Lot 151

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Description:

Woodrow Wilson TLS Ominous Warning of "Pro-German and Anti-American" Plot

2pp TLS on White House stationery, Washington, D.C., dated January 16, 1918. Signed "Woodrow Wilson" and addressed to Hon. Edward N. Hurley of the U.S. Shipping Board. Wilson warns Hurley of a potential "pro-German and anti-American" plot to thwart shipping between the U.S. and Great Britain. The letter has flattened mail folds and light uneven toning. Some small holes present around the top edge. Boldly signed on the second page.

Reads in part:
"I have just received a letter from a man whom I do not know, who writes to me from California, which contains one piece of information which I do not feel that I can take the risk of passing by... He states it to be within his knowledge that there is a carefully concerted plot on the part of all the pro-German and anti-American agencies in this country, including those disaffected elements among the Irish-Americans who are thought to be cooperating with such agencies, for a general effort to destroy American and British shipping in every port, in every ship yard, and at sea, and that the date set is the twenty-second of this month (January). I think you will agree with me that no pains should be spared to take extra precautions."

In conjunction with the Espionage Act of 1917, Wilson approved the establishment of the American Protection League (APL), which consisted of approximately 250,000 members across the country with the purpose of investigating anyone that might have been deemed a threat to American policies and ideals. While there is little evidence to suggest anything came of the warning in Wilson's letter, pro-German groups were proven active in the U.S. throughout World War I, as can be seen with the "Black Tom" Explosion of 1916 which killed 4 people and destroyed 20 million dollars' worth of military goods at a port in Jersey City.

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.

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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.

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

University Archives

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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