25509

Brig. General Frederick Lander ALS. Brig. General Frederick W. Lander Autograph Letter Signed

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:1.00 USD Estimated At:1,500.00 - 2,000.00 USD
Brig. General Frederick Lander ALS.  Brig. General Frederick W. Lander Autograph Letter Signed
<B> Brig. General Frederick W. Lander Autograph Letter Signed </B></I> <I> "Fred W. Lander." </B></I> Two pages, 7.5" x 9.8", Camp Kelly, Patterson's Creek Virginia, February 25. Lander was a brigadier general in the Union Army during the Civil War. A civil engineer by trade, he was assigned by the government to secretly investigate the southern states in order to evaluate their strength. He was given this assignment because he had successfully crossed the continent five times and lived through many hardships including Indian attacks. He was part of several key Union battles, and was responsible for a successful skirmish at Blooming Gap against a superior force of Confederate soldiers. Lander died suddenly in 1862, and his death was a huge loss for the Union Army. Lander wrote this letter to an institute in his home state of Massachusetts; it reads in part, <I> "As the ruder soldier still let me say to the young men of your Association, "That the pen is mightier than the sword."…and whether with pen or word may her young men feel what I endeavor to embody in verse- Go forth! And on her shining scroll write one enduring act of thine: God gives the birthright of the soul But our own hands must make the sign." </B></I> <r The letter is in very fine condition; usual folds are present; pencil notations present on first and second pages; signature is bold and dark. Accompanying this letter is a handsome engraving of General Lander. From the Henry E. Luhrs Collection. Accompanied by LOA from PSA/DNA.