Third-Person Autograph Letter.
The Democratic eighth U.S. President (1837-41) held many high offices during a lengthy career: As senator and governor of New York, then as President Andrew Jackson's secretary of state, minister to the United Kingdom and vice president. Item #51756
Third-Person AL (unsigned, 1p, 7½" X 9". Washington, DC, 2 April 1840. Very good. Lightly age toned. Penned in his big, sprawling script in brown ink, Van Buren writes: "The President presents his compliments to Mr. Felt, & requests him to return the Pg. [package?] thanks to the 'American Statistical Association' for the honor they have conferred upon him, with an expression of his best wishes for the success of the Institution." In Boston in 1839 the American Historical Association was founded and Van Buren was among its earliest members; as president he helped expand the scope of its efforts at taking the census. In December 1839 the ASA elected Joseph B. Felt (1789-1869) as their first Recording Secretary. Felt was librarian of the Massachusetts Historical Society and a historian who pioneered the study of early Salem, Massachusetts. To honor to which Van Buren refers is no doubt Felt's election to this ASA office. This letter has been matted in burgundy under glass and framed in a decorative 5/8" wooden frame (overall dimensions 20" x 13½") side by side with a delightful 7" X 9" stipple-point head-and-shoulders portrait of a young Van Buren. Interesting and an attractive presentation.
Price: $700.00