LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2007 October Rare Books & Manuscripts #675  / 

30186

Bunker Hill Monument: Edward Everett ALS

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:250.00 USD Estimated At:500.00 - 700.00 USD
Bunker Hill Monument: Edward Everett ALS
<B>Bunker Hill Monument: Edward Everett Autograph Letter Signed</B></I> “<I>Edward Everett,</B></I>” 3 pages, 8” x 9.5”. Boston, March 1, 1825. Verso of third page addressed by Everett to “<I>Thomas Aspinwall Esq./ Consul of U.S.A./ London.</B></I>” Three days before entering Congress, the 30-year-old future Governor of Massachusetts, Minister to England, Harvard president, and Secretary of State notifies the U.S. Consul in London that he has been elected a member of the “<I>Bunker Hill Monument Association…a commencement will be made of erecting this Structure…The entire estimated expense of the Monument and of the spacious area, on the summit of Bunker Hill, (commonly so called,) in which it is to stand, is seventy five thousand dollars…</B></I> the Directors of the Association <I>have thought that it would be agreeable to the sons of New England beyond the ocean, to join their countrymen at home, in commemorating an event, by which the spirit and valor of New England, may be considered as having given a decided character to the revolutionary effort in America. Had the works on Bunker Hill been basely deserted or feebly defended on the 17th of June, 1775, there is little doubt that the army at Cambridge would have been dispersed, and a check - perhaps a fatal one - given to the War. In this event, it need not be said, that American enterprise and capital, instead of being now seen in every country of Europe and of Asia, would have had a mere nominal existence, in the British acts of Navigation. The Committee of the Directors would esteem themselves much indebted to you, if you would present this subject, sanctioned by your influence and favor, to the notice of the Americans, particularly the New Englanders, in your city…</B></I>” Thomas Aspinwall, appointed U.S. Consul in London by President Madison in 1815, served until he was recalled by President Pierce in 1853. The Bunker Hill Monument Association was established on June 7, 1823. The Directors laid the cornerstone on June 17, 1825, three months after this letter was written and the 50th anniversary of the battle. Construction was frequently halted as available funds were depleted. In 1838, the Bunker Hill Monument Association began to sell off the ten acres of the battlefield as house lots, eventually preserving only the summit of what was commonly called Bunker's Hill (actually Breed's Hill) as the monument grounds. The capstone was laid on July 23, 1842, with the monument being dedicated on June 17, 1843. <I>Ex. Henry E. Luhrs Collection.</B></I><BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Flat Material, Small (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
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