Our Historical Discoveries & Highlights of 2025
Part of the joy of working with historical documents is their endless variety, and 2025 was no different. During this highly productive year, Raab had the great honor of hosting Mayor Viktor Šimunić and his delegation to finalize the purchase of a Croatian national treasure: Joseph Mikulec’s autograph album. We also worked with the descendants of many prominent historical figures to bring to market their family treasures. We launched the Inspired by History podcast; created Search & Curate, a refined web search experience to better serve collectors; and celebrated Nathan Raab’s 20th year with the firm. What a year!
The core of what we do at Raab is discovering and acquiring important historical documents and offering them to clients around the world. Below we’re sharing some highlights from the past year.
Historical Discoveries at Raab
In 2025, Raab made several important discoveries of historical letters, documents, and archival collections not previously known to exist.
The George Washington – Timothy Pickering Letters
Raab discovered and acquired three George Washington letters from the direct descendants of his Secretary of State and War, Timothy Pickering. Written while President, these exceptional letters discuss issues of the highest import, including Washington’s first use of Executive Privilege, and came to market for the first time ever with Raab.
John Hancock’s Yale Diploma
Raab’s discovery and acquisition of several remarkable historical documents from the heirs of John Hancock and his wife, Dorothy Quincy Hancock, included Hancock’s rare Yale diploma. The documents had been passed down through generations of the Quincy family, unseen by the public, unstudied by scholars, and never before offered for sale. Hear more on the Inspired by History podcast.
Medieval Musical Notations
This was a major musical discovery, heard around the world: Raab uncovered some of the earliest known written examples of musical notations from Western Europe. These notations, called neumes, were discovered on a vellum manuscript leaf from a Latin Sacramentary dating to the late 800s. None earlier are known to exist in any private or institutional collection, or to have reached the public market.
Paul Revere & The Minuteman Archive
Raab discovered, acquired, and sold an archive of more than 100 documents related to Paul Revere and a Colonial-era church in Massachusetts, spanning 1760 to 1809. The lives and contributions of the Minutemen, such as Commander of the Menotomy Minutemen, Benjamin Locke, and other community members were captured in this fascinating archive.
Ronald Reagan’s “Are You Better Off” Speech
This Raab discovery made headlines: President Ronald Reagan’s original, handwritten “Are You Better Off” speech, his closing statement from the 1980 presidential debate against Jimmy Carter, which changed American history. Hear more on the Inspired by History podcast.
Sales of Historical Documents and Autographs at Raab
At Raab, we invest in our own material because we believe in it: every piece listed for sale at Raab is owned by Raab. We then offer these important documents to customers around the world, both institutional and private, all of whom share a passion for history.
Raab sold several archival collections to libraries and museums this year, including:
- The Library of Congress: Raab supplied the nation’s library with an important archive related to the Treaty of Ghent that included unpublished letters of Henry Clay to William H. Crawford.
- The Huntington Library acquired from Raab the newly discovered archive of Civil War naval hero Moses Sherwood Stuyvesant, containing hundreds of confidential, unpublished letters.
- The Peabody Essex Museum: Raab placed the newly discovered Benjamin Crowninshield archive, which documents one of Salem’s great merchant families, at PEM.
Among private sales, several stand out. For example, this year Raab sold one of the most important pieces of Albert Einstein ever offered for sale–Einstein’s signed official defense to the Japanese people of his role in the development of the atomic bomb–to a private collector.
Historical documents that embody the spirit of the American Revolution continue to be highly desirable to collectors. Two notable private sales in this sector included a letter of Thomas Jefferson to his fellow Signer of the Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Harrison V, on the right of citizens to “exercise in arms for the defense of their country,” and a letter of George Washington in which he evokes the power of the Colonists and militias to fight off the British: “Whenever they make an impression, the Country will recur to arms.” Both are now in private collections.
Raab in the Media
In 2025, Raab discoveries were covered by PBS NewsHour, the Guardian, Smithsonian, the Daily Mail, and Fortune, among many other news outlets. Nathan Raab, president of the Raab Collection and author of the bestselling book, The Hunt for History, is often called upon by the media to discuss his discoveries and the autograph market in general. CBS Weekend News paid a visit to the Raab gallery for a national TV segment on presidential autographs timed to Inauguration Day: “How much money is a U.S. president’s signature worth?”
For The Times of London, Dr. Louisa McKenzie interviewed Nathan Raab about the rewards and pitfalls of collecting historical documents and autographs: “Sign here please”
Both the New Yorker magazine and the Washington Post covered the sale of Joseph Mikulec’s now famous autograph book to his hometown of Oroslavja, Croatia, where officials hope to erect a museum in his name.
Raab’s Guest Curators Program
In 2024, Raab launched its Guest Curators program, which invites authors, historians, and thought leaders to curate an exhibit of their favorite historical documents from our inventory. In 2025, we were pleased to collaborate with these four curators to showcase our documents in exciting new ways:
- Emmy Award winner Mike Makowsky, the writer/creator of the Netflix historical drama Death by Lightning, spotlights President James Garfield and His Circle.
- Dr. Lindsay Chervinsky, Executive Director of the George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon, focuses on Presidential Leadership.
- Tom McMillan, author, most recently, of The Year That Made America: From Rebellion to Independence, 1775-1776, sheds light on America’s Founding.
- Talmage Boston, lawyer and author, most recently, of How the Best Did It: Leadership Lessons From Our Top Presidents, presents 7 Presidents.
As America’s semiquincentennial year gets underway, we at Raab are looking forward to a year focused on history, inspiration, and discovery. Join us to stay informed about new historical documents for sale, historical discoveries, and information for the educated collector.
