HARRY S TRUMAN and HENRY T. MYERS
Commemorative cover on the dedication of Everglades National Park (1947), signed by the President and by the pilot who flew him to the ceremony in the Sacred Cow, a specially equipped Presidential aircraft.
Special Cover signed: "Harry Truman" and "Henry T. Myers", 6½x3½. Special Cover on occasion of dedication of Everglades National Park, 1947, postmarked Naples, Florida, December 8, 1947. In his dedication speech on December 6, 1947, President TRUMAN described the new park's uniqueness: "Here are no lofty peaks seeking the sky, no mighty glaciers or rushing streams wearing away the uplifted land. Here is land, tranquil in its quiet beauty, serving not as the source of water, but as the last receiver of it. To its natural abundance we owe the spectacular plant and animal life that distinguishes this place from all others in our country." According to a typed note on the cover, Lt. Colonel HENRY T. MYERS piloted the Sacred Cow aircraft which flew Truman to the event. This aircraft, a Douglas VC-54C specially designed for presidential use, had flown President Roosevelt to the Yalta Conference in 1945. It remained in presidential service during the first 27 months of the Truman Administration. Truman signed the National Security Act of 1947 on board the Sacred Cow. This act established the Air Force as an independent service, making the Sacred Cow the "birthplace" of the U.S. Air Force. The plane is now on display at the USAF Museum, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio. Creased, not affecting signatures. Otherwise, fine condition.