Civil War-era Autograph Album Signed by Lincoln

by LINCOLN, Abraham

Price: $24,000.00
Shipping rates & speeds | 30 Day Return Guarantee Ask bookseller a question | E-mail to a friend

Book description: Washington DC, 1852-1861. Leather Bound. Very Good. Outstanding Autograph Album Containing the Principle Personalities of Civil War America Signed by President Lincoln, his cabinet, Civil War Generals from North and South and distinguished members of both houses of Congress.(LINCOLN, Abraham) Civil War-era Autograph Album. Signed by Lincoln. Signatures collected between 1852 and 1861. Embossed floral leather 6 inches x 7 3/4 inches with several full-page allegorical engravings. 234 signatures in all. Cover lightly scuffed. Interior is Fine.SIGNED IN FULL: “Abraham Lincoln/Washington, Dec. 18, 1861”. This is a highly unusual example of Lincoln’s full signature, as President, the normal presentation being “A. Lincoln.”A truly amazing collection of noted politicians who made up the inner circle of Washington politics, from both North and South, before and during the Civil War, including these members of Lincoln’s cabinet: Vice-President Hannibal Hamlin; Secretary of State William H. Seward; Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles; and Interior Secretary Caleb B. Smith. Other notable signatures include: “Sam Houston/Texas”, signed with a large flourish, and Lincoln’s Great Debate opponent, “S.A. Douglas/Chicago, Illinois”. Altogether there are 234 signatures representing more than 30 states and comprising the lion’s share of members of the 32nd Congress of 1851-53. Nearly every man in this book is documented though Dictionary of American Biography (DAB). This is a stunning compilation of Civil War personalities.A beautifully organized Album thoughtfully collected by three sections:Autographs of Senators, Congressmen and the President and his cabinet.HEROES ON THE ADVENT OF THE CIVIL WAR. A stunning compendium of Senators and Congressmen from every state of the Union just prior to the War. Many of the southern Senators went on to fight for the Confederacy, as those of the North would fight for the Union, but Henry Clay still wielded common sense and so the compromising continued. Highlights include the signatures of the man who was President for one day (David Rice Atchinson), the man who bought Alaska for $7.2 million (William Seward) and the man who lassoed Texas away from Mexico (Sam Houston). Unique pairings are represented by the Brooks and Sumner signatures; Charles Sumner was the Senator from Massachusetts who was assaulted for his “Crime against Kansas” speech and his attacker Preston Brooks; as well as those of the famed oppositional debaters Lincoln and Senator Stephen Douglas.SIGNED BY ALL THE IMPORTANT CABINET MEMBERS of Lincoln’s Cabinet: Hanibal Hamlin the Vice President, William H. Seward the Secretary of State, Salmon P. Chase, the Secretary of the Treasury (later a Supreme Court Justice), George Harrington, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, Gideon Wells, Secretary of the Navy, Caleb B. Smith, Secretary of the Interior, and John George Nicolay, Lincoln’s personal private secretary and biographer. All these signatures are placed near Lincoln’s, representing not only the great emancipator but also those who joined him in working for freedom. Additional autographs represent the later members of the Buchanan and Pierce Cabinets.LEGAL AND DEBATE GIANTS. Famed members of our country’s legal system are represented by the Missouri Compromiser Henry Clay, Stephen Douglas, and the Florida Senator who became Confederate Secretary of the Navy, Stephen Mallory. Charles Sumner introduced the first Confiscation act, which passed the Senate on August 6th 1861 and provided refuge to runaway slaves seeking freedom.THE FIRST TWO CALIFORNIA SENATORS. Of particular note are the signatures of the first two Senators representing California. John B. Wheeler and William McKendree Gwin signed the album in 1851, only two years after Statehood and during the very heart of the Gold Rush era. This Album represents more than mere politics. It exemplifies the voice of those Americans most involved in the unprecedented changes occurring to our rapidly evolving nation. Though the country was growing, it was also in the process of tearing itself apart. The South, to preserve her way of life, worked increasingly for cessation and the North could not abide slavery. This was the United States of the 1850s and early 1860s. No important leader from this intense time in Washington’s history is left out of this autograph album. Senators are:Alabama: William King, Jeremiah ClemensArkansas: Solon Borland, William King SebastianCalifornia: William McKendree Gwin, John B WellerConnecticut: Truman Smith, Isaac TouceyDelaware: James Ashton Bayard Jr.Florida: Jackson Morton, Stephen MalloryGeorgia: William Dawson, Robert M. CharltonIllinois: Stephen Douglas, James ShieldsIndiana: Jesse David Bright Iowa: Augustus Ceasar Dodge, George Wallace JonesKentucky: Henry Clay, Joseph Rogers UnderwoodLouisiana: Pierre Soule, Soloman DownsMaine: Hannibal Hamlin, James Ware BradburyMaryland: Thomas George Pratt, James A. PearceMassachusetts: Charles Sumner, John DavisMichigan: Lewis Cass, Alpheus FelchMississippi: Walter Brooke, Stephen AdamsMissouri: David Rice Atchison New Hampshire: Moses Norris, John Parker HaleNew Jersey: Jacob Welsh MillerNew York: William Seward, Hamilton FishNorth Carolina: Willie Person Mangum, George Edmund BadgerOhio: Salmon P. ChasePennsylvania: James Cooper, Richard BrodheadRhode Island: John Hopkins Clarke, Charles Tillinghast JamesSouth Carolina: (none)Tennessee: John BellTexas: Thomas Jefferson Rusk, Sam HoustonVermont: William Upham, Soloman FootVirginia: James Murray MasonWisconsin: Henry Dodge, Isaac Walker Provenance: Without an extant signature of ownership we have no direct indication of who patiently collected all of these autographs. If one were allowed to hazard an educated guess, we would postulate that they were collected by the son of a Washington insider, himself either a Senator or Congressman. Since the majority of the autographs are dated in July and December, it would make sense that they were collected during a break from college, perhaps Harvard, as this was the time of year when students came home to their families.

Bookseller Terms of Sale

All items are offered subject to prior sale. Payment is due within one (1) week of order, and items are shipped upon receipt of payment. Shipping and insurance are additional. All items are guaranteed as described and may be returned in the same condition as sent for any reason within seven days of receipt. Institutions such as libraries, universities, and museums may be billed to meet their budgetary requirements.