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At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

Blair, James (b. 1819) to Elizabeth Blair

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03209.27.02 Author/Creator: Blair, James (b. 1819) Place Written: Valparaiso, Chile Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 26 April 1839 Pagination: 3 p. : address ; 25.4 x 20 cm. Order a Copy

Writes to his sister from the United States Ship Peacock. Relates his travels through Rio de Janeiro and the Antarctic Circle. Discusses his study and use of Spanish in port. Inquires about his parents, including Washington, D.C. "Globe" newspaper editor Francis Preston Blair.

The Peacock was one of six vessels in an expedition established to provide accurate naval charts for the whaling industry. James and Elizabeth Blair were the children of Francis Preston Blair, editor of the Democratic Washington, D.C. newspaper, The Globe, 1829-1845.

Lee, Elizabeth Blair, 1818-1906
Blair, James, 1819-?
Blair, Francis Preston, 1791-1876

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