The Raab Collection, the nation’s leader in important historical documents, announced today that it has acquired and will offer for sale two remarkable letters of Thomas Jefferson as President to his Secretary of War Henry Dearborn, acquired from the descendants of the recipient and offered for sale at Raab for the first time ever. These letters of Jefferson are among the most important to reach the market in decades. Many direct descendants of important historical figures chose to sell their documents to Raab, including those of Jefferson himself, Reagan, Eisenhower, and many others.
The two letters:
A Great Moment in American History; The European Wars Reach American Shores
President Thomas Jefferson Learns the British Have Seized the Chesapeake and Urgently Calls Secretary of War Henry Dearborn to a Cabinet Meeting to Chart US Action
In a letter dated with the time of date to note the urgency, he finds himself confronted with the greatest foreign policy crisis of his administration
The British boarded an American vessel, and impressed seamen into the Royal Navy, setting off a chain of events that would lead to the War of 1812
Jefferson tells Dearborn: “I am sincerely sorry that I am obliged to ask your attendance here without a moment’s avoidable delay. The capture of the Chesapeake by a British ship of war renders it necessary to have all our Council together.”
The Swan Song of President Jefferson: He Declares the Desired Legacy of His Administration And Wants His Secretary of War to “watch with me to the end”
He writes to Secretary of War Henry Dearborn that national defense will be their parting gift to the American people: “It would make an honorable close of your term as well as mine, to leave our country in a state of substantial defense, which we found quite unprepared for it.”
He continues, “Indeed it would, for me, be a joyful annunciation to the next meeting of Congress, that the operations of defense are all complete…The 4th of March [1809]…You & I might both make our bow with approbation & satisfaction.”
