Bidspirit auction | AN AMERICAN WAR DEPARTMENT LETTER

AN AMERICAN WAR DEPARTMENT LETTER TO HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, FEB 1881, SECRETARY OF WAR ALEXANDER RAMSEY AND REPRESENTATIVE MICHAEL PATRICK O'CONNOR ALS - A letter from Secretary of War Alexander Ramsey to South Carolina Representative Michael Patrick O'Connor on official War Department stationery. The letter is in response O'Connor regarding a request from his constituent Mr. James Simons for 100 artillery sabres to be delivered to the German Artillery Regiment of Charleston for their visit to the city. Ramsey denied the request, citing a lack of authority under the law. O'Connor then forwarded the letter to Mr. Simons along with a written apology. The initial letter is dated February 18, 1881 while the forward is dated February 19th of the same year. Both Ramsey and M. P. O'Connor have signed the document in large elegant script. Alexander Ramsey, in addition to being the Secretary of War, was the very first Territorial Governor of Minnesota, a vast expanse of land which stretched from modern day Minnesota until nearly the western borders of what is now the Dakotas. He then became the very first Governor of the state of Minnesota upon its admittance to the Union, and was the first governor to offer his state's assistance to Lincoln upon the outbreak of the Civil War. Michael Patrick O'Connor led a different path. First being a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives, he argued against secession but to no avail. When his state became the first to secede from the Union he chose to stand with her and continued to serve in the South Carolina House of Representatives, while also serving as a lieutenant in the Lafayette Light Artillery. He would later join the U.S. House of Representatives after the end of Reconstruction. A transcript of the letter can be provided upon request. Please make all inquiries before bidding. All lots are sold ”as-is”, refer to our T&C. Helios Auctions does not ship in-house. A list of recommended shippers will be provided. Dimensions: 10 1/4 X 7 3/4 in., (26 x 19.7 cm.) Condition: Near perfect with only expected minor yellowing of paper due to age.