Description:

Chester Arthur & 80+ NYC Notables Congratulate U.S. Grant's New Attorney General. A Gilded Age Who's Who!

A 3pp circular letter, New York, June 1875, with signatures of 82 New York lawyers, including future 21st U.S. President Chester A. Arthur, all conveying their congratulations to U.S. Grant's recently appointed U.S. Attorney General Edwards Pierrepont. 8.125" x 12.625". Expected wear, slight foxing, and minor tears, else fine. 

The document reads in part:

"To yt. Hon Edwards Pierrepont

The undersigned members of the Bar of the State of New York have the honor to request your acceptance of a public dinner to be given you on occasion of your appointment to the position of Attorney General of the United States, and of the distinction thus conferred upon the bar from whose body you have been selected.

New York June 1875…"

The most important individuals/signers on ONLY the FIRST PAGE are outlined below.

Which names of other notables might appear on the subsequent pages? A unique document definitely worthy of more research!

Garfield/Arthur Administrations:

President Chester A. Arthur: Arthur would serve as President between September 1881 - 1885. In 1875, Arthur was midway through his tenure as Collector of the Port of New York City.

Judge John Riker Brady: Judge Brady administered the presidential oath to Chester A. Arthur in the early morning hours of September 20, 1881 after a telegram message confirmed the death of President Garfield.

Judge Charles Donohue: Donohue was a New York State Supreme Court judge who served as Judge Brady's backup on September 20, 1881.

Arthur, Brady, and Donohue thus represent three of the six people who attended Arthur's swearing-in ceremony on September 20, 1881.

Charles J. Guiteau Trial:

John K. Porter: Porter was a leading prosecutor in the trial of Charles J. Guiteau.

1876 Presidential Election

Edwin M. Stoughton: Stoughton served as one of Rutherford B. Hayes's 1876 Election Commission lawyers.

Grover Cleveland Connection

Elias C. Benedict: Captain Benedict commanded the yacht "Oneida," where President Grover Cleveland recuperated from cancer surgery during the summer of 1893.

Future Diplomatic Posts

William M. Evarts: Evarts was a future U.S. Secretary of State under President Rutherford B. Hayes.

Joseph H. Choate: Choate would serve as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom between 1899-1905.

Miscellaneous

George H. Sharpe: Sharpe was a Civil War General.

Wheeler Hazard Peckham: Peckham was a failed U.S. Supreme Court nominee.

William Allen Porter: Butler served as the president of the American Bar Association.

The 82 signers of this document wished their best to Edwards Pierrepont (1817-1892), whom President Ulysses S. Grant had appointed U.S. Attorney General just two months earlier, in April 1875. Pierrepont was a Yale University-educated lawyer who President Grant had also appointed U.S. Attorney in 1869. Pierrepont would serve as U.S. Attorney General for 13 months, until May 1876. During his tenure, he gained a reputation for vigorously prosecuting tax evaders and corrupt industrialists.

The occasion of Pierrepont's appointment provided a rare opportunity for some of New York's most powerful men to sign a single document. The signers of the document possess interesting connections to significant historical events of the period, including the hotly contested 1876 presidential race between Rutherford B. Hayes and Samuel J. Tilden; the assassination of James Garfield and the inauguration of Chester A. Arthur; and the murder trial of Garfield assassin Charles J. Guiteau, among many more.

The confluence of these signers in a single document is noteworthy and unique.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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