White Sulphur Springs, Virginia: circa 1857. Unbound. This envelope bears a stunning blue advertising cameo of the Montgomery White Sulphur Springs resort. It is franked with an 1857 3-cent, dull red Type III or possibly Type IV Washington stamp (Scott #26) that is tied to the cover with a circular... More
Sent from Iowa City to Buffalo, New York: 1864. This one-page letter-sheet features an early image of the Penatacrest showing the Old Capital Building—the first building owned by the University of Iowa—with South Hall in the background. The envelope is embossed in the upper left corner with the university seal... More
Paris, Illinois: F. Appel, 1885, 1885. Unbound. This ornate invitation measures 12” x 13.5” unfolded. Folded the card appears to be a blue and gold striped medieval tournament tent. When all nine panels and pieces are unfolded, six multi-colored vignettes from Sir Walter Scott’s novel are revealed. The invitation is... More
Elizabethport, New Jersey: 1862. Unbound. Sent from Elizabethport, New Jersey to Brooklyn, New York: circa 1862. This illustrated cover is completely covered with a hand-drawn map of a small farm. It shows a farmhouse, animal pen with pigs, access roads, fences, orchards, etc. Regardless, an unusual and unique piece of... More
Philadelphia: Dubois (artist) and Wollenweber (printer), 1850. Unbound. Three-page stampless cover city-view lettersheet. The lettersheet measures 16” x 10.5”. The lithograph of Philadelphia measures 7.5” x 3”. The three pages of text are in German. The letter is dated November 2, 1854 and bears two red circular Philadelphia postmarks, one... More
New York: 1879. Unbound. This thank-you grouping consists of a Female Guardian Society advertising cover, a two-page letter written on the organization’s stationery, and a religious tract. All in very nice shape. In 1834 a group of women established the Female Moral Reform Society of New York with the goal... More
Thibodeauxville: 1831. Unbound. This two-page folded letter measures 16” x 9.75”. The cover is has no postmark nor rate mark, so it is likely it was carried outside of official post office channels. The letter’s paper is supple but it has developed splits along several folds, so quite fragile. In... More
Canandaigua, New York: 1849. Unbound. This four-page folded letter measures 15” x 9.5” and has a red Canandaigua postmark dated January 10. It is franked with a nicely centered, very fine black 10-cent Washington stamp (Scott #2) tied with a red grid cancel. Complete but fragile as some folds have... More
New Orleans: 1841. Unbound. The one-page stampless folded-letter measures 15.75” x 9.75”. The cover is unfranked and without postmark, however it is annotated “Alton” in the lower left corner indicating it was transported by that riverboat. The letter is in nice shape with some light soiling and minor wear. In the... More
Washington, DC: 6 July 1837. Unbound. One-page personal letter (8” x 10”) to the Secretary of the Navy, Mahlon Dickerson, signed by Archibald Henderson, the Commandant of the Marine Corps., at the Marine Barracks at 8th and I Street in Washington, DC The letter is in nice shape with only... More
Atlanta: 1889. This very early Coca-Cola advertising envelope, dated October 5, 1889, contains a four-page employee’s letter. It shows “Asa G. Candler & Company, Wholesale Druggists, 47 Peachtree St. Atlanta, Georgia” as the return address and has one of the earliest Coca-Cola script logo advertisements on its back flap: “The... More
Boston: C. A. Fernald, 1908. Unbound. This advertising envelope measures 11.5” x 5”. It is printed in red and black and almost entirely covered (front and back) with hieroglyphics, line drawings, obscure phrases printed in a variety of fonts and sizes, names with birth dates, a map of Mount Ararat... More
Winslow-North Vassalboro, Maine: 1852. Unbound. This letter, written by C. G. Pinkham of Winslow, Maine to J. H. Osborne of Weare, Maine, is headed with a Quaker date: “1st 29th 1852” (January 29, 1852). It is enclosed in a “Maine Law” temperance propaganda envelope printed and sold by Thurston &... More
Washington, D.C. 1858. Unbound. In this letter, measuring 5” x 8” and dated “29th Dec’r 1858,” Ringgold provides detailed guidance to Ames, a major arms manufacturer, regarding the details of eagle devices, signifying the rank of captain, that attach to a naval officer’s epaulettes along with a promise to aggressively... More
Cincinnati: 1810. Unbound. This stampless one-page folded letter measures 15.5” x 12.5”. It was sent from Sedam’s farm near Bold Face Creek about three miles west of Cincinnati and is dated November 11, 1813. The cover is addressed to McHenry at Baltimore, Maryland. It has a manuscript Cincinnati postmark dated... More
![LETTER DESCRIBING THE PURSUIT AND DEFEAT OF A DELAWARE RAIDING PARTY BY A FAMOUS “INDIAN FIGHTER” AND HIS BAND OF RANGERS; Stampless folded-letter from Captain “Indian” Van Swearingen at his fort near Wellsburg, [West] Virginia to his cousin, Captain Josiah Swearingen in Berkeley County [West] Virginia. Captain “Indian” Van Swearingen.](/pictures/thumb/008913.jpg?v=1507048042)
Wellsburg, [West] Virginia: 1791. Unbound. This two-page letter with separate folded-cover measures 7.75” x 12.75”. Both the letter and the cover are dated 17 March 1797. The cover is addressed to “Capt. Josiah Swearingen / Berkeley County / Virginia” and “Hon. Pn. Mr. / Van Swearingen” is written in the... More
University of Virginia: [1831]. Unbound. This four-page stampless folded letter measures 15.5” x 9.75” unfolded. The letter was sealed with a black wax family crest showing a blazon with three suns in splendor, one and two. The cover is postmarked with an oval “University / of Virga” handstamp dated June... More
[Cincinnati]: circa 1855. Unbound. One-page undated letter from Master Charles David of the Steamer Express to the Captain Benedict of the Steamboat Jane Franklin at Cincinnati, Ohio. Enclosed in an unfranked and unmarked envelope. The letter is in nice shape; the envelope has some wear and soiling. This letter was... More
New York: 1920. Unbound. This one-page letter on the stationery of the New York State Bridge and Tunnel Commission and New Jersey Interstate Tunnel Commission, measuring 8” x 8.5”, was written to Mr. Leon C. Hills of Washington, DC, on October 17, 1920. This lot also includes a newspaper clipping... More
St. Louis: 1849 and 1850. Unbound. The E. Bates two-page manuscript 1849 bill of lading, measuring 15.5” x 10 unfolded, is for 40 sacks of oats, 15 hides, and one barrel of lard and includes a letter to the purchaser. “B/L” is written in the upper right corner of the... More
Various New England and New York locations: 1860s to 1910s. Unbound. The envelopes range in size from 4.25” x 2.75” to 5.75” x 3.75”. All of the artwork is in black ink, and two of the designs incorporate the cover’s stamp into its design. Stamps include two 3-cent Washingtons from... More
Alexandria, Egypt: Letter, 1892. Letter. Letter from General F. Walker to the British Consul-General in Egypt (Lord Cromer, Evelyn Baring, 1st Earl of Cromer) regarding the construction of buildings for the garrison at Ramleh. At the time F. Walker was the Commanding General of the British Army in Egypt following... More
New York: :George P. Putnam, 1849. Unbound. Envelope only; no booklet. Despite its appearance to the contrary, this envelope was an elaborate tromp l’oeil ploy by George Putnam to market Frances Sargent Osgood’s booklet lampooning scandals of the New York’s literary scene. The 12½¢ stamp and the backflap seal were... More
Brooklyn: 1919. Unbound. Envelope only, no letter. The envelope is addressed to Briehl while incarcerated in the prison at Fort Leavenworth. The envelope was sent registered and is franked with a 3-cent, purple Washington stamp (Scott #502) to pay postage and a 10-cent yellow Franklin stamp (Scott #510) to cover... More
Greenwood, [Pennsylvania]: 23 June and 18 July 1863. Unbound. Two letters (one with 6-pages and one with 4-pages) measure approximately 4.5” x 6.5”. Their envelopes are postmarked at Brookeville, Maryland; one is franked with a 3-cent Washington stamp (Scott #65), and the stamp is missing from the other. The letters... More
