Sale 2471 - Printed & Manuscript African Americana, March 29, 2018
268 c (MILITARY—CIVILWAR.) Group of 5 documents relating to Maryland Afri- can-Americans in military service. Various sizes; most with punch holes in left margin, otherwise minor wear. Vp, 1865-66 [1,000/1,500] A collection of post-war discharges and pay documents relating to 4 different soldiers, some or all of them being veterans of the CivilWar. Includes: Signed testimony that Thomas Scott of Baltimore, late of the 39th U.S. Colored Troops, “has been free for more than ten years . . . born of free parents” (needed to prove that Scott had enlisted as a freeman, making him eligible for a higher bounty), 20 December 1865 * Discharge certificate for the same Thomas Scott, giving his service history, 4 December 1865 * Pay order for Thomas Scott’s $50 bounty, signed with his mark, 13 December 1865 * Signed affidavit by Sergeant Isaac H. Baker of the 4th U.S. ColoredTroops, attesting to the identity of his soldiers Robert Dunmore and Henry Howell, 3 December 1866 * Pay order for bounty due to Edward Langford of the 4th U.S. Colored Troops, signed with his mark, 14 May 1866. 269 c (MILITARY—CIVIL WAR.) Hinks, Edward Winslow. General Orders No. 15, authorizing equal pay for African-American troops. Letterpress handbill, 7 3 / 4 x 5 inches, signed in type by Brigadier General Hinks and his adjutant Solon A. Carter; 2 small adhensive stains in margins. Head Quarters, 3d Division, 18th Corps d’Armee, Camp Hamilton, VA, 1 May 1864 [400/600] In this eloquent message to his soldiers, General Hinks informs them that they will now be paid the same as white troops: “Soldiers of the Republic! At last justice has been awarded you by the representatives of the nation in Congress, and you stand before the law upon an equality with your heretofore more favored fellow soldiers of the North. . . . The General Commanding congratulates you upon this indication of national appreciation of your worth as soldiers, and recognition of your rights as men.” 270 270 c (MILITARY—CIVILWAR.) Photograph of William Mack Lee, self- proclaimed servant of Robert E. Lee, at a Confederate parade. Photograph, 4 x 3 1 / 4 inches, captioned “Body Guard & Cook, Gen. R.E. Lee” and stamped “144” on verso; with two other dated photographs, apparently from the same event. Np, 8 October 1920 [400/600] William Mack Lee (1835-1932) published a memoir in 1918, claiming that he was born the property of Confederate general Robert E. Lee, and served as his loyal cook and body servant throughout the war. From that point until his death, he was a regular at Confederate veteran events. There is no evidence to support his presence with Lee during the war, and his stories are filled with historical inaccuracies. He claimed that the General left him $360 in his will; the actual will does not mention him. William Mack Lee is now generally believed to be a con man who made a modest living off gullible southerners looking for a revisionist view of race relations and the Confeder- acy. He continues to be held up as a bright shining Confederate example to this day.
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