May 05, 2016 - Sale 2413

Sale 2413 - Lot 153

Price Realized: $ 6,500
?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 3,500 - $ 5,000
FREEDOM FOR CONFEDERATE PRISONERS LINCOLN, ABRAHAM. Autograph Endorsement dated and Signed, "A. Lincoln," as President: "Let this man take the oath of Dec. 8. 1863 and be discharged," clipped from a larger sheet. 4 3/4x 6 1/2 inches, ruled paper; additional endorsement of petition written in another hand at upper edge recto, minor scattered soiling, portion of petitioner's letter on verso, remnants of prior mounting at corners recto, vertical folds. [Washington], 13 December 1864

Additional Details

In his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction, issued December 8, 1863, Lincoln offered a pardon and restoration of property to all participants in the rebellion against the Union who take an oath (with certain exceptions). The oath specifically requires the "support [of] all acts of congress passed during the existing rebellion with reference to slaves . . . ."