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SIGNED BY PRESIDENT ANDREW JOHNSON ONLY 5 DAYS AFTER TAKING THE OATH OF OFFICE (LOGUEN, JERMAIN WESLEY.) May, Samuel. Autograph Letter Signed, to
SIGNED BY PRESIDENT ANDREW JOHNSON ONLY 5 DAYS AFTER TAKING THE OATH OF OFFICE (LOGUEN, JERMAIN WESLEY.) May, Samuel. Autograph Letter Signed, to Secretary of War, Charles Sumner, petitioning for permission for Loguen to return to Tennessee to find family members; additionally Signed by C. B. Sedgwick, Sherman B. Canfield, Rev. George Whipple, and Lewis Tappan. 2 pages, 4to; with integral blank leaf; partially but cleanly torn along folds; with a form of docketing on the verso of the integral leaf and a 11-line autograph acceptance of the petition signed by president andrew johnson 5 days after the death of abraham lincoln. Syracuse, 31 March 1865
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Notes: Historically important letter regarding Loguen (1813-1872), ex-slave, and well-known Underground Railroad conductor and author of memoirs chronicling his fascinating life. He fled from Kentucky to Canada in 1834, then crossed back into central New York where he formed a ministry. From there he aided an estimated 1500 slaves escape over a period of nearly 2 decades.
In this letter a group of influential people petition on behalf of Loguen, seeking permission for him to travel to Tennessee in search of family members. Among the petitioners, Tappan has written "I have known Mr. Loguen many years and believe him to be a man entitled to the confidence of every friend of God and man, but his appearance is his best recommendation."
With the end of the Civil War, many families were trying to reunite, but it was enormously difficult for a black man to cross state lines, particularly into the former Southern stronghold. The fame of Loguen as a Underground conductor must have aided his cause, for while the letter is addressed to Charles Sumner as Secretary of War, it is the President himself who granted the petition.
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