Our Collection

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.

Allen, Charles Herbert (1848-1934) to John G. Walker

High-resolution images are available to schools and libraries via subscription to American History, 1493-1943. Check to see if your school or library already has a subscription. Or click here for more information. You may also order a pdf of the image from us here.

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03804.28 Author/Creator: Allen, Charles Herbert (1848-1934) Place Written: Washington, D.C. Type: Autograph endorsement signed Date: 19 August 1898 Pagination: 1 p. : docket ; 26.6 x 20.2 cm. Order a Copy

Typed letter on office letterhead of the Secretary of the Navy John D. Long. Written by Allen as Assistant Secretary of the Navy (on the letter his title is noted as "Acting Secretary") to Walker as a retired Rear Admiral. Asks him to go to Washington D.C. for further instructions in connection with his duties as a "Senior Member of a Board for the location of a bridge across the Niagara River." Docket signed by Walker saying he completed the journey from Wilton, New Hampshire to Washington. Stamp on verso from the U.S. Navy Pay Office says Walker received a mileage payment of $38.64 on 10 September 1864.

In 1898 President William McKinley named Allen Assistant Secretary of the Navy when Theodore Roosevelt resigned the post to enter the Spanish-American War. He held this position from 1898 to 1900. At the end of the war President McKinley appointed Allen as the first civil governor of Puerto Rico. Allen retired from this post in 1901 with the island government out of debt and with over one million dollars in its treasury.

Walker, John

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources