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.

Welles, Gideon, 1802-1878 Diary of Gideon Welles

Order a pdf of this item here.

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC00584 Author/Creator: Welles, Gideon, 1802-1878 Place Written: Boston, Massachusetts Type: Header Record Date: 1911 Pagination: 3 v. p., 653 p. : , 671 p. : Height: 24 cm, Width: 17 cm Order a Copy

Three volume diary of Gideon Welles, with an autograph letter signed from Welles to Andrew Boyd pasted to front of first volume. The diary recounts Welles' tenure as the Secretary of the Navy. Each volume contains several illustrations of photographs of important figures in Welles' life. In the letter Welles denies Boyd's request for documents regarding Abraham Lincoln. Welles says he is unwilling to part with these. The two page letter was written 9 March 1890, from Hartford, Connecticut. Boyd, an author, requested the documents because he wished to publish them in his "Memorial Lincoln Bibliography," first published in 1870. Welles writes of Lincoln, "It was my fortune to be associated with him in personal & official intimacy at an eventful period. I saw him in joy and sorrow, and witnessed his expiring breath."

Welles, Gideon, 1802-1878
Boyd, Andrew, fl. 1911

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources