Books and Manuscripts

Washington, (D.C.), January 21, 1884. Partially-printed military commission on vellum, boldly signed by Chester A. Arthur as President of the United States, appointing Francis M. Bunce a "Captain in the Navy, from the 11th day of January 1883, in the service of the United States."; counter-signed by Secretary of the Navy William E. Chandler. Blue paper seal at bottom; creasing from contemporary folds; scattered light spotting at top. 19 3/8 x 15 3/4 in. (492 x 400 mm).

A fine military commission signed by President Chester A. Arthur, promoting Commander Francis M. Bunce to Captain in the United States Navy. Bunce received this promotion while commanding the screw frigate USS Wabash, which was then a receiving ship in the Boston Navy Yard. In June, 1886, he was made first commanding officer of the new protected cruiser USS Atlanta, a position he held until December, 1889, when he was appointed to commanding officer at the naval station in New London, Connecticut. Following this he served at the training station in Newport, Rhode Island, and commanded the training ship there, the sloop-of-war, USS Richmond. In August, 1894, he was appointed a member of the Navy's Board of Inspection and Survey, assessing the condition of the Navy's fleet.

Bunce served with distinction during his 40-plus year career in the United States Navy, attaining the rank of Rear Admiral, in 1898. A graduate of one of the earliest classes of the United States Naval Academy in 1857, he gained attention for his service during the Civil War where he served in various roles and assisted in the Union Army's naval blockade of the Confederate States. Immediately after the war, he commanded the USS Monadnock around the treacherous Cape Horn on a voyage to California, the first long distance deployment of an ironclad monitor. Also, he at various points took command of the Boston, Washington, D.C., and New York Navy Yards, as well as commanded several gunboats, cruisers, and sloops-of-war. His leadership as commander-in-chief of the North Atlantic Squadron from 1895-97 saw the fleet modernized into an effective combat unit that would successfully defeat the Spanish Navy during the Spanish-American War in 1898. As Commodore and Commandant of the Navy Yard in New York, he released the famous USS Maine on its voyage to Havana. He died in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1901 and is buried there, in Cedar Hill, Cemetery.

By descent in the Bunce family, and never before offered for sale.