Details
JOHNSON, ANDREW, 1808-1875, President. Document signed ("Andrew Johnson") as President, Washington, D.C., 16 May 1866. 1 page, folio, lined paper, mat burn at edges, lightly browned, several tiny perforations to margins (not affecting text).
PRESIDENT JOHNSON AND COMMODORE VANDERBILT
An elegantly written document, boldly penned, by which President Johnson transmits official correspondence concerning the gift of the steamship Vanderbilt to the United States Navy: "I transmit to Congress a copy of the correspondence [not present] between the Secretary of State [William H. Seward] and Cornelius Vanderbilt of New York, relative to the Joint Resolution of the 28th of January 1864, upon the subject of the gift of the steamer Vanderbilt to the United States..."
Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794-1877), founder of one of the greatest American fortunes, had prospered in freight and passenger lines and steamships, then moved into railroads (ultimately owning the Harlem, Hudson and New York Central Lines, for which he built Grand Central Terminal). In the 1850s he built the Vanderbilt and two less elaborate steamships, with which he planned to challenge the Cunard Line's monopoly of the transatlantic trade. When this proved unprofitable, he sold the line, ratining only the Vanderbilt, which he fittedup as a warship and donated to the United States government for war service.
PRESIDENT JOHNSON AND COMMODORE VANDERBILT
An elegantly written document, boldly penned, by which President Johnson transmits official correspondence concerning the gift of the steamship Vanderbilt to the United States Navy: "I transmit to Congress a copy of the correspondence [not present] between the Secretary of State [William H. Seward] and Cornelius Vanderbilt of New York, relative to the Joint Resolution of the 28th of January 1864, upon the subject of the gift of the steamer Vanderbilt to the United States..."
Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794-1877), founder of one of the greatest American fortunes, had prospered in freight and passenger lines and steamships, then moved into railroads (ultimately owning the Harlem, Hudson and New York Central Lines, for which he built Grand Central Terminal). In the 1850s he built the Vanderbilt and two less elaborate steamships, with which he planned to challenge the Cunard Line's monopoly of the transatlantic trade. When this proved unprofitable, he sold the line, ratining only the Vanderbilt, which he fittedup as a warship and donated to the United States government for war service.