LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2007 Apr Books, Manuscripts & Autographs #658  / 

25055

Robert E. Lee Autograph Letter Signed Re: WV

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:1,500.00 USD Estimated At:6,000.00 - 8,000.00 USD
Robert E. Lee Autograph Letter Signed Re: WV
<B>Robert E. Lee Autograph Letter Signed</B></I> on blue-lined stationery, one page, 7.75" x 9.75", Lexington, Virginia, March (?) 24, 1869. Written to "<I>Genl A. C. Niven, Monticello, N.Y.</B></I>" (in full): "<I>My dear Sir Col: Jeremiah Morion, a gentleman of high social standing & well known in Virginia, who has filled many public offices in his native State, was a member of Congress from Va: for some years before 1860, informs me that he is about to visit the North to call the attention of men of capital to the great value of the mineral, timber & agricultural resources of W. Virginia. He desires to have it in his power to refer to some gentleman of prominence at the North, for the information of those who may require it, as to his social position at the South, & I venture to trespass upon your kindness so far as to introduce him to your acquaintance, in the belief that you will find him as I have represented. With kindest regards to Mrs. Niven & your daughter, I am with great respect your Obt Servt R.E.Lee</B></I>" <BR><BR>Late in his life, Robert E. Lee writes concerning a business trip to be made in the near future to the North by Jeremiah Morton (1799-1878) - who once served as a Whig Representative from Virginia in the Thirty-first Congress (March, 1849 - March, 1851) - for the purpose of bringing West Virginia's major mineral, timber and agricultural resources to the attention of wealthy businessmen. The state of West Virginia was created during the Civil War as a result of the sectional differences between the citizens who lived west of the Alleghenies (few of whom owned slaves) and the more powerful landed gentry who lived to the east. On April 3, 1862, a constitution for the state of West Virginia was ratified by voters who took the oath of allegiance to the Union. Though the Congress approved the bill admitting West Virginia, President Lincoln disapproved and considered vetoing it, though he reluctantly gave his consent on December 13, 1862. The new state formally entered the Union on June 20, 1863. During the war, the new state, like Missouri, suffered from its own civil strife during the bitter four years of struggle. The official dismemberment of Virginia took decades to heal - an effort that Lee here assists in this fine letter. In fine condition.<BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Books & Catalogs (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
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