Press Release

Wilton, CT, USA, July 1, 2025 -- A signed carte de visite photograph of Abraham Lincoln PSA/DNA graded MINT 9, a document from 1783 signed by George Washington in his role as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, and a mortgage deed from 1957 co-signed by Marilyn Monroe and her then-husband Arthur Miller are a few of the expected top lots in University Archives’ next online-only auction planned for Wednesday, July 16th, beginning at 10am Eastern time.

All 461 lots in the Rare Autographs, Lincoln & Space Items auction are up for viewing and bidding now on the University Archives website – www.UniversityArchives.com – as well as Invaluable.com, Auctionzip.com and LiveAuctioneers.com. Phone and absentee bids accepted.

“The July 16th auction will include offerings from collecting categories such as U.S. Presidents, Military -- especially Revolutionary War and Civil War -- Aviation/Space, Art, Science, and Sports,” said John Reznikoff, the president and owner of University Archives. “The savvy bidder can take advantage of the opportunity to bid on never-before-seen or extremely scarce pieces.”

Over 30 lots in the auction relate to Abraham Lincoln: his family, his legal career, his presidency, his assassination and its aftermath, and his political and historical legacy. Collectors will find autographed material, ephemera, and pictorial representations of Lincoln, Mary Todd Lincoln, Robert Todd Lincoln, Willie Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth, Boston Corbett, and David Hunter, head of the Lincoln conspirator military tribunal. Lincolniana fans should mark their calendars.

Lot 62 is the sepia-colored carte de visite of Lincoln, boldly signed by him as “A. Lincoln” along the bottom edge and PSA/DNA slabbed and graded MINT 9. The portrait photo was originally taken by Alexander Gardner on August 9, 1863, just one month after the Battle of Gettysburg. The Lincoln signed CDV was one of six that Lincoln sent to an Illinois woman running an 1864 fundraiser for the Union Army. Estimate: $100,000-$150,000.

Lot 127 is the partly printed and partly manuscript document dated September 1, 1783, boldly signed by George Washington in his role as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army. This Revolutionary War discharge certificate was issued to one John Slocum of Rhode Island, a member of the Corps of Invalids, which operated from 1777-1783. The unit was comprised of wounded, sickly, or aged veterans who performed limited duties. Estimate: $18,000-$24,000.

Lot 308 is the mortgage deed dated December 20, 1957 co-signed by Hollywood actress Marilyn Monroe and her then-husband, the playwright Arthur Miller, for the farmhouse they owned at 232 Tophet Road in Roxbury, Connecticut. The unlikely couple lived in Roxbury, as well as on Long Island and in New York City, during their 5-year-long marriage. Estimate: $5,000-$6,000.

Lot 325 is an autograph letter signed, docketed, or endorsed by five Confederate Army officers, including Robert E. Lee. The letter originally served as the transmittal cover for a relic from the Battle of Gettysburg: the regimental flag of the 150th Pennsylvania Volunteers, which, on July 1, 1863, was captured by Lieutenant Frank M. Harney of the 14th North Carolina Infantry. The mortally wounded Harney requested that the flag be forwarded to Confederate President Jefferson Davis, which it was. Estimate: $20,000-$30,000.

For more information about University Archives and the Rare Autographs, Books, Lincoln & Space Items auction slated for Wednesday, July 16th, at 10am EDT, visit www.universityarchives.com.

Organisation Profile: