Letter Signed by Abraham Lincoln
Brick Store Museum Collection, 2867. Gift of Mrs. Albert J. Moore, 1956.

Charles Shapleigh of Malden, Massachusetts, wrote to Abraham Lincoln in 1860 requesting an autograph. Lincoln responded with this letter, bearing the postmark from Springfield, Illinois. The handwritten form letter response is one which Lincoln replicated verbatim for scores of other autograph requests; it reads:

Springfield, Ill, June 2, 1860
Chas. H. Shapleigh, Esq.

Dear Sir:
You request an autograph, and here it is.
Yours truly,
A. Lincoln

Experts agree that Lincoln's signature is authentic and in good condition. What makes this note interesting is that the entire letter is in Lincoln's hand. In later years--as requests to Lincoln grew more abundant--Lincoln's secretary would pen the letters, and Lincoln would simply sign them. In July 2007, the Museum's letter was digitally scanned for The Papers of Abraham Lincoln, a project of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.