1865 Eagle Discharge Signed Twice by Brigadier General Edmund B. Alexander For Sale

1865 Eagle Discharge Signed Twice by Brigadier General Edmund B. Alexander

Offered for yourconsideration are three documents relating to the discharge of a private from aMissouri cavalry regiment, one signed at the conclusion by a long-servingUnited States officer. The principal document is a standard Union militarydischarge, highlighted by a spread-winged bald eagle, a bundle of arrows and anolive branch in its talons, standing atop an American shield, with flags andstars in the background. Immediately above, presented in a arc, is printed “To all whom it may Concern:”, while below it instructs the reader to “Know ye, That David Manning a Private of Captain John P. Roger’s Company, (C),14th Regiment of Cavalry Missouri Volunteers who was enrolledon the Fifth day of February one thousand eight hundred and Sixty five to serve Three years years or during the war, is hereby Dischargedfrom the service of the United States, this Twentysixth day of October, 1865, at St. Louis Missouri by reason of Spec. Instr.from War Dept. dated June 29 65.(No objection to his being re-enlisted is known to exist). The followingparagraph provides a physical description of Private Manning, though the spaceswere originally completed with curled lines (his place of birth and age havebeen written above in another hand). This document was “Given at St Louis Mo this Fourth day of November 1865.” andit is boldly signed at the conclusion by “E. B. Alexander” in his capacity as“Bvt.Brig. Gen. U.S.A.” and “Chief Must’g Officer”. A manuscript,red ink notation, somewhat difficult to read, appears vertically to the left ofcenter. It seems to indicate that Private Manning was sick at the time hiscompany was discharged and that he was paid on “Nov. 8/65”. A secondsignature of General Alexander is also present, again accomplished in dark ink.A partly-printed “OATH OF IDENTITY” (unaccomplished)dominates 1/3 of the back of the document, while the remaining 2/3 is blank. Thisdocument is offered with two additional, related items. Both are headlined “CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE” and bear a spread-winged eagle as the central vignette.The first of these states: “To all Whomit May Concern: This is to Certify, That DavidManning, who was enrolled on the 27thday of July, one thousand eighthundred and Sixty three, to serve three years, was discharged to date the 3rd day of February,1865, by re-enlistment in 14th Mo Cavlry at St Louis Mo., while holding the grade of Private in Company ‘L’, 3rdRegiment of Missouri S. M. Cavlry,and serving honorably in the military of the United States.”. The nextparagraph indicates that “Thiscertificate is given upon evidence that the original discharge has been lost ordestroyed …” and “… that it ‘shallnot be accepted as a voucher for the payment of any claims against the UnitedStates …”. It was “Given at theAdjutant General’s Office, War Department, Washington, D. C., this 12th day of October, A. D. 1888” and is signed at the conclusion by the “Assistant Adjutant General”. The seconddocument is another “CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE”,this one for Manning’s discharge on “…the 26th day of October, 1865 …” at “… Fort Leavenworth, Kan. …”from “… Company ‘C’, 14thRegiment of Missouri Cavlry …”, bearing the same date and signature asthe previous. It is interesting to find this second document, as it wassupposed to replace the Eagle Discharge that is included with this lot, thoughit obviously still exists. These documents would look great framed together, orthe discharge could be framed with a period portrait of General Alexander inuniform. Nice grouping from this politically divided state.

EdmundBrooke Alexander was born in Haymarket, Virginia, onOctober 6, 1802. He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point,New York, from 1818 through 1823, and upon graduation, was appointed brevetsecond lieutenant in the 6th US Infantry. He was subsequentlyadvanced to second lieutenant in the 3rd US Infantry, with the samedate of rank. He served at military posts in Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin,Missouri, Illinois, and Louisiana from 1824 through 1831. For the next nineyears, Alexander served alternately between Fort Towson, Indian Territory andFort Jesup, Louisiana, with a year spent at Fort Smith, Arkansas in 1839. Hereturned to Fort Smith in 1840, remaining there until 1846, though brieflyassigned to Washington, D. C. in 1844. During the Mexican-American War,Alexander participated in the siege of Vera Cruz, the battles of Cerro Gordo,Contreras, and Churubusco, and the storming of Chapultepec, leading to theassault and capture of Mexico City. He was brevetted major for Cerro Gordo andlieutenant colonel for Contreras and Churubusco. Following the war, Alexanderreturned to garrison duty in Missouri, New Mexico, and Texas. During this period,he was promoted to major of the 8th US Infantry, and in March, 1855,he was advanced to colonel and appointed as commander of the newly formed 10thUS Infantry. He subsequently served on garrison duty in Pennsylvania andMinnesota until his participation in the Utah Expedition of 1857-58. From1858-60 he took a leave of absence, after which he served for two years at FortLaramie in the Dakota Territory and a short time at Fort Kearney, Nebraska. BetweenMay 1, 1863 and April 25, 1866, Alexander served as Acting Assistant ProvostMarshal General, Superintendent of Volunteer Recruiting Service, and ChiefMustering and Disbursing Officer for the state of Missouri, after which heserved as commander of the 10th US Infantry at Fort Snelling,Minnesota until his retirement from active service on February 22, 1869. EdmundB. Alexander died on January 3, 1888 in Washington, D.C. and was buried in OaklandCemetery in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Each of the presentlyoffered documents exhibits a different amount of wear, with the eagle dischargebeing the most heavily damaged of the lot. This piece displays significanttoning across the entire surface, with heavier concentrations at the edges,along the folds, and on the back (this would have been the outside when thedocument was folded). In addition to the toning, significant soiling andstaining can be seen throughout. Numerous folds are present, several of whichhave affected the integrity of the paper causing separations and loss of paper atthe junctures and edges (these could be strengthened with archival tape if desired).Though originally straight, the edges are now slightly ragged, with paper lossnoted at the junctures with the folds. Fading is noted on the red additionscausing them to be difficult to read, though the body of the document is fullylegible. The signatures are sharp and bold, though both have been bisected byfolds. The other two certificates each exhibit moderate toning, neatly dividedby the vertical folds in the paper (see illustrations). These folds have slightlyaffected the integrity of the pieces, though no separations or paper loss isnoted at this time. Minor fading can be seen, though this may be partially dueto the amount and type of ink employed. The eagle discharge measuresapproximately 8⅜ x 11 inches, while the other two measure approximately 8 x 10⅛inches. Any additional questions regarding condition should be addressed beforepurchasing.

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A $5.00 chargewill be added to any item picked up in person at our physical location.

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Buy or offer withConfidence – American Coins & Collectibles President Richie Self has worked6 years as a paper money grader/authenticator. He has contributed to numerousreference books within the industry, as well as being a co-author of “TheComprehensive Catalog and History of Confederate Bonds, 2nd Edition”with Douglas B. Ball, Ph.D., Henry F. Simmons, M.D., Ph.D. and James R.Desabaye. Mr. Self is a life member of the American Numismatic Association, theSociety of Paper Money Collectors, as well as numerous regional numismaticassociations. He is an authorized submitter to NGC, PCGS, and PMG, a diamondfounding member of Coin Dealers Helping Coin Dealers and a supporter of theIndustry Council for Tangible Assets. American Coins and Collectibles can befound at many of the state and local coin shows.

American Coins and Collectibles

Shreveport, LA