Description:

Ralph Waldo Emerson
Concord, MA, May 10, 1872
R.W. Emerson ALS From Concord Re: Sale of Wife's Family Home, Site of His 1835 Marriage
ALS
A 3pp autograph letter signed by writer Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) as "R. W. Emerson" near the top of the third page. May 10, 1872. Concord, Massachusetts. On bifold stationery. The outer leaf is blank. Expected wear including flattened transmittal folds, two horizontal folds with minor splits. Scattered faint ink bleed-through, else near fine. 4.375" x 7.125."

Emerson wrote this letter to Dr. Le Baron Russell (1814-1889), one of his oldest and closest friends, regarding the imminent sale of his wife's childhood home in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The buyer was Lucia Russell Briggs (1821-1881), Russell's younger sister.

Emerson wrote in part:

"My wife begs me to say that she is very well contented to accept the offer for the Winslow House which your sister makes in your letter + especially wishes me to add she considers herself indemnified for parting with it at a less price than she has hitherto claimed, by the satisfaction she finds in Lucia's becoming the owner. I will immediately ask Mr James B. Thayer to make the proper inquiries on our part at the Plymouth Register of Deeds, + will see you, at least to report progress, on Monday next…"

The Russell Family had been the Plymouth, Massachusetts neighbors of Emerson's second wife Lydia (Lidian) Jackson (1802-1892). Lidian's family home was the Edward Winslow House, a sizable Georgian style mansion overlooking Plymouth Harbor built in 1754 (the site was purchased by the General Society of Mayflower Descendants in 1941 and is now known as the Mayflower House Museum.)

The Winslow house had considerable sentimental value for Emerson and his wife. In January 1835, on the staircase of Winslow House, Lidian claimed to have had a precognitive vision of her marrying Emerson (he proposed to her later that month!) The Emersons were married in the downstairs parlor of the Winslow House on September 14, 1835. Although the couple moved permanently to Concord after the wedding, Lidian retained ownership of the house, collecting rent from the property, and visiting friends there regularly.

The correspondence of Ralph Waldo Emerson shows that he and Dr. Russell had been discussing the sale of the Winslow House since as early as October 1870. Lucia Russell Briggs is believed to have taken ownership of the residence sometime in the Spring of 1872.

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: 4.375" x 7.125"
  • Medium: ALS

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September 18, 2024 10:00 AM EDT
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