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

30565

Oliver H. Perry Autograph Letter Signed

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:400.00 USD Estimated At:800.00 - 1,000.00 USD
Oliver H. Perry Autograph Letter Signed
<B>Oliver H. Perry Autograph Letter Signed</B></I> “<I>O. H. Perry,</B></I>” one page, 6.5” x 7.75”. South Ferry, August 8, 1818. Integral leaf addressed by Perry to “<I>The Honble/ Edward Wilcox/ Charlestown.</B></I>” In full, “<I>Permit me to introduce to you the Revd Mr. Wheaton Rector of Trinity Church in Newport. He visits Charlestown for the purpose of making inquiry into the state of Episcopal Church in that Town. Any aid that you may render him will be duly acknowledged.</B></I>” South Ferry is across Narragansett Bay from Newport. Charlestown is on the sound in southwestern Rhode Island. Edward Wilcox (1783-1838) was Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island from 1817-1821. Rev. Salmon Wheaton was Rector of Trinity Church, the oldest Episcopal parish in Rhode Island. Born in 1785 in South Kingston, R.I., Oliver Hazard Perry was baptized in Newport's Trinity Church in 1795. Immediately following his victory at the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813, Perry penned the famous words, “We have met the enemy and they are ours” in his report to General William Henry Harrison. He was the first in history to defeat an entire British squadron and successfully bring back every ship to his base as a prize of war. Perry, at the age of 28, was promoted to the rank of captain. In 1819, after completing a diplomatic mission to Venezuela and Buenos Aires, Commodore Perry contracted yellow fever. He died at sea near Trinidad three days after his 34th birthday. His autograph is rare in any form. Rough lower edge. “Hero of Lake Erie” has been penned in an unknown hand in the upper left of the letter.<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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