WHAT: An album of presidential autographs, plus signatures from Civil War and military figures, brought $60,000 in an autographs sale at Swann Galleries. Rarity lay in the sheer number of signatures, provenance and condition of the aggregate, which consisted of Abraham Lincoln and almost all his Cabinet, and included Ulysses S. Grant and David Farragut and many other high-ranking officers of the Army and Navy.
MORE: The small album with (usually) two to three signatures per page was originally bought in 1954 from Goodspeedβs Book Shop in Boston. The buyer was president of the Manuscript Society, an organization of antiquarian book sellers and collectors. Selling selected books, prints, maps and autographs, Goodspeed opened in Boston in 1898. The buyer then began collecting presidential signatures beginning with Herbert Hoover.
The album stayed in the family, with descendants following through to Barack Obama.
SMART COLLECTORS KNOW: From the original buyer to where it was bought, to one-family ownership, everything is on point and germane to the genre of merchandise. Perfect provenance.
HOT TIP: As smart collectors, family custodians of the album were careful to keep letters and documentation from presidential secretaries acknowledging receipt of the album, plus a photo of Obama adding his John Hancock. More provenance.
BOTTOM LINE: Know that autographs and signed manuscripts are different collecting areas. Personal anecdotes and new revelations from a seminal figure tied to history are dynamic and sell high. As an example, a signed letter by Woodrow Wilson to a known colleague where he opens up with (possible) doubts over the League of Nations and personal frustration with individuals in the Senate would have impact. Signatures alone are static.
