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Van Buren, Martin

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Historical Memorabilia Start Price:0.00 USD Estimated At:2,500.00 - 3,500.00 USD
Van Buren, Martin
Van Buren, Martin (1782-1862) 8th President of the United States (1837-1841). Manuscript Letter Signed as chairman of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary (with text in the hand of James Hamilton, prominent South Carolina statesman and later pioneer in Texas), 1 p. both sides, 9¾ x 8 in., Washington, April 5, 1828. Also signed by several cabinet members and prominent statesmen, including Littleton W. Tazewell, Mahlon Dickerson, Levi Woodbury, and Louis M'lane. The letter is addressed to Samuel L. Southard, Secretary of the Navy, recommending "the early appointment as a Midshipman in the Navy…Stephen Decatur, the son of Col. John P. Decatur, and the nephew of the late Commodore Stephen Decatur…." The letter states that the appointment had been denied in 1826 because young Decatur was only fourteen years of age and that now that he has attained the age of sixteen, "We beg leave to assure you of the great gratification his appointment will afford us…." Normal folds, else very fine.

The uncle of young Stephen Decatur was one of our national heroes, famous for his exploits during the Barbary Wars and the War of 1812. It was he who commanded the squadron which sailed to Algeria in 1815 and forced a peace on the Barbary states, ending the practice of paying tribute. Upon his return, he gave the famous toast: "Our country! In her intercourse with foreign nations may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong!" It was to honor Commodore Stephen Decatur that Martin van Buren and the other statesmen requested the appointment of Decatur's eponymous nephew.
Estimated Value $2,500 - 3,500.

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