REHNQUIST COURT, 1986-1990 14x9½ color, satin-finish Court photo, signed by all nine Justices on the 18x14 mount. Photograph Mount signed: "Thurgood Marshall", "Wm J. Brennan Jr", "William H. Rehnquist", "Byron R. White", "Harry C. Blackmun", "Antonin Scalia", "John Paul Stevens", "Sandra Day O' Connor", "Anthony Kennedy". Color, 14x9½. WILLIAM H. REHNQUIST (1924-2005) was appointed Associate Justice by President Nixon on January 7, 1972. He joined with his colleagues in their unanimous ruling on July 24, 1974, upholding the Special Prosecutor's subpoena for President Nixon's tapes for Watergate trial; Nixon resigned 16 days later. President Reagan appointed Rehnquist Chief Justice on September 26, 1986. As Chief Justice, he presided at President Clinton's impeachment trial in 1999. On December 12, 2000, his court ruled 5-4 that the manual recount of presidential votes in Florida was unconstitutional, resulting in Vice President Gore's concession and Texas Governor George W. Bush's victory. read more...

WILLIAM BARCLAY "BAT" MASTERSON This extraordinary document is a typed manuscript for Dodge City, The Cowboy Capital about Western lawman Bat Masterson, with a total of four handwritten corrections by him, including his very rare full signature. It was written by Robert M. Wright, former mayor of Dodge City, Kansas, and sent to Masterson, a former deputy in Dodge City, for his review. Annotated typed manuscript signed "William Barclay (Bat) Masterson". Black ink and lead pencil notations in unknown hand. 6 pages, 8½x11, bound with a needle at top edge. There are a total of four corrections on the first page. The first is Masterson's signature, correcting the title "W.B. Masterson (Bat)". He also corrected the initials "W.B." in the first sentence with "William Barclay". The other two corrections pertain to his candidacy for sheriff of Ford County, Kansas, which included Dodge City. He crossed out the "6" in "1876" and corrected it with "7". read more...

ROGER B. TANEY The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court signs the verso of a 2½x4 Carte de Visite in which he is shown, an extremely rare piece! Photograph signed: "R.B. Taney" on verso, B/w 2½x4 Carte de Visite. Printed back mark on verso indicates the card is from a negative found in Brady's National Portrait Gallery. President Jackson named Roger B. Taney (1777-1864) Secretary of the Treasury on September 24, 1833, but his nomination was rejected by the Senate on June 24, 1834. Taney was the first Cabinet nominee to be rejected by the Senate. He was nominated for Associate Justice of the Supreme Court in 1835; but the Senate rejected that appointment too. In 1836, Jackson named Taney Chief Justice to succeed John Marshall. A change in the makeup of the Senate resulted in Taney's confirmation; he served until his death. Taney is chiefly remembered for his decision in the Dred Scott case, 1857, which stated that slaves were not citizens and that Congress had no power to prohibit slavery in territories. (Ironically, Taney disliked slavery and had freed his own slaves. read more...

SIR WILLIAM BLACKSTONE Signing in the text of this handwritten 1777 letter, he discusses his corrections to proofs of a legal address he delivered before the Society of Antiquaries Third-Person Autograph Letter Signed: "Sir William Blackstone" and "Sir Wm" in text, 1 page, 7½x4½. Wallingford, 1777 April 17, Monday morning. In full: "Sir William Blackstone returns to Mess. Bowzer and Nichols the Proof Sheets of his letter to Mr. Barrington & with them the MS. Copy. [Items not included.] Had he known the Society intended to have printed it immediately, he would have corrected it for the Press before it was sent to the Compositor, but believes the few Emendations he has made will not occasion any considerable Trouble. Sir Wm would have returned it sooner, but did not receive it till Saturday Afternoon."  English jurist and writer SIR WILLIAM BLACKSTONE (1723-1780) is referring to the publishing of his letter to Judge Daines Barrington, which he had read in 1775 before the Society of Antiquaries. read more...

JOSEPHINE "JOSIE" EARP Rich-content ALS from Wyatt Earp's wife to the man drafting the manuscript of Wyatt's autobiography, warning him that others may try to steal his material. She also fears - correctly - that "Wyatt ... is not long for this world." Autograph Letter signed: "Josie Earp", 3 pages (integral leaf), 6x8 folded, 12x8 open. Also signed "W. Earp" [by Josey] in the envelope return address. Vidal, California, 1925 February 19. To John H. Flood, Jr., Los Angeles. In full: "Your kind and always welcome letter came yesterday. Mr. E and I were very glad to hear from you again. And glad too that you at last got hold of some of the [2 words illegible] and sincerely hope that you will keep on getting it. I am also very happy to know that you have the story [Earp's autobiography] finished at last, for your sake and ours too. I know just how glad you must be to have it all done with, as I know Mr. Flood it has taken up so much of your time. But I think it will pay us well for all of the lost time. And we both wish to thank you for all of the trouble it has caused you. And we surely do appreciate all and everything you have done for us both read more...

THE WARREN E. BURGER COURT (1971-1975) Official Court portrait signed by all 9 justices who served between 1971 and 1975, 9½x6¾, mounted to 12x10 Photograph signed: "Potter Stewart", "Lewis F. Powell", "W. O. Douglas", "Thurgood Marshall", "Warren E. Burger", "Harry A. Blackmun", "William J. Brennan, Jr", "William H. Rehnquist" and "Byron R. White" in various inks, b/w, 9½x6¾, mounted to a backing board to 12x10. Harris & Ewing photo. Each justice has signed below his own image. The nine Justices signing this image of the Supreme Court Building served together from 1971, when Powell and Rehnquist joined the Court, to 1975, when Douglas retired. In 1974, Chief Justice Burger spoke for a unanimous Court upholding a subpoena for the Watergate tapes which resulted in President Nixon's resignation. In 1986, Chief Justice Burger retired and was succeeded by Associate Justice Rehnquist, who served until his death in 2005. Slightly worn and soiled. Lightly toned at edges. Adhesive residue on verso. Otherwise, fine condition. read more...

CHARLES J. GUITEAU The lawyer who assassinated President Garfield pens his name on this cabinet photo Rare Cabinet Photograph signed: "Charles Guiteau/ March 3,/1882". Sepia, 4¼x6½ overall, 4x5¼ image, (two surfaces). Signed beneath image and above the imprint: "Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1882, by/C. M. BELL,/in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D.C." Imprinted on verso: "Notice - The negative from which this photograph is taken was made personally by me in the jail in the city of Washington on February 6th, 1882, for Charles Guiteau, and I warn all persons not to infringe upon the copyright. C.M. Bell". Lawyer, Charles Guiteau (1844-1882), unsuccessful in a small legal firm in Chicago, had moved to New York. Unable to find work on a newspaper, Guiteau unhappily returned to the practice of law. Divorced by his wife soon thereafter, Guiteau, despondent and struggling financially, involved himself in the 1880 Presidential campaign, writing a speech on behalf of James Garfield which the Republic Party published and gave some limited circulation. read more...

WILLIAM BARCLAY "BAT" MASTERSON He pens a letter in correspondence to an individual stating they are relatives in which Masterson quickly replies with otherwise! Autograph Letter Signed: "W.B. Masterson". 2 pages, 8x10, loosely placed in 9½x11½ folio. Accompanied by original mailing envelope; heavily toned, soiled and worn. December 31, 1905, New York City, written to "Mr. Watson F. Masterson" of Ramsey, West Virginia. In full: "Dear Sir. Without going into details can assure you that we are not related; even remotely. My father was born in this state eighty years ago and moved to Illinois where I was born fifty one years ago. There are a great many families of Mastersons in Missouri and Iowa none of whom are related to mine. My father had but one brother and he was several years the eldest and has been dead about forty years and died without issue. Very respectfully." Masterson (1853-1921) was an American frontier gambler and buffalo hunter and a scout for the United States Army. read more...

CHARLES J. GUITEAU Awaiting trial for the assassination of the President in 1881, Guiteau signed this autograph letter demanding that an account of his life given to a prosecutor who had posed as a reporter and that the account be published in full in the NY Herald Autograph Letter signed: "CG", 2 pages (front and verso), 5x8. [Washington, D.C.], "Oct. 17" [1881]. To "Mr. Smith". In full: "I expected you today. I want to work on my book. Send a man tomorrow sure. I saw Saturday's republican. It contains a fine report generally. I don't think much of democratic papers. Send me Stalwart, N.Y. & Washington. If Caskill was not mean, he would allow my attorneys to copy from Bailey's dictation my autobiography & thus save me the trouble of dictating it. If he has a particle of honor he ought to do this considering how his Bailey got it. There is nothing I wish to withdraw. Bailey obtained the information on his, & Corkhill's statement that he was a reporter of the NY Herald, & promised to publish it in full in the Herald, & he said it would make 40 columns, that Mr. read more...