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1865 13TH AMENDMENT UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION, Broadside Abolishing Slavery

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Autographs Start Price:10,000.00 USD Estimated At:18,000.00 - 24,000.00 USD
1865 13TH AMENDMENT UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION, Broadside Abolishing Slavery
Autographs
1865 13th Amendment Printed Broadside Freeing Slaves Previously Unlisted & Apparently A Unique New Discovery
(13TH AMENDMENT - UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION) c. 1865 13th Amendment to the Constitution of United States of America, Important Unlisted Contemporary Broadside Printing, Abolished Slavery, Freeing the Slaves and Ending Involuntary Servitude.
c. 1865 Civil War Era, Dated in Printed Text: “In the Senate, April 8, 1864. / In the house of Representatives, January 31, 1865.”, Contemporary Broadside Printing, 13th Amendment to the Constitution of United States of America, Unlisted Design and an apparent new discovery, Abolished Slavery, Freeing the Slaves and Ending Involuntary Servitude, Choice Extremely Fine. This is a contemporary Broadside printing of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of United States measures an impressive 19.5” x 15.75” boldly printed in black on clean solid period glazed wove period paper having only faint transmittal folds. It consists of the full text of the 13th Amendment, followed by all relevant signer’s signatures in facsimile including: President Abraham Lincoln; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Schuyler Colfax; Secretary of the Senate, J.W. Forney; Clerk of the House of Representatives, Edward McPherson; Vice-President, Hannibal Hamlin; 38 Senators; and 120 Representatives.

The the printer or location is not identified on this impressive Broadside. However, we believe this was an Official Government Publication for distribution, as noted by an Handwritten Autographed Inscription docket on the blank reverse, which reads in full: “Presented by / William F. Steele - Secretary of State Department - Washington D.C.”. The 13th Amendment states:

“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”

We have searched extensively and unsuccessfully for locating an identical copy of this Broadside, indicating its design and formate to be an extreme rarity, apparently previously unknown. Also, we searched unsuccessfully in an attempt to identify William F. Steele, who must have been a member of some standing in the State Department. Considering the intense interest in Black History, Slavery, and the Emancipation Proclamation, this is clearly an extremely important and valuable historic document. The rich black, vivid printing stands out against the bright, light cream-colored special paper. The reverse has two trivial expert archival reinforcements on short minor edge splits, none of which is visible from its face. Properly framed and presented, this remarkable, contemporary 13th Amendment Broadside will make a superb museum-quality display presentation.

In 1865, the United States Secretary of State was William H. Seward. The employees of the Department of State during that time included various diplomats, consuls, and clerks who were responsible for carrying out the department's duties, such as managing diplomatic relations with foreign governments, negotiating treaties, and providing services to American citizens abroad. It's possible that William F. Steele was an employee of the Department of State during this time, but I do not have any specific information about him or his role within the department.
The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1865 in the aftermath of the Civil War, Abolished Slavery in the United States. The 13th Amendment states:

“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”

Despite the long history of slavery in the British colonies in North America, and the continued existence of slavery in America until 1865, the amendment was the first explicit mention of the institution of slavery in the U.S. Constitution.

While America’s founding fathers enshrined the importance of liberty and equality in the nation’s founding documents—including the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution—they conspicuously failed to mention slavery, which was legal in all 13 colonies in 1776.

Many of the founders themselves owned enslaved workers, and though they acknowledged that slavery was morally wrong, they effectively pushed the question of how to eradicate it to future generations of Americans.