This lot is closed. Bidding ended on 12/10/2001.
Rock-ribbed Republican William McKinley was elected the 25th President of the United States in 1896. A onetime Ohio governor, he was staunchly pro-business and took the nation into the Spanish-American War before being assassinated by an anarchist named Leon Czolgosz on September 6, 1901 in Buffalo, N.Y., which elevated VP Theodore Roosevelt into the presidency. McKinley signed this letter dated July 25, 1896 a month after being nominated at the GOP convention in St. Louis and embarking on his famous campaign against William Jennings Bryan. Written on McKinley's personal stationery, it is addressed to a New York man named Daniel O'Dell and reads, "My dear sir: I am much obliged for the frankness and courtesy of your favor of the 18th inst. Very truly yours, "William McKinley," and is signed with a large, bold signature in black fountain pen that rates a near perfect 10. The 5" x 8" letter on off-white paper is in excellent condition with three small perforations at the top and two unobtrusive fold marks.