Partly-printed DS as president, one page, 21.25 x 16.5, August 26, 1861. Four-language ship’s papers issued to “Alfred C. Davis, master and commander of the Barque called Nimrod…lying at present in the port of New Bedford, bound for Pacific Ocean and laden with Provisions, Stores, and utensils for a whaling voyage.” Signed in the third panel by Lincoln and countersigned by Secretary of State William Seward. Intersecting folds, some tape reinforcement on reverse to folds and edges, and a bit of mild toning, otherwise fine condition. The white wafer seal is crisp and intact.
Departing from New Bedford, Massachusetts, the whaling capital of the world, at the close of August 1861, the Nimrod spent sixteen months in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, landing over 350 barrels of sperm oil—a sought-after product during the war, as it was the ideal lubricant for light, rapid machinery and one of the best oils to burn for light. The ship would embark upon only one voyage after this one; on June 26, 1865, it was burned in the Bering Sea by the C.S.S. Shenandoah, one of the most feared commerce raiders in the Confederate Navy, responsible for capturing, sinking, or bonding almost 40 Union merchant vessels. An attractive and crisply signed document for one of the soon-to-be victims of the rebel navy. Pre-certified John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA.
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