Description:

Letters to and About John Tyler Following Wm H. Harrison's Death

A pair of letters addressed to and concerning John Tyler following the death of President William Henry Harrison. Dated May 18 and June 19, 1841, covering the period between when Tyler was considered the "Acting President" and when Congress officially recognized him as President. The first letter, 1p of a bifolium, Hanover Iron Works, dated May 18, 1841, is from Samuel Van Fries and is addressed to "His Excellency John Tyler, President of U.S." Van Fries writes to forward a recommendation of Hon. George Chambers. The second letter, 1p, N.p., dated June 19, 1841, is from J. Ewing to Hon. William Woodbridge, A.S. Porter, and J.M. Howard, stating that he has forwarded their recommendation to the President [John Tyler]. Both letters have flattened mail folds, with varying degrees of toning and faint soiling. Very fine overall.

The two letters read as follows:
May 18, 1841: "Enclosed find a recommendation which will explain the object of this communication. For further particulars as to character, morals, and business habits, I will refer you to the Honble Geo Chambers, who is now at Washington and will call with you. He can also inform you of the characters of the persons who have signed my recommendations."

June 19, 1841: "Before receiving your letter of yesterday on the subject of Surveyor General for Ohio, Indiana & Illinois I had sent the name of Maj Clarkson to the President for that office. On the receipt of your letter I forwarded it to the President."

John Tyler had served as Vice President under President William Henry Harrison for just one month before Harrison's death on April 4, 1841. The death of the president in office was an unprecedented event and there was great uncertainty about presidential succession. Harrison's Cabinet met within an hour of Harrison's death and determined that Tyler would be "vice-president acting president", in accordance with how they interpreted the Constitution. However, Tyler firmly asserted that the Constitution gave him the full and unqualified powers of the office and had himself sworn in immediately as president, moving into the White House and assuming full presidential powers almost immediately.

However, Tyler's claim to the presidency was not immediately accepted by several members of Congress, who felt that Tyler should be a caretaker under the title of "acting president". In opposition to this, Tyler ignored the idea that he was 'Acting President' and refused to deal with any communications to him that did not address him as "President". The whole affair was finally resolved when, on May 31, 1841, the House passed a joint resolution confirming Tyler as "President of the United States" for the remainder of his term, and the resolution was passed by the Senate on June 1, 1841.

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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