Gadsden, James (1788-1858) to E. Burr
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC03587.27 Author/Creator: Gadsden, James (1788-1858) Place Written: Charleston, South Carolina Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 19 July 1857 Pagination: 2 p. : address ; 25 x 20 cm. Order a Copy
Discusses his past letters that have not reached Dr. Burr. Requests a report detailing the conditions in Mexico. Says that Mrs. Monk informs him that Burr refused to deliver Cripps' goods. Hopes that there was a misunderstanding. Would like Burr to let him know which of his possessions are still for sale. Gadsden had left property in Mexico and periodically inquired as to how his sales were getting along. Imprint illegible. Date inferred from mention of news from Mrs. Monk, Cripps' mother, who died December 1857.
Gadsden was a railroad promoter and advocated a Southern rail system, the purpose of which would be to control the trade of the South and the West, thereby freeing those regions from their dependency on the North. To further this end he promoted Southern commercial conventions, and at a convention in 1845 he boldly urged the construction of a railroad to the Pacific. In 1853, when Jefferson Davis was Secretary of War in Pierce's cabinet, Gadsden was appointed minister to Mexico to negotiate for territory along the border. The result was the Gadsden Purchase. He was recalled in 1856 for exceeding his instructions.
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