Description:

Ernest Hemingway
n.p., August 11, 1938
Ernest Hemingway Boldly Signed Financial Document, Earmarked For Youngest Son, Dated 3 Weeks Before Leaving For Spanish Civil War Front
DS

A 1p financial document boldly signed by American writer Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) as "Ernest Hemingway" in his role as trustee at lower right; and co-signed by his uncle-in-law Gustavus Adolphus Pfeiffer (1872-1953) as "Gustavus A Pfeiffer" in his role as donor above Hemingway's signature at lower right. August 11, 1938. N.p. Possibly a retained clerical copy typed on watermarked onion-skin paper, with the name of Hemingway's youngest son, Gregory, pencil-inscribed near the top edge. Expected wear including flattened transmittal folds and a few extra wrinkles. Isolated closed margin tears, some showing evidence of repair. Isolated light staining at lower left. Else near fine. 8.5" x 11." Provenance: Collection of Dr. Jeffrey Rudolph.

Ernest Hemingway had entered into a trust agreement with Gustavus A. Pfeiffer, the paternal uncle of his second wife Pauline Pfeiffer, on November 2, 1936. Now, roughly two years later, Gustavus Pfeiffer was transferring an additional 22 stock shares from William R. Warner & Company, Inc., Pfeiffer's pharmaceutical company. We believe that the presence of the pencil docket "Gregory" suggests that this investment - $2,200 in 1938 money or over $50,000 in 2025 money - was earmarked for Ernest's youngest son. We also maintain that the timing of this transfer was probably significant, since Hemingway was slated to travel to Spain in just three weeks, in early September 1938, where he faced danger and possibly death.

The document reads in part:

"Pursuant to the right reserved to me under the terms of Paragraph IV of the Trust Agreement, made the 2nd day of November, 1936, of which you are the Trustee, to deliver additional securities to become a part of the Trust Estate thereunder, I, as Donor, am delivering herewith to you, as Trustee, Certificate No. B-505, for twenty-two (22) shares of William R. Warner & Company, Inc., Second Preferred Stock, having a par value of $100 per share to held by you under the same trusts and in all respects be considered as and which shall be a part of the said trust estate as though the same had been delivered to you at the time…"

Ernest Hemingway accepted this gift from his uncle-in-law Gustavus less than one month before he sailed for Spain. Hemingway had contracted with the North American Newspaper Alliance to serve as a Spanish Civil War correspondent in early 1937. Hemingway had reported from Spain in March 1937, and returned in August 1937 for several months, during which time he toured the front lines near Belchite, in northeastern Spain, and also visited with volunteers attached to the Abraham Lincoln Brigade. Hemingway returned to Spain twice in 1938, including from September 3 - November 25, 1938. During this last trip, Hemingway visited the site of the Battle of Ebro, the largest and longest battle of the Spanish Civil War, which proved a devastating Francoist victory.

It is not unreasonable to think that Hemingway (or his uncle-in-law) would have wanted to provide financially for Hemingway's children in the possible event of his death. Hemingway was incredibly reckless and risk-taking even during peacetime, and his exposure to battlefield conditions in Spain might have intensified his spirit of adventure-seeking. At this point in time, Hemingway had already begun an affair with fellow war correspondent Martha Gelhorn, the woman for whom Hemingway would leave Gustavus Pfeiffer's niece Paula Pfeiffer.

The family of Hemingway's second wife Pauline Pfeiffer was wealthy, and her uncle Gustavus Pfeiffer extremely so. In 1908, Pfeiffer had taken over the pharmaceutical manufacturing firm William R. Warner & Company, which had, in 1856, developed the first sugar shell-coating pill technology. By the 1940s, the merged Gustavus A. Pfeiffer Company and William R. Warner & Company had been consolidated with other profitable cosmetic and perfume companies. When he died in 1953, Pfeiffer left an estate worth an estimated $10 million, which he mostly farmed out to various philanthropic endeavors. The "New York Times" obituary mentions that $780,000 of Pfeiffer's estate was to be divided into 260 shares to divide between Pfeiffer's 30 nephews and nieces; sadly, Pauline had died two years earlier.

Ernest Hemingway's youngest child Gregory "Gloria" Hemingway (1931-2001) would have been about 5 years old when this contract was originally drawn up. Gregory suffered from gender dysmorphia and transitioned to being a woman in the 1990s.

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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  • Dimensions: 8.5" x 11"
  • Medium: DS

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