Search Results: Transportation from Kurt A. Sanftleben, LLC

Disbound. Very good. This 12-page disbound extract is from "Papers in Mechanicks," Transactions of the Society, Instituted at London, for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce, Vol. 9 (1791), pages 159-168 and Plate IV. It contains reports of "Rewards offered for taking Wales by the Gun-Harpoon, in the year 1790" including "Certificates" and "Premiums, being Three Guineas for each Fish so taken, paid to the . . . Harpooners." Eight rewards were given to harpooners. Most importantly, however, it includes a report of a 10-Guinea reward granted to Charles Moore for inventing a viable harpoon gun able to be used despite saturation by ocean spray that made their accomplishments possible. An example of a harpooner's reward reads, "Charles Fox, harpooner of the said ship Simond, on the 30th of June 1790, at 1 A.M. being in latitude 71° 14' north, and about sixteen or seventeen fathoms distant from a Wale Fish, perceiving her going down, fired with the harpoon-gun made by Mr.… Read More

"The Tribunal declares a Good Prize the Merchandizes of the Cargo of the said Sloop Diana of Alexandria . . . and awards them to the Owners, Captain and Crew of the said French Privateer le Trepied, Captain Antoine Pellegrin. . .."
Various locations, 1798.
This archive consists of 11 documents related to the voyage, seizure, plundering, and eventual return of the Sloop Diana out of Alexandria, Virginia. The ship was captured twice by French privateers while bound for Cape Nicholas Mole, Saint-Domingue, and Port au Prince, Haiti. This was one of the incidents that led to the United States' Quasi-War with France between 1798 and 1801.
On 15 December, Captain Henry Nicoll departed Alexandria, Virginia, on the Sloop Diana with a cargo of flour, pilot bread, butter, beef, pork, onions, and spermaceti candles.
Although just "off the pitch of Cape Henry [with] the wind blowing fresh, one of his Crew, named Thophilus Townshend, fell overboard and was drowned." Nothing else out of the ordinary occurred until… Read More

Newburyport, Massachusetts, 1802. Unbound. Very good. This partially printed shipping document dated "June 8th, 1802" measures 8" x 6¼". It is illustrated with a large capital 'S' that depicts an oceangoing ship in the background. In it, Moses Brown of Newburyport, commits to transporting rum and sugar to Amsterdam via the Brig Respect, captained by John March. In nice shape with some toning and storage folds. Of note, the document is franked with a colorless, embossed, two-part 20-cent revenue stamp (Scott # RM261a) from the Second Federal Revenue Issue, which was in use from 1 March 1801 until 30 June 1802. The first part of the stamp shows an eagle and shield and is denominated 10 cents. The second part, known as a counter stamp, shows a wreath with 13 stars; it is labeled "COM. REV. C.S." (Commissioner of Revenue Counter Stamp) and bears the denomination "X CENTS". Both parts appear along the left margin, under the S/Ship illustration. The document reads in part: "Shipped, in good order,… Read More

1809. Unbound. Very good. This turned, two-page stampless folded letter, measuring 16" x 13" unfolded, was first sent by Moses Rogers, master of the steamboat Phoenix which traveled between New York Harbor and the Delaware River on the first steam-powered, ocean-going voyage in American waters between New York Harbor and the Delaware River. The letter was answered by General Jedidiah Huntington, the "Collector of the Port" in New London, Connecticut on August 30, 1809. It bears a "17" rate mark, a curved "PAID" handstamp, and an indistinct circular handstamp. It was turned, i.e., returned and addressed to Rogers "onboard the Steam boat Phanex (Phoenix), with a "17" rate mark and a manuscript postmark reading "N. London / Septr 5". (This is likely the fourth earliest known steamboat-carried letter and the first that was not carried by Robert Fulton's North River Line). In nice shape. In it, Rogers requested that Huntington issue his associate, a "sick & disabled' merchant seaman named Martin A.… Read More

Canton, China to Philadelphia, 1816. This stampless folded letter from Philip Ammidon (an early American opium dealer, in Canton, China) to Benjamin Ives Gilman in Philadelphia measures 16½" x 9½" unfolded. It was sent on 30 November 1816 and is one of two copies sent by Ammidon to ensure his message was received. As this letter was sent long before mail from China was officially routed through the U.S. Consulate in Shanghai, it was privately carried and bears no postal markings. It is likely the second earliest extant commercial letter sent to the United States from China. In nice shape. It reads in part: "I am shipping, on board the Ship North Point , John C. Paneson, a quantity of Teas & Silk, & I request that immediately upon receipt of this, you will affect insurance for my account on Said property, to Amount of Fourteen thousand five hundred Dollars ($14,500) at from Whampow to Baltimore, or a port of discharge in the United States, against all risk. The North Point is a fine . . . Ship,… Read More

Washington DC: U.S. Senate, 1852. Stabbed binding. Very good. 32nd Congress, 1st Session, Senate, Miscellaneous No. 73: April 26, 1852. Memorial of the Legislature of Wisconsin praying A grant of land to aid the improvement of the Wisconsin river between Fort Winnebago and the Beaulieux Rapids.
Approximately 6.5" x 9". Two pages of text, seven full page maps with blank backs, and one chart with blank back. Never bound; connected with the original string through a single stab hole. Minor edgewear with dampstain at the upper corner of several leaves; otherwise in nice shape. The stabbed binding made it impossible to scan all of the maps without causing damage.
The pamphlet "showeth that the improvement of the Wisconsin river above Fort Winnegago, so as to facilitate the passage of lumber, rafts, and flat boats, is a matter of very great importance, and that such a work would tend to enhance the value of the lumbering, agricultural and iron interests of the country washed by the Wisconsin river and… Read More

Loudonville [Ohio], 1852. Unbound. Very good. This four-page letter from E. F. Judkins is datelined "Loudonville [Ohio] December 19 1852". There is no mailing envelope. In this letter, Judkins, who was apparently the foreman of a track-laying crew for the Ohio & Pennsylvania Railroad relates the difficulties he is facing and his hope to soon be appointed as a conductor. "The next week after you left I went to Wooster to get some money to pay the men that were to work for me and Bailey sent me to this place to buy timber. . .. I am at present track laying here and a hard time I have had no boarding places and men not worth a damn and no chance to change off for better but I am in hopes that I shall not be here always for I have something better in view I spoke for a situation on the road when it is finished and the men I spoke to applied to Mr Courtney the present superintendent for a Conductors birth for me and he said I should have it and when I get there if you want to go with me on a train I… Read More

[Norwich: Norwich & Worcestor Rail Road Company, 1855. Ribbon-bound. Very good. This 8" x 10" six-page, ribbon-bound document, dated May 1st 1855, from Acting President of the Norwich & Worcestor Rail Road Company G. S. Perkins, appoints "Richard Coulburn" (sic Colburn) as the Master Machinist responsible for company's Machine Shop and Motive Power. It charges Colburn with supervision of the five men assigned to the "Machine and Smith Shops" as well as the railroads "Engine Drivers." He is given the authority to hire employees, designate their duties, and if necessary, "discharge" them for cause. It also makes clear that Coulburn is authorized to act for the company president with regard to all measures regarding the "Locomotive department," and "1st To repair, and keep in repair, all the Locomotive and Tenders of the corporation. . .. "2d To do this with the greatest possible economy and pumplitude. "3d To take care of the building and machinery [and] see that the Engine drivers, Firemen, and… Read More

Plymouth, Massachusetts, 1864. Unbound. This manuscript invoice datelined "Plymouth. Feb. 24, 1864," measures 8.5" x 14". It is titled, "Invoice of Cordage forwarded by Railroad to Boston and sold to Owners New Schooner Israel Snow Esq. Rockland & others by Plymouth Cordage Co." . Israel Snow was a Rockland, Maine ship captain who retired from sailing to open Snow's Point Shipyard in 1862 and it would soon become the largest shipyard in New England. (Although more ships were built in Bath, they were built at several different shipyards.) The Snow Shipyard remained in family hands until it was sold to General Seafoods after World War II. The Plymouth Cordage Company was opened in Plymouth, Massachusetts by Bourne Spooner in 1824. By 1900 it employed over 100 workers and had become one of the largest manufacturers of rope and twine in the world. It wasn't simply a company, but an entire community that catered to is workers and provided housing, medical facilities, a school, a library, a gymnasium, a… Read More

Various, 1874. Unbound. Very good. These three letters were all written by Edward ("Santa") St. Croix Oliver to family members during his time as a sea captain; one also includes a letter from his wife Sarah ("Sallie") Jane Johnson St. Croix. Two of the letters are in nice shape, and one has some insect/rodent predation that affects a very small amount of text. One is enclosed in a heavily worn mailing envelope from the Canary Islands that bears a manuscript annotation "African Mail", a Liverpool "Paid" transit mark, and a New York City "U.S. Currency" postmark. The other two letters are from Guanape, Peru and Leghorn (Livorno), Italy Transcripts will be provided. Oliver ran away from his Boston home in 1850 at the age of 17 to become a sailor for the next thirty years. He captained three different ships, all with disastrous results. His first ship, the Harry Bluff, struck South Shoal off Nantucket and ruptured its hull while carrying a cargo that included 1,200 tons of salt. As the salt began… Read More

Emigrant Landing Depot, Castle Garden New York City: Commissioners of Emigration of the State of New York, 1876. Unbound. Very good. This certificate measures 7¾" x 8¾" and is titled and datelined "Commissioners of Emigration of the State of New York, / Emigrant Landing Depot, Castle Garden / New York, March 30th 1876." It bears a red embossed seal that reads "Commissions of Emigration of the State of New York". In nice shape. The document reads in part: "This is to Certify, that it appears from the Manifest, or List of Passengers of the Ship or Vessel 'Republic' on file in this office that George V. Anson of England aged thirty several years arrived at the Port of New York in the State of New York, and United States of America, in the said vessel from Liverpool, England on the twenty ninth day of February 1876, and that by a Report made to this office, it further appears that the said George V. Anson died on the fourth day of March one thousand eight hundred and seventy six in the State… Read More

Washington DC: U. S. Senate, 1892. Disbound. Very good. Letter from the Secretary of the Treasury in response to a resolution of the Senate of the 12th instant, transmitting a communication of the port physician of Philadelphia relative to the danger from the introduction of cholera through immigration. 52nd Congress, 2nd Session, U.S. Senate Executive Document #13. Washington, DC: 1892. Complete and in nice shape In this 10-page pamphlet which has been removed from a bound volume, E. O. Shakespeare, the Philadelphia Port Physician described the Cholera risk posed by steerage passengers arriving from Europe and argues against removing immigration restrictions. He specifically noted: "It is true that official declarations now indicate that cholera is no longer widely epidemic in Germany, Holland, or Belgium . . . the disease still lingers in those countries, and I wish to warn you that such official declarations rarely. . . represent the real truth. . .. Cholera exists to-day in southwestern… Read More

Gloversville, New York, 1896. Envelope or Cover. Very good. This advertising packet consists of three items: a form letter inviting Miss Emma Weatherbee to reserve her booking of the 1897 excursion, a four-page brochure providing information about the excursion, and the advertising envelope that was used to mail the items to Miss Weatherbee. All in nice shape with mailing folds as expected. A one-cent, blue U.S. stamped envelope (Scott Type U69) was used to mail these items. It features an image of the S. S. "City of Rome", the Anchor Line Steamer to be used for the "Excursion to Europe, 1897" with the return address for Helen M. Tarr, the 'signer' of the form invitation. The envelope is canceled with an undated, double-oval postmark from Gloversville, New York. The form letter suggesting that Helen Tarr was personally inviting Miss Weatherbee to join her "Select Private Party" on the excursion. The four-page brochure is illustrated with an image of the S.S. City of Rome and provides the… Read More

"Device consists of a combination of plane and hot-air dirigible. Under a large flat plane is a gas bag, divided in compartments, with schemes for supplying heated air, changing its temperature, etc."
Washington DC: United States Patent Office, 1909.
This six-page original patent is printed on thin cardstock with three pages of text and three pages of technical illustrations. It was awarded to Adolph Lubke, a resident of San Francisco, California. The leaves bear patent office file labels in the upper left corner that read, "244. AERONAUTICS / 26" and handstamps in the upper right corner that read, "Draftsman." They are fastened together at the bottom with an old brass paper fastener.
A 1909 issue of Aeronautics describes Lubke's proposed airship as follows:
"Device consists of a combination of plane and hot-air dirigible. Under a large flat plane is a gas bag, divided in compartments, with schemes for supplying heated air, changing its temperature, etc. Horizontal and vertical rudders. Motor and… Read More

Eau Claire, Wisconsin, 1910. Unbound. Very good. This four-panel illustrated advertising folder for wooden boats was printed in orange and black. It was sent by the Dunphy Boat Manufacturing Company in Eau Claire, Wisconsin to potential customer within the same city. It is franked with a one-cent green Franklin stamp (Scott #331) that is tied to the front panel with an Eau Claire flag cancelation dated March 22, 1910. In nice shape with a little postal soiling. The address panel features a large corner card stylized illustrations of the bows of five wooden Dunphy Boats. The two inside panels provide a photo-mechanical image and two line drawings of a Dunphy Boat. The text includes specifications and pricing for six models ranging from 18 to 28 feet. The three smaller models are priced between $200 and $225. There are additional short descriptions on the Frame, Planking, Decks, Cockpit, Painting, and Fittings. The rear panel, titled "Concerning Boat Value," touts the boats quality and value. .

"Taking survivors aboard. . .."
This large album measures 12" x 9.5" and contains well over 250 glued-in photographs, most measuring about 4" x 2.5". The photographs are captioned in white ink on 46 of the album's 48 pages. Ten additional photographs are laid-in including a 10" x 8" official group photograph of the crew (with a two-inch closed tear) and two smaller portrait photos of Chambron in uniform (one is full length). Everything is in nice shape.
The well-composed photos picture all members of the ship (quarterdeck, bow, guns, lifeboats, etc.), the ship's crew (many identified), dirigibles, other U.S. Navy vessels, dirigibles, airplanes, depth charges, prisoners, torpedoed and burning ships, rescue operations with survivors including mascots, and much more.
The Corsair III, a luxury yacht, was built by T. S. Marvel Shipbuilding for J. P. Morgan and launched in December 1898. After Morgan died, it was inherited by his son, J. P. Morgan Jr.
With the outbreak of World War One, the yacht was leased… Read More

Death Valley, California, 1919. Unbound. Very good. Each of these six photographs measure 5 3/4" x 3 3/8". All are captioned. Four are dated "1919" in their margins. One is dated "Thanksgiving 1919" in the margin. All have minor edgewear and light soiling; one bears a chip to the lower right margin not affecting the image. All have small pieces of black scrap book page remnants affixed to the reverse. The photographs are of different sections of the Pacific Coast Borax (PCB) complex at Death Valley Junction. 1. "Mt at D.V. Jct. Thanksgiving 1919" 2. "Mill PC. B. D.V. Calif." 3. "Cp of P.C.B. D.V., Calif 1919" 4. "P.C.B. Camp. Death Valley. Jct. 1919" 5. Station. Death Valley Jct. 1919" 6. "P.C. B. Co. D.V. 1919" The "Baby Gauge" Railroad, visible in some of the photographs was an ore-gathering extension of the Death Valley Railroad, which was itself an extension of the Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad. This extension was built by the Pacific Coast Borax (PCB) company to reach mines and claims… Read More

Wychwood, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, 1935. Envelope or Cover. Very good. This postal cover was sent by airmail from Wychwood, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin to the S.S. Manhattan at New York's Staten Island quarantine station. It is franked with two stamps, a 1-cent green Franklin stamp (Scott Type A155) and a 5-cent Beacon airmail stamp (Scott #C11) both tied to the envelope by a Lake Geneva postmark dated 17 March 1935. A "Sent To Ship / At Quarantine" handstamp dated 21 March 1935 is on the reverse. There are several "Airmail" hand stamps on the front along with an erroneous typed annotation "First Flight from SS Manhattan." No airmail flights were ever conducted from the ship; this "First Flight" annotation was probably added later by a philatelist either in ignorance or a misguided attempt to increase the cover's value. Quarantine practices continued in the 1930s as a general safety precaution, although there were no epidemic diseases posing an immediate threat to the United States. That said,… Read More

Includes many photographs of the national All-American Soap Box Derby finals at Akron, Ohio
Lancaster and Akron Ohio, 1969-1970.
This archive contains approximately 140 photographs ranging in size from 2.25" x 2.75" to 8" x 10". Most are b/w (about 30) and color (about 110) 3.5" square or 3.5" x 5" snapshots.
The others are b/w and include official "photo finish" shots and professional publicity photos.
Also included is a letter with a xerographic image of another racer and his car. All are in nice shape; about a half dozen of the snapshots have faded a little, and a similar number are blurred. A few of the images have notations in the margins or on their reverse. A few also have insignificant paper remnants on their reverse, presumably from a scrapbook.
These photographs capture David's and his family's involvement in the competition process, various cars, travel, race starts and finishes, cars speeding down derby hills, spectators at local events and packing the grandstands at Derby Downs, celebrity… Read More

U.S.S. Independence at New York, 1843. Envelope or Cover. Very good. This three-page stampless folded letter, measuring 16.5" x 9.5", is datelined "U. S. Ship Independence / New York, Nov. 21st. 1843." It bears a manuscript "12½" rate mark (the cost to send a letter from 80 to 150 miles) and a circular red New York postmark dated November 13. In nice shape; small hole from opening the seal. A transcript will be provided. When Greene wrote this letter, the U.S.S. Independence had just become the Flagship of the U.S. Home Fleet. As Greene awaited the ship's departure from New York, he penned this humorous, gossipy, and cattily racist letter to his wife, Catharine, in Philadelphia, who was recovering from a fairly serious illness. Excerpts include" "I . . . suppose that [your] fever, chill, &c, arose from inflammation of the face. . .. I am proud that my letter, or whatever it may be called, has affected a cure; it must indeed be from the quantity, and not from its quality. . .. I was under a… Read More