The National Postal Museum Acquires Alexander Hamilton Document From Raab

The Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum has acquired a rare free frank signature of Alexander Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury.  This free frank was part of an archive of previously unknown letters of Alexander Hamilton, which acquisition by Raab was widely reported in national media.

As its website notes, the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum is located in Washington, DC and “showcases the largest and most comprehensive collection of stamps and philatelic material in the world—including postal stationery, vehicles used to transport the mail, mailboxes, meters, cards and letters, and postal materials that predate the use of stamps. Visitors can walk along a Colonial post road, ride with the mail in a stagecoach, browse through a small town post office from the 1920s, receive free stamps to start a collection and more. ”  You can visit https://www.si.edu/museums/postal-museum to learn more. Important note: it is our unwavering policy never to disclose the names of our buyers or sellers without their consent.  The Museum has graciously agreed to let us mention them in this post.

Hamilton’s reputation as the best-informed member of Washington’s cabinet is due to his voluminous correspondence with customs collectors all over the country,” said Daniel A. Piazza, the museum’s chief curator of philately. “They were the Treasury secretary’s eyes and ears, providing him with local economic and political information through the mail.”

Smithsonian Institution, National Postal Museum

The museum’s new acquisition will receive professional conservation treatment from a museum conservator before going on display with other Hamilton free franks from its collection in a special exhibition next year.

Portrait of Alexander Hamilton on a $5 stamp from 1956: Courtesy Smithsonian Institution, National Postal Museum.

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