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lot # 3287 - united states postal history Stampless Covers - Free Franks

Wednesday Dec 15, 2021 10:00 America/New_York

James Madison (1751-1836; 4th President of the United States), bold free frank "Free James Madison" as ex-President on folded cover addressed fully in his hand to "The Revd. W.B. Sprague, West Springfield, Massachusetts", manuscript "Orange C.H., Decr 1" postmark; exceptionally fresh and Extremely FinernWhen Madison left office in 1817, he was 65 (wife Dolley was 49) and retired to Montpelier, his tobacco plantation in Orange County, Virginia, not far from Jefferson's Monticello. He thought they would finally have a chance to travel to Paris. As with both Washington and Jefferson, Madison left the presidency a poorer man than when he entered, due to the steady financial collapse of his plantation, which was aided by the continued low price of tobacco and his stepson's mismanagement.rnThe addressee, Rev. William B. Sprague (1795-1876), was an American Presbyterian clergyman and author. He is the author of the nine-volume work "Annals of the Pulpit of All Denominations", a comprehensive biographical dictionary of American Protestant ministers up to 1850. Sprague was also an avid collector of autographs, particularly those of important American statesmen in addition to religious pamphlets and autographs. He gave his autograph collection, numbering nearly 100,000 signatures, to his son.Sale 3054: Session 3 - United States Stamps and Covers