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Richard H. Stewart collection of Abraham Lincoln material
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Held at: University of Delaware Library Special Collections [Contact Us]181 South College Avenue, Newark, DE 19717-5267
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the University of Delaware Library Special Collections. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
Native Delawarean Richard H. Stewart (1936-2013) was an avid student of history and collector of Civil War and Abraham Lincoln artifacts and memorabilia.
Stewart was born in New Castle in 1936, where he attended P.S. DuPont High School. He graduated from the University of Delaware in 1957 and was a member of the Kappa Alpha fraternity. Following his service in the United States Army, Stewart attended Boston University for his graduate studies. Stewart married Joan Bernard in 1959, with whom he had two children, Susan and Richard, Jr.
Stewart worked with the E.I. du Pont de Nemours Company for thirty-two years, retiring as an advertising director. His served as a lay minister at the Wilmington, Delaware, Emmanuel Episcopal Church and was a longtime member of the Masons. He was also very active in local theatre.
Stewart’s son, Richard Jr., died in the September 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Center. He was a bond trader for Cantor Fitzgerald. Stewart and his son shared a love of history and the Civil War.
After 2001, the Stewarts relocated to Wilmington, North Carolina. Stewart became a charter member of the Richard Hansell Stewart, Jr., American Legion Post 543 in St. James, North Carolina, named in honor of his son.
Obituary of Richard Hansell Stewart, The News Journal , June 2, 2013. http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/delawareonline/obituary.aspx?n=Richard-Stewart&pid=165092576 (accessed July 28, 2014).Nunn, Cece. "Victim lives on in memories and a name." Star News, September 8, 2011. http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20110908/ARTICLES/110909744/0/ (accessed July 28, 2014).
The Richard H. Stewart collection of Abraham Lincoln material comprises artifacts, prints, postcards, stamps, coins, clippings, publications, notes and research, and an 1861 appointment signed by Lincoln. The collection documents the nation’s mourning of Lincoln through contemporary and commemorative ephemera, artifacts, and prints and reflects the collecting and research pursuits of native Delawarean, University of Delaware alumnus, and DuPont executive Richard H. Stewart (1936-2013).
The collection contains a variety of Lincolniana dating between 1861 and 2009. Richard H. Stewart was a careful collector and often kept documentation about the provenance of his items. For example, the two original Currier & Ives lithographs in the collection had once been owned by renowned Lincoln collector Oliver R. Barrett.
Another highlight of the collection is an 1861 appointment signed by Lincoln and Secretary of State William Seward. The document appoints Joseph M. Sterrett to the position of deputy postmaster of Erie, Pennsylvania. Also included is a pair of Civil War-era handcuffs known as Phelps handcuffs. Orson C. Phelps patented his handcuffs in 1866, though this pair does not bear the typical patent stamp. The collection contains two reproductions of the April 15, 1865, edition of
The New York Herald, which provided one of the most well known accounts of Lincoln's assassination.Box 1: Shelved in SPEC VAULT MSS Box 2: Shelved in SPEC VAULT MSS oversize boxes (18 inches)Box 3: Shelved in SPEC VAULT MSS oversize boxes (20 inches)Box 4: Shelved in SPEC VAULT MSS oversize boxes (17 inches)Box 5: Shelved in SPEC VAULT MSS oversize boxes (28 inches)
Gift of Joan B. Stewart, in memory of Richard H. Stewart, Jr., June 2014.
Processed and encoded by Maureen Cech, July 2014.
The Richard H. Stewart collection of Abraham Lincoln material includes over 50 volumes from Stewart's library pertaining to Lincoln, Lincolniana, and the Civil War. The volumes have been cataloged separately with imprints in Special Collections and can be accessed by searching DELCAT Discovery with the keywords "richard h. stewart collection."
People
- Stewart, Richard H.
- Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865
- Tarbell, Ida M. (Ida Minerva), 1857-1944
- Rice, Moses P.
Organization
Subject
Place
Occupation
- Publisher
- University of Delaware Library Special Collections
- Finding Aid Author
- University of Delaware Library, Special Collections
- Finding Aid Date
- 2014 July 29
- Access Restrictions
-
The collection is open for research.
- Use Restrictions
-
Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. Please contact Special Collections, University of Delaware Library, http://library.udel.edu/spec/askspec/
Collection Inventory
Includes Stewart's notes and research on Lincoln, particularly his homes.
Includes four clippings of illustrations of Lincoln's 1861 inaugural address (March 30, 1861); New Year's Eve ball at the White House (February 1, 1862); Lincoln's second inaugural address (April 8, 1865); and the funeral procession [May 20, 1865].
2 items
Includes "The Later Life of Lincoln" by Ida Tarbell.
Appointment of Joseph M. Sterrett to position of deputy postmaster of Erie, Pennsylvania. Signed by Lincoln and Secretary of State William Seward.
Includes a photograph and a card regarding the provenance of the Currier & Ives prints. The card notes that these prints "were once part of the famous printers' residue stock and later an item in the famous Oliver Barrett Collection." American writer Carl Sandburg (1878-1967) published a volume on American lawyer Oliver R. Barrett's (1873-1950) collection titled
Lincoln Collector: The Story of the Oliver R. Barrett Lincoln Collection (1949).Framed.
Framed. Also includes a 1952 letter from former owner Julia Newman about the provenance of the two Currier & Ives prints in this collection. Originally laid into Stewart's copy of the auction catalog for the 1952 sale of the Oliver R. Barrett collection, which can be found cataloged with imprints in Special Collections.
Washington, D.C., photographer Moses P. Rice copyrighted this popular 1863 Alexander Gardner photograph in 1891. This print bears Rice's copyright statement on Lincoln's shoulder. This copy was once part of the Lincoln Collection formed by Oliver R. Barrett.
Reproduction of a print based on Hessler's 1860 photograph of Lincoln. Hessler's photograph was made from the negative that had been owned by Philadelphia photographer George B. Ayres.
Issue of 1926.
Issue of 1894.
1902 series, issue of 1903.
Issue of 1960.
2 items
Issued by the United States Mint.
Does not bear the 1866 patent stamp of Orson C. Phelps.
Bears serial number 5CAAA7 on verso.
Three-inch dish bearing mark of Royal Copenhagen Aluminia Faience.
Nine-inch dish bearing mark of Petrus Regout & Co. Made in Maastricht, Holland.