><p>Autograph letter signed Frank J. White as Captain of Company A 10th Regiment Fortress Monroe July 27 1861 seemingly given to the soldier himself or his sent to his family. ""Mr. Charles. J. Seymour has been a member of my company for three months and has gained my highest esteem for the excellent manner in which he has discharged his duties. He is well qualified to hold a much higher position than his present one.""</p><p><strong>Autograph document signed</strong> August 8 1861 on a detached leaf no recipient but likely Secretary of War Simon Cameron. <em>""It is said that the young man named within was in the Great Bethel affair. His mother calls on me to ask a Lieutenancy for him; and I ask a respectful consideration of his case.""</em></p><p>Seymour received the promotion Lincoln requested becoming a lieutenant just weeks later on August 27 1861. He served as Aide-de-Camp on the staff of Gen. Daniel E. Sickles and was later promoted to major. He also assisted in recruiting efforts in New York City.</p><p>This was acquired from Mabel Zahn at Sesslers in the 1970s.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-25018 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204144051/Folder-site-11-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
1860149362Columbus: Follett Foster and Company 1860. First edition early issue of the most famous debates in American history which cemented Lincoln as a national presidential candidate. Octavo original cloth stamped in blind. Ownership bookplate of President Gerald R. Ford to the front pastedown. President Gerald R. Ford and Abraham Lincoln occupy distinct yet symbolically linked places in American presidential history united by their encounters with political violence and national division. Abraham Lincoln the 16th president led the United States through the Civil War and became the first American president to be assassinated when he was shot by John Wilkes Booth at Ford’s Theatre in 1865—a moment that transformed him into a martyr for the Union and a symbol of democratic perseverance. Over a century later Gerald R. Ford the 38th president survived two assassination attempts within seventeen days in 1975 both carried out by women—Lynette “Squeaky†Fromme and Sara Jane Moore—amid the turbulence of the post-Watergate era. While Ford’s brush with assassination did not result in tragedy it echoed the lingering volatility of American political life that had claimed Lincoln’s. In near fine condition. An exceptional example with even better provenance. Running as a little-known candidate for the Illinois senatorship in 1858 Lincoln challenged incumbent and Democratic leader Stephen Douglas to a series of debates. The result was a memorable chain of lively arguments in front of cheering crowds. Though Lincoln lost the senatorial race “he began collecting a scrapbook of his best speeches particularly those from the just-concluded campaign against Douglas for possible inclusion in a book. Assiduously pasting newspaper accounts of the debates into the scrapbook Lincoln cast about for a publisher. Initial efforts failed mainly because Lincoln wanted the book printed in Springfield which had no local publishing or printing facilities. Eventually however the Columbus Ohio firm of Follett Foster & Company showed interest and he began preparing the first edition… Somewhat surprisingly for an attorney Lincoln did not seek Douglas’ permission to publish a book of their combined speeches although Douglas was later given the last-minute opportunity—he declined—to make corrections to his own remarks†Morris 121. Follett, Foster and Company hardcover
18643503129/10/1864. <blockquote><p>Journalist George D. Prentice's son was a Confederate officer captured by Union forces who would later be charged with murder</p></blockquote><p>George D. Prentice was born in Connecticut on December 18 1802 and graduated from Brown University in 1823. He came to Kentucky in 1830 to write a campaign biography entitled The Biography of Henry Clay and remained in this state until his death on January 22 1870 in Louisville. Prentice became the editor of the Louisville Journal the newspaper of the Whig Party. The main focus of this paper was the promotion of Henry Clay’s agenda and his multiple presidential campaigns. Prentice brought the Journal from upstart newspaper to the most widely read newspaper in the western United States because of his wit and command of the English language. Upon the failure of the Whig Party Prentice supported the Know-Nothing Party. Prentice then supported John Bell and his Unionist platform in the 1860 election calling for the Southern states to stay in the Union. Following the repeal of neutrality in Kentucky the pro-Union Prentice wrote in the Louisville Journal on September 19 1861: “Well thank God we at last have weighed anchor and set out for the haven of safety and of honor. Now let all possible sail be spread and the noble ship of state be driven into the lines of her insolent foe with the whole might of the valor and devotion of her true men.†Prentice became part of Lincoln’s core group of advisors for Kentucky affairs during the war. But despite Prentice’s Unionist satisfaction that Kentucky was no longer neutral his two sons fought in the Confederate army one dying in 1862 and the other being captured in 1863.</p><p>The son of Prentice Clarence J. Prentice was one of the most colorful Kentuckians in the Confederate Army. From 1863 to 1865 he commanded the 7th Confederate Cavalry Battalion. Based in southwestern Virginia the 7th was composed of mountaineers who resided along the Kentucky-Virginia border. The unit was difficult to discipline and was regarded as a ""black sheep"" battalion by other units in the department. While some members of the battalion accompanied Gen. John Hunt Morgan on his last Kentucky raid they were part of the dismounted brigade. Prentice and the balance of the 7th was left behind to guard Pound Gap. In his ""Kentucky Cavaliers in Dixie"" George Dallas Mosgrove left a lively pen portrait of the young officer. He described the 7th as wild and difficult to discipline but added that the men were afraid of Prentice who was a crack shot. Major Prentice was captured on March 31 1863.</p><p>George Prentice wrote to Lincoln to enlist his help in securing a parole for his son. In his letter to Lincoln dated Journal Office Louisville Ky. May 6 1863 Prentice stated: “I wrote to you last week in regard to my son Major Clarence Prentice now a rebel prisoner at Camp Chase. He would ere this have been forwarded for exchange but Gen. Burnside at my solicitation consented to have him detained until I could have time to hear from you. I think there has been time but I have received nothing from you either by mail or telegraph. I know that the pressure of the affairs of state upon you is very great. Perhaps you did not read my letter at all. Major Prentice is the only child left to me. My household is very desolate. My son is tired of the war but unfortunately he thinks the south right. I ask you to direct his release upon his taking the non combatants oath and giving bond and security for its scrupulous observance. If you cannot do this as I painfully fear you cannot I earnestly appeal to you to parole him to stay outside of both the United States and the Southern Confederacy until after the rebellion. I should scarcely venture Mr. President to make this appeal to you but that I think I have served the Union cause faithfully devotedly and successfully. I have suffered very much and sacrificed very much in its behalf—more I am sure than any other man in Kentucky; and I am likely even at the best to suffer and sacrifice much hereafter. I think there is not a candid and intelligent Union man in this state who would hesitate to say to you that I have saved it to the Union politically.</p><p>“And now dear sir pray grant me what I ask in behalf of my only son. His mother is half delirious and so am I. I am scarcely capable of performing my daily duties to the country but if my request were granted I feel I should be buoyant with new life. Please let me know your decision soon for if my son cannot be paroled upon either of the conditions I have mentioned I want him sent forward as soon as possible to City Point as he is extremely uncomfortable in his present situation.â€</p><p>Ten days later Lincoln issued an order written on the back of Prentice's letter instructing General Burnside to parole young Prentice ""to remain outside the limits of both the loyal and disloyal States or so-called 'Confederate States’…during the present rebellion and to abstain from in any wise aiding or abetting said rebellion."" He was released in May 1863. However Clarence Prentice immediately upon his release from Camp Chase violated his oath and re-entered the Confederate Army. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel. Only a few months after his parole he was back to robbing banks burning courthouses and spreading terror and destruction generally along the Kentucky-Virginia border.</p><p>In the fall of 1863 after being released from Union custody Prentice shot and killed a hotel proprietor named White in Abingdon Va. during a ""personal difficulty."" His trial was set for November 8 1864 in Abingdon and his father wanted to attend and assist him at his trial. George Prentice again wrote Lincoln asking for his assistance.</p><p>Lincoln complied with Prentice’s request. <strong>Autograph note signed</strong> Washington October 29 1864.<em> “Allow George D. Prentice of the Louisville Journal to pass our lines go to Abingdon Va. and return.â€</em></p><p>Prentice also wrote to Secretary of State William Seward on October 25 1864. A letter of Captain R. H. Baptist exists October 22 1864 to Prentice offering to give evidence in the forthcoming trial of his son saying “a conversation occurred between White & myself that ought to be made known in the trial of your son by all means.†Prentice sought Seward’s help in lining up Baptist up as a witness for his son: “Capt Baptist who formerly served under my son…and is now a prisoner…at Johnson's Island writes to me some facts which would be of vast importance to my erring child in his approaching trial…and which Capt. B. says he would state on oath…if he could be paroled to the Southern Confederacy or exchanged…I think that the exchange of Capt Baptist would subserve the cause of truth humanity and justice.’’ After being shown Baptist's letter Lincoln arranged for his parole so that he could testify on behalf of Clarence Prentice.</p><p>Thus did Lincoln intervene twice to aid his Kentucky advisor.</p><p>Clarence Prentice was acquitted of the murder charge. He continued to serve in the Confederate Army until the war ended.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-25018 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204144051/Folder-site-11-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
1862376858Boston: J.M. Forbes 1862. 7 1 blankpp. Miniature 3-1/4x2-1/8 inches. Original wrappers unstitched. Small repair to tears at gutter. Housed in a blue morocco backed box. 7 1 blankpp. Miniature 3-1/4x2-1/8 inches. The first and only contemporary printing of Lincoln's historic preliminary Emancipation Proclamation in separate pamphlet form. <br /> <br /> This small pamphlet was printed by John Murray Forbes a Boston industrialist and abolitionist for distribution by Union soldiers to African Americans in the south. In 1899 the publisher's daughter recalled the genesis of this pocket-sized edition: "With the view of placing the Proclamation of Emancipation in the hands of the negroes themselves my father had printed 1000000 copies on small slips one and half inches square put into packages of fifty each and distributed among the Northern soldiers at the front who scattered them about among the blacks while on the march. Massachusetts Senator Charles Sumner approved the idea ." Sara Forbes Hughes Letters and Recollections of John Murray Forbes pp. 348-49. Indeed in a letter to Forbes on Christmas Day 1862 Sumner asked "Why not send to all the hospitals camps posts The more the better" However the diminutive printing's scarcity in institutions and in the market would seem to belie that notion as it is among the rarest of editions of the Proclamation no doubt in part because of its small size. <br /> <br /> The preliminary proclamation of the Emancipation Proclamation was issued on September 22 1862 shortly following the Battle of Antietam and declared the freedom of all slaves in any Confederate state that did not return to Union control by January 1 1863. The text of the final official proclamation was the result of Lincoln's consultation with his cabinet on the morning of Dec. 31 1862 in which many changes were suggested. Lincoln then retired to consider all the cabinet members' recommendations and compose the final proclamation which he completed late in the day just before it would take effect. <br /> <br /> A signal moment in American history and the ideological raison d'etre of America's bloodiest war. Eberstadt 7; Monaghan 147 J.M. Forbes unknown
1863192290Springfield Illinois: 22 January 1863. Lincoln intercedes for two runaway boys On the verso of a letter to Stanton from Illinois Governor Richard Yates 1815-1873 the president writes "The families to which these boys belong are among my old acquaintances. A. Lincoln. Jan. 22 1863". Yates 1815-1873 was a longtime friend of Lincoln's. His letter dated 12 January 1863 states that "Thomas E. Clark and Jonathan C. Bergen of Petersburg in this state respectively 17 and 16 years of age left home some time during the last month without the consent of their parents and joined the 2nd Reg't U.S Cavalry stationed at Carlyle Barrack Pa". Yates requests to Stanton that "Messrs Clark & Bergen are both respectable & loyal citizens and you will oblige me by discharging these boys from the service of the United States". Petersburg Illinois is near New Salem where Lincoln lived from 1831 to 1837. Lincoln also received letters from the fathers George S. Bergen and David Clark which he referred to the Adjutant General of the Army Lorenzo Thomas on 21 January Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln Vol. 8 1953 p. 509. Although no one under 18 could legally enlist without the written consent of a parent or guardian many did so. By one recent estimate underage enlistees accounted for roughly a tenth of the Union forces Clarke & Plant. Parents filed thousands of petitions with Union authorities and state courts to secure their children's discharge. Here the families were sufficiently well-connected to appeal at the highest level; Lincoln's endorsement implies that the request was granted. Provenance: Elsie O. and Philip D. Sang their sale at Sotheby Parke Bernet 1978 lot 484; Louise Taper Beverly Hills California; acquired by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Foundation as part of the Taper Collection 2007; sold by the Foundation at Freeman's Hindman in their Lincoln's Legacy sale 2025 lot 78. Single sheet on State of Illinois Executive Department letterhead 253 x 197 mm handwritten by Yates on recto endorsed by Lincoln on verso alongside a note it was forwarded to Stanton. Central folds repaired still in very good condition. The endorsement is published in Roy P. Basler The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln First Supplement 1974 page 175. Frances M. Clarke & Rebecca Jo Plant Of Age: Boy Soldiers and Military Power in the Civil War Era 2022. unknown
185316994Springfield Ill: Handwritten Letter 1853. ALS. Cloth. Very good. A two-page handwritten letter from Abraham Lincoln to fellow attorney Thomas J. Turner of Freeport Illinois addressing their future legal strategy since ".the Judge has already decided." The letter is dated June 27 1853 and is self-addressed. Octavo 4pp. Previously folded glue remnant along top edge. Several folds of the letter are weakened some partially separated. Small paper loss at intersecting fold with archival tissue repair. The letter is addressed in Lincoln's hand with "Springfield" and "Paid 3" stamped on cover. Housed in custom folding folio quarter blue morocco blue cloth title in gilt on the spine illustration of Lincoln on the front pastedown. This letter concerns the case of Kemper v. Adams & Bovey a land dispute in Freeport Illinois. Lincoln was retained by Adams and Bovey who after a series of losses and appeals prevailed in March 1858 by appealing to U.S. Circuit Court of Northern Illinois. Full letter reads: "Springfield June 27. 1853. / Hon. T. J. Turner: / Dear Sir: Your letter of the 20th. reached me day-before yesterday. I had the day before written to Adams to be on hand with his witnesses- but at the request of Judge Logan who is Kemper's attorney I put in a Post-script saying to Adams if he was agreed the cause should be continued over the summer term. On subsequent reflection I rather wish Adams may not agree. I have the case fresh in my mind and therefore wish to keep it going till it is finished. I have already drafted a Bill of Exceptions and my plan is to put the common lawsuit through the forms of a second trial up to a verdict which must be against us under Judge D's view of the law except & save all the points and then before judgment file our Bill and get an injunction. I shall begin preparing a Bill this afternoon which I which I wish to file during the evening term; and I believe I will do this Mr Adams must come down to swear to the Bill. In no event can we be ready for proof in the chancery suit at this time so that we will need no other witness than the one that was here last summer. I wrote Mr Adams about a Register's certificate & if he can find one or two missing tax receipts let him bring them. I should be glad to see you & shake you by the hand; but as there is no contested jury question I scarcely think you need be at the trouble & expense of coming. All the law questions which can arise at this term the Judge has already decided. Very truly yours A. Lincoln." Provenance: Originally the property of Claribel Mitchell of Freeport Illinois a principal at the Lincoln School until 1916. The letter was sold at auction by the American Art Association on January 30 1923 to Mr. George A. Ball of Muncie Indiana the namesake of the Ball Mason Jar Company. This letter was published in The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln by Roy Basler New Brunswick NJ: Rutgers University Press 1953 2:199-200. Handwritten Letter unknown
186332820640<p>Mammoth albumen print 17 ½ x 22 in mounted oval gilt-rule mat. Retouched vignetted enlargement. A few spots some toning. Very good condition.</p><p>This famous "Gettysburg portrait" with Lincoln looking directly into the camera was made just days before he delivered the Gettysburg Address on November 19 1863.</p><p>A giant of American photography Alexander Gardner is credited with introducing the large-format Imperial portrait to the United States while working as a staff photographer for Mathew Brady. Gardner left Brady's employ in early 1863 and his studio quickly rivaled Brady's for the quality and extent of its war and portrait photography. Gardner first photographed Lincoln as president-elect while working for Brady and he went on to take Lincoln's portrait more than any other photographer.</p><p>Lincoln sat for Gardner on several occasions usually visiting his studio on Sunday to avoid crowds. Lincoln sat for this splendid portrait on Sunday November 8 1863. His private secretaries John Hay and John Nicolay joined him. Hay noted in his diary that "We had a great many pictures taken … some of the Prest. the best I have seen." This print emphasizes Lincoln's head and shoulders enlarging them to a size rarely seen.</p><p>The gilt-ruled paper mat is characteristic of the 1860s and 1870s with this style of mat being popular during this period. Moses Rice subsequently had access to Gardner's negatives and routinely signed his prints with his name suggesting that Gardner himself made this enlargement. He died in 1882.</p><p>The photography session of November 8 1863 also produced the mammoth portrait we offer for $95000. That photograph and the present are among the only early mammoth Lincoln portraits we have ever encountered.</p><p>This is the only mammoth example of the famous Gettysburg portrait that we have seen.</p><p>Ostendorf O-77</p>
18463117130/03/1846. <blockquote><p>At the time Lincoln wrote this he was running for Congress</p></blockquote><blockquote><p>It shows the relationship between perhaps the most famous senior and junior law partners</p><p> </p></blockquote><p>https://vimeo.com/943731365share=copy</p><p> </p><p>In his nearly 25 years as a lawyer in Springfield Illinois Abraham Lincoln had three partners. He joined John Todd Stuart as a junior partner then started a new practice as a junior partner with Stephen T. Logan. In 1844 Lincoln and Logan took on William H. Herndon. In the fall of 1844 Lincoln was tired of being a junior partner. He had worked for senior partners with political ambitions and Lincoln wanted a younger partner to whom he could relate. Logan and Lincoln dissolved their partnership in December 1844. Logan wanted to practice law with his son David and Lincoln wanted to start his own law firm. In October Lincoln invited his friend William Herndon to form a partnership with Herndon as junior partner. Thus was born Lincoln and Herndon. The firm would become a legend. In all three firms Lincoln functioned as a general practitioner taking a wide variety of civil and criminal cases. Herndon did not disappoint his friend. He contributed to the practice by performing research for his older and more experienced partner building the firm's law library and overseeing young men who came to study law read the law at their office.</p><p>Business began slowly for the new firm. Not until March 1845 was their first case heard in the Sangamon County Circuit Court. That first case was Hope v. Beebe et al and was action in debt with Lincoln and Herndon appearing for plaintiff and Logan for defendant. Here is a description of that case: A plaintiff Norwood had won a replevin suit against the Beebee also spelled Beebe Brothers in the U. S. Circuit Court Beebee Brothers v. Whitney & Norwood. Hope the marshal of the U. S. Circuit Court District of Illinois to help Norwood collect what he was owed retained Lincoln and Herndon and sued Beebee and others in an action of debt the intent being to collect money ordered paid by the court. Beebee and others named on the replevin bond in the federal suit failed to perform the obligation of bond - they did not or would not pay. Beebee claimed that he was unable to pay because of another suit that Norwood instituted against Beebee.</p><p>On March 18 1845 the case was continued and heard again in July when Lincoln filed documents allowing for concessions on both sides. It was again continued until March of 1846. Lincoln with the help of Herndon then drafted another document seemingly pointing to the another aspect of the suit and explaining why the plaintiff should not have to drop the suit.</p><p>In 1846 Lincoln was running for what would be his first elected position Congressman. In August he won that election and served one term. In March he was campaigning and seeking to gain support.</p><p><strong>Autograph document signed</strong> <em>""Lincoln & Herndon""</em> Springfield late March 1846 in the hand of both partners showing their collaboration. It begins in Lincoln's hand: <em>“And for further replication"" before switching to Herndons for the lines"" to the said plea of the said defendants by them above pleaded said plaintiff says that to be further precluded from maintaining his said action against said defendants because of the matters in said plea alleged he ought not because he says that since the pleading of the last plea by said defendants to wit on — day of February AD 1846 the said replevin suit by the said Norwood and Turner against the said Beebees in the Said plea mentioned was by the same court at which it was pending determined in favor of the said Beebees and against the said Norwood and Turner and by the judgment of said court a return of the bacon in the plea mentioned.â€</em></p><p>Lincoln hand wrote the balance: <em>“…Mentioned was awarded to the said Beebees and also adjudged that the said Beebees should recover of and from the said Norwood and Turner the sum of $650 damages and costs of suit and this he is ready to verify. Wherefore he prays judgment.â€</em> At that time Lincoln was preparing for his run for Congress his only national election until 1860.</p><p>The parties would later reach an agreement in March 1847 and the court dismissed the case. Lincoln and Herndon received fees of $25 for their legal services. A final version of this filed document is published by the Papers of Abraham Lincoln as is the judge's further March 1846 continuance. The present document is three pieces affixed either by Lincoln or at a later date.</p><p>This is the only paperwork from Lincoln and Herndon’s first case we have ever seen on the market.</p><p><img class=""alignnone size-post-window wp-image-25018"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204144051/Folder-site-11-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
18642373223/04/1864. <blockquote><p>A search of public sale records going back 40 years fails to turn up even one other example of this document</p></blockquote><p>After the firing on Fort Sumter on April 12 1861 enthusiasm for enlisting in military service swept through both the North and South. In remarkable speed two large volunteer armies were created. Except for a tiny number of professional soldiers all expected to be in service for a brief term. Not just soldiers but the public and political leaders had fooled themselves about the war's likely duration. However the patriotic hope on each side that the war would be over in a matter of weeks or months was dashed in the first battle of Bull Run on July 21 1861. By late 1862 no sensible person believed that an early end to the bloody strife was possible and the knowledgeable expected peace to be far off in the future. Facing a protracted war maintaining a sufficiently sizable army became the greatest problem facing both Union leader Abraham Lincoln and Confederate leader Jefferson Davis.</p><p>In 1862 rather than institute a draft President Lincoln requested 300000 more men and assigned each state a quota. The states could meet their quota in any manner they saw fit. Most states offered cash incentives known as bounties to gain recruits. Depending on where one enlisted the combination of local state and federal bounties could exceed $1000. But the 1862 policy also did not recruit enough troops.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-24611 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204150003/Lincoln-April-23-1864-2-1600x602.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""602"" /></p><p>As the war dragged on with no end in sight the inflow of volunteers was drying up and the Union needed to keep the ranks filled. The U.S. Congress resorted to the first draft in the country’s history in March 1863. All able-bodied men between ages 20 and 45 were required to be enrolled and available for military service. Draftees were chosen by lottery. Once conscripted a man could avoid service for that particular round of the draft either by paying a $300 commutation fee or by hiring a substitute to take his place. As in the South this raised accusations that the war had become “a rich man’s war but a poor man’s fight.†Nevertheless in both North and South statistics indicate that wealthy men were represented in the service in at least the same proportion as they were in the general population.</p><p>A lot of blood was spilled in 1863 with the battles of Chancellorsville Gettysburg Vicksburg Chickamauga and Chattanooga among others. By year’s end President Lincoln and the Union leadership realized that more men were needed for the army and urgently. On February 1 1864 Lincoln called for 500000 men to serve for three years or for the duration of the war. Then on March 15 he supplemented this with a call for 250000 more. There would be another draft call in December 1864 but it was never completed due to the impending end of the war.</p><p>The March 1864 draft call stated: “Washington March 15 1864. In order to supply the force required to be drafted for the Navy and to provide an adequate reserve force for all contingencies in addition to the 500000 men called for Feb. 1 1864 the call is hereby made and a draft ordered for Two Hundred Thousand men for the military service – Army Navy and Marine corps of the United States. The proportional quotas for the different wards towns townships precincts or election districts or counties will be made known through the Provost Marshall General’s bureau and account will be taken of the credits and deficiencies of former quotas.</p><p>The 15th day of April 1864 is designated as the time up to which the numbers required from each ward of a city town etc. may be raised by voluntary enlistment; and drafts will be made in each ward of a city town etc. which shall not have filled the quota assigned to it within the time designated for the number required to fill said quota. The draft will be commenced as soon after the 15th of April as practicable…†It took little more than a week for everything to be in place.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-24623 size-full"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204145931/My-Movie-177ygbhbj.gif"" alt="""" width=""1920"" height=""1080"" /></p><p>The mechanics of the draft were that each state and district within a state were assigned quotas and the President would order that each state’s draft numbers and districts be implemented. This was the actual order for the draft. Then each individual district would receive from the President details of its requirements in a circular letter. One sees these individual district circular letters on the market every now and then. But what one never sees is the order to implement the draft for a state assigning the districts and number of troops being called forth. In fact a search of public sale records going back 40 years fails to turn up another example nor have we seen one before.</p><p><strong>Document signed</strong> as President Washington April 23 1864 being Lincoln’s implementation order for New York. <em>“I hereby authorize and direct the Secretary of State to affix the Seal of the United States to the apportionment of the quota of troops to be furnished by the State of New York from its several districts dated and this day signed by me and for so doing this shall be his warrant.â€</em></p><p>An extremely rare if not unique document showing Lincoln raising troops on the macro level of a state.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-23729 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204152429/Folder-site-7-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
1863423266New York: Baker & Godwin Printers and Publishers Printing-House Square opposite City Hall 1863. Softcover. Very Good. The earliest publication of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address in book form preceded only by the exceptionally scarce 16-page pamphlet The Gettysburg Solemnities. Octavo. Stitched in the original printed wrapper with a publisher’s advertisement on the rear wrap. pp. 1-3 4-48. Modest overall toning and rubbing to the wrapper some fraying at the corners part of the paper along the spine back is perished one vertical stain at the front wrap and title page a very good copy with a few scattered contemporary brown ink markings. Very light contemporary ownership name in pencil at the top of the front wrap. Housed in a fine quarter blue morocco slipcase with gilt spine lettering and two raised bands and with an internal cloth chemise. “Collection of Foreman M. Lebold†stamped in gold on the front cover of the slipcase. Foreman M. Lebold was a noted collector of Lincoln material and the eldest brother of Nathan Leopold one of the infamous Leopold and Loeb teenage thrill killers convicted of the murder of Bobby Franks which captured the attention of the nation. Foreman like much of his family eventually changed his last name to Lebold because of the notoriety of the trial.<br /> <br /> Lincoln delivered his speech at the dedication ceremony of the Gettysburg National Cemetery on November 19 1863 about four months after the pivotal battle that turned the tide of the Civil War in favor of the Union. His speech was preceded by an Oration by Edward Everett the most famous orator of the day. Everett’s oration printed here in full took about two hours to deliver and is now largely forgotten. Lincoln’s address was delivered in only a few minutes and is now celebrated as the supreme distillation of American values and testament to the sacrifices necessary to achieve freedom for all Americans. It is printed on page 40 of this booklet under the title: “The dedicatory remarks were then delivered by the President as follows: / President Lincoln’s Speech. / Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth upon this continent a new nation …â€<br /> <br /> A well-preserved copy in the original wrappers.<br /> <br /> Sabin 23263; Printing and the Mind of Man 351. Baker & Godwin, Printers and Publishers, Printing-House Square, opposite City Hall unknown
1863604602"A. Lincoln" in black ink on Executive Mansion Washington letterhead March 18 1863. 5" x 8" 1 page with integral leaf. Very good. Integral blank with an autograph endorsement signed by Holt and clerical endorsement from the Adjutant General's office. To Judge Advocate General Joseph Holt: Lincoln requests his Judge Advocate General to investigate the "Strong Mitigating Circumstances" surrounding the court-martial of a member of the West Point Class of 1861. "It is said Lieut. John Benson Williams of the 3rd regular infantry as been sentenced by a Military Commission to be dismissed the service. I have some reason to believe there are strong mitigating circumstances in his case which the Commission perhaps did not deem competent for them to consider I will thank you to procure the record examine it and report it to me. . ." Holt forwarded Lincoln's letter to the Adjutant General noting that "No record or report in regard to the Williams case has been received at this office." The letter was returned to Holt accompanied by the record of William's court-martial and docketed "Please see papers within." After studying the record Holt made a lengthy report to Secretary of War Stanton March 30 1863 which survives in the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library. Holt dismissed the "mitigating circumstances" referenced by Lincoln - Williams's supposedly "severe sickness" - and concluded that "It is evident that Lieut. Williams left his command on the battlefield and returned to Washington without leave and in known violation of orders and of his duty. . . .He has shown himself disqualified for the profession of arms." On April 8th Stanton in turn forwarded Holt's deposition to the President "as requested by his note on the 18th Ulto" that is the present letter. Lincoln ended the matter with his own terse endorsement on April 11th: "I decline to interfere in Behalf of Lieut. Williams" Basler 4:169. Although referred to in Basler's note regarding Lincoln's endorsement the present letter does not appear in "The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln".<br /><br />Extra shipping required.<br /><br />
18642292021/03/1864. <blockquote><p>“If there is on file a request of Gen. Meigs that William Alexander may be appointed an Assistant Quarter-Master with the rank of Captain let him be appointed.â€</p><p> </p><p>There is no record of the appointment having been made with speculation being that Lincoln possibly sent the appointment to Stanton to die there</p><p> </p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-22921 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204160847/branding-Lincoln-March-21-1864-C-e1640668975889-1600x692.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""692"" /></p></blockquote><p>Lincoln had the rare quality of not taking opposition personally. During the Civil War he was vilified more than any other public figure in American history yet saw the issues as so great that they transcended any personal aspect. He bore no resentments because as he said he “never thought it paid.†He appointed men to high office because he perceived that they would be useful to the war effort. When Gen. George B. McClellan was insufferably rude to him he was willing to suffer the personal indignity if only McClellan would win. His most important civilian appointment shows this management principal in operation. Edwin Stanton had met Lincoln before the war when they had served as co-counsel in a famous lawsuit involving the McCormick reaper. Stanton who had a reputation for being stern imperious hot-tempered and controlling had snubbed him and then ridiculed him publicly as a gorilla and an imbecile. Lincoln also saw him as honest dedicated and extremely competent. Carrying no grudges he appointed Stanton to be Secretary of War and it was a brilliant choice. The two men came to respect and even like each other as they worked together daily to achieve victory.</p><p>Lincoln even used Stanton to deflect criticism from himself. Lincoln was inundated with requests for military positions requests in which he had little if any interest. But these requests often came from members of his administration from Union generals or other notables and the President could not decline them without angering his friends colleagues or other supporters of the Union cause. He shoveled these requests to Stanton with his endorsement. But Stanton would only approve those requests he deemed meritorious.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-22923 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204160837/Lincoln-March-21-1864-B-e1640669110694-1600x636.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""636"" /></p><p>Montgomery C. Meigs was a career United States Army officer civil engineer and construction engineer. At the start of the Civil War Lincoln appointed Meigs quartermaster general a crucial post that was perfectly suited to his organizational and management talents. Before the war Meigs played a key role in the extension and dome of the U.S. Capitol. After the war he oversaw much of the design and monument construction at Arlington National Cemetery.</p><p>Meigs had requested that Lincoln make an appointment in his department and the President wrote this letter to accommodate him. <strong>Autograph letter signed</strong> on Executive Mansion letterhead Washington March 21 1864 to <em>“Hon. Secretary of War.â€</em> Lincoln writes <em>“My dear Sir If there is on file a request of Gen. Meigs that William Alexander may be appointed an Assistant Quarter-Master with the rank of Captain let him be appointed. Yours truly A. Lincoln.â€</em></p><p>There is no record of the appointment having been made with speculation being that Lincoln sent the appointment to Stanton to die there. An interesting letter associating the President Secretary of War and Quartermaster General and taking place just eleven days after Grant assumed the role that led to Union victory.</p><p><img class=""alignnone wp-image-22732 size-post-window"" src=""https://cdn.raabcollection.com/wp-content/uploads/20231204162353/Folder-site-1600x1327.jpg"" alt="""" width=""1600"" height=""1327"" /></p> unknown
