510503
Harry S. Truman
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Harry S. Truman, 1884-1972. 33rd President of the United States. Mint condition Typed Letter Signed, Harry S. Truman, one page, 7¼” x 10½” on personal stationery, May 9, 1967.
Former President Truman writes to Olive Truman, the widow of his first cousin, Major General Ralph E. Truman, to acknowledge her birthday greetings. In full: “I was pleased to receive your note and birthday greetings, and am glad to hear that Louis will be in the area before long. / I hope everything is going well with you and that it will continue to go that way. I am still confined to the house mostly but hope with spring weather at hand I’ll be able to get out and about more.”
Olive Lougrette Johnson Truman was the second wife of Ralph Emerson Truman (1880-1962), who commanded the 35th Division, a National Guard division of which Harry S. Truman was a member during World War I. Ralph went through the Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War II before retiring from active duty. His first wife, Nanny Louise Watson Truman, died in 1930. Louis Watson Truman (1908-2004), whom Harry mentions in this letter, was Ralph’s son by Nanny. He spent 35 years in the United States Army, commanding the Third Army and retiring as a lieutenant general.
Interestingly, this version of Truman’s letterhead does not have a period after the “S,” although earlier versions of the letterhead do. Truman’s parents gave him only the middle initial “S” in order to name him after both of his grandfathers, Anderson Shippe Truman and Solomon Young. Truman typically signed his full signature without the period, and we do not recall ever seeing a cursive Truman signature with it, although Truman used it in the rare instances in which he printed his name and always used it when his name was typed. He also typically used the period with his initials, but we have seen initials signed both with and without it. In a 1970 letter, Truman told middle school student James E. Rogan—later Congressman Rogan—that the “S” could be used either with or without the period. See James E. Rogan, Rough Edges 48 (2004).
Correspondence between presidents and their relatives is not commonly available. This letter has excellent provenance, because we obtained it directly from a member of the Truman family. To our knowledge it has not been on the market before.
This letter is in mint condition, with only two normal mailing folds, neither of which affects the signature. Truman has signed in blue ballpoint pen.
Unframed.
Click here to see more Truman items on the Presidents page.
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