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.

Buchanan, James, 1791-1868 to John Letcher re: explaining his opposition to War of 1812

Order a pdf of this item here.

Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC06771.01 Author/Creator: Buchanan, James, 1791-1868 Place Written: s.l. Type: Autograph letter signed Date: 1848/04/24 Pagination: 2 p. : Height: 25 cm, Width: 20 cm Order a Copy

Explaining his opposition, as "a student of law & a very young man," to the declaration of war against Great Britain at the beginning of the War of 1812, which "however, did not prevent me from sustaining the war... as an individual and as a member of the Legislature of Pennsylvania." Letcher was serving as a Democratic delegate for president and seeking information. Buchanan was not nominated in 1848 (Polk was)

Citation Guidelines for Online Resources