Description: Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE GEORGE BOUTWELL, LEADING RECONSTRUCTION POLITICIAN, WRITES IN HIS STATUS AS COUNSEL TO THE FRENCH AND AMERICAN CLAIMS COMMISSION, CREATED IN AFTERMATH OF CIVIL WAR GEORGE BOUTWELL (1818-1905). Boutwell was a Massachusetts politician and lawyer who served as the 20th Governor of Massachusetts from 1851 to 1853, an impeachment manager for President Andrew Johnson, Secretary of the Treasury under President Ulysses S. Grant from 1869 to 1873, and the Senate sponsor of the Civil Rights Act of 1875 and chair of the select committee investigating white supremacist violence during the 1875 Mississippi state election campaign. ALS. 1 pg. 6” x 8”. March 21, 1882. Washington. An autograph letter signed “Geo. S. Boutwell” to “Thomas Russell”: “It is among the events of possible but not certain that you may be tendered the mission to Central America. This you must consider confidential unless you get the information from some other service”. By this point, George Boutwell’s career as an elected official was finished, and he was a well-respected expert in international law frequently called by the United States government as counsel to several bilateral diplomatic commissions. His first, and longest, service was as counsel from 1880 to 1884 on the French and American Claims Commission, created to resolve outstanding claims by French citizens residing in the United States for property confiscated or destroyed during the Civil War. At the same time, France was beginning its ultimately doomed effort to build a canal across Panama. The canal is most likely the subject of the commission referenced in the letter, and to which Boutwell’s fellow Massachusetts politico, Thomas Russell, was rumored here to be placed on. Russell (1825-1887) had experience in the region, having served as United States Minister Resident to Venezuela under President Grant. Whether because of this service or later service as Counsel to Haiti and the Kingdom of Hawaii, Russell’s final act in politics was as a public and prominent critic of the Spanish-American War and as a supporter of Philippine independence. This letter is in very good condition with some minor folds. Other papers of the Commission are held by the Library of Congress. TERMS AND CONDITIONS My name is Stuart Lutz and I am a full time dealer of autographs, letters, documents and historic manuscripts. I am a member of the Manuscript Society, the Professional Autograph Dealers Association, the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America, the Appraisers Association of America (Certified in the field of Historic Documents), the Universal Autograph Collectors Club (Registered Dealer #166) and the Ephemera Society. I am the historical document appraiser and authenticator for the History Channel program Pawn Stars. I guarantee the authenticity of this piece forever, and will gladly refund your money if it is ever proven not to be authentic (not many Ebay autograph dealers boast of that!). All items are issued with an invoice that states in writing at the bottom "All autographs and historical papers are guaranteed authentic for life by me. If any piece is ever proven not to be genuine, I will gladly refund the full purchase price to the original buyer." Your piece will be professionally packed and shipped, will be fully insured, and will be sent by trackable USPS mail. I offer interest-free layaway plans, but please contact me before bidding to notify me that you would like a payment plan. These plans spread out three equal payments over three consecutive months; the first payment is due within seven days of the purchase agreement and is NON-REFUNDABLE for any reason. Full payment is expected within five days, unless other previous arrangements have been made. New Jersey residents, please add 7% for the Governor's salary ;-). Buyers who do not live in the United States must pay using PayPal. If you live outside the United States, I only ship through Ebay Global Shipping Program. Please do not ask me to do anything else. Best of luck bidding and thanks for your business!
Price: 250 USD
Location: South Orange, New Jersey
End Time: 2025-01-18T23:04:51.000Z
Shipping Cost: 8 USD
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Item Specifics
Restocking Fee: No
Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
Item must be returned within: 30 Days
Refund will be given as: Money Back
Profession: Civil War
Signed by: George Boutwell
Signed: Yes
Original/Reproduction: Original
Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
