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Lot 262
Lot Description
Folio (12 1/2 x 18 1/2 in.) Paper-covered boards containing 11 issues, each 4 pages (boards heavily worn, partially separated at spine; issues disbound from covers, staining, scattered spotting, toning, chipping, occasional insect damage, and wear to margins). Includes Vol. 1, Nos. 1 - 11, dated: 21 and 28 August 1856; 4, 11, 18, and 25 September 1856; 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30 October 1856.
A political newspaper published at Burlington, Iowa during the 1856 Presidential campaign by George Robertson (1831-1884) to further the agenda of the short-lived American or “Know Nothing” Party. Provenance: Descended in the family of George Robertson and acquired from the estate of his great-great nephew, John Flournoy Henry V of Tulsa, Oklahoma (consignor notes).
The 11 issues include endorsements of Millard Fillmore from Sam Houston of Texas, as well as former governors, senators, and other statesmen. Other notable articles include an account of an attack in Franklin, Kansas by Free State men, with a proceeding article that indicates Congress will be meeting to "settle the Kansas matter." Abolition and enslavement are also topics of discussion throughout the newspapers, including a column reporting on "Fremont and Slavery, his votes in the US Senate," and another column entitled, "Col. Fremont an Advocate of the Fugitive Slave Law. His open vindication of it!!"
EXCEPTIONALLY RARE: No original copies or microfilm copies of the publication have been located in OCLC. Furthermore, no reference to the 1856 True American has been found in The People's Voice: An Annotated Bibliography of American Presidential Campaign Newspapers, 1828-1984, by William Miles.