LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2006 Dec Signature Civil War Auction #642  / 

25297

CSA Postmaster General John C. Reagan ALS

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:100.00 USD Estimated At:400.00 - 600.00 USD
CSA Postmaster General John C. Reagan ALS
<B>John C. Reagan, CSA Postmaster General, Autograph Letter Signed.</B></I> This handwritten and signed letter by Confederate Postmaster General John H. Reagan is written on Confederate States of America stationary. Dated December 5, 1864 at Richmond, this 7.5" x 10" document is in very good condition with one minor tear at top right. Addressed to "<I>His Excellency, The President</B></I>", Reagan is inquiring as to a resolution passed to determine the ages of the "<I>...lady clerks</B></I>", Reagan signs the document: "<I>With great respect, Your Obt Servt, John H. Reagan Postmaster General</B></I>".<BR><BR>John Henninger Reagan was born in Tennessee in 1818 but made his way to Texas by the age of nineteen. He is an historic figure in the state of Texas serving as a probate judge, a state legislator and in Congress until the Civil War. Knowing his state would secede from the Union, Reagan went back to Texas and took part in the secession convention in Austin. He was elected to serve Texas in the Provisional Confederate Congress but within one month was chosen to serve in the cabinet instead.<BR><BR>As Postmaster General of the Confederate States of America, Reagan pulled off a remarkable feat. Through an agent, he convinced the bulk of the U.S. Postal service in Washington, DC to go to work for him. The employees brought vital documents that, through Reagan's efficient administrative efforts, allowed the Confederate Postal Service to be quite successful- even turning a profit.<BR><BR>As Richmond fell, President Jefferson Davis escaped with Reagan and Texas Governor Francis R. Lubbock, all three eventually captured in Georgia. Returning to Texas after the war, Reagan again was elected to Congress, helping found the Interstate Commerce Commission and championed the cause of historical work by founding the Texas State Historical Association. He died in 1905, the last of the CSA cabinet members.<BR><BR>Complete with a gray hardbound slipcase with gold engraved lettering, this is a handwritten, signed document of an important Confederate cabinet member and noted Texan. <BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Small Collectibles (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
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