As President, he mentions sending a miniature cameo bust of himself to a lady. Framed collection including: 1) Autograph Letter Signed in the Third Person. As President, 1 page, 6¼x4½. No place, 1796 March 16. Signed "the President" in text. To a Mrs. Stewart, in full: "Not for the representation or the value, but because it is the production of a fair lady, the President takes the liberty of presenting the enclosed, with his best regards, to Mrs. Stewart praying her acceptance." Toned and creased. Trimmed, irregularly cut edges. Fine condition.2) Framed reproduction of Madame de Brehan's miniature portrait of a Grecian style image of Washington. George Washington (1732-1799) a Virginia planter and surveyor who gained his military experience in the French and Indian War, was a delegate to the Continental Congress when he volunteered to take command of the American militia surrounding British-occupied Boston in 1775. Not a brilliant tactician, Washington turned the ragtag volunteer Continental Army, inadequately supplied by Congress, into an effective fighting force, preserving morale and winning enough battles to persuade France to enter the conflict.

Handwritten letter, signed in text as "General Custer" (even though he had reverted to his pre-war rank), written in the Dakota Territory two years before his death at the Little Big Horn. Letter includes Custer's stab at poetry. Third Person Autograph Letter, 1 page, 7¾x6¼. Fort Lincoln, D.T. [Dakota Territory], 1874 June 5th. Unknown addressee. In full: "Gen Custers compliments his regrets likewise, in response to your kind invitation. His absence should never create surprise except from his own habitation. This being written his duty might end. With no fear of being called Alfred Tennyson. He simply desires, however to send you, the accompanying leg of venison." George Armstrong Custer (1839-1876) graduated last in his class at West Point in 1858, but promptly redeemed himself through his brave and aggressive cavalry leadership during the Civil War. Earning the confidence of cavalry commanders Pleasanton and Sheridan, he rose swiftly to the rank of brevet major general by war's end. Custer had taken command of the 5th Michigan Cavalry shortly before Gettysburg and led it into battle repeatedly. Custer left military service briefly after the Civil War, dabbling in business and politics, but by 1867 he was back in uniform, battling Plains Indians.

Civil War legend Joshua Chamberlain signed check to local stonecutter. Partly Printed Check signed: "J.L. Chamberlain", 7x2¾. Brunswick, Me., 1867 October 12. Drawn on the First National Bank of Brunswick. Payable to D.M. Melcher for $65.00. Affixed at left is a 2-cent U.S. Internal Revenue stamp picturing Washington. D.M. Melcher & Co., Brunswick, Maine, was a stonecutter company that erected monuments in cemeteries. Colonel Chamberlain, formerly a professor at Bowdoin College, Maine, commanded the 20th Maine in its famous defense of Little Round Top in the Battle of Gettysburg, July 2, 1863. His unit was posted as left flank of the Union Army and fended off repeated Confederate attacks throughout the day. He broke the Confederate lines by a bayonet charge. Chamberlain, who was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions that day, received the only battlefield promotion to General in the Civil War. At Appomattox Courthouse, April 9, 1865, Brevet Major General Chamberlain was chosen to accept the Confederate surrender. He then ordered Union troops to present arms to their former enemy as a mark of respect. Chamberlain was Republican Governor of Maine (1866-1970), then assumed the presidency of Bowdoin.  His severe war wounds eventually killed him in 1914.

The United States President and newly appointed Secretary of War signed this document promoting Zerah W. Torrey Partly Printed DS: "Theodore Roosevelt" as President and "Luke E. Wright" as Secretary of War, 1p, 18x15. Washington, 1908 July 1. Appointment of Zerah W. Torrey as Lieutenant-Colonel of Infantry. After Secretary of War William H. Taft was nominated for President at the June 16-19, 1908 Republican National Convention, he left Roosevelt's cabinet and was succeeded by Luke E. Wright (1846-1922) who entered upon his duties on July 1, 1908, the day he signed this document! Before he was appointed Secretary of War, Wright was the Governor-General of the Philippines from 1904 to 1906. Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt (1858-1919) is one of America's most well-known and flamboyant presidents. Roosevelt's heroism in the Spanish-American War, where he earned the Medal of Honor for leading his volunteer "Rough Riders" in a charge up San Juan Hill (1898), helped him win the governorship of New York the next year. Elected Vice President in 1900, Roosevelt assumed the presidency upon President William McKinley's assassination (1901), becoming America's youngest president. He was re-elected in 1904.

This huge 17¾x26 engraving of the Union Army general is signed by him and framed Annotated Engraving Signed: "Wm. T. Sherman. 1890". 17¾x26. The engraving appeared in Colliers Once A Week, a popular New York-based magazine. Printed in the white margin below the engraving appears: "From 'ONCE A WEEK,' 65 Warren Street, New York." This engraving was signed the year before his death. General William Tecumseh Sherman (1820-1891) is perhaps the best-known Union Army general besides Ulysses S. Grant. Sherman's "March to the Sea" from Atlanta, Georgia, resulted in millions of dollars in property damage and the draining of Confederate resources. When offered a promotion to the same rank Grant (then Commander of the Union Army) in 1864, Sherman refused out of respect to Grant. Five years later, Sherman replaced Grant as Commanding General when Grant became President. During Sherman's 14 years in command, he worked to resettle the Native Americans throughout the West. In brown ink. Framed handsome South American rosewood frame, engraved historical plate. Fine condition. Framed to an overall size of 25¼x41.

Telegram, unsigned, 1 page, 8½x11. 1866 December 6. Telegram partly printed in Portuguese, received from Gideon Welles in Washington, D.C., for transmittal to Admiral Goldsborough, American Squadron at Lisbon, Portugal. Manuscript text of Welles' message (unknown hand): "Send steamer to Alexandria, Egypt to receive Surautt [sic] from Consul Hale and bring him to Washington." [Welles' name has also been misspelled by the telegraph office.] Docketed on verso: "Hon. G. Welles/Secy of the Navy/6th Dec. 1866/Send steamer to/Alexandria, Egypt". Gideon Welles (1812-1878), a Jacksonian Democrat who joined the new Republican Party in 1854 because he detested slavery, was Secretary of the Navy throughout the Presidencies of Abraham Lincoln (who called him "Neptune") and Andrew Johnson (1861-1869). John Suratt (1844-1916) was the son of Mary Suratt, convicted of conspiracy in the assassination of President Lincoln and the first woman executed (hanged) by the US government. John Suratt was accused of involvement in the conspiracy, but remained at large for a year and a half, fleeing first to Canada and then through Europe, escaping after first having been captured in Italy.

His signature on a rare Cuban bond issued in May 1960. Rare Engraved Bond signed: "Che" as Fiduciary Agent of Banco Nacional de Cuba, 1p, 14x10¾. Havana, 1960 May 30. Countersigned by the Minister of the Treasury. Certificate No. M-152-V. Provisional Certificate of "Issuance of Bonds of Partial Funding/of the Public Debt 4% 1960-1971" for $1,500,000. Ornate brown border, 12 "L" shaped cut cancellation marks in the center from top to bottom; only four touch printed text. "CANCELADO" rubber stamped across center. Ernesto "Che" Guevara (1928-1967), an Argentine-born Communist revolutionary and guerrilla leader, helped organize Fidel Castro's coup in 1959. He became a prominent member of Castro's new government following the successful overthrow of Batista's 30,000-man army by Castro's band of 800 guerillas. In 1965, he left his government posts to engage again in guerrilla activities, going first to the Belgian Congo where he helped other Cuban revolutionaries organize the Patrice Lumumba Battalion. In 1966, he went to Bolivia to direct the guerrilla movement. He was captured by the Bolivian Army and executed in 1967. He was 39.

JOHN ENDECOTT This exceedingly rare document is from the very earliest history of the American colonies and Massachusetts!  It's a five-line complaint signed by John Endecott, colonial governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, in Marblehead, Massachusetts in 1649. Documents from this early in American history are rarely seen outside of private collections and are highly desirable! Framed to 10x6½ in a gold-colored frame with cream-colored matte. Document signed "Jo: Endecott Gov.". Brown ink and lead pencil notations in top left corner and at left edge. 1 page, 5-5/8x2. Framed to 10x6½ in a gold-colored frame with cream-colored matte. Marblehead, Massachusetts, April 24, 1649. Five-line complaint. Endecott (c. 1588-1665), also spelled "Endicott", was a colonial governor (1629-1630, 1644-1645, 1649-1650, 1651-1654 and 1655-1664) and deputy governor (1641-1644, 1650-1651 and 1654-1655) of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the New World. Endecott arrived with 60 other settlers in the Naumkeag, future site of Salem, Massachusetts and already settled by seceders from the Plymouth colony, led by Roger Conant.

From the President to the son of Buchanan's Postmaster General: He cannot attend a meeting of the Society of the Army of the Potomac. Manuscript LS: "Benj Harrison" as President, 1p, 7½x10. Executive Mansion, Washington, 1892 May 21. To Hon. Horatio C. King, Brooklyn, N.Y. In full: "I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of May 19th in which you extend to me a cordial invitation to attend the annual meeting of the Society of the Army of the Potomac to be held at Scranton June 15th and 16th. I fear that it will not be possible for me to accept this invitation, and assure you that I regret that it is so." KING, son of Buchanan's Postmaster General, was Judge Advocate General of New York. In the Civil War, he served with the Army of the Potomac and Shenandoah from 1862-1865. Harrison was Colonel in the 70th Indiana Regiment in the Civil War. Just 2½ weeks after this letter, President Harrison was renominated on the first ballot at the Republican National Convention held in Minneapolis June 7-10, 1892. Tanned, lined page. Lightly creased. Vertical fold touches the "a" in Harrison. Fine condition.

Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant Signs 1865 Document for Galena Monument Association as National Hero. Printed DS: "U.S. Grant" as President of the Soldiers Monument Association, 1p, 14x17. Galena, Ill., 1865 August 28. Not filled in. In full: "This Certifies that [blank] Is hereby Constituted a Member of the Jo Daviess Soldiers' Monument Association." Vignette of Lincoln at top center and five other smaller vignettes. Engraved by the Continental Bank Note Co., New York. At the time the Civil War broke out, former soldier Ulysses S. Grant was working in his father's hardware store in Galena, Illinois. Four years later, Lieutenant General Grant was the hero of Galena and of the Civil War, which ended on April 9, 1865. The citizens of Galena purchased a furnished home in town and presented it to Grant. He signed its deed on August 18, 1865. Other honors were heaped upon the General, including the honorary presidency of the Jo Daviess Soldiers' Monument Association, for which he signed this membership certificate (according to his memoirs) on August 28, 1865. Galena is located on the Mississippi River in Jo Daviess County, named for the Daniel Boone-like figure of Col. JOSEPH H.

The Nation's bicentennial President signs a commemorative printer's plate. Commemorative Metal Printer's Plate inscribed and signed: "To Robert L. White, best wishes,/Gerald R. Ford" as 38th President, 14¾x 6½. Printer's plate for the production of commemorative matchbooks. A sheet of completed matchbooks (two rows of seven covers per row) are displayed beneath the plate. The covers for the matchbooks, which are made of blue silk, bear gold foil impressions reading "The President and Mrs. Ford", a facsimile signature of Gerald Ford and the image of the White House. The commemorative matches were presented to the President by the Maryland Match Corporation in Washington, D.C. As the President and First Lady during America's bicentennial celebration, Gerald and Betty Ford were deluged with "birthday presents", such as this printing plate. Nearly two years earlier, upon becoming the 38th U.S. President (1974-1977) upon the resignation of Richard Nixon, Gerald R. Ford (1913-2006) attempted to bring a quick end to the Watergate Scandal by pardoning Nixon (September 8, 1974).

Partly Printed DS: "Andrew Johnson" as President and "William H. Seward" as Secretary of State, 1p, 13¾x10. Washington, 1866 May 4. Appointment of William T. Coggeshall of Ohio as "Minister Resident of the United States of America to the Republic of Ecuador". COGGESHALL (1824-1867) presented his credentials on September 20, 1866, serving until his death in Guapolo, Ecuador on August 3, 1867. Congress had passed the Tenure of Office Act on March 2, 1867, over JOHNSON's veto. It required Senate approval for a president to remove any federal official previously confirmed by the Senate. On August 12, 1867, just nine days after Coggeshall's death, Johnson dismissed Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton, a Radical Republican, in defiance of the act. This action led to Johnson's impeachment in 1868. The Radical Republicans controlling the Senate then refused to confirm most of Johnson's appointments, including three successive Ministers to Ecuador. It was not until Grant became President in 1869 that the Senate confirmed the appointment of Coggeshall's successor. SEWARD, who had been appointed by President Lincoln on March 5, 1861, served as Secretary of State through Johnson's administration. Lightly creased. Folds, vertical fold touches the second "l" in William.