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Andrew Johnson Autograph Letter Signed.. ...
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Description
Andrew Johnson Autograph Letter Signed.One page of a bifolium with "Executive Mansion" letterhead, 8 x 10 inches, Washington, D.C.; March 3, 1869. President Johnson writes a brief letter to Gideon Welles requesting a nomination to promote Commodore Levin M. Powell, former commander of the USS Potomac, to Rear Admiral. It reads, in full:
"Will you please send to me, in time for transmission to the Senate today, a nomination for the promotion of Commodore Powell to the grade of Rear Admiral in the Navy? Senator Fowler has called on you in reference to Capt. Stanley's case. What is there in it?" Signed, "Andrew Johnson."
By the outbreak of the Civil War, Powell was already a veteran of thirty-five years in the Navy. From August 1861 to June 1862, he commanded the USS Potomac on blockade duty in the Gulf of Mexico. Though his command of the vessel was formally retired in June 1862, Powell remained in service for another decade. In 1869, while serving as Inspector of the Third Lighthouse District, he received the promotion Johnson references in this letter. He concluded his naval career in 1872, closing nearly sixty years of service to the Navy.
Condition: Lightly toned with smoothed folds. Evidence of previous binding, including pinholes and a few small separations, at the left edge. Pencil annotations in the top margin on the recto; docketed in pencil on the verso.
Auction Info
2025 December 8 Arms & Armor, Civil War & Militaria Signature® Auction #6325 (go to Auction Home page)
Auction Dates
December, 2025
8th
Monday
Bids + Registered Phone Bidders: 4
Lot Tracking Activity: N/A
Page Views: 241
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25% of the successful bid per lot.
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