Sam Houston’s Texas Revolution Army Orders Open for Bids at Heritage Auctions
DALLAS—A rare surviving broadside by Sam Houston appealing to the citizens of Texas for aid on the very day Texas declared her independence—only the second copy to ever surface—could sell for $15,000 in Heritage Auctions' March 14 Texana Grand Format Auction in Dallas. The auctions' 362 lots offer an insider's look at the Texas Revolution through unique documents and letters signed by the likes of James Bowie, Davy Crockett and Stephen F. Austin, among other notables. A special preview will be held in Corpus Christi, Texas, in conjunction with the Texas State Historical Convention, March 5-7.
"This is only the second known copy of this broadside to appear. The other is housed at the University of Texas at Austin," said Sandra Palomino, Director of Historical Manuscripts at Heritage. "The broadside was entrusted to Heritage by an old Texas family, descendants of William T.G. Weaver. This particular auction also includes scarce exemplars from the most noted fallen heroes of the Alamo, and I strongly encourage all Texans to take the opportunity to view these artifacts."
A rare signed promissory note signed by James Bowie (est. $60,000+), sent just six weeks after attending the Colonial Convention of 1833, promises a payment of $125.82 to Thomas Gray. Sadly, just four months after writing this document, Bowie lost his wife, children, and in-laws to a cholera outbreak in Monclova.
An extraordinary full-page letter signed by David "Davy" Crockett, dated April 12, 1834 and addressed to "Messrs. Cary & Hart," Philadelphia publishers of Crockett's 1834 autobiography and sent just weeks after finishing that work (est. $60,000+), directs his publishers to pay Kentucky Congressman Thomas Chilton, who confidentially helped Crockett with the book.
A letter signed by William B. Travis, is written in Spanish and is addressed to Don Ramon Musquiz expressing criticism about a police appointment (est. $30,000+), and letter signed by Benjamin McCulloch with an endorsement signed by future president James Buchanan, dated August 1, 1847 acknowledging McCulloch's resignation from his commission during the Mexican War (est. $4,000+).
An important 1858 letter by Oliver Loving, the noted Texas cattle driver, and John Durkel finalizing the sale of parcel of land along the Brazos River in Palo Pinto County harkens back to one of Texas' most valuable cattle drive along the Goodnight-Loving Trail (est. $3,000+). The good times ended when Comanches killed Loving in 1867 during a cattle drive into New Mexico.
A comprehensive selection of rare, early maps span the years 1823 to 1917, and include Charles W. Pressler's Traveller's Map of the State of Texas (est. $10,000+). The vibrantly hand-colored map of Texas shows counties in addition to the territories of Presidio, Bexar, El Paso, and Young (located in West Texas), cities, towns, forts, rivers, post offices, roads, and the locations of several Indian tribes. Map of Mexico Including Yucatan & Upper California, published in 1847 by Samuel Augustus Mitchell, is considered one of the great Mexican War maps ever published, (est. $6,000+). Mary Austin Holley's Texas, the author's second book on the state, includes a desirable foldout Map of the State of Coahuila and Texas (est. $6,000+).
Heritage Auctions is the largest auction house founded in the United States and the world’s third largest, with annual sales of more than $900 million, and 900,000+ online bidder members. For more information about Heritage Auctions, and to join and receive access to a complete record of prices realized, with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, please visit HA.com.
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