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William Henry Harrison

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles / Autographs Start Price:NA Estimated At:20,000.00 - 25,000.00 USD
William Henry Harrison

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Auction Date:2018 Feb 07 @ 18:00 (UTC-05:00 : EST/CDT)
Location:236 Commercial St., Suite 100, Boston, Massachusetts, 02109, United States
ALS - Autograph Letter Signed
ANS - Autograph Note Signed
AQS - Autograph Quotation Signed
AMQS - Autograph Musical Quotation Signed
DS - Document Signed
FDC - First Day Cover
Inscribed - “Personalized”
ISP - Inscribed Signed Photograph
LS - Letter Signed
SP - Signed Photograph
TLS - Typed Letter Signed
Extremely rare autograph endorsement signed, presumably as president, "W. H. Harrison, W. H. Henderson, an old soldier of mine, Private drawer," dated "8th March 1841" in pencil, on the docketing panel of a letter sent to him by William H. Henderson, three pages on two adjoining sheets, 8 x 10, Springfield, Illinois, February 7, 1841. Henderson's letter to Harrison, which was evidently brought to him in Washington by Col. William Prentiss, reads, in part: "I hope you will allow me the privilege of troubling you with a short communication, on a subject of some interest to me and first I will mention some of the reasons why as one unknown to you, I use that freedom. My Father was a Virginian acquainted with your Father. He imigrated early to Kentucky, was in St. Clairs defeat, and afterward, under General Wayne…where he was acquainted with you…I was born in Kentucky and belonged to Colo. R. M. Johnson's Regiment of Mounted men, and to Capt. James Davidson's Company, and was with you at the battle of the Thames, and although I may be unknown to you, I hope under the aforesaid circumstances you will excuse the liberty of addressing you this letter. It has fallen to my lot never to have been blessed with more than a very limited portion of the comforts of life or the means of obtaining them. I am now forty-eight years of age, and have a wife, and seven children all sons, and I am desirous of doing all in my power to provide for their immediate wants, but particularly for their future welfare, and usefulness…I should be glad to receive from you some appointment in the duties of which I could perform without dishonouring myself, or your administration, or injuring my country…In relation to all things pertaining to qualifications or merit, I hope you will allow me to refer you, to the Honl. John Bell and Christopher H. Williams members of the House of Representatives from Tennessee. The Honl. John T. Stuart from this State. And to Colo. Prentiss the bearer himself." In fine condition, with unobtrusive professional repairs to one of the intersecting folds.

Accompanied by a letter of authenticity from University Archives, describing the piece as "A genuine endorsement of William Henry Harrison written while President circa March 8, 1841…I believe this is authentic short of conclusive documentation indicating Harrison wrote the endorsement prior to his presidency," as well as a copy of a letter describing Harrison's whereabouts in the days leading up to his inauguration provided by Robert G. Gunderson, Harrison's biographer; this letter concludes: "It is hard to tell just when Prentiss delivered the letter to WHH or to a member of his staff, but it is highly unlikely that he could have got it to him before WHH returned from Virginia on February 28. From that date until March 4, WHH must have been preoccupied with many more important things than random letters of application. One might logically conclude that it was unlikely that WHH would have been inclined (or even had the time) to read such a letter until things settled down after the Inaugural. March 8, 1841, certainly is not an unlikely date."

Carrying Henderson's letter with him, Col. William Prentiss traveled from Springfield, where he was secretary of the Illinois Board of Public Works, to Washington seeking an office for himself. Brandeis University has in its archives a letter dated March 10, 1841, written in Washington by Supreme Court Associate Justice John McLean to Secretary of State Daniel Webster recommending Prentiss 'for the unnamed office to which he is applying.' Perhaps, when Prentiss delivered Henderson's letter to President Harrison on March 8th, the president told him to apply for an office, and he subsequently obtained the recommendation from Justice McLean to improve his odds of receiving it. An appointment would require Senate confirmation, and the Senate adjourned indefinitely on March 15th. President Harrison passed away on April 4th, and on April 13th, during the Senate recess, President Tyler named William Prentiss as US Marshal for the District of Illinois.

The author of this letter, William H. Henderson, had enlisted in Col. Richard M. Johnson's Kentucky Mounted Riflemen in 1812. After the Battle of the Thames in 1813, he moved to Tennessee, and then to Illinois in 1836 after serving a year in the Tennessee State Senate. There is no record of Henderson receiving a presidential appointment, but President Harrison clearly valued this letter—denoting "an old soldier of mine" on the reverse and filing it away with his private papers.

To our knowledge this is the only William Henry Harrison signed endorsement as president extant. It is interesting to note that an unsigned Harrison presidential endorsement on an address leaf appeared at auction in 2006, which was similarly penned perpendicular to the address—apparently this was his common filing method. As President Harrison died just one month after entering the White House, his autograph as president is ultra-rare—this extraordinary example would be a cornerstone piece of any American history collection.