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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.

Garfield, James A. (James Abram), 1831-1881 to Louis Abraham

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC05559 Author/Creator: Garfield, James A. (James Abram), 1831-1881 Place Written: Washington, District of Columbia Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 1879/02/18 Pagination: 2 p. : Height: 24.2 cm, Width: 19 cm Order a Copy

Discusses the separation of church and states. Corrects a misunderstanding from a speech in which he gave the impression that the "Constitution forbade the states to make any law in aid of religion." What he meant was that the spirit of American institutions was against the establishment of state religion, as is "the tendency of American opinion. Also argues that the exemption of the YMCA and churches in Washington D.C. should be considered aids to educational instead of "Congressional Legislation about religion."

Garfield, James A. (James Abram), 1831-1881
Abraham, Louis, fl. 1879

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