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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.

Sherman, William T. (William Tecumseh), 1820-1891 to Philemon Ewing

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC04931 Author/Creator: Sherman, William T. (William Tecumseh), 1820-1891 Place Written: St. Louis, Missouri Type: Autograph letter signed Date: January 20, 1862 Pagination: Order a Copy

Brigadier General Sherman reflects upon his suitability for high command and notes the handicap of having been influenced by his years spent in the South, "I am not fit to be a leader in such a war, and have from the first desired to keep in the background ..." Written from Benton Barracks near St. Louis on stationary marked "Head-Quarters, Camp of Instruction."

Sherman, William T. (William Tecumseh), 1820-1891
Ewing, Philemon, 1820-1896

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