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

30085

Edward Livingston ALS 1785 George Washington

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:750.00 USD Estimated At:1,500.00 - 2,500.00 USD
Edward Livingston ALS 1785 George Washington
<B>Edward Livingston Autograph Letter Signed</B></I> "<I>Edward Livingston,</B></I>" one page, 7.25" x 9". New York, November 26, 1785. To<B> "</B></I><I>His Excellency Genl. Washington."</B></I> In full, "<I>I have the honor of introducing to your acquaintance the Count de Castiglioni an Italian Nobleman who has been well recommended to many Gentlemen in this City and and sic appears to be a man whose conversation will justify the liberty I take in bringing him acquainted with Your Excellency. My Mother and Sisters beg to be remembered to Your Excellency & Mrs. Washington.</B></I>" Docketed on verso by <B>George Washington: </B></I>"<I>From/ Edwd Livingston Esq/ 26th Novr 1785.</B></I>"<I> </B></I>Edward Livingston was only 21-years-old when he wrote this letter of introduction to General Washington. He was the son of America's first Secretary of Foreign Affairs (1781-1783) Robert R. Livingston who, less than four years later, as Chancellor of the State of New York, would swear in Washington as the first president of the United States. Milanese nobleman and amateur botanist Count Luigi Castiglioni had sailed from London for America on April 13, 1785, "to make an abundant collection of seeds" as well as to see the new nation first hand because, as he said, it may "in time produce important consequences for Europe." He landed in Boston May 17, 1785 and left New York for home on May 16, 1787. In his <I>Viaggio: Travels in the United States of North America, 1785-87,</B></I> written in Milan in 1790, translated into English in 1983, the 29-year-old Count mentions meeting Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and other famous Americans. Representing New York in Congress from 1795-1801, Livingston was a vocal opponent of Jay's Treaty of 1794 and introduced the resolution calling upon President Washington for all papers relating to the treaty. He later served as mayor of New York City (1801-1803) and moved to New Orleans where he was elected to represent Louisiana in the House (1823-1829) and the Senate (1829-1831). He served as Jackson's Secretary of State from 1831-1833 and Minister to France (1833-1835). The letter is in very fine condition.<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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