Description:

James Fenimore Cooper
Cooperstown, NY, July 6, 1841
James Fenimore Cooper ALS Renting Family Manor After Publishing "The Deerslayer"
ALS
An autograph letter signed by author James Fenimore Cooper. 1p, measuring 8" x 10", Cooperstown, dated July 6, 1841. Signed "J. Fenimore Cooper" and addressed to M. C. Patterson. Cooper makes arrangements for renting a house out to guests. Reverse of second integral page bears an address panel in Cooper's hand, as well as a couple of docketing notations, presumably by the recipient In very good condition, with a few small separations along intersecting folds, a few spots of light toning, and paper loss to second integral page. Boldly signed.

In part:
"Your friends and yourself can be accommodated on the following terms. A private parlour, pretty well furnished &c, and quite well situated, good enough bedroom, a separate plain table at your own hour, and a respectable, new, quiet tavern agreeably placed for $6 a week each, for grown persons, and half price for servants and children. Children under five three for one. The home is at my gate, has a piazze on two sides, alone on a cliff, and is as good as can be generally formed. There are about a dozen regular boarders who breakfast at 7, dine at 1 and take tea at 6. I can tell you no more of the house, than that it has been badly kept; has changed hands this summer with a view to improvements. It is in ambitious hands, and may do not well enough, but all this I knew nothing. We have an exceedingly healthy and cool country; pleasant rides and drives, a lake, excellent water, ice, and no fruits, but apples and the smaller kinds. Chickens will soon abound. I have wine, but whether there is any in the tavern, I never looked. We have two rotten egg springs within fifteen miles of us. Let me know your decision, as the landlord may not wish to keep his room."

James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) was an American writer known for his historical romances depicting colonist and Indigenous characters from the 17th to the 19th centuries. As a young man, Cooper served in the U.S. Navy as a midshipman, which greatly influenced many of his novels and other writings. His most famous work, and often regarded as his masterpiece, is the romantic novel "The Last of the Mohicans". Cooper had recently renovated the family manor located in Cooperstown in 1834 and owned it until his death. The same year as sending this letter, Cooper published his final Leatherstocking's tale, "The Deerslayer.."

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" x 10"
  • Medium: ALS

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