PRESIDENT FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT - COLLECTION - HFSID 265642

DURING WORLD WAR I, FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT THANKS A LADY FOR LENDING BINOCULARS TO THE NAVY. THEN, AFTER THE WAR, FDR RETURNS THE BINOCULARS. BINOCULARS INCLUDED!
 
FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT. Comprises three items: 1) TLS: "Franklin D. Roosevelt" as Wilson's Assistant Secretary of the Navy. On official letterhead. Washington, D.C., 1918 January 28. To Miss Pauline Davison, Tyrone, Pennsylvania. In full: "Your prompt and patriotic response to the NAVY'S call for binoculars is most appreciated. The glasses will be very useful in the prosecution of Naval Operations until victory is won. At the termination of the war, if possible, every effort will be made to return them to you when it is hoped that you will feel compensated for any evidence of wear, by the knowledge that you have supplied 'Eyes for the NAVY!' during a very trying period. On behalf of the NAVY, I wish to thank you most heartily. Very respectfully." Fine condition. 2) TLS: "Franklin D. Roosevelt" IN TYPE (not signed in ink) as Assistant Secretary of the Navy. On letterhead of Navy Department, U.S. Naval Observatory. Washington, D.C., no date but after the November 11, 1918 Armistice ending World War I. In full: "SUBJECT: Return of articles, in connection with the NAVY's call for binoculars, telescopes, spyglasses, and other navigation instruments. 1. There is being returned to you by registered mail the article received from you in response to the NAVY'S call. 2. An engraved certificate evidencing the participation of this article in the war, is now being prepared and will be forwarded to you at a subsequent date. [not included] 3. It is hoped that any evidence of wear or damage will be compensated for by the fact that a great service has been performed and that historic interest has been added to the article returned." Pinhead-size spots in blank areas. Fine condition. 3) VINTAGE BINOCULARS, brown and black, 3¾x4½x2. Manufactured by Marchand of Paris. Lanyard clips on each side for attachment to cord. Moderate wear to surfaces from normal use. Fully functional. Fine condition. Illustrator Gordon Grant's "Will You Supply Eyes for the Navy" poster urged Americans to send "binoculars and spy-glasses" to Roosevelt at the Naval Observatory in Washington, asking: "Will You Help Us 'Stand Watch' on a Destroyer?" Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945) resigned his seat in the New York State Senate to become President Wilson's Assistant Secretary of the Navy (1913-1920), serving throughout World War I. A unique opportunity to own binoculars actually used by the navy in World War I with provenance signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt! Three items.