(CUBA) Group of letters and documents re the Cuban independe

Sale 2404 - Lot 294

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(CUBA.) Group of letters and documents re the Cuban independence movement. 3 manuscript documents and 8 Autograph Letters Signed as described; condition generally strong. Vp, 1852-54

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Cuban efforts toward independence continued throughout the 19th century. In 1851, a small invasion force led by Narciso López was defeated and López was executed. The next effort was the 1852 formation of the Junta Cubana, composed of Cuban exiles in New York and New Orleans. They soon came under the leadership of former Mississippi governor and Mexican War veteran John Quitman, who hoped to expand the influence of slave-holding America. His plans to invade Cuba with thousands of troops were initially encouraged by President Franklin Pierce, but were halted in May 1854 for political reasons. This is an archive of some of the central Cuban players in the Junta Cubana. It includes:
1. Report of the Junta Cubana. 25 manuscript pages, possibly an early transcription. Members have taken an oath to secure the liberty of Cuba. The group agrees to subsidize an expedition of 5,000 soldiers; several groups across Cuba, including a group of about 250 men in Puerto Principe and Santiago, are prepared to join them. Np, 3 October 1852, with additional note on final page by secretary Porfirio Valiente dated New Orleans, LA, 19 May 1854.
2. "Reglamento interior de la Junta Cubana." 3 manuscript pages, transcript signed by secretary Porfirio Valiente, with embossed seal of the Junta Cubana on page 3. Np, undated.
3. "Junta General de Cubanos." 3 manuscript pages, signed by José Elias Hernández, Manuel R. Silva, Miguel Teurbe Tolón, Manuel Trujillo, Manuel de Arango, and Pablo Antonio Golibart. Minutes of the group's first meeting. New York, 24 April 1852.
4. Group of 4 Autograph Letters Signed from secretary Domingo de Goicoura to José Elias Hernández in Brooklyn, NY. The letters discuss the shipment of weapons and money to supporters in Cuba in detail. The first includes a transcript of a letter from president Gaspar [Betancourt Cisneros] in New Orleans. New York, June-September 1854.
5. Group of 4 Autograph Letters Signed president Gaspar [Betancourt Cisneros] to "Ely" (presumably José Elias Hernández). The third letter announces the decree to free Cuba's slaves once the fighting starts. New Orleans, LA, June 1854.
Additional notes and images for this important archive are available upon request.