EUR
CAD
AUD
GBP
MXN
HKD
CNY
MYR
SEK
SGD
CHF
THBPan-American Exposition Director William Buchanan, Archive Incl. Grover Cleveland and Theodore Roosevelt Signed Documents, Pl
About Seller
6270 Este Ave.
Cincinnati , OH 45232
United States
With offices in Cincinnati, Cleveland and Denver, Cowan’s holds over 40 auctions each year, with annual sales exceeding $16M. We reach buyers around the globe, and take pride in our reputation for integrity, customer service and great results. A full-service house, Cowan’s Auctions specializes in Am...Read more
Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Two ways to bid:
- Leave a max absentee bid and the platform will bid on your behalf up to your maximum bid during the live auction.
- Bid live during the auction and your bids will be submitted real-time to the auctioneer.
Bid Increments
| Price | Bid Increment |
|---|---|
| $0 | $25 |
| $500 | $50 |
| $1,000 | $100 |
| $2,000 | $250 |
| $5,000 | $500 |
| $10,000 | $1,000 |
| $20,000 | $2,500 |
| $50,000 | $5,000 |
| $100,000 | $10,000 |
About Auction
LiveNov 17, 2017 - Nov 18, 2017
Cowan's Auctions dawnie@cowans.com
View Full Catalog (372)
- Lot Description
A captivating collection of approximately 23 items, featuring 14 documents related to the Pan-American Exposition Director, William Insco Buchanan, with dates ranging from 1893-1929. As General Director, Buchanan organized the construction, operation, and dismantling of what many would call the "City of Light," the dazzling 1901 World's Fair located in Buffalo, New York. Collection comprised of personal notes, newspaper articles, official documents from Presidents of the United States, the World's Congress Auxiliary, the Department of State, etc., as well as an aerial "Plan of of the Pan American Exposition."
Highlights of the collection include:
Cleveland, Grover (1837-1908). 22nd and 24th President of the United States. Manuscript DS as President of the United States, 2pp, 10.25 x 14 in., Washington, DC. August 6, 1896. Also signed by Acting Secretary of State William Woodville Rockhill, with United States Seal affixed. Document recognizes William Buchanan as Minister to the Argentine Republic, investing "power and authority for and in the name of the United States to...negotiate, conclude and sign a convention for the extradition of criminals...to be transmitted to the President of the United States..."
Roosevelt, Theodore (1858-1919). 26th President of the United States. DS as President of the United States, 1p, 10.5 x 14 in., Washington, DC. December 26, 1908. Also signed by Secretary of State Elihu Root, with United States Seal affixed. Document appoints William Buchanan High Commissioner in diplomatic relations with Venezuela.
Carnegie, Andrew (1835-1919). Steel tycoon, industrialist, and leading philanthropist. DS as Vice-Chairman of the Pan-American Committee of the United States, 2pp, 9 x 11.5 in., Washington, DC. November 22, 1909. Also signed by other executive committee members. Resolution recognizes and laments the death of William Buchanan, and poignantly memorializes "a man, who while none the less a patriot and devoted to the ideals of his own country, yet was ever ready to lend his strength and voice to the cause of truth, justice and humanity throughout all the world..." A signed copy was sent to Buchanan's bereaved family.
The collection also includes 3 photographs, of which 2 show William Buchanan, including a cabinet photograph by Rockwood, NY, and a 4.75 x 6.75 in. tintype providing a full standing studio view of Buchanan; plus a 7.5 x 9.5 in. silver gelatin print (on printing out paper) of five men posed together, with no annotations, but possibly showing a group of officials associated with the Pan-American Exposition.
Accompanied by the following titles:
Peabody, Selim H. Catalogue of Exhibitors in the United States Sections of the International Universal Exposition. Paris: Societe Anonyme des Imp
rimeries Lemercier, 1900. 12mo, 560pp, plus "Volume Annexe." With "Twenty-five copies of this catalogue have been bound in this form for special distribution. This copy is numbered 22" Slip mounted on endpaper. Holls, Frederick W. The Peace Conference at the Hague and its Bearings on International Law and Policy. New York: The MacMillan Company, 1900. Small 8vo, 572pp. Signed and inscribed on ffep to W.I. Buchanan from John Barrett, First Director General of the Pan-American Union.
Pan-American Exposition: Report of William I. Buchanan, Director General. Buffalo, NY: 1902. Small 8vo, paper wrappers, 85pp.
Report of the Delegates of the United States to the Third International Conference of the American States Held at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, July 21, to August 26, 1906. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1907. Small 8vo, paper wrappers, 180pp.
Buchanan, William I. The Central American Peace Conference Held at Washington, DC, 1907. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1908. 8vo, 97pp, with inked note on ffep.
Shaw, Albert, Ed. The American Review of Reviews. New York: The Review of Reviews Co., July 1908. Vol. XXXVIII. No. 222.
Ohio native William I. Buchanan (1852-1909) was an obvious choice for Director of the Pan-American Exposition due to his wealth of experience and knowledge in the fields of Latin American diplomacy and exposition organization. Buchanan served as Minister to Argentina from 1894-1899, Minister to Panama from 1903-1904, and a diplomat agent at many Latin American Congresses from 1901-1909. He also served as a South American representative of New York Life Insurance Company and Westinghouse Company, roughly between the years 1898-1909. Given the 1901 exposition's Pan-American theme and its promotion of "a closer union among the American nations," this experience was highly relevant to Buchanan's work on the event. Buchanan had also organized other such projects, including the Sioux City Corn Palaces, and most notably, the Columbian Exposition of 1893.
The Pan-American Exposition lasted from May to November, 1901, sprawling across more than 350 acres in Buffalo, New York. The city was chosen because of its large population and easy railroad access. The advent of the alternating current power transmission system in the United States made it possible to light the exposition using power generated at Niagara Falls. The illumination produced an effect so beautiful at night that the featured The Buffalo Times article called it, "the most remarkable innovation that the exposition furnished." Unfortunately, the exposition was perhaps most famous as the location of the assassination of President William McKinley. He was shot at the Temple of Music on September 6, 1901, and died eight days later of a gangrene infection from his wounds.
Provenance: Descended in the Family of William Buchanan
Condition
Documents are in varying conditions, all consistent with age of items. There are only a few tears in letters and certificates, with most being completely intact. The copy of The Illustrated Buffalo Express features the most significant brittleness, tearing, and discoloration, with tears at the edges of each page. Map of the exposition is framed, and newspaper clipping from The Buffalo Times is laminated.
Eliminate the Hassle of Third-Party Shippers: Let Cowan's Ship Directly To You!
If you'd like a shipping estimate before the auction, contact Cowan's in-house shipping department at shipping@cowans.com or 513.871.1670 x219. - Shipping Info
-
Eliminate the Hassle of Third-Party Shippers: Let Cowan's Ship Directly To You!
If you'd like a shipping estimate before the auction, contact Cowan's in-house shipping department at shipping@cowans.com or 513.871.1670 x219.
At the request of the buyer, Cowan's will authorize the shipment of purchased items. Shipments usually occur within two weeks after payment has been received. Shipment is generally made via UPS Ground service. Unless buyer gives special instructions, the shipping method shall be at the sole discretion of Cowan's Auctions, Inc.. Cowan's is in no way responsible for the acts or omissions of independent handlers, packers or shippers of purchased items or for any loss, damage or delay from the packing or shipping of any property.
-
- Buyer's Premium
