Lot 105

Previous image preload Next image preload

Description:

April 15, 1865 ALS from Cincinnati Reporting Assassination of Lincoln AND Seward

A 2pp autograph letter signed by an unknown correspondent from Cincinnati, Ohio named "Charlie" discussing the coordinated attacks on 16th U.S. President Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) and 24th U.S. Secretary of State William Seward (1801-1872) on April 14, 1865. Written in Cincinnati, Ohio on April 15, 1865 on bifold blue-lined paper. Expected wear including flattened paper folds and isolated ink blots and bleed-through. The third and fourth pages are blank. Else near fine. 7.5" x 9.5." Accompanied by a canary yellow transmittal envelope postmarked from Cincinnati bearing a canceled stamp and letter-opened at right.

The Cincinnati observer wrote to a man in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts named Everett Walker in part, with punctuation silently added to improve clarity:

"Your letter came today and some rather sad news came too. Our country is in more danger than for a long time and if Andr. Johnson is as drunken a chap as many think, why then our new president might as well resign and go home to Ten[n]essee. Yesterday was kept as a grand holiday; today came the sad news of the murder of two of the leading men of the nation just when they were comming [sic] out all right and could show the world they were true to the good of the country. You can get no idea from my pen what a sudden change from rejoicing to mourning there is, all business houses hang crepe from all their windows, our store is nearly covered on the street front and you can gain no Idea of the feelings of the people here…"

News of Lincoln's death was first confirmed outside of Washington, D.C. in the April 15, 1865 Saturday 8:45 am edition of the "New York Herald," just 80 minutes after Lincoln had expired; the "Herald" had published seven different editions giving updates on Lincoln's condition throughout the night and early morning.

When did the news reach Ohio? Samuel Peter Orth stated in his "A History of Cleveland, Ohio" (1910) that a rumor had reached Cleveland at 11 pm on the night of April 14th. Governor of Ohio John Brough had proclaimed a statewide day of thanksgiving on April 14, 1865 to celebrate the end of the Civil War, and consequently, many businesses were already closed, including the offices of the "Cincinnati Enquirer." As a result, there was no "Cincinnati Enquirer" edition reporting Lincoln's death, and none published on April 16th because no stories were written on April 15th. If the case of Cleveland is similar to that of Cincinnati, however, then the news of Lincoln's death would have filtered in over the course of the morning and early afternoon via other sources, plunging the populous from jubilation to anguish.

Charlie's letter referred to the "murder of two of the leading men of the nation." Lincoln died at the hands of John Wilkes Booth, but Seward survived the brutal bedroom attack by Lewis Powell. Seward's face and neck injuries were so serious that the press erroneously reported that Seward had died immediately after the attack, and later they walked that statement back only so far as to say that he was on "the brink of the grave." It is not surprising at all, then, that Seward was also believed to have been assassinated on April 14, 1865.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

WE PROVIDE IN-HOUSE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE!

Accepted Forms of Payment:

American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Paypal, Personal Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

Unless otherwise indicated, we do our own in-house worldwide shipping!

Applicable shipping and handling charges will be added to the invoice. We offer several shipping options, and remain one of the few auction houses who proudly provides professional in-house shipping as an option to our clients. All items will ship with signature required, and full insurance. Most items are sent via Federal Express, with P. O. Box addresses being sent through USPS. We insure through Berkley Asset Protection with rates of $.70 per $100 of value, among the lowest insurance rates in the industry. Our shipping department cameras document every package, both outgoing and incoming, for maximum security. In addition, we compare our shipping and handling rates against those of other auction houses, to ensure that our charges are among the lowest in the trade.

Upon winning your item(s), you will receive an invoice with our in-house shipping and handling fees included. ***We will ship to the address as it appears on your invoice. If any changes to the shipping address need to be made, you must inform us immediately.***

International shipments: In order to comply with our insurance provider, all international shipments will be sent via Fed Ex and customs paperwork will show a value of $1.00. International buyers should contact our office directly with any questions regarding this policy.

Third Party Shipping Option: If a third party shipper is preferred, the buyer is responsible for contacting them directly to make shipping arrangements. For your convenience, we have provided some recommended shippers. For your protection, we will require a signed release from you, confirming your authorization for us to release your lots to your specified third party Please copy and paste this following link into your browser: http://universityarchives.com/UserFiles/ShippingInfo.pdf. At that point, our responsibility and insurance coverage for your item(s) ceases. Items picked up by third party shippers are required to pay Connecticut sales tax. Items requiring third party shipping due to being oversized, fragile or bulky will be denoted in the item description.

Please see our full terms and conditions for names of suggested third party shippers.

After payment has been made in full, University Archives will ship your purchase within 10 business days following receipt of full payment for item.

Please remember that the buyer is responsible for all shipping costs from University Archives' offices in Wilton, CT to the buyer's door. Please see full Terms and Conditions of Sale.

August 17, 2022 10:30 AM EDT
Wilton, CT, US

University Archives

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of up to 25% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $299 $20
$300 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $2,999 $200
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000